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THE LUTHERAN COMMENTARY 
 
 A PLAIN EXPOSITION OF THE 
 
 i^olp c^crijjturejBf of tfjc i^etJD ^t^tmmt 
 
 BY 
 
 SCHOLARS OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 HENRY EYSTER JACOBS 
 
 Vol. V. 
 
 €l)e Cjjrtjeftian literature €o. 
 
 MDCCCXCV 
 
"Vine. LutKcro^n comwcn \jLr^/. 
 
 ANNOTATIONS 
 
 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN 
 
 PROF. A. SPAETH, D.D. 
 
 Professor of Hermetieutics and N. T. Exegesis, Lutheran Seminary, Philadelphia, Pa. 
 
 flew l^orft 
 
 €fje Cf)n^tian Ititcrature <Co* 
 
 MDCCCXCVI. 
 
Copyright, 1896, 
 
 BY 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN UTERATURE COMPANY. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The treatment of the Gospel of St. John as presented 
 in this volume of the Lutheran Commentary is in some 
 respects different from the volumes which have thus 
 far appeared. 
 
 In the introduction the points referring to the Isagogics 
 of this Gospel have received somewhat fuller considera- 
 tion. The writer endeavored to give a brief survey of 
 those features which are peculiarly characteristic of the 
 fourth Gospel, and to show its relation to the other 
 Gospels, the three Synoptists. 
 
 The question of authorship has also been taken up in 
 a brief summary, furnishing the reader with the principal 
 testimonies in favor of the Apostle St. John as the writer 
 of this Gospel. This has been done without a full 
 " review of the battle that may be raging" about this 
 point, but in such a manner that the lay-members of the 
 Church may have within easy reach, a short survey of the 
 main question, and the leading arguments on the positive* 
 side. In view of the overtowering importance of the 
 fourth Gospel for the faith of the Christian Church, we 
 did not feel justified in passing this point in silence. 
 
 The exposition of the Gospel itself does not propose 
 to give a detailed explanation of the words of the text, 
 in a series of exegetical annotations from verse to verse. 
 It rather aims to set forth the contents of this most 
 
 iii 
 
iv PREFACE. 
 
 organic of all the Gospels, in one continuous argument. 
 Though the style and language of this exposition may 
 sometimes approach that of the homily rather than that 
 of a Commentary, the results here presented are based 
 on careful and conscientious exegetical studies, covering 
 the most prominent publications in the field of the exegesis 
 of this Gospel, down to the exposition of the Gospel of 
 St. John by Professor F. W, Bugge of Christiania, 
 Norway. This last named work, which came into the 
 author's hands after two-thirds of this exposition were 
 written, has been a great encouragement to him. For 
 what is offered in Bugge's commentary, the writer had 
 planned to present in a somewhat briefer and simpler 
 form, " a psychological exposition, which, without learned 
 discussions and excursus seeks to follow the one con- 
 tinuous thread which runs through the whole Gospel." 
 
 Some years ago the author delivered a course of seven 
 lectures on the Gospel of St. John for the American 
 Institute of Sacred Literature, in Philadelphia. Some of 
 these " Studies " were published in the Lutheran Church 
 Review and are substantially incorporated into this 
 
 volume. 
 
 A. S. 
 
PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 I. Introductory Ronarks. 
 
 It has been well said by Dr. M. Luther : " Let every 
 Christian exert himself to understand well the Gospel of 
 John and to be posted in it; for John is the master- 
 evangelist and his Gospel the one, true, tenderest 
 chief Gospel, a commentary and exposition of the whole 
 Bible." 
 
 Nor can we for a moment be in doubt concerning the 
 influence and importance of this Gospel in the history of 
 the Church. While it is true that Paul " labored more 
 abundantly than they all" in the missionary field, gather- 
 ing, organizing and building up the churches by his 
 preaching and his epistles, it is equally true that John 
 gave to the Church that clear consciousness of being a 
 communion of believers, with one confession in which 
 everything centres in the one mystery of God incarnate. 
 Take away the Gospel of John and where is our Nicene 
 Creed, with its ringing trumpet sounds: "God of God, 
 Light of Light, Very God of Very God?" Julian the 
 Apostate correctly saw the imprint of John in the whole 
 theology of the fourth century : " He is the cause of all 
 the mischief, for he declared that the Word was made 
 flesh." In the Reformation era the paramount influence 
 towards the restoration of sound Apostolic doctrine is 
 
 v 
 
vi PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 usually ascribed to the Pauline epistles, especially those 
 to the Romans and Galatians. While this was true 
 concerning the doctrines of sin and grace, we must not 
 forget that back of these doctrines, particularly in Luther's 
 teaching, stands the great and fundamental doctrine of 
 Christ's person, back of Paul stands John, with his tes- 
 timony of the true God-man. And as for our present 
 time, with its theological and religious conflicts, there can 
 be no doubt that everything turns again on the great, 
 old question : What think ye of Christ ? WHOSE SON 
 is He? Transfer this question to the sphere of New 
 Testament LITERATURE and it reads: What think ye of 
 the Gospel of John? What is it to you ? 
 
 II. The Life and Personal Character of the Apostle John. 
 
 With the exception of Judas Iscariot, all the Apostles 
 called by the Lord, during the three years of His public 
 ministry, were Galileans. So also was John, the son of 
 Zebedee and Salome, His mother was not, as has been 
 supposed by some,^ the sister of Mary the mother of 
 Jesus. His home was in oneof the towns along the lake of 
 Galilee, probably, not certainly, in Bethsaida. His father, 
 though a plain fisherman, seems to have been somewhat 
 wealthy. He had his " hired servants " (Mark i. 20), and 
 Salome was one of the women who ministered unto the 
 Lord of their substance (Luke viii. 2, 3). Her interest 
 in the cause of Jesus also manifests itself in that am- 
 bitious petition, that her sons might sit, one on the right, 
 the other on the left hand of the Lord in the kingdom of 
 God ; an ambition, though not altogether free from carnal 
 zeal, yet showing an unlimited devotion to the Lord's 
 
 1 In order to explain the intimate relation between John and Jesus. 
 
LIFE AND PERSONAL CHARACTER OF ST. JOHN. yii 
 
 cause. Under the training of this mother, the two sons, 
 James and John, were led to join the disciples of John 
 the Baptist as soon as he began to preach the kingdom 
 of heaven. John the Baptist directed him to the Lord, 
 probably with that striking testimony : " Behold the 
 Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world ; " 
 and John, in company with Andrew, the brother of 
 Peter, followed the Lord, as one of His first adherents 
 from the Jordan to Cana (John i. 35 ff.). In Galilee he 
 was formally called to the apostleship, together with his 
 brother James (Matt. iv. 21). Simon Peter and James 
 and John, the sons of Zebedee, are represented in the 
 Synoptical Gospels as standing in a more intimate re- 
 lation to the Lord than the other nine apostles. At the 
 raising of Jairus' daughter (Luke viii. 51), on the mount 
 of transfiguration (Matt. xvii. i, and Mark ix. 2) and in 
 the garden of Gethsemane (Mark xiv. 33, Matt. xxvi. 37), 
 they form the select inner circle nearest to their Lord. 
 And among these three there is one still nearer to the 
 heart of the Lord than the other two — one that is 
 anonymously spoken of as the disciple " whom Jesus 
 loved." It is the fourth Gospel, which, while it never 
 uses the name of the Apostle John, refers to this beloved 
 disciple in John xiii. 23, xix. 26, xx. 2, xxi. 7, 20 fT. 
 All these passages belong to the last chapters in the 
 life of the Lord, the history of His passion and glorifica- 
 tion, as if only through the experience of those mo- 
 mentous hours of parting and meeting again the writer 
 had come to a full consciousness of that special, personal 
 affection of his Lord and Master. John's claim to the 
 title " the beloved disciple " has been disputed by differ- 
 ent writers in recent times. But the disciple " whom 
 Jesus loved " was undoubtedly not only one of the 
 twelve, but one of the seven mentioned in John xxi. 2 ; 
 
viii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 yea, one of the three — Peter, James and John. It was 
 not Peter (see John xxi. 20), nor was it James whom Herod 
 killed with the sword (Acts xii. 2), about 44 A. D., and 
 of whom the opinion could never have been entertained 
 that " this disciple dieth not." It could only have been 
 John. He was on the bosom of the Lord at the Last Sup- 
 per ; under the cross with Mary, who was committed to his 
 care by her dying Son ; at the grave with Peter, on Easter 
 morning ; and at the Lake of Galilee with the risen Lord. 
 After Pentecost, as we learn from the Acts and Gala- 
 tians, John was one of the pillars of the Church in Jeru- 
 salem, but by far not so prominent as Peter, whose com- 
 panion and assistant he seems to have been (Acts iii. and 
 viii.).^ When Paul visited Jerusalem for the second time 
 (Gal. ii.) he met him there, about 50 or 51 A. D. After 
 the Council in Jerusalem (Acts xv.) we know nothing of 
 John until, in later years, Ephesus is fixed by early tradi- 
 tion as the place of his abode. He probably left Jeru- 
 salem at the outbreak of the Jewish war, 6'j A. D., when 
 the Christian community withdrew to Pella. Asia Minor 
 was then the most important and the most flourishing 
 territory of the young Christian Church. Jerusalem had 
 ceased to be the centre. Rome had not yet become the 
 centre. Ephesus, the principal city of Asia Minor, formed 
 a sort of half-way station between the two. There the 
 Apostle Paul, on taking his leave from the elders of the 
 Church, had foreseen and expected " grievous wolves to 
 enter in not sparing the flock — men speaking perverse 
 things, to draw away disciples after them " (Acts xx. 29 
 ff.). There we find false apostles and Nicolaitans (Rev. 
 ii. 2, 6). There, above all other places, the presence of 
 
 1 John is not mentioned as present in Jerusalem on the occasion of Paul's 
 first visit to that city (Gal. i. i8). Possibly he may have taken the mother 
 of the Lord, at that time, to his home on the Lake of Galilee. 
 
LIFE AND PERSONAL CHARACTER OF ST. JOHN. ix 
 
 the only surviving Apostle was needed. To John was 
 committed the task of continuing, defending and crown- 
 ing the work of St. Paul in Asia Minor, building up and 
 fully organizing in the unity of the faith the churches 
 founded by the former. The testimonies of the fathers 
 concerning John's sojourn in Ephesus are quite numerous 
 and strong;^ the principal witness being Irenaeus, who 
 still remembered Polycarp,^ the disciple of John, speak- 
 ing to his hearers of his beloved Master. At the time of 
 the persecution under the Roman emperor Domitian, 
 John was banished to the Isle of Patmos, and returned 
 from there to Ephesus under Nerva. He lived, prob- 
 ably, to the year loo or loi A. D. 
 
 Compared with the other apostles, especially Peter, 
 John was evidently of a quiet, reticent, meditative nature. 
 There is in him a good deal of Mary, the mother of the 
 Lord, who " kept all these sayings and pondered them 
 in her heart." While Peter rushes into action with the 
 question — What can I do ? walk on the water ? build 
 tabernacles ? smite with the sword ? go into prison and 
 to death ? — John stands in the background watching his 
 Lord with the one question : What is He doing? losing 
 himself in the contemplation of His glory. Thus he was 
 the man above all others not only to receive, but to 
 reflect the glory of the Lord, and to reproduce it most 
 fully in the presentation of his Gospel. What he ob- 
 served and retained in his quiet receptivity, he afterwards 
 testified most faithfully, without adorning or reconstruct- 
 ing it from his own imagination, simply being witness of 
 
 1 The various characteristic anecdotes or legends of the later life of the 
 Apostle, such as meeting Cerinthus in the public bath, rescuing the lost 
 youth, being carried into the assembly of the congregation, with his dying 
 admonition : " Little children, love one another," — all belong to Asia Minor. 
 
 2 Born A. D. 70. 
 
X PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 what he had heard and seen, with a certain monotonous 
 plainness. 
 
 This receptivity, however, is only one side in John's 
 character, the one turned towards the Lord. But there 
 is another side in him, turning towards the world and 
 everything that is against his Lord. Here we find him a 
 man of stern decision, and indomitable energy, admitting 
 of no compromises ; the son of thunder, ready to call the 
 fire from heaven upon the Samaritans, that would not 
 receive Jesus ; and forbidding the man whom he found 
 casting out devils in the Master's name, because he fol- 
 lowed not with them. The picture of John which we 
 are accustomed to see, with the soft, dreamy, feminine 
 features, is therefore a very incomplete and unsatisfactory 
 representation of his true character. It may be said 
 without hesitation that Paul, the fiery, zealous Paul, is 
 milder and gentler in many respects than John, the 
 " Apostle of love," who allows no middle ground, no 
 putting off or considering, but insists on your prompt 
 decision for or against, life or death, light or darkness, 
 truth or lie, love or hatred, God or devil. Paul, from his 
 own abundant experience, describes the process of justifi- 
 cation, the genesis and development of Christian life, the 
 transition from the old to the new, the continued struggle 
 between the flesh and the spirit, the old man and the 
 new. With John everything is complete, settled, decided ; 
 the battle is over, the victory won. His is the absolute, 
 the ideal presentation, not only of Christ, but also of the 
 Christian and of Christianity. He would never have 
 gained the heathen for the gospel as Paul did, becoming 
 all things to all men, that he might, by all means, save 
 some. But John was the man to hold what Paul had 
 gathered, and to guard it in its fulness and purity against 
 every admixture and defilement which threatened the 
 
RELATION BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTISTS. xi 
 
 Church towards the close of the ApostoHc era, when anti- 
 christian spirits were hfting up their heads, denying the 
 very foundation, Christ the God-man. John, who had so 
 little to say during the lifetime of the other apostles, had 
 the last word for the Church in those days of imminent 
 danger. Now he is right in sending the thunderbolts of 
 the Spirit against those Christian Samaritans, the heretics, 
 who strove to supplant the Gospel by a revised Judaism 
 or a paganism in Christian garb. Now he is right in 
 fighting those half-and-half men with his zealous, intoler- 
 ant love for the whole undivided Lord. Now the dilem- 
 ma is truth or lie, Christ or Antichrist. 
 
 III. TJie Gospel of St . J oh n . 
 
 I. THE RELATION BETWEEN THE FOURTH GOSPEL AND 
 THE THREE PRECEDING ONES, THE SYNOPTISTS. 
 
 The Church had no need to wait for the acuteness and 
 learning of modern criticism to make the important dis- 
 covery that between the first three Gospels, on the one 
 hand, and the last Gospel on the other, there are marked 
 differences, not simply as to form, style and manner of 
 treatment, but also in matter and contents ; which differ- 
 ences have been exaggerated by modern scientists into 
 an irreconcilable antagonism, so that with their " synop- 
 tical Christ," whom alone they will admit as historical, 
 they claim to be able to abolish and wipe out the Christ 
 of the fourth Gospel, — " a purely visionary and ideal ab- 
 straction, without true historical foundation." Augustine 
 pointed out the difference in this manner: "John has 
 risen higher than the other three Evangelists. They walk 
 with the Lord on earth as with a man, saying compara- 
 tively little of His divinity. But John soared above 
 
xii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 earth and heaven and all the hosts of angels, to come to 
 Him through whom all things are made. He spoke of 
 the Divinity of Christ as no other Evangelist has done. 
 Drinking from the fountain at the very bosom of the 
 Lord, he has proclaimed publicly what he drank in 
 privately." Thus far Augustine, and it is only fair to 
 say that the plainest Bible reader cannot fail to notice 
 the important and striking differences between John and 
 the Synoptists. 
 
 Let us try to look calmly but clearly into this whole 
 matter, seeking for the truth, and nothing but the truth, 
 and ready to accept it wherever it be found. First of 
 all, we will try to array the principal points of difference 
 against each other, and then we will consider the ques- 
 tion, whether these differences really involve contradic- 
 tions, or whether they do not rather serve as explanations, 
 complements and solutions of problems otherwise mys- 
 terious and unsatisfactory, thus proving that the different 
 accounts of the one Gospel of our Lord, presented by the 
 four Evangelists, belong together, and conjointly furnish 
 us that complete and many-sided picture of the Lord and 
 His work which the Church needs as the foundation for 
 a pure faith. 
 
 I. TJie Differences of a Chronological and Historical 
 Nature. — After the preliminary history of the birth and 
 childhood of the Lord and the preparatory work of His 
 forerunner, John the Baptist, the Synoptists, in narrating 
 the public ministry of the Lord, take us at once into His 
 Galilean ministrations ; Matthew, after a sort of general 
 description of the Galilean work (iv. 12-25), opening with 
 the Sermon on the Mount ; Mark, with the healing of the 
 demoniac in the synagogue at Capernaum ; Luke, with 
 the discourse in the synagogue at Nazareth, all three 
 showing a certain indifference as to the exact scene with 
 
RELATION BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTISTS. xiii 
 
 which the pubHc ministry of the Lord in GaHlee was 
 opened. But the fourth Gospel is very minute and care- 
 ful in describing the first ofificial beginnings of the Lord 
 in Judaea, long before the Galilean work began : the first 
 acquaintance of Jesus with His first disciples on the Jor- 
 dan (i. 35 ff.), the beginning of their faith strengthened 
 and developed by the first sign in Cana of Galilee, and 
 the first public appearance of Jesus as the Messiah, not 
 in Galilee, but in Jerusalem, in the sanctuary itself, the 
 centre of Israel's faith and worship. 
 
 The chronological arrangement of the life and work of 
 Jesus, according to the Synoptists, seems clear and plain 
 enough at first sight. It simply divides itself into two 
 principal parts: first, the Lord's work in Galilee; sec- 
 ondly, His going up to Jerusalem to suffer and die, to 
 rise from the dead and ascend into Heaven. It looks 
 like one continued stay in Galilee, uninterrupted by any 
 journeys to Judaea and Jerusalem, and finally one journey 
 to Jerusalem to end His life on the cross. The natural 
 impression from this account would be that the whole 
 public ministry of the Lord occupied just one year, and 
 this year, with the exception of the last week, spent in 
 Galilee or outside of Jerusalem. 
 
 How different the perspective which the Gospel of 
 John opens to our eyes ! It speaks of three (or possibly 
 four) distinct Easter seasons during the public life of the 
 Lord, thereby extending it over a period of three j^ears. 
 It mentions five or (if His coming to Bethany after Laz- 
 arus' death be counted separately) six different journeys 
 to Jerusalem, while it has very little to say of the works 
 and discourses of Christ in Galilee, though the signs 
 which He did there on them that were sick are referred 
 to in a general way (John vi. 2). After John the Baptist 
 had prepared the way for the Lord by his powerful testi- 
 
xiv PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 mony in Jiidcea (not in Galilee), it would have been 
 strange indeed if Christ Himself should have passed by 
 this territory at the beginning of His public ministry. 
 But the fourth Gospel tells us distinctly that He did make 
 His of^cial beginning in Judaea and Jerusalem, after His 
 Baptism by John, on His first Easter visit to the city. 
 After this beginning in Judcxa, He came to Galilee ^ 
 (John iv. 3), where the preaching of the Baptist had not 
 been heard. He therefore acts, so to speak, as His own 
 forerunner in Galilee. He begins there with preaching 
 exactly what the Baptist had been preaching in Judsea : 
 " Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." After a 
 few months He returns to Jerusalem for the next Pass- 
 over, iv. 45 ; v. I (supposing that ^ lopzr^ refers to this fes- 
 tival). Then and there already His teaching becomes such 
 an offence to the Jews that they seek to kill Him, " be- 
 cause He not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also 
 that God was His Father, making Himself equal with 
 God." At the time of the third passover mentioned in 
 John, Jesus is in Galilee (vi. 4), the reason for his Galilean 
 sojourn being again the enmity of the Jews : " He would 
 not walk in Judaea, because the Jews sought to kill Him " 
 (vii. i). At the Feast of the Tabernacles He again goes 
 up to Jerusalem, " not publicly, but as it were in secret " 
 (vii. 2, 10). About two months afterwards we find Him 
 in Jerusalem at the Festival of the Dedication (x. 22). 
 When they renewed their effort to take Him, He escaped 
 out of their hand, and went away beyond Jordan, to 
 Peraea, where John was first baptizing, and many believed 
 on Him there (x. 40-42). He returned to Bethany for 
 the raising of Lazarus (ch. xi.), which led to the final res- 
 
 1 The increase in the number of His disciples had been a provocation 
 and offence to the Pharisees. Hence His withdrawal into Galilee (John 
 iv. I ff.). 
 
RELATION BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTISTS. xv 
 
 olutionof the chief priests and Pharisees " to put Him to 
 death," He therefore departed once more into the coun- 
 try near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, 
 and there He tarried with His disciples. Then comes the 
 last Passover, His royal entrance into Jerusalem for His 
 passion and death. 
 
 This is in the main the order of events in the fourth 
 Gospel ; and while it opens many new aspects and clears 
 up many obscure points, it is nowhere in conflict with the 
 Synoptists, but presents the main pillars for a complete 
 and clear chronology of the Lord's public life, affording 
 ample space for all His work in Galilee and outside of 
 Jerusalem, as detailed by the Synoptists. The intervals 
 between the first Passover (John ii.) and the last (John xii.) 
 of which the fourth Gospel has no special doings or say- 
 ings of the Lord to record, though it defines them very 
 clearly, amount in all to about twenty-six months.-^ And 
 this is certainly room enough to store away every item 
 found in the Synoptical Gospels in distinction from John, 
 particularly if we remember that all the events and dis- 
 courses in the life of Christ which are given in the fourth 
 Gospel actually cover only thirty single days out of about 
 one thousand days of His public ministry ! 
 
 So far, then, the differences, however obvious, involve 
 no contradictions. Frequently the new and additional 
 information furnished in the fourth Gospel helps to clear 
 up dark passages and to remove misunderstandings. 
 The bright sunlight of ulterior harmony between John 
 and the Synoptists breaks through the passing clouds 
 which for a time threatened to overcast the sky. 
 
 It is admitted on all sides that the writer of the fourth 
 
 1 There are several months between John iv. and v. ; one month [possibly 
 a whole year] between ch. v. and vi. ; seven months between ch. vi. and 
 vii. ; three months between ch. vii. and x. 22. 
 
xvi PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 Gospel was well acquainted with the record of the Synop- 
 tists, and that he takes it for granted that they are also 
 well known to his readers. Neither the Synoptists, on 
 the one hand, nor the fourth Gospel, on the other, claim 
 completeness in their presentation of the life of Christ. 
 The impossibility of furnishing an absolutely complete 
 record of the many things He did is very forcibly set 
 forth in John xxi. 25 : " Even the world itself would not 
 contain the books that should be written." The Synop- 
 tists evidently knew of certain movements and doings of 
 the Lord which they, confining themselves to His Gali- 
 lean ministry, did not enter into more fully. And so the 
 writer of the fourth Gospel has a full knowledge of Gali- 
 lean events and other facts which he passes by. He 
 writes " as one who knows that there are other books 
 treating of the same subject, and who gives his own ac- 
 count rather unconcerned about his apparent agreement 
 or disagreement " (Renan). His recognition of the first 
 three Gospels does not mean dependence, much less an- 
 tagonism, but confirmation. In i. 40 Andrew is intro- 
 duced as the brother of Simon Peter, though the latter 
 has not been mentioned before in this Gospel. The dis- 
 tinct statement, John ii. 12, that at that time the Lord 
 abode in Capernaum "not many days" is evidently made 
 with a view to the longer sojourn of the Lord in Caper- 
 naum as His own city, of which the Synoptists have so 
 much to say. In John vi. 70 reference is made to the 
 choosing of twelve apostles as a previous fact, though the 
 fourth Gospel thus far has only narrated the calling of 
 five(i. 35 fT.) disciples. Again, this first calling of the five 
 as disciples of the Lord helps us to understand the readi- 
 ness with which, at a later period, on the Lake of Galilee, 
 they followed the call of the Lord, which made them 
 fishers of men, apostles, as the Synoptists tell us. In John 
 
REL A TION BE TWEEN JOHN AND THE S YNOP TIS TS. x v i i 
 
 xi. I Bethany is called the village of Mary and Martha, 
 though those sisters have not been mentioned before in 
 this Gospel. All these points, to which others might be 
 added, are in reality so many references to things gener- 
 ally known from the previous record of the Synoptists. 
 
 On the other hand, the Synoptists contain certain 
 passages which clearly demand or pre-suppose other and 
 more extended periods in the life of the Lord than those 
 belonging to His Galilean ministry. There is an ex- 
 tended section in the Gospel of St. Luke, forming more 
 than one-third of the whole book, from ix. 51 to the i8th 
 chapter, which deals with journeyings of the Lord be- 
 tween Galilee and Jerusalem. At first sight they may 
 impress us as being all in the South of Galilee and 
 (towards the end) in Peraea. But if we come to Luke 
 X. 38 and read : " As they went on their way, He entered 
 into a certain village, and a certain woman named Mar- 
 tha received Him into her house, and she had a sister 
 called Mary," — it is certainly the most natural thing to 
 think of Bethany, '' the village of Mary and Martha," as 
 the fourth Gospel calls it. 
 
 Again, the Synoptists tell us of certain people living in 
 Jerusalem and the neighborhood who, at very short notice, 
 were willing to grant to the Lord the use of their animals 
 (at the entrance into Jerusalem) and their house (at the 
 preparation of the Supper). They must have become 
 acquainted with Him on former occasions, so as to ac- 
 knowledge Him as their Lord and Master. The same 
 must be said of Joseph of Arimathea, who figures so con- 
 spicuously in the Synoptical Gospels as " a disciple of 
 Jesus " (Matt, xxvii. 57 ; Mark xv. 43; Luke xxiii. 50 ff.). 
 When and where did he become a disciple of the Lord if 
 not on former visits of Jesus to Judaea and Jerusalem ? 
 
 But the most direct and conclusive proof in this direction 
 2 
 
xviii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 is the well-known saying of the Lord (Luke xiii. 34 and 
 Matt, xxiii. 37) : " O Jerusalem, Jerusalem ! which killeth 
 the prophets and stoneth them that are sent unto her ! 
 Hoiv often would I have gathered thy children together, 
 even as a hen gathereth her own brood under her wings, 
 and ye would not ! " This " How often " is certainly not 
 to be limited to the testimonies of the Lord during the 
 six days after His iinal entrance to Jerusalem. Only six 
 days, and all is over ? Yea, only two days, and the fig- 
 tree is cursad, and the rejection of Israel announced ? Is 
 it possible that on His first public appearance in Jerusa- 
 lem the Lord should within two or three days have 
 drawn upon Himself such an infernal hatred of the chiefs 
 and Pharisees that His death was at once determined 
 upon ? On the other side, the Synoptists themselves 
 testify to the exceedingly slow growth of the understand- 
 ing and faith of the disciples and of the patience the 
 Lord had to exercise in dealing with them as their 
 teacher and pastor. It is safe to say that one year is 
 entirely too short for their slow and gradual develop- 
 ment. Both the hatred of His enemies and the faith of 
 His disciples required such a period of time as is clearly 
 and satisfactorily furnished in the fourth Gospel. 
 
 2. Differ enees in the Form and Language of the Lord's 
 Discourses. — There is certainly a manifest difference in 
 the form of the discourses of Christ contained in the 
 fourth Gospel compared with those in the Synoptists. 
 In John they are more dramatie : the form of the 
 dialogue is far more frequent than in the other three. 
 The utterances of the Lord consequently are more of 
 a personal character from His first conversation with the 
 disciples (John i.) to His dealings with the governor, 
 Pilate. T\\Q pastoral element predominates in John, over 
 against the homiletical in the Synoptists, who give us 
 
RELATION BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNOPTISTS. xix 
 
 chiefly discourses addressed to the multitudes. Closely 
 connected with this is the use of the parable in the 
 Synoptists as the favorite form of speaking to the masses, 
 while in the fourth Gospel, at first sight, this use of the 
 parable seems altogether wanting. In vain do we look 
 in John for that familiar phrase : " The kingdom of 
 
 heaven is likened unto " And the difference in the 
 
 surroundings, particularly the different character of the 
 hearers of the Lord in the fourth Gospel, would sufficiently 
 account for the change in the form of His addresses. 
 But the parabolic, figurative form of teaching is by no 
 means missing in the fourth Gospel. Only there is 
 another theme to it. In the Synoptists it is the " King- 
 dom of God,'' in John it is the Head and Ki)ig of that king- 
 dom Hwtself, who is likened to the things of this world : 
 I am the Life, the Light, the Way, the Spring of living 
 waters (iv. 14 and vii. 37, 38), the Bread from heaven, the 
 Door, the Good Shepherd, the Vine, the Grain of Wheat 
 which in dying beareth much fruit (xii. 24). But we all 
 feel these expressions go beyond the purely figurative or 
 parabolic speech. The thing that signifies and He who 
 is signified are one in these terms. He is the way, the 
 light, the life, in the absolute sense. He is not simply 
 like unto a ivay. The wonderful realism of the union 
 between the Divine and the Human, the Logos and the 
 flesh in which He appeared, reflects itself even in these 
 simple, popular and yet most deep and comprehensive 
 terms. In fact, the whole Gospel of John is thoroughly 
 imbued with that heavenly symbolism and realism which 
 reads the signs of divine manifestation everywhere in the 
 universe, in all the processes of nature, the stages of 
 human life, the events of sacred and profane history.'^ A 
 few references may suffice to illustrate this : The Temple, 
 1 Cf. Goethe : " Alias Vergangliche ist nur ein Gleichniss. 
 
XX PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 ii. 19; the Serpent in the wilderness, iii. 14; the Manna, 
 vi. 31, 32; the Passover Lamb, xix. 36; and again the 
 wind, iii. 8 ; the birth, i. 12, 13 ; iii. 5 ; the marriage re- 
 lation, iii. 29 ; the harvest field, iv. 35, 36 ; the day with its 
 hours, ix. 4 ; xi. 9 ; the woman in the hour of giving birth 
 to her child, xvi. 21. We may also point to Pilate, the 
 representative of Pagan Rome, in its relation to the 
 Gospel; the inscription on the cross in Hebrew, Latin 
 and Greek, the first polyglot of the Gospel ; the blood 
 and water from the pierced side of the Lord, etc. In all 
 this, John is richer, deeper, fuller than the Synoptists, 
 — nowhere in conflict with them, but towering high above 
 them. 
 
 3. TJie Tone and Spirit of tJic Lord' s Language in His 
 Conversations with the Jezvs in Jerusalem, as has been 
 justly observed, is quite different from what we are ac- 
 customed to in His Galilean addresses. On the Lake of 
 Galilee, in the borderland of Paganism, in the midst of a 
 despised population, among publicans and sinners, we 
 find the Lord, on the whole, much more condescending, 
 lenient and forbearing with the weak and lowly. But in 
 Jerusalem, among the chiefs and rulers of the people, in 
 the very centre of Israel's religious life. He was, even 
 from the outset, more severe. In Galilee, as we said be- 
 fore. His own preaching was, on the whole, more of a 
 preparatory, introductory character. In Jerusalem He 
 at once came to the main point and centre of His testi- 
 mony : His own person. Here the preaching of the 
 Baptist had prepared the way for Him. Here the Law 
 and the Prophets were known to all. But here the 
 teachers and leaders of God's people had fortified them- 
 selves against the preaching of repentance. Being wise 
 and learned in their own eyes, they would not listen to a 
 Galilean as their teacher. Counting themselves among 
 
REL A 77 ON BE TIVEEN JOHN A ND THE S YNOP TIS TS. xxi 
 
 those " that are whole," they needed no physician, and 
 least of all would they accept the Nazarene as the promised 
 Messiah and the Son of God. The Lord, of necessity, 
 was much severer with them from the beginning than 
 with the Galileans. And the rejection of His testimony 
 here would naturally lead to a crisis in a comparatively 
 short time. Indeed, if the Lord had not, from time to 
 time, withdrawn from Jerusalem to Galilee, the final 
 catastrophe would have come much sooner.^ 
 
 The Galilean addresses recorded by the Synoptists show 
 us the Lord, so to speak, in his every-day dress and walk, 
 away from the holy places and out of the festival seasons, 
 moving among the fishermen and their nets and boats, 
 tossed about on the very waves of that turbulent lake, — 
 yea, among the herdsmen of Gadara and their swine. 
 But the conversations and discourses of the fourth Gospel 
 have a wonderful solemnity and dignity about them. 
 They all belong to the great festival seasons of the Jewish 
 year ; here the Lord moves in the sanctuary itself, " His 
 Father's house." He stands before us in holiday attire. 
 He grants to the Holy City and to Mount Zion the most 
 important and direct manifestation of His glory, that one 
 ever-repeated testimony : I am He ! I and the Father 
 are one! But, strange to say, all those great, blessed 
 festival days of Israel, which were thus hallowed by His 
 presence, — the Passover, the Feast of the Tabernacles, the 
 Feast of the Dedication, — were turned into days of awful 
 responsibility, seasons of hardening the hearts of carnal 
 Israel; they knew not the time of their visitation. 
 
 4. The Differences in Matter ; the Doctrinal Aspect of 
 the Utterances of the Lord in fohn, as compared with the 
 
 ' The Synoptists, however, are not behind the fourth Gospel in some of 
 their statements directed against the Pharisees. See the Baptist's preach- 
 ing, Matt. iii. and the Lord's •' Woe " to the Pharisees in Matt, xxiii. 
 
xxii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 Synoptists. — The main point under this head has been 
 referred to before. The principal theme in the synoptical 
 discourses of the Lord is tJic kingdom of God and His 
 righteousness, the members of this kingdom and their 
 duties, and the growth and development of the kingdom. 
 In the fourth Gospel the one main theme is the Lord 
 Himself, His person as the God-man, the only-begotten 
 Son of the Father. Our very salvation is bound up in this : 
 " Except ye believe //!rt^/<a:;;zy/(?, ye shall die in your sins " 
 (viii. 24). This is His solemn testimony to His enemies; 
 and to His friends and disciples it is essentially the 
 same, though in a less threatening, more positive form : 
 " From henceforth I tell you before it come to pass, that 
 when it is come to pass, ye may believe tJiat I am He " 
 (xiii. 19). 
 
 In the Synoptical Gospels the Lord has to answer all 
 sorts of questions concerning the law and the way to 
 eternal life. In the fourth Gospel the one great question 
 with which He deals is: WJio art TJioiif (viii. 25). The 
 synoptical discourses enter minutely into the description 
 of the last things and the Lord's second coming to judge 
 the quick and the dead. The fourth Gospel beautifully 
 balances these statements by revealing the present judg- 
 ment which is quietly going on in the hearts of men : 
 " He that believeth not, being judged already, because he 
 hath not believed on the name of the only-begotten Son 
 of God " (iii. 17-19 ; comp. also v. 24, 45 ; ix. 39, 41 ; xii. 
 48).^ And over against the second coming of the Lord in 
 the far-off future, it emphasizes His continued presence 
 with His own in mystical union through the Spirit. (See 
 the parting discourses, John xiv.-xvii.) The difference 
 
 ^ For judgment came I into this world, that tliey which see not may see, 
 and that they which see may become bUnd. 
 
RELA TION BETWEEN JOHN AND THE SYNUPTISTS. xxiii 
 
 here again is one of mutual complement, not of exclusive 
 antagonism ; for John also knows of " the resurrection of 
 judgment " (v. 29), and the Synoptists are not ignorant 
 of the promises of the Lord : " Where two or three are 
 gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst 
 of them," and " Lo, I am with you always, even unto the 
 end of the world " (which might be fittingly called the 
 theme of John xiv.-xvii.). 
 
 Owing to the peculiar concentration which character- 
 izes the fourth Gospel, the range of subjects treated in its 
 discourses is naturally much )nore limited than in the 
 Synoptists. We observe in John a constant recurrence 
 to the one thing needful. It is the Lord ! To believe in 
 Him, to love Him, to have Him abiding in the heart, to 
 be one with Him, — this is the one great subject. How 
 different from this, for instance, the Sermon on the 
 Mount ! What a variety of references to the details of 
 practical life with its cares, its struggles, its duties and 
 dangers ! Surely we would not like to miss those graphic 
 details of Christian ethics, as they are set forth in Matt. 
 v.-vii. But much less can we afford to miss the solemn 
 testimony of the fourth Gospel, setting forth the one 
 source of this new ethical life with all its various fruitful 
 branches: Christ believed in; Christ united with the be- 
 liever by faith. Those are, indeed, glorious things which 
 are said in Matthew of the disciples as the children of the 
 heavenly Father, being free from care, happy, perfect, 
 kind and merciful, being the salt and the light of the 
 world, and of the beatitudes of the poor in spirit, the 
 peacemakers, the pure in heart, etc. But, after all, the 
 main question remains to be answered : How can those 
 that are evil by nature ever attain to such a spiritual con- 
 dition ? How can they that are flesh, born of flesh, ever 
 be truly children of the Father in heaven ? And to this 
 
xxiv PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 question the plain answer is returned in the fourth 
 Gospel: "Ye must be born anew" (iii. 7). 
 
 We repeat once more : This is a variety of aspects, but 
 no collision, no antagonism. The one blends most 
 beautifully with the other. There is ihe pcriphciy in the 
 Synoptists, — the kingdom of God with the manifold and 
 detailed duties of its citizens ; and there is the centre in 
 the fourth Gospel, — Christ the God-man Himself, the 
 head and heart of all. No periphery without a centre, 
 and no centre without a periphery. They belong together, 
 and in their union round off the complete fulness of God's 
 revelation in Christ. There are two sets of witnesses stand- 
 ing at that river of life, some looking downward, following 
 with their eyes its ramifications and channels as it spreads 
 itself over' the meadows, carrying life and growth and 
 quickening in every direction ; the other looking upward, 
 following its silver thread up to the lofty heights where 
 the life-spring gushes forth from the everlasting rock. 
 This is the difference in the view presented by the Synop- 
 tists and in the fourth Gospel. But it is one and the same 
 river, one and the same water of life which they all 
 describe. 
 
 It is, therefore, one and the same Christ whom we find 
 in their different presentations. True, the divine majesty 
 of Christ, His oneness with the Father, and consequently 
 His existence co-equal with the Father before the world, 
 is much more in the foreground in the fourth Gospel. It 
 is the central, dominant idea in John. But it is not 
 altogether 'lacking in the Synoptists ; not even in those 
 parts which are generally passed by when this topic is in 
 question. Take, for instance, the Sermon on the Mount, 
 and trace the evidences of the majesty and divine author- 
 ity of Christ through that discourse, for which ancient and 
 modern rationalists have always professed peculiar admira- 
 
RELATIOiV BETWEEN- JOHN AND THE SYNOPTISTS. xxv 
 
 tion, while shutting their eyes to its undeniable testimony 
 on the Person of Christ.^ The one sentence in the 
 formal institution of baptism: "Into the name of the 
 Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost," speaks volumes 
 on that fundamental article of Christian faith, the divinity 
 of Christ, and this is a synoptical passage (Matt, xxviii. 19). 
 One word yet on the identity of the synoptical Christ 
 and that of the fourth Gospel, and we are done with this 
 topic. Where in the synoptical Gospels the Lord enters 
 most fully into the mystery of His own person as the 
 God-man, He uses language which is so exactly like that 
 of the fourth Gospel that even the most critical eye fails 
 to discover a difference. " All things have been deliv- 
 ered unto Me of My Father; and no one knoweth the 
 Son save the Father : neither doth any know the Father 
 save the Son and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to 
 reveal." Thus it is written, not in John, but in Matthew 
 xi. 2"]. 
 
 II. THE PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL. 
 
 I. TJie Language. — No one, in reading even a few 
 verses of this fourth Gospel, can fail to be deeply im- 
 pressed with the childlike simplicity of its language. 
 The essence of Christian truth has here been reduced to 
 the briefest, plainest and most comprehensive expression. 
 Its plainness, both as to the store of words used and the 
 manner of their construction into sentences, is so obvious 
 that it amounts even to a certain monotony. The same 
 principal terms are constantly repeated ; such as " be- 
 lieve " (98 times), *'know" (55), "witness" (55), "glory" 
 
 ^ Matt. V. II, "For My sake; " 22, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44; "I say unto you," 
 vi. 2, 5 ; vii. 24 ff, ; conip. also Matt. x. 15, 16, 18, 22, 23, 32, t^}^, 37, 39, 
 40 ; Matt. xi. 6, 10 ff., 20 ff. 
 
xxvi PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 (55), " world " (78), " life and live" (over 50), " light " (23), 
 "name" (25), "truth" (25), to "receive," "to take" 
 XaiilidvBiv^ (44)- But the profundity and comprehensiveness 
 of these terms at once shows that the simplicity of this 
 language- is not that which we would choose for an ele- 
 mentary class of beginners in Christian knowledge, but 
 rather that of a final resume, in which the fundamental 
 ideas of Christianity are set forth in pithy terms, full of 
 meaning. If we take, for instance, those three ideas of 
 light, life, love, so familiar to all the readers of John, and 
 try to analyze them, we will at once perceive how dififi- 
 cult a task it is, how much is contained in these simple 
 words ; we will realize that it is impossible to say more in 
 fewer words than is said in those simple statements : God 
 is Spirit ; God is Love ; in Him was Life, and the Life 
 was the Light of men. 
 
 This simplicity also extends, as before indicated, to the 
 construction of sentences. They are short, crisp, concise 
 and plain as plain can be. They have a decidedly 
 Oriental, Hebrew cast, in the quiet, naive repetition of the 
 same phrases and the circumstantiality of expression in 
 minor details. 
 
 The Greek language is perhaps richer than any other 
 in the means it affords to construct beautiful, complicated 
 and yet well-rounded periods, and to set off one clause 
 against another in minute and delicate shading with the 
 help of its numerous particles. All this wealth is cast 
 aside by the writer of the fourth Gospel. His sentences 
 are short ; and the more weighty and emphatic, the 
 shorter they are. Clause islinke'd to clause on the princi- 
 ple not of subordination, but of co-ordination, so char- 
 acteristic of the Hebrew language. Or, we should rather 
 say, clause follows clause, because there is no effort made 
 to link them together with conjunctions in the narrative. 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL. xxvii 
 
 Wherever an intermediate, subordinate thought comes in, 
 it is wedged in as a sort of parenthesis with the utmost 
 indifference to the structure of the main sentence. (See 
 i. 39, 44 ; iv. 6 ; V. 9 ; vi. 4 ; ix. 14 ; x. 22 ; xix. 29 ; xix. 14.) 
 
 This very absence of the refinements of artificial struc- 
 ture makes the language of John's Gospel so powerful 
 and impressive. (See such passages as these : " Jesus 
 wept." "And it was night." "Now Barabbas was a 
 robber.") It is the language of assurance and determina- 
 tion, compelling its readers to yield to its weight and to 
 believe. At the same time it is the language of strong, 
 striking contrasts, frequently presenting them without a 
 connecting particle, which would indicate the antithesis, 
 but none the less emphatic for this. (See i. 17 : " The law 
 was given by Moses ; grace and truth came by Jesus 
 Christ.") It is, as Luthardt says, the utterance of " a 
 man brought up in the holy language of Israel, but a 
 strong mind, a full heart, an emotional soul, ready to 
 burst out through the calm peace and even composure." 
 Though there are not many direct outward Hebraisms 
 to be discovered, it is undeniable that " a Hebrew soul 
 lives in the speech of the Evangelist " (Luthardt).^ 
 
 2. The Historical Character of the Fourth Gospel. — No 
 other gospel has such an array of chronological"^ and topo- 
 graphical statements, telling us at what time, day, and even 
 hour, and at what place the different events are to be 
 located.^ Moreover, the evidences of historical realism 
 are exhibited not only in these minute details of dates, 
 
 1 "The original thought in the language of Palestine; the raiment of 
 later making, Greek " (Credner, Ewald). 
 
 2 See ch. i. 29, 35, 39, 43 ; ii. i ; iii. 2 ; iv. 6, 43, 52 ; vi. 16, 21 ; vii. 14, 37 ; 
 xi. 6, 17 ; xii. i, 12; xiii. i, 30; xviii. 28 ; xix. 14 ; xx. i, 26. 
 
 3 Another feature which ought to be pointed out in this connection is the 
 frequent reference back to persons and events that have been mentioned 
 
xxviii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 but also in the main lines of true historical development 
 on which it moves. Let us recall once more the steady 
 growth, the truly historic development of the enmity of 
 the rulers against Christ 3.s described in the fourth Gospel. 
 We find an indication of its beginning in the very first 
 chapter, in the uneasiness and the spirit of inquisition with 
 which the forerunner of the Lord is looked upon by the 
 Sanhedrim. This is followed by the indifference and even 
 antagonism with which the first reformatory effort of the 
 Lord is received (ch. ii.). Nicodemus, a Pharisee and ruler 
 of the Jews, dare not come to Jesus in open daylight, — a 
 graphic testimony of the animus of that party (ch. iii.). 
 The manifestly unpleasant impression which the growing 
 influence of the Lord had made upon the Pharisees moves 
 Him to depart into Galilee (iv. 1-3). The first outburst of 
 open hostility (v. 16, 18). The sending out of officers 
 on the part of the chief priests and Pharisees to take Him 
 (vii. 32 ; cf. also ver. i). First attempt to stone Him 
 (viii. 59). Systematic persecution and excommunication of 
 His adherents agreed upon (ix. 22), (see also ver. 34), and 
 practised against the man born blind. Second attempt 
 to stone Him (x. 31). Formal council of the chief 
 priests and Pharisees to put Him to death and command- 
 ment that if any man knew where He was, he should 
 show it, that they might take Him (xi. 53, 57). Finally, 
 the counsel to put Lazarus also to death, because that by 
 reason of hira many believed on Jesus (xii. 11). Herein 
 culminates their enmity and hatred, and the iinal crisis 
 follows promptly. 
 
 Parallel with this growing hostility against the Lord, 
 there is, on the other hand, the steady development of the 
 
 before in the narrative of the Gospel: iv. 46, Cana; vii. 50 ; xix. 39, Nico- 
 demus ; xviii. 14 to xi. 50, Caiaplias. Also xi. 2, pointing forward to 
 Mary's anointing the Lord. 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL. xxix 
 
 faith of the disciples. We can follow the different stages 
 from the first interest taken in Christ by Andrew and his 
 companions (i. 35 ff.), through Peter's confession (vi. Gj- 
 69), to the cuhnination in that outburst of Thomas : 
 " My Lord and my God ! " (xx. 28). A similar progress 
 we notice in the three stages of the spiritual development 
 of Nicodevms : first, the secret visit by night (ch. iii.) ; 
 next, the cautious and yet conscientious standing up 
 against the chief priests and Pharisees (vii. 50 f.) ; and 
 finally, his coming out boldly as the friend and adherent 
 of the Lord under the cross (xix. 39). Another striking 
 illustration of the historical realism of the fourth Gospel 
 may be found in that masterpiece of psychological deline- 
 ation, the description of Pilate' s confliet between Jesus 
 and the Jews (xviii.-xix.). No other Gospel affords us 
 such a key to the character of the Roman governor. 
 
 This leads us to another point of prominence among 
 the historical features of this Gospel. It is the remark- 
 able clearness and sharpness ivitJi zvJiicJi the portraits of 
 the different characters are draivn. Those well-known 
 figures, Andrew and Philip and Nathanael and Thomas 
 and Peter, Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman, Judas and 
 Caiaphas and Pilate ; they are all Hfe portraits, though 
 the whole picture is done by a few touches. However 
 typical some of them may be, they do not impress us as 
 artificial studies, to embody certain abstract ideas, but as 
 sketches from life, drawn in the most natural; unconscious 
 manner by one who clearly remembered them as they 
 stood and moved before his eyes. 
 
 Thus we come to the last point to be observed among 
 the historical features of the fourth Gospel. It is the 
 personal interest in the events narrated which the Evan- 
 gelist manifests from beginning to end. These events 
 form a part of his own life. He presents us with a sketch 
 
XXX PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 of autobiography as well as of Christ's public ministry. 
 " We beheld His glory." The consciousness of this 
 blessed privilege pervades the whole Gospel. The history 
 proper of the fourth Gospel begins with the time when 
 John, the son of Zebedee, was directed to the Messiah 
 through the testimony of his first master, the Baptist. 
 Those were the most memorable days and hours of his 
 own life, and there his account of single specified events 
 in the life of the Lord sets in. In the passage John xix. 
 35 ^ this personal interest as an eye-witness culminates. 
 As a circumstantial evidence of the personal interest of 
 the writer in the facts narrated, we might perhaps also 
 point to the strong antipathy which he exhibits against 
 Judas Iscariot, whose name is never mentioned without 
 reference to the betrayal of the Lord. 
 
 3. The Spiritual or Prophetical Aspect of the History 
 presented 1)1 the Fourth Gospel. — This fourth Gospel, then, 
 has throughout the marks of true historical realism. It 
 is history. But it is more than that; it is history written 
 with the spirit of prophecy. We say prophecy not in the 
 narrow sense of looking forward into the future and fore- 
 telling it, but in its true, original sense of speaking out 
 what is hidden, penetrating into the mysteries of God's 
 counsel as well as into the secrets of the human heart,^ 
 and into the full and true, eternal significance of all the 
 passing events of this present time. In fact, every true 
 historian must have something of the prophet in him to 
 see things in the true light, in the whole complex of God's 
 
 ^ " He that hath seen hath borne witness, and his witness is true, and he 
 knoweth that he saith true, that ye also may believe." 
 
 2 " Sir, I perceive that Thou art a prophet,"' said the Samaritan woman to 
 the Lord, not because He had foretold her future, but because He had 
 penetrated into her past and told her " all things that ever she did " (John 
 iv. 19, 39)- 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL. xxxi 
 
 counsel and government, in the light of eternity. Facts 
 may be recorded as facts, and yet the historian may 
 utterly fail to show their true character, their import and 
 significance for the universe. One of the greatest his- 
 torians of all times, the Roman Tacitus, gives his state- 
 ment of the history of Christ after this manner : " At 
 the time when Tiberius was Emperor, Christ was executed 
 by the governor Pilate." All correct, true to the very 
 word and syllable; and yet is this a history of Christ ? 
 Does this give to Christ and to the cross on Calvary their 
 proper place in the history of the world ? 
 
 Now, John is, in a peculiar sense, the prophet among 
 the Evangelists and historians of the New Testament (as 
 Isaiah was the Evangelist among the prophets of the 
 Old Testament). John's Gospel, too, is a " Revelation " 
 in the fullest and m.ost comprehensive sense of the word. 
 With the very first words of his Gospel he takes his posi- 
 tion on the heights of eternity, and from there, with the 
 eye of the true Seer, he penetrates into the mystery of 
 Christ's person, and into the true and eternal significance 
 of all the historical facts he has to present. While he is 
 an eye-witness to what he describes, and presents that 
 which he has seen with his eyes, and which he has heard, 
 and which he has looked upon, and his hands have handled 
 (i John i. i), he, at the same time, witnesses and records 
 things not less real, which no human eye could see, and 
 no human hand could handle, — heavenly things, shown 
 to him by the Spirit. This is true, not only of the open- 
 ing of the Gospel (the " Prologue "), but, all through, the 
 deeds and words of Jesus are presented in this spirit of 
 prophecy. Everything becomes a sign, a manifestation 
 of that eternal divine Love and Life and Light of which 
 the Prologue spoke. Hence the symbolical and prophet- 
 ical character of so many of the facts and sayings recorded 
 
xxxli PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 in the fourth Gospel, such as the saying of Caiaphas, the 
 anointment of the Lord by Mary in Bethany, and others. 
 There are only a few of the miracles or signs of the Lord 
 recorded in this Gospel, and these few were selected for 
 the special reason that their significance was fully de- 
 monstrated by the Lord Himself in His accompanying 
 utterances. The " signs " in John as a rule are the start- 
 ing points for the most important discourses of Christ. 
 The healing of the sick man in Bethesda on the Sabbath 
 day brings out that full discourse on Christ's divine au- 
 thority (ch. v.). The feeding of the five thousand in 
 Galilee (ch. vi.) becomes the occasion for that solemn talk 
 in the synagogue at Capernaum on the Bread of Life that 
 came down from heaven. The opening of the eyes of 
 the man blind from his birth (ch. ix.) suggests the fruitful 
 theme : " I am the Light of the world." And in ch. xi. 
 the conversation between the Lord and the sisters in 
 Bethany at the raising of Lazarus brings out that glorious 
 word : " I am the Resurrection and the Life. He that 
 believeth on Me, though he die, yet shall he live." Those 
 signs of Christ are not things of the past. There is in 
 them a force, abiding, divine and constantly present. 
 They are the acts of Christ, true God and true man, the 
 same yesterday and to-day and forever, and this gives 
 them their eternal and universal significance. Over the 
 death chamber in Jairus' house and over the bier at Nain's 
 gate, as well as over all our Christian death-beds and 
 tombs, we write the words: "Jesus Christ, the resurrec- 
 tion and the life." In the light of the fourth Gospel we 
 now see more in those miracles than the eye-witnesses, 
 including the Synoptists themselves, could see. We have 
 learned to read and to preach John into the Synoptists.^ 
 
 1 This feature of the Gospel of St. John is beautifully brought out in 
 ♦he ancient Latin verse by Adam of St. Victor (died 1177) 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL, xxxiii 
 
 The very fact that John's Gospel is written in the full- 
 ness of this spirit of prophecy makes it sometimes rather 
 difficult to decide whether we have the Lord's own words 
 before us or those of the Evangelist. In the Synoptists 
 such a difficulty is out of the question. There we can 
 always clearly distinguish the writer from the Lord and 
 His own words. But between the Lord and His beloved 
 disciple there is such a mystic union that their very words 
 and thoughts seem amalgamated. 
 
 4. The Theological CJiaractcr of the Fourth Gospel. — In 
 passing now to the special consideration of the theological 
 or doctrinal character of the fourth Gospel, we have first 
 of all to answer the question whether this Gospel was 
 written with a direct and specific polemical or apologetical 
 design, in opposition to certain dangerous errors and 
 heresies by which the early Church was threatened. 
 Such designs have been ascribed to this Gospel already 
 by the Fathers. In fact, " there is scarcely a heresy 
 which the ancients did not think this Gospel directed 
 against." Irenaeus found in it the refutation of the 
 doctrines of Cerinthus and the Nicolaitans, the cotem- 
 poraries of John ; others held that it was directed against 
 those Judaizing errorists known in church history under 
 the name of Ebionites ; others, against the disciples of 
 John the Baptist. The majority, however, of ancient 
 and modern writers look upon it as an apostolic protest 
 and defence against those powerful systems of theolo- 
 gical or rather philosophical speculation, commonly called 
 
 Volat avis sine meta. Up soars the eagle to unmeasured 
 
 Quo nee vates nee proplteta heights, which neither bard nor 
 
 Evolavit altins. prophet ever reached before. 
 
 Never has mere man seen more 
 
 Tam implemia quam itnpleta clearly so many mysteries of things 
 
 Nunquam vidit tot secreta fulfilled in the past and yet to be ful- 
 
 Funis homo piirius. filled in the future. 
 
 3 
 
xxxiv PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 " Gnosticism," which attacked the very foundations of 
 Christianity. 
 
 We wilHngly admit it as a historical fact, that Paul 
 already in his late epistles had to combat new and dan- 
 gerous forms of error which threatened the churches of 
 Asia Minor, and which were most prolific in that hotbed 
 of heresies, the City of Ephesus. (See Acts xx. 29, 30 ; 
 Rev. ii. 2, the Nicolaitans.) It was no longer the setting 
 up of the Law and its works against Faith and the Grace 
 of the Gospel ; but now it was knowledge against faith, 
 claiming to be a higher stage of Christian development, 
 a sort of philosophy of religion, as Paul describes it, 
 I Tim. vi. 20, 21, in his solemn warning to Timothy: 
 " The oppositions of the knowledge (science), which is 
 falsely so called, which some professing have erred con- 
 cerning the faith." The representatives of this false 
 science or knowledge (Gnosis, Gnostics, Gnosticism) most 
 likely are the same men of whom the First Epistle of 
 John speaks as " Antichrists " belonging to " the last 
 times." The dangerous influence of these men mani- 
 fested itself both in the sphere of doctrine and of life. 
 In the former there was a tendency to slight and lose 
 sight of, yea, an actual denial of the greTit historical facts, 
 the concrete realities of Christianity, above all, the funda- 
 mental fact of incarnation, — "that Jesus Christ is come 
 in the flesh," ^ or " that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of 
 
 ' I. Johniv. 2 : " Every spirit which confesseth that Jesus Christ is come 
 in the flesh is of God;" ver. 15: " Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is 
 the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in God ; " ii. 22 : " Who is 
 the liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ ? This is the anti- 
 christ, even he that denieth the Father and the Son." 
 
 To the Gnostic the Divine can never become incarnate, because it is a 
 mere thought, an abstract idea. Consequently, these systems are more or 
 less characterized by a dualistic separation of the Ideal and the Historical, 
 the Divine and the Human, the Christ of God and the Jesus of Nazareth. 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL. xxxv 
 
 God." In the latter, the sphere of practical Christian 
 life, the one-sided pursuit of knowledge naturally resulted 
 in a neglect of the duties and the spirit of Christian love. 
 This cold intellectualism of the Gnostic had neither heart 
 nor time for the brethren. 
 
 Now it is evident that of all the books of the New 
 Testament, there is none that could furnish such a power- 
 ful antidote to those erroneous tendencies as the fourth 
 Gospel, which presents the central mystery of Chris- 
 tianity, the personal union of God and man in Jesus of 
 Nazareth, in the most realistic language. Nowhere else 
 in Scripture does the bridge between heaven and earth, 
 between the Divine and the Human, between Spirit and 
 flesh, stand out so firmly and conspicuously as in the 
 Gospel of John. Those who saw and heard and touched 
 the man Jesus, saw and heard and touched eternal life 
 and light and glory, — Divinity itself. For the very reason 
 that " the flesh (in itself) profiteth nothing," and because 
 all " that is born of flesh is flesh," the Eternal Word 
 became flesh, and His flesh and blood became meat and 
 drink unto eternal life. Flesh and blood cannot enter 
 into the kingdom of God ; but the King of this kingdom, 
 the only-begotten Son of the Father, can become flesh, 
 to make us partakers of His own life and spirit. Thus 
 this Gospel, the most spiritual of all, is at the same time 
 the most material or realistic of all, and the eye of faith 
 recognizes it and rejoices in it, knowing that what God 
 has joined together, no man can put asunder ! 
 
 And yet admitting all this, and knowing from the 
 history of the Church what eminent service this Gospel 
 did for her in later centuries, at the most critical times of 
 conflict with deadly enemies ; believing even that, in the 
 providence of God, it was intended as the great store- 
 house and arsenal of the Church's heaviest ordinance for 
 
xxxvi PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 coming battles, we are not convinced, by all that has been 
 written on this subject,^ that in the composition of his 
 book the author had special regard to various particular 
 doctrines of Gnosticism or other " isms" of his time or of 
 coming times. The character of the book is too grand 
 and lofty for such details of controversy ; it is pre- 
 eminently positive. Its only antithesis is the unbelief of 
 the world, which refuses to accept Jesus as the Christ; 
 and against this the writer offers his testimony of Jesus 
 the Christ, the Son of God, so that, believing in Him, 
 men may have everlasting life. But let us not forget 
 that this fundamental error, the denial that Jesus is the 
 Christ, the Son of God, is at the bottom of all deviations 
 from the pure faith and common to all. And this is the 
 reason why this fourth Gospel deals such vigorous and 
 decisive blows to all forms of error, because it always 
 strikes their very heart and head. 
 
 What, then, are the principal positive features in the 
 theology of the fourth Gospel ? We will let the author 
 answer for himself; for there has never been a clearer 
 and plainer statement of the real design and plan of a 
 book than that presented in John xx. 31 : " These things 
 or these signs are written, that ye may believe that Jesus 
 is the Christ, the Son of God, and that, believing, ye may 
 have life in His name." There are two things here: the 
 one, the objective, the divine gift, Jesus the Christ ; the 
 other, the subjective, the human acceptance of that divine 
 gift, believing in His name and living thereby. Exactly 
 the same two principles we find in strikingly dramatic 
 form presented in the preceding verses with which the 
 Gospel narrative proper is concluded. The last word the 
 
 1 Especially Grau goes entirely too far in his attempts to trace from 
 chapter to chapter the " anti-ebiontic" and "anti-gnostic" features of the 
 Gospel. 
 
PECULIAR CHARACTER OF THE FOURTH GOSPEL, xxxvii 
 
 apostles have to say is the confession of Thomas : " My 
 Lord and my God ! " The last word of the Lord, the 
 beatitude of the believer : " Blessed are they that have 
 not seen, and yet have believed." In another form yet, 
 and in the most concise of all, these two fundamental 
 ideas of the Gospel of John are found in the Lord's 
 prayer of intercession, xvii. 23 : " I in them, and Thou in 
 Me." God in Christ, and Christ in the believer, everything 
 centering in Him. Whatever is taught concerning God 
 the Father, the Spirit, the world, the creation, sin and 
 the Church, is presented in the light of Christ's historic 
 manifestation. It is the absolute religion, the fulfilment 
 of the Law, of Moses and the Prophets(i. 17), as well as 
 the answer to the pagan inquiry : " What is truth ? " 
 Let us sum it up once more : 
 
 The historical person of Jesus of Nazareth one with 
 the Father ; in this union His whole human nature, even 
 His body truly and everlastingly participating. To this 
 God-man the believers united (by faith in mystic union) 
 as the branches are to the vine, and this union not simply 
 an ideal one of thought, speculation or knowledge, nor a 
 purely moral one of purpose and will, but an essential 
 one, such as between the Head and the Body with its 
 members, — such is the Christianity of the fourth Gospel ; 
 neither an abstract theory nor a certain way of acting, 
 but a new life through the God-man, whose wonderful 
 love saves men from perishing, and whose Spirit makes 
 them the children of God. This is, it cannot be denied, 
 essentially a mystery, even as natural life with its be- 
 ginnings is everywhere wrapped in mystery. But the 
 anti-mysterious is the anti-christian. And those specula- 
 tive or rationalistic views that would turn Christianity 
 either into a philosophical system or into a new code of 
 morals will forever find their invincible opponent in this 
 
xxxviii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 Gospel of John, the Gospel of the union of God and man 
 in Jesus Christ. 
 
 Considering this doctrinal character of the fourth Gos- 
 pel, we may wonder that there is no reference found in it 
 to the act of institution of Baptism and the Lord's Sup- 
 per, the sacraments of the Church of Christ, those holy- 
 mysteries in which the union of the visible and invisible, 
 the spiritual and material, the heavenly and earthly, is 
 forever represented and continued. But here also John 
 is the most fitting and beautiful complement to the 
 Synoptists. After the latter have given us the exact 
 circumstances and words of the institution of those ordi- 
 nances, the fourth Gospel, more fully and clearly than 
 any other part of Scripture, reveals the great principle 
 that underlies those heavenly mysteries, — the union of 
 the Divine and human in the God-man, and the mystic 
 union between the believer and Christ, — a union not only 
 with the Spirit of Christ, but with His very flesh and 
 blood ; it is accomplished and nourished and sustained 
 by water and blood ; for the Christ of the fourth Gospel 
 (as well as of the First Epistle of John) comes not only 
 by the witness of the Spirit, but also by water and blood 
 (i John V. 6-8). He cannot be detached from the reality 
 of His sacraments. 
 
 III. THE QUESTION OF AUTHORSHIP. 
 
 I. Negative Criticism. — There was, in the second cent- 
 ury of the Christian era, an insignificant sect, called 
 Alogi, who rejected the doctrine of the Logos and of the 
 Paraclete (Comforter), as contained in this Gospel, and 
 attributed the Gospel to John's enemy, Cerinthus. But 
 by their indirect testimony to the early date of its com- 
 position, they support rather than weaken the authorship 
 
THE QUESTION OF AUTHORSHIP. xxxix 
 
 of John.^ Since, then, there was essentially peace on 
 this question down to the end of the eighteenth century, 
 when an Englishman, Edward Evanson, in 1792, attacked 
 the apostolic origin of the fourth Gospel, and ascribed it 
 to a Platonic philosopher of the second century. Of a 
 much more serious character were the objections raised 
 twenty-two years afterwards by a German rationalist, 
 Bretschneider, who, however, had the good sense to write 
 his book in the Latin language for scholars only, and 
 who formally withdrew his opposition a few years after- 
 wards, saying that his object had been attained by calling 
 forth more satisfactory proofs of the apostolic origin of 
 this Gospel than had before been offered. 
 
 But the most powerful assaults were made against the 
 authorship of John toward the middle of this century, 
 when the speculative philosophy of Hegel had turned the 
 heads of many learned theologians, especially in Ger- 
 many, resurrecting in this nineteenth century the funda- 
 mental views of ancient Gnosticism, and particularly the 
 principle that the " Jesus of history and the Christ of 
 faith " are not and cannot be identical. Now. this is the 
 very position which in the Gospel and the Epistles of 
 John is characterized as " anti-christian." We cannot, 
 therefore, be in the least surprised to see that the fourth 
 Gospel has become the main object of the most deter- 
 mined and cunning attacks on the part of modern specu- 
 lation.2 
 
 We can readily see that the opposition to John, as the 
 author of the fourth Gospel, is a life question for modern 
 
 ^ See Dr. Fisher's Remarks on the Alogi in " Papers of the .American 
 Society of Church History," Vol. II. i. 
 
 2 Moses in the beginning, Isaiah in the middle, and John at the end of 
 the 1600 years of Bible literature are naturally the principal points on which 
 the enemies of revelation concentrate their forces. 
 
xl PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 negative, theology which denies that Jesus is the Son of 
 God in the sense in which the Church maintains this 
 confession ; that is, in the sense of the Gospel of John. 
 The acceptance of the testimony of John, the son of 
 Zebedee, the disciple whom the Lord loved, involves for 
 a candid mind, in principle, the acceptance of Christ, the 
 God-man, the incarnate Word, the Lord of glory. But 
 very few are honest enough to confess that its antagonism 
 to their philosophical standpoint is the first and principal 
 cause of their opposition to this Gospel, while the " in- 
 terests of unprejudiced science " and " historical criti- 
 cism," of which we hear so much, are in reality a sec- 
 ondary consideration. The most systematic and learned 
 effort to destroy the historical and canonical character 
 of the fourth Gospel was made by Professor Baur in 
 Tubingen (1844). He labored to prove that it was the 
 most ingeniously planned and most successfully executed 
 work of some " great unknown " ^ writer of the second 
 half of the second century, designed to end the contests 
 between Jewish and Gentile Christianity and to settle the 
 controversies that had arisen in those days through dif- 
 ferent sectarian tendencies in the interest of one catholic 
 church. According to this, the book would be all theory, 
 theology, and partisan theology at that, while its artfully 
 constructed historical form would be nothing but a sham. 
 The followers and pupils of Professor Baur, though at 
 first, as it seemed, zealously engaged to support and 
 magnify their master's work, soon began to undermine it 
 by new and conflicting theorieSj and ere long their own 
 testimony had carried the date of the book back to the 
 beginning of the second century ; that is, close to the 
 
 1 Greater not only than the Epigones and literary pigmies of the second 
 century whose names have all been preserved, but greater even than the 
 Synoptists themselves ! What a cruel freak of history ! 
 
THE QUESTION OF AUTHORSHIP. xli 
 
 time of John's death. Unanimous only in the denial of 
 the apostoHc origin of the book, the members of this 
 school vigorously demolished each other by their conflict- 
 ing theories.^ But all these attacks have, in the end, 
 been of great service to the Church. This negative 
 criticism has compelled the positive theologians of all 
 creeds and nationalities to enter more fully than ever 
 upon the investigation of this whole field, and the mature 
 results they have obtained have established the fact, that 
 " in order to combat with any show of success the au- 
 thenticity of the Gospel of St. John, the whole history 
 of the Church and its literature during the first two 
 centuries must be turned upside down and demolished " 
 (Eb-RARD). For one thing particularly we have reason 
 to be thankful to our negative critics. They have, with 
 consummate skill and acumen, proved the organic unity 
 of the fourth Gospel, and while in other fields of biblical 
 criticism 2 the tendency has been to pick to pieces the 
 books in question, and to show that they were composed 
 on the principle of the " crazy quilt," they all agree that 
 John's Gospel is one indivisible unit, " the seamless gar- 
 ment which cannot be rent " (D. Fr. Strauss). 
 
 2. TJie Testimony of tJie Ancient CJuircli. — A few facts 
 only under this head in the briefest summary. It is a fact 
 that cannot be gainsaid that the fourth Gospel never 
 appeared in the primitive Church under any other name 
 but that of John. Through three centuries, beginning in 
 the fourth after Christ, we can trace the testimonies of 
 the fathers back to the very threshold of the Apostolic 
 Era. Ensebius (A. D. 324), who certainly had the most 
 
 1 The revolting absurdity of these different attempts cidminates in that 
 blasphemous book of Noack, which undertook to prove that Judas was the 
 disciple whom the Lord loved and the writer of this Gospel ! 
 
 '^ Pentateuch, Isaiah, Synoptists. 
 
xlii PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 comprehensive knowledge of the past history of the 
 Church, as well as of its literature and tradition, mentions 
 the fourth Gospel as one of the uncontradicted writings 
 of the Apostle John, " unanimously acknowledged by all 
 churches under heaven." Origen (185-254), the Alexan- 
 drine, the foremost scholar before Eusebius and the most 
 critical mind of the patristic period, praises the fourth as 
 tJie choice Gospel. Tertullian (160-220), the great repre- 
 sentative of the African Church, who shows a deep insight 
 into the whole organism of the Canon of sacred literature, 
 has numerous quotations from John.^ The Canon of 
 Muratori (c. 170 A. D.) gives us the testimony of the 
 Church of Italy. It has the fourth Gospel, and ascribes 
 it to John, " one of the disciples." In the Syriac version 
 of the Bible, called PeshittJio (c. 170), the Church of Syria 
 joins her testimony to that of the other lands. Irencens 
 (c. 130-202), uniting the testimony of Asia Minor and of 
 the Gallic Church, is one of the principal witnesses, being 
 the disciple of Polycarp (died 167, having been a Christian 
 for eighty-six years), who told him of his intercourse with 
 the Apostle John. Now, Irenaeus gives it as a generally 
 acknowledged, undisputed fact that John, the disciple 
 who was on the bosom of the Lord, wrote his Gospel at 
 Ephesus. Justin, the Martyr (100-166), the first Gentile 
 scholar and philosopher within the Christian Church ; who 
 attempts to unite Christian thought with speculative 
 elements foreign to Christianity, and has a peculiarly de- 
 veloped doctrine of the Logos, which is used by modern 
 negative critics to prove his priority to John's Gospel, 
 has been shown by the most recent and thorough inves- 
 tigations of Zahn to contain a number of unmistakable 
 
 1 Clement of Alexandria, his contemporary, a very learned father, to whom 
 we owe important statements concerning John's life in Asia Minor, speaks 
 of John's Gospel as the last, and the spiritual Gospel over against the Sy- 
 noptists. 
 
THE QUESTION OF AUTHORSHIP. xliii 
 
 references to prominent passages in St. John. The 
 Epistles of Ignatius {vloX. later than no A. D.) and the 
 Epistle of Barnabas (of the last decade of the first cen- 
 tury) show traces of acquaintance with the Gospel of 
 John. The recently discovered " Doetrine of the T%velve " 
 (c. 90) reveals in the prayers of the Eucharist remarkable 
 reminiscences of John xv. and xvii. 
 
 3. T/ie Testimony of the Enemies in the Second Cen- 
 tury. — In addition to this testimony of friends, we also 
 point to that of the enemies of Christianity in the second 
 century. The first polemic treatise written against Chris- 
 tianity was the "True Logos" (161-180) of Celstis, who 
 had evidently made a thorough study of his subject, going 
 back to the first sources everywhere. His references are 
 more frequently to Matthew; but he uses John more than 
 either Mark or Luke, and the Christ whom he combats is 
 mainly the Christ of the fourth Gospel, proving beyond 
 dispute that even before the time of Celsus this Gospel 
 was known and recognized by friend and foe as an author- 
 itative record of Christianity. But the most remarkable 
 testimony lies in the fact that not one of the ancient 
 Gnostics ventured to deny that the fourth Gospel was 
 written by St. John, though such a statement would have 
 been the strongest testimony in their hands. Foremost 
 among them stands Marcion, who came to Rome about 
 140 A. D., after having been at work for some time in 
 Asia Minor. He was the most radical and consistent 
 enemy of the Church, being convinced that it had degen- 
 erated under Judaizing influences, and resolved to form a 
 new church on the ruins of the old. For this purpose he 
 needed a new canon reconstructed on the idea that Paul 
 was the one great authority over against the other 
 apostles. His antagonism against the Gospel of John is 
 undeniable, and the attempts made by our modern critics 
 to represent John in essential harmony with the ancient 
 
xliv PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 head of Gnosticism is a poor makeshift, the hollowness of 
 which has been fully proved by the recent investigations 
 of Luthardt, and particularly Zahn. 
 
 4. TJic Testimony of the Gospel itself on the Question of 
 Authorship. — The last word we properly give to the 
 Gospel itself. What does it say directly or indirectly on 
 this point ? The answer has really been given in the 
 statements made on the relation of the fourth Gospel to 
 the Synoptists, on the language and the historical features 
 of the Gospel. Here it will be sufificient to recall the 
 principal points, and sum them up briefly. The language 
 of the book strongly indicates a Hebrew writer who con- 
 tinued to think in the language of his native country, 
 though he wrote in Greek. The author is perfectly at 
 home in the ways and manners of Jezvish life and belief, 
 and thoroughly rooted in the Old Testament revelation, 
 which influences even his language, and suggests to him 
 figures of speech altogether foreign to profane Greek. 
 Of Old Testament books, the Pentateuch, the Psalms, 
 the prophets, but particularly Isaiah, appear to be most 
 familiar to the author (the last was also the favorite book 
 of John the Baptist, the first teacher of John, the son of 
 Zebedee). On Old Testament ground, not on Hellenic or 
 Hellenistic, did this Gospel grow. The author knew the 
 Old Testament in the original, not from the LXX. trans- 
 lation only. And as the Jews of the Diaspora in those 
 days, as a rule, knew little Hebrew, this knowledge of the 
 Old Testament language points to Palestine as the home 
 of the writer. This is further demonstrated by his mani- 
 fest familiarity with the different localities of Palestine, 
 the scenes around the Lake of Galilee, the valley of 
 Sychar, Jerusalem and its neighborhood he introduces in 
 the narrative as only one well acquainted with all those 
 places could do. It is an eye-witness who wrote this 
 Gospel, manifesting from first to last the deepest personal 
 
THE QUESTION OF AUTHORSHIP. xlv 
 
 interest in what he narrates. This is proven also by the 
 great number of exact cJironological data and the many 
 incidental little touches which give to the whole account 
 of this Gospel such a remarkable picturesqueness and 
 realism. Moreover, this eye-witness was one who moved 
 in the circle of the Twelve, showing more familiarity with 
 the conversations,* and the intimate relation between the 
 Lord and each member of this circle than any of the 
 Synoptists.^ 
 
 Finally, we make bold to say that the Gospel itself in- 
 dicates one of the sons of Zebedee, John, as its author. 
 The Synoptists tell us that James and John belonged to 
 the inner circle of three who had special privileges in their 
 intercourse with the Lord, and yet, in the fourth Gospel, 
 those two and the other members of their family are 
 never mentioned by name. This silence is certainly not 
 due to an attempt to slight John or his family, but it is 
 an indication of the modest reserve in which the writer 
 kept himself, and from which he emerges only in the 
 twenty-first chapter as the disciple whom the Lord loved, 
 and whom the closing words of that chapter, added by 
 another hand, designate as the author. 
 
 In addition to all this testimony, let us remember the 
 manifest differences which have been pointed out, in the 
 preceding pages, between the fourth Gospel and the 
 Synoptic account, and to which we refer in this con- 
 nection as one of the strongest evidences of the author- 
 ship of John. There is no rule of logic in the world that 
 would compel us to believe that any record which adds 
 certain essential features to another and previous account 
 of the same history should in itself not be entitled to be 
 credited. Why cannot both be true ? Why cannot one 
 
 1 i. 38-50; iv. 31-38; vi. 5-9, 70.: ix. 2; xi. 16; xii. 21 ; xiii. 6-9, 23-25, 
 27, 30 ; xiv. 5, 8, 22; xvi. 17 f., 29 f. ; xviii. 16; xx. 2, 3, 28. 
 
xlvi PROLEGOMENA. 
 
 witness or reporter notice and make prominent a feature 
 which was not noticed or not marked in its full import by 
 other witnesses or reporters? But more than that. In 
 this case the very difference becomes an essential evidence 
 of the originality and apostolic authority of the record, 
 which, with all its palpable deviations from the earlier 
 Synoptical accounts, quietly takes its place by their side, 
 claiming, as a matter of course, fully the same authority 
 and credence with the others. Who but an apostle, and, 
 if an apostle, who but the last surviving apostle, dared to 
 set before the Church a record of the life of Christ so 
 evidently at variance with the acknowledged gospel tradi- 
 tion of the Synoptists, which had taken such firm root 
 throughout the Church ? Would not an impostor, anxious 
 to secure recognition for his new and original presentation 
 of the life of Christ, have been very careful to preserve 
 intact the whole historical frame of the Synoptists and 
 to make the Lord Jesus speak as nearly as possible in the 
 same style as the Sermon on the Mount and the Parables ? 
 How could such a writer, nearly a hundred years after 
 the death of the last apostle, ever expect to find accept- 
 ance, instead of meeting with decided protest and being 
 at once charged with intentional deception ? But the 
 writer of the fourth Gospel is utterly unconcerned about 
 any such possibility. There is a grand indifference to it 
 on every page of his book. He writes as one " having au- 
 thority," being complete master of his subject, and ready 
 to face the whole account of the Synoptists and the whole 
 tradition of the Church concerning the life of Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 And thus this Gospel stands to-day, ready to face 
 modern scientism, unshaken by its fierce attacks, the joy 
 and the very jewel of Apostolic literature for all those 
 who truly believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of 
 God, and believing this have life in His name. 
 
EXPOSITION 
 
 GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN 
 
 ADOLPH SPAETH, D.D. 
 
 Professor in the Ltitkeratt Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, Pa. 
 
THE EXPOSITION OF THE GOSPEL 
 ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 
 
 FIRST PART.— CHAPTERS I.— IV. 
 
 THE BEGINNING OF FAITH IN THE INCARNATE WORD, 
 
 AS the' ABSOLUTE REVELATION OF GOD. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 L The Opening Section, I. 1-18 ("The Pro- 
 logue"). 
 
 I. Beginning and Theme of the Gospel. 
 
 This opening or introductory passage is generally called 
 the " Prologue," which, in the common understanding, 
 means a sort of theological preface, wherein the writer is 
 said to have set forth in an abstract, didactic form the 
 fundamental ideas, by which he was guided in the pres- 
 entation of his gospel. This view, which may suit well 
 enough for the philosophical preface of a modern his- 
 torical treatise, is altogether contrary to the spirit and 
 conception of this fourth Gospel. It is, from .the first 
 word to the last, a history, a simple array of facts, told 
 in the plainest manner by one who is called to witness 
 these facts. The God-man is the subject of this Gospel. 
 His history is to be presented. Accordingly the very 
 
2 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. i. 
 
 first verse contains a statement of facts concerning the 
 beginnings of this God-man, in the fullest and most ex- 
 haustive sense of the word. Far beyond the beginnings 
 of Mark, Matthew and Luke — yea, back of the begin- 
 ning of Genesis itself, into eternity we are carried by the 
 opening words of John. He starts at the very gates of 
 eternity and at once presents the theme of his Gospel in 
 its full extent : TJie incarnate Word \_Logos\ the absolute 
 revelation of God ; on the one side the faith that receives 
 Him, and on the other side the unbelief that rejects Him. 
 The three principal parts of the Gospel are as follows : 
 I. The beginnings of faith, that receives Him, ch. i.- 
 iv. ; 2. The hostility of unbelief, that rejects Him, ch. 
 v.-xii. ; 3. The triumph of faith ; the glorified Word 
 among His own, ch. xiii.-xxi. 
 
 2. TJie Word (" Logos "). 
 
 Not before the 17th verse is the historic name of Jesus 
 Christ introduced in this Gospel. In the beginning of 
 the Prologue a peculiar name is used to designate Him. 
 He is called " the Word " (Logos), John alone uses 
 this term in speaking of the only begotten Son of the 
 Father; and he uses it only in the Prologue, not in the 
 other parts of the Gospel ; in the first verse of the first 
 epistle I John i. i, "the Word of Life," and in the 
 Book of Revelation xix. 13, his name is called " the 
 Word of God." We have the impression that this term 
 "the Word," as used of the , Son of God, was at once 
 understood by the readers of the Gospel, as it was by the 
 readers of the Epistle and of the Revelation. It is clearly 
 used in a personal sense. It is not the impersonal word 
 of God, the means of grace, which is being preached in 
 the Law and the Gospel. , This personal use of the term 
 
I. I.] CHAPTER I. 3 
 
 appears much more strange and uncommon to us than to 
 the Greek readers, because the Greek word Logos is a 
 mascuHne form. A great deal of learning has been ex- 
 pended by many writers in following up this term 
 " Logos " through divers Jewish and pagan systems of 
 philosophy and religious speculation. The names and 
 writings of the great Greek philosopher Plato, and the 
 Alexandrian Jew, Philo, are prominently brought forward 
 in this connection, as if the writer of the fourth Gospel 
 had been a pupil of Plato or Philo, receiving from them 
 this peculiar term " Logos," to transplant it into the 
 sphere of Christianity and to dress it up in a Christian 
 garb ! 
 
 But John uses the term " Logos" quite independently 
 of Greek or Alexandrine scholars and their systems. He 
 tells us himself in his prologue most plainly and directly 
 what the name " Logos " means to him. We take the 
 last verse of the Prologue (i. i8) and compare it with the 
 first and with all the others in which the term " Logos 
 is used. There he says: " No man hath seen God at any 
 time ; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of 
 the Father, he \i^\.\v declared liiin.'' He has become the 
 exegete, the interpreter, of the Father. He reveals 
 Him in such a manner as He has never before been 
 revealed. " God, having of old time spoken unto the 
 fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers 
 manners, hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in 
 his Son " (Hebr. i. i). Even among men it is true, or 
 it ought to be true, that the " word " is to be the full, 
 adequate, honest representation of the " man." " Ein 
 Mann ein Wort," says one of the most beautiful and 
 significant German proverbs. The Word reveals and 
 communicates to the outside world His innermost nature, 
 His thoughts, feelings and volitions. The " Word " is 
 
4 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 1-3. 
 
 therefore the most comprehensive and appropriate title 
 for Him, in whom the final, essential and absolute reve- 
 lation of the Father appeared in person. The " Logos " 
 speaks out to the world whatever is in the bosom of the 
 Father, He manifests His name to the men whom He 
 gave Him out of the world. The words which the 
 Father gave Him He hath given unto them. And the 
 glory which the Father hath given Him, He hath given 
 unto them (John xvii. 6, 8, 22). In His person we have 
 the absolute, complete mediation and communication 
 between the Father and the world. If anyone ask Him, 
 as Philip did: "Shew us the Father," he will receive 
 from the Logos that same old answer : " He that hath 
 seen me, hath seen the Father." 
 
 3. TJie Eternal and Creative Word (i. 1-3). 
 
 1-3. 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 
 hath been made. 
 
 Of this Logos John says: " /« tJie beginning zvas tJie 
 Word,'' etc. (Ver. i and 2). It existed, or, speaking of 
 the personal Logos, He had His being before anything 
 had a beginning. He ivas — before time, before creation 
 — He never was made, as all things were made ; He 
 simply ivas with God in close, loving communion with 
 Him, co-equal, co-eternal with Him, Himself God. This 
 uncreated Logos is Himself active in the creation. All 
 things are made through Him. 'Creation itself is part of 
 God's manifestation or revelation. In so far it comes 
 into the sphere of the Logos. Without Him, the cxcgcte, 
 or interpreter, creation would not tell us anything of God, 
 His nature and His thoughts. All the grandeur and 
 
I. 4-9.] CHAPTER I. 5 
 
 beauty of nature would stare at us dumb and meaning- 
 less if the Logos had not given speech to it, and chosen 
 it as an organ of revelation. From Him it is that "the 
 heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament 
 showeth His handiwork;" that "day unto day uttcreth 
 speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge ; " from 
 Him it is that " the invisible things of God, since the 
 creation of the world, are clearly seen, being perceived 
 through the things that are made, even His everlasting 
 power and divinity " (Rom. i. 20). 
 
 4. Tlic Word of Salvation (i. 4-9). 
 
 4-g. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the 
 light shineth in the darkness j and the darkness apprehended it not. There 
 came a man, sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for 
 witness, that he might bear witness of the light, that all might believe 
 through him. He was not the light, but catne that he might bear witness 
 of the light. There was the true light, even the light which lighteth every 
 man, coming into the world. 
 
 The Logos as the absolute revelation of God, does not 
 simply reveal and communicate certain abstract kiioivL 
 edge. He is Life and Light, health and salvation in the 
 midst of darkness. The Evangelist does not stop to 
 answer the question. Whence the darkness ? How did it 
 enter this creation of the Logos, full of His life and His 
 light ? He simply states the fact that the light of the 
 Logos is shining in the darkness. From the threshold of 
 Paradise, lost ever since the fall of man, this light shineth 
 in the darkness. The Spirit of Christ in the men of God, 
 that prophesied of the grace that should come (i Pet. i. 
 10, 11), testified beforehand of Christ. This testimony, 
 coming from the Logos, extending through the whole 
 Old Testament, and preparing the way for the personal 
 appearance of the Logos in the flesh, culminated in the 
 
6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 10-13. 
 
 "man, sent from God, whose name was John, who came 
 to bear witness of the Light." For this true Hght was on 
 its way, coming into the world. How will it be received ? 
 It is coming, the way is well prepared for it by ample 
 testimony. What kind of a welcome will the world give 
 to it ? 
 
 5. The Word Rejected by the World (i. 10, 11). 
 
 lo-ii. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the 
 world knew him not. He came unto his own, and they that were his own 
 received him not. 
 
 Mark here the expression of sadness, the tragic char- 
 acter, which is one of the peculiar and prominent features 
 of the fourth Gospel. Over against the flood of light and 
 life and glory, offered to the world in the coming of the 
 Logos, there is a complete indifference to Him on the 
 part of the world. He was in the world, and the world 
 was made by Him and the world knew Him not. He 
 came unto His own, and they that were His own received 
 Him not. Observe the climax in these two verses. It 
 IS bad enough that the world, which was made by Him, 
 should not knozv Him. But it is much worse that His 
 own — Israel, the members of the Old Testament Theoc- 
 racy, the chosen people of God — should not rceeive Him. 
 If the former is a lack of knowledge and recognition, the 
 latter is a determined opposition, an unwillingness to 
 give Him the place that properly belonged to Him, to 
 submit to Him with grateful and believing hearts. 
 
 6. Tlic Word Received by the Children of God {\. 12-13). 
 
 12-13. But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to be- 
 come children 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. 
 
 But after all, in spite of the enmity and indifference of 
 
I. 12, 13.] CHAPTER I. 7 
 
 the world, the old prophecy (Isaiah Iv. 10, ii) shall be 
 fulfilled : "The word that goeth forth out of my mouth 
 shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish 
 that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing 
 whereto I send it." The Logos revelation is not alto- 
 gether lost on the world. Not in vain has He been 
 active from the beginning in the creation of the world. 
 Not in vain has His testimony gone forth, shining through 
 the darkness with light from above. There are in this 
 world not only creatures of God, ignoring and rejecting 
 the Logos ; there are also cJiildren of God. receiving Him 
 and believing on His name. Though " His own," as a 
 whole, reject Him, there are ///^/77V///(7/y (oVoi), exceptions 
 from the majority, counted by God and known to Him, 
 however few or many, that receive Him. But to receive 
 Him is to believe on His uauie. Here we meet for the 
 first time this word, which is more frequent in the Gospel 
 of John than in any of the Synoptists. It describes the 
 proper attitude of men towards the light which appears 
 in the Logos; not, however, as a work of man, of human 
 strength, but simply as the receiving of what God works 
 in man. It is believing on His navie. He must be 
 named and known in order to be believed in. (The words 
 " name " and to " know " spring from the same root in 
 the language of the New Testament.) There must be a 
 making known, a revealing of His nature and character, 
 giving light and knowledge concerning God and world and 
 self. There is no faith without this knowledge, although 
 this knowledge is not yet full, true, saving faith. Such 
 faith is only where the heart accepts Him with the blessed 
 assurance : Thou art mine ! The fruit of such faith is 
 the new creature. It may be of interest at this point to 
 compare the different aspects under which the term " chil- 
 dren of God " is presented by different writersof the New 
 
8 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 12-14. 
 
 Testament. In the Synoptical Gospels (particularly in 
 the sermon on the mount) the term designates the moral 
 character of the Christian, being likeminded with God, 
 Matt. V. 9 (the peacemakers) ; v. 16, by the good works 
 of the children, the Father in heaven is to be glorified (v. 
 45, 48) ; love to the enemies and moral perfection are 
 to be the characteristic features of sons of God.^ With 
 St. Paul the state of adoption is contrasted with the state 
 of bondage, it is the freedom of the Gospel over against 
 the servitude of the Law. (Rom. viii. 14, 15, ye have not 
 received the spirit of .bondage again to fear; but ye have 
 received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba 
 Father.) With John the term " children of God " em- 
 bodies the idea of being of the same nature with God — 
 spiritual, begotten of God, born of the Spirit over against 
 the natural birth of the flesh and that awful condition of 
 being the children of the devil, as the Lord charged His 
 stubborn, hardened adversaries: "Ye are not of God, ye 
 are of your father, the devil, and the lusts of your father 
 it is your will to do " (John viii. 44, 47). 
 
 7. TJic Word Incarnate (i. 14). 
 
 14. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld 
 his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and 
 truth. 
 
 This verse at last announces the cardinal fact of Chris- 
 tianity, the incarnation of the eternal Logos, in the same 
 direct manner, which characterized the preceding state- 
 ments concerning the Logos.- The three words of the 
 original introduce a simple historical fact ; but it is the 
 central fact in the history of mankind and in the history 
 of God's kingdom, an everlasting offence to Jews and 
 
 ^ Cf. also Luke vi. 36 : " Be ye merciful, even as your Father in heaven 
 is merciful." 
 
I. 14-] CHAPTER I. 9 
 
 Gentiles, Rationalists and Pantheists. In its innermost 
 nature it will always remain a mystery, an unfathomable 
 wonder of divine love. To appreciate it we must not 
 forget what had been said from the first verse concerning 
 the Logos ; nor what has been said, in the immediately 
 preceding verses, concerning the flesh. What a contrast ! 
 But now the bold combination of the two — the Word 
 and the flesh. The Word was in the beginning and never 
 ceased to be what it had been from eternity. But now it 
 became what it had not been before — it was made flesh. 
 The term is stronger even than the well-known : " God 
 manifested in the flesh" (i Tim. iii. 1 6), or the expression 
 used by i John iv. 2 : " He came in the flesh." It is the 
 fullest real communion of the Logos with us, which is 
 emphasized by this expression. There is no change in 
 the nature of the Logos Himself, but only in His mode 
 of existence. The glory which belongs to the Logos 
 from eternity is not lost through His incarnation. The 
 divine nature, with its inherent glory, and the human 
 nature, with its inherent weakness, are now inseparably 
 united in the one person of the incarnate Logos, the 
 God-man, of whom we say correctly : This man is God, 
 and God is this man. Henceforth we cannot and dare 
 not separate the eternal divinity of the Logos and the 
 true humanity of the flesh which He assumed. Wher- 
 ever we meet our Lord and Saviour, the incarnate Word, 
 whether it be in the manger, or on the cross, or on the 
 throne at the right hand of the Father, there the true 
 God and the true man are inseparably united.^ 
 
 8. The Incarnate Word Dwelling among Us. 
 He who, in the beginning, was with God, was now 
 
 1 " Vea, if I should myself be lost (which God forbid !) I should still re- 
 joice that Christ of my flesh and bone is sitting in heaven at the right hand 
 
lo THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 14. 
 
 dwelling among men, a true Immanuel — God with us — a 
 Shekinah, different from the passing manifestations of 
 divine glory in the Old Testament called theophanies. 
 He was at home with us men, says John, we have eaten 
 with Him at the same table, slept with Him under the 
 same roof: we have gone out and come in with Him; 
 we had Him with us as our friend and brother — our 
 fellow-citizen and companion of our pilgrimage. By this 
 close fellowship we had an opportunity to behold His 
 glory. We, says the Evangelist, including himself, and 
 mentioning in particular, as the first one among these 
 eye-witnesses, John the Baptist (in the 15th verse). To 
 behold His glory eyes of faith were needed, then as well 
 as now, as the Lord said to Martha : " If thou believedst, 
 thou shouldest see the glory of God " (John xi. 40). It 
 is the " glory of the only begotten Son of the Father." 
 Thus He is clearly distinguished from the many that re- 
 ceived the right to become the children of God, through 
 Him, the only begotten Son of the Father. His glory, 
 as revealed by His incarnation, is characterized as the 
 fulness of grace and truth : Grace that condescends to 
 the sinner, reclaims the lost, invites the weary and heavy- 
 laden, bears the weak in patience, makes intercession for 
 His enemies on the cross — this is the true glory of the 
 incarnate Word to which all the manifestations of His 
 power, His signs and miracles are made subservient. And 
 united to this grace is truth; the absolute revelation, as 
 grace represents the absolute redemption ; truth over 
 against all darkening and misrepresentation, but also in 
 antithesis to everything that is vain, unreal, passing, 
 while the life and light, brought by the incarnate Word, 
 are substantial realities of abiding value. 
 
 of God. Such honor has been given to what is my bone, flesh and blood," 
 says !\I. Luther. 
 
1. i5-iS.] CHAPTER I. il 
 
 9. Receiving out of His Fulness (i. 15-18). 
 
 15-18. John beareth witness of him, and crieth, saying, This was he of 
 whom I said, He that cometh after me is become before me : for he was 
 before me. For of his fuhiess we all received, and grace for grace. For 
 the law was given by Moses ; 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 Jiiiii. 
 
 To the blessed experience of the 14th verse, " We be- 
 held His Glory," a better one is added: " Of His fulness 
 we all received, and grace for grace." This actual receiv- 
 ing, taking from His fulness, is the one need for all. It 
 is made possible through the testimony of the witnesses 
 of the incarnate Word, such as John the Baptist. No 
 matter what gifts men may have received already from 
 the Creator's hands, their true and abiding treasures come 
 only out of the fulness of grace and truth of the incar- 
 nate Word. Before Him all of us — the most learned and 
 gifted, as well as the unwise and unlearned — must be 
 simply receivers. But this very privilege of taking from 
 His fulness is the glorious and distinctive mark of the 
 New Testament revelation, of Christ over against Moses, 
 the Gospel over against the Law. The Law demands, 
 the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ freely gives. Here is 
 the end of Moses. The absolute revelation came by the 
 only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, 
 who hath declared Him as the Word made flesh. 
 
 n. The Testimony of John the Baptist (i. 19-34). 
 I. First Testimony before the JeivisJi Delegation {^. 19-28). 
 
 19-28. And this is the witness of John, when the Jews sent unto him 
 from Jerusalem priests and Levites to ask him. Who art thou .'' And he 
 confessed, and denied not; and he confessed, I am not the Christ. And 
 they asked him. What then ? Art thou Elijah.' And he saith, I am not. 
 
12- THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [1.19-28. 
 
 Art thou the prophet ? And he answered, No. They said therefore unto 
 him, Who art thou.' that we might give an answer to them that sent us. 
 What sayest thou of thyself.' He said, I am the voice of one crying in the 
 wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said Isaiah the prophet. 
 And they had been sent from the Pharisees. And they asked him, and 
 said unto him. Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, neither 
 Elijah, neither the prophet } John answered them, saying, I baptize with 
 water : in the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not, even he that 
 Cometh after me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose. 
 These things were done in Bethany beyond Jordan, where John was bap- 
 tizing. 
 
 As in the other Evangelists, so also in John, the Gospel 
 history proper begins with the testimony of the forerun- 
 ner, John the Baptist, Avhose surname " the Baptist," 
 however, is not once mentioned in the fourth Gospel. 
 He is simply " John," the writer of the Gospel finding it 
 unnecessary to mark him more particularly in distinction 
 from another John, the author himself. There is no 
 doubt that the zvritcr of the fourth Gospel stood in a 
 peculiarly intimate relation, not only to the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, but also to John the Baptist. We found already 
 in two passages of the " Prologue," direct references to 
 John the Baptist, the former master and teacher of the 
 Evangelist. But now he leads us deeper into the very 
 heart of the testimony of the Bapti-st concerning Christ. 
 No other disciple so fully grasped the very centre of the 
 Baptist's preaching. The fourth Gospel holds the same 
 place in this respect as it does with its conception and 
 presentation of the teachings of the Lord Himself. \\\ 
 the Synoptical Gospels the Baptist's preparatory preach- 
 ing of repentance is the principal point. Only in a sec- 
 ondary and indirect manner do they refer to his testimony 
 concerning the Person and work of the Lord. But in the 
 fourth Gospel this latter is the main thing. Here we 
 learn that the Baptist's preaching already gave forth 
 such a full and clear sound concerninsj; the Person of 
 
I. 19-23.] CHAPTER I. 13 
 
 Christ, as the One that cometh after him, and yet is before 
 him, the latchet of whose shoe he is not worthy to un- 
 loose, and concerning the work of Christ as the Lamb of 
 God which taketh away the sins of the world. These 
 were the principal features in the preaching of John the 
 Baptist, and they are placed in the foreground in the 
 fourth Gospel, in distinction from the Synoptists.^ 
 
 At the time when the testimony recorded in these verses 
 (i. 19-28) was given by the Baptist, he must have already 
 passed the height of his public ministry. He had made 
 that deep impression which led many to ask whether he 
 was not Christ (Luke iii. 15). And under the pressure of 
 the deep commotion created by his appearance and 
 preaching, the Sanhedrim in Jerusalem at last finds itself 
 compelled to take action with regard to this man. This 
 Council, at the time of Christ, consisted of seventy-one 
 members, including the president, high priests, elders and 
 scribes, among whose duties it was distinctly mentioned, 
 that they should give their judgment concerning " false 
 prophets." 
 
 The commission of Priests and Levites sent from Jeru- 
 salem to John the Baptist is represented as coming from 
 " t/ie Jeius." This name " Jews " is one of the character- 
 istic features of the fourth Gospel, in which it occurs 
 about seventy times, whilst the Synoptical Gospels use it 
 much less frequently. Here and there in the fourth Gos- 
 pel it appears simply as an indifferent neutral term, to 
 designate the nationality. But in most cases it has a 
 specific meaning, referring to the religious attitude of 
 the people, describing them as the enemies of the Mes- 
 sianic kingdom. In the Old Testament the original name 
 of honor for God's chosen people is " Israel" (as the Lord 
 
 1 With them John the Baptist is pre-eminently the preacher of the Law. 
 In the fourth Gospel he appears principally as the preacher of the Gospel. 
 
14 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 19-2S. 
 
 speaks of Nathanael in this very chapter, ver. 47). The 
 name "Jews" appears at a very late period, from the 
 time that Israel was carried away into captivity (2 Kings 
 xvi. 6 ; Jerem. xxxiv. 9), when the people as a whole had 
 departed from the faith of their fathers. There can be no 
 doubt that here also the animus of this delegation sent 
 to John the Baptist was by no means friendly towards 
 John and the kingdom he preached. 
 
 In the three negative anszuers which the Baptist returns 
 to the questions of the ecclesiastical commission he clearly 
 and decidedly refutes all the current ideas about his per- 
 son and ofifice. He is not the Messiah, not Elias, not the 
 prophet. The first point is clear enough. But how about 
 the other two ? The very last prophetical statement of 
 the Old Testament connected the appearance of Elijah 
 with the coming of Messiah. (Mai. iv. 5, 6), " Behold, I 
 will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of 
 the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and he shall turn 
 the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of 
 the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the 
 earth with a curse." And the very first New Testament 
 message of the angel to Zacharias, takes up that last word' 
 of the Old Testament at the threshold of the New, and 
 applies it to John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Lord 
 (Luke i. 17). And the Lord Himself leaves us not in 
 doubt as to the meaning of that prophecy concerning 
 Elias. (See Matt. xvii. 9-13.) And yet in the face of 
 all this John says to the inquiring Jews: " I am not Elias." 
 In the sense in which the Jews expected the re-appear- 
 ance of Elias, and which had been minutely detailed by 
 their scribes,^ in the gross material sense of a resurrection 
 or soul-migration, he was not Elias, but an individuality 
 
 1 They held that he would have to anoint the Messiah : that he should. 
 come three days before the coming of Christ, etc. 
 
I. 19-2S.] CHAPTER /. 15 
 
 of his own, distinct from Elias. It is a similar case with 
 the " Prophet.'' Zacharias had said of the newborn John : 
 " Thou child shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest: 
 for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare 
 His ways." And the Lord said distinctly : " What went 
 ye out for to see ? A prophet ? Yea, I say unto you 
 and more than a prophet." And yet again John answers 
 in the negative : I am not the " prophet," in the sense of 
 the Jews, after their construction of Deut. xviii. 15, or 
 according to the expectation of the re-appearance of the 
 prophet Jeremiah. ♦ 
 
 At last, after all these negatives, John x<t^.wxx\s2i positive 
 aiisivcrVo those inquiries concerning his person and work : 
 " I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness," etc. — Of 
 the two Old Testament passages (Mai. iii. I, and Isaiah 
 xl. 3) referring directly to himself he selects the one that 
 speaks in the humblest terms of his position. " A voice," 
 and nothing more ; nothing in himself, no honor for his 
 own person ; merely an instrument of Him that crieth in 
 the wilderness. "Wilderness!" — what a suggestion to 
 Israel, and especially to the leaders of God's people who 
 had come to interrogate John ! The place of the darkest 
 and saddest experiences of the Israelites before their 
 entrance into the promised Canaan. Such was Israel's 
 condition again at the time of John's preaching. Though 
 in Canaan with their bodies, they were in the wilderness 
 spiritually, in a state of utter desolation, like sheep with- 
 out a shepherd, and the very men Avho stood before 
 John as inquisitors, were responsible for this condition. 
 Therefore the Evangelist significantly adds : The men 
 that had been sent were ''from among the Pharisees^ 
 The information which the Baptist gave concerning his 
 person became a rebuke to the men that stood before 
 him and those that had sent them. He had before this 
 
1 6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 19-28. 
 
 used the severest language against the Pharisees and Sad- 
 ducees (Matt. iii. 7 ; Luke iii. 7). " But the Pharisees and 
 the lawyers rejected for themselves the counsel of God, 
 being not baptized of him " (Luke vii. 30). 
 
 The Pharisees were the men of unyielding tradition- 
 alism, of the strictest ecclesiastical conservatism. Jose- 
 phus mentions them first at the time of the high priest 
 Jonathan, 145 before Christ. The exact time of their 
 origin as a separate party is difficult to define. We can 
 trace them back to the ancient " Chasidim," the pious, 
 " the devout," from whom also came the Maccabean 
 heroes. Gradually they developed into the " Perushim " 
 — that is, the " separated ones," who held themselves to 
 be purer and holier than others. But with their strict 
 observance of outward forms and traditions they lost the 
 spirit of true devotion and were henceforth characterized 
 by their servitude to the letter, their self-righteousness 
 and hypocrisy, and their readiness in raising questions of 
 subtle casuistry. Ever since the time of the Maccabees, 
 whenever those leaders began to favor an alliance with 
 Rome, the Pharisees were also a political party, zealously 
 contending for the national independence of Israel over 
 aeainst all foreio;n influence or interference. 
 
 Having received John's ansu'er concerning his person, 
 they add another question concerning his authority to 
 baptize, being neither Christ nor Elias, nor the prophet. 
 It appears, then, that they looked upon baptism as one 
 of the signs and prerogatives of the Messianic Era.^ 
 
 1 The practice of baptizing proselytes which is claimed by some writers as 
 an ancient Jewish custom is very doubtful, at least as far as its date is con- 
 cerned. Philo and Joseph us know nothing of it. Maimonides, in the 12th 
 century, is the first to mention it directly, saying that it had been custom- 
 ary in the times of David and Solomon, whilst other rabbinical writers date 
 it back to the time of the Patriarchs ! 
 
1. 19-2S.] CHAPTER I. 17 
 
 John's answer characterizes his baptism simply as " bap- 
 tizing with water ; " as Matt. iii. 11 has it: "I indeed 
 baptize you with water unto repentance, but He that 
 Cometh after me is mightier than I. He shall baptize 
 you with the Holy Ghost and with fire." His baptism 
 symbolizes repentance on the part of those that receive 
 it, and readiness for entrance into the kingdom of the 
 Messiah. Here, then, is the justification of John's bap- 
 tism : The kingdom of Christ is at hand. " He standeth 
 in the midst of you ! " But though the promised One 
 has come, the leaders of Israel " know Him not." 
 
 So important seems this event to the Evangelist that 
 he marks carefully the locality where it happened. It 
 was at Bethany, not Bethabara, as Origen changed the 
 text in the third century, because he was unable, more 
 than two centuries afterward, to find a trace of such a 
 village on the Jordan. As we have in the Scriptures 
 two Canas, two Bethlehems, two Ramas, etc., so there 
 were two Bethanys ; the one "nigh unto Jerusalem, about 
 fifteen furlongs off " (John xi. 18), the other distinctly 
 marked in this passage as " Bethany beyond Jordan."^ 
 
 2. Second Testimony of John the Baptist Addressed to his 
 
 Disciples (i. 29-34). 
 
 29-34. On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Be- 
 hold, 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 become before me : 
 for he was before me. And I knew him not ; but that he should be made 
 manifest to Israel, for this cause came I baptizing with water. And John 
 bare witness, saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of 
 heaven; and it abode upon him. And I knew him not : but he that sent 
 
 1 The distance of the "Bethany beyond Jordan " is the point which the 
 Evangelist intends to mark. John the Baptist " did not make things con- 
 venient for the Jews. He demanded that they should come clear over the 
 Jordan to him." — Luthardt. 
 2 
 
iS THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 29-3^. 
 
 me to baptize with water, he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt 
 see the Spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that bap- 
 tizeth with the Holy Spirit. And I have seen, and have borne witness 
 that this is the Son of God. 
 
 The solemn testimony of the Baptist before the com- 
 missioners from Jerusalem seems to have been lost on 
 them. They departed without taking further notice of 
 it. But the testimony given on the two following days, 
 in the presence of the disciples of the Baptist and other 
 hearers, had a different effect, as we shall presently see. 
 
 If the first testimony had spoken of the absent Christ, 
 this second is given in His presence. The Baptist points 
 to Him personally, bodily, as He is coming up from the 
 Wilderness, probably after the temptation. "There He 
 is Himself; behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away 
 the sin of the world " — a brief and yet most comprehen- 
 sive statement of the xvork of Christ. The "sins" of 
 his hearers had been a constantly recurring theme in the 
 discourses of the Baptist. His preaching and baptizing 
 Avere unto repentance and forgiveness of sins. But 
 neither the personal repentance of the sinners, nor that 
 symbolical baptism in itself, had the power of taking one 
 sin really away and burying it out of sight. Here is the 
 man to do this, and the true, divinely-appointed method 
 of doing it : " The Lamb of God, which taketh away the 
 sin of the world." It is the Lamb of God, provided by 
 Him, appointed and chosen by God Himself; not alto- 
 gether unknown in Israel, foreshadowed in the Passover- 
 lamb, whose blood turned the avenging angel aside from 
 the doors of God's people, directly prophesied in the 
 well-known words of Isaiah liii., which were commonly 
 accepted by the Jews as referring to the Messiah. Our 
 English (Rev.) Version gives two readings of the verb in 
 this sentence. In the text itself it is " taketh away ; " on 
 
I. 29-34.] CHAPTER I. 1 9 
 
 the margin it reads : " bearcth." The two combined 
 give the full meaning of this momentous term. The 
 " taking away " of the world's sin is the principal idea, 
 thus ridding the world of sin and all its consequences of 
 guilt and judgment. But how can this terrible burden 
 be lifted up and taken away if there is no one to put his 
 hand to it, to take it up, burden himself with it, bear it 
 on his own person and thus bring full deliverance from it ? 
 The question has been asked how far John the Baptist 
 himself was fully conscious of the whole extent of this 
 message, the mediatorial work of Christ, the meaning of 
 His passion and death for the reconciliation of the world. 
 We know how slow the disciples were to comprehend 
 this. We know that John the Baptist himself, in his im- 
 prisonment, had his difficulties concerning the manner 
 and method by which Christ carried on His work. But 
 all this cannot affect the statement itself. It is, once for 
 all, the briefest summary of Christ's whole Avork of re- 
 demption, and the Church could not but acknowledge its 
 fulness and importance by incorporating it from the 
 earliest time into her services, in the form of that beautiful 
 prayer (the " Agnus Dei"): "O Christ, Thou Lamb of 
 God, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy 
 upon us — grant us Thy peace." 
 
 To this comprehensive testimony concerning the work 
 of Christ, there is added a repetition and enlargement of 
 his testimony concerning \.\iQ. person of Christ, emphasized 
 by a direct pointing out of Him, who was just coming to 
 the speaker, and by a detailed reminiscence of what John 
 had observed on the occasion of Christ's baptism. (Cf. 
 Matt. iii. 16, 17.) The Lamb of God \s identical with the 
 Son of God / These are the culminating points in the 
 testimony of the Baptist. Israel will find in the Messiah 
 the Son of God, who makes His believers partakers of the 
 
20 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [r. 35-51. 
 
 glory of the children of God, only on condition that the 
 Messiah must first be known as the Lamb of God. 
 
 III. The First Disciples of the Lord 
 (John i. 35-51)- 
 
 35-51. Again on the morrow John was standing, and two of his disci- 
 ples ; and he looked upon Jesus as he walked, and saith, Behold, the Lamb 
 of God ! And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 
 And Jesus turned, and beheld them following, and saith unto them, What 
 seek ye .'' And they said unto him. Rabbi (which is to say, being interpreted, 
 Master), where abidest thou .' He saith unto them, Come, and ye shall see. 
 They came therefore and saw where he abode ; and they abode with him 
 that day : it was about the tenth hour. One of the two that heard John 
 speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. He findeth 
 first his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Mes- 
 siah (which is, being interpreted, Christ), He brought him unto Jesus. 
 Jesus looked upon him, and said, Thou art Simon the son of John: thou 
 shalt be called Cephas (which is by interpretation, Peter). 
 
 On the morrow he was minded to go forth into Galilee, and he 
 findeth Philip : and Jesus saith unto him, Follow me. Now Philip was 
 from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip findeth Nathan- 
 ael, and saith unto him. We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, 
 and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. ■ And 
 Nathanael said unto him. Can any good thing come out of Nazareth .'' 
 Philip saith unto him. Come and see. 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 Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig 
 tree, I saw thee. Nathanael answered him. Rabbi, thou art the Son of 
 God; thou art_ King of Israel. Jesus answered and said unto him. Be- 
 cause I said unto thee, I saw thee underneath the fig tree, believest thou.'' 
 thou shalt see greater things than these. And he saith unto him. Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you. Ye shall see the heaven opened, and the angels of 
 God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. 
 
 The same impressive testimony of the " Lamb of God " 
 is repeated by the Baptist on the following day in the 
 presence of two of his disciples. They are moved thereby 
 to leave John and to follow Jesus. The transition from 
 the Old to the New Testament is represented in these dis- 
 ciples of the Baptist. There is no violent, revolutionary 
 
I. 35-5' J CHAPTER I. 21 
 
 break. It is a matter of course, just as the natural falling 
 of the ripened fruit, that these souls, so well prepared by 
 the testimony of the Old Testament, and of their master, 
 John, henceforth belong to Jesus. There is no outward 
 constraining, no direct command of their former master, 
 that sends them off to Jesus, but simply the testimony 
 concerning Him which has convinced their hearts that in 
 Him they have found the Messiah. Their question : 
 Where abidest Thou ? reminds us of the fact that the in- 
 carnate Word "dwelt among us." They have not far to 
 go, and thus these first hearts come and see and receive 
 from Him grace for grace. It is the beginning of the 
 New Testament Church, after the definition of the Lord 
 Himself : " Two or three gathered in His name," involving 
 the principle also of constant growth, that the two — 
 Andrew and his companion — increase to the number of 
 five or six, and the six to twelve, to seventy, to 120, to 
 3000, and so on ; one finding another, and brother leading 
 the brother to Christ. 
 
 Andreiv of BctJisaida, the man of prompt and quick 
 decisions, is the first in the New Testament to call out 
 that blessed EupY/.a in which the problem of life is solved. 
 His companion is not named. No doubt it is the same 
 anonymous one whom we can trace all through this 
 Gospel, the eye-witness of the facts here recorded, who 
 recalled so distinctly this memorable hour — the Evangelist 
 himself. Having found the Lord, both go forth to bring 
 their brothers also to the feet of Jesus. Andrew was the 
 first to find his own brother Simon, whilst John the 
 Evangelist went for his brother James. ^ There is a certain 
 similarity of temper in the two brothers, Andrew and 
 Simon ; only what was promptness and readiness in 
 
 1 Clearly indicated in the original of the 41st verse orror Trpuro^ ruv 
 a<h/.<pni' hhoi'. 
 
2 2 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. ['• 35-51- 
 
 Andrew frequently became rashness, impetuosity and 
 hastiness with Peter. Looking to Simon's natural char- 
 acter, the wind or wave would appear to have furnished a 
 more appropriate figure for a surname than the firm, im- 
 inovable rock. But He who turned Saul the Pharisee 
 into the herald of free grace and righteousness of faith, 
 changed the excitable, hasty, denying Peter into the con- 
 fessor who stood like a rock. But how often had sinking 
 and vacillating Peter to be rescued by the Rock of Ages 
 before he waxed strong enough to become a rock and a 
 tower of strength to his brethren ! 
 
 On the following day the Lord set out for Galilee, ac- 
 companied by those disciples. On the road he finds 
 Philip, the townsman of Andrew and Peter. It is first 
 said: "The Lord findeth Philip" (ver. 43), and after- 
 wards Philip says: " We have found Him," etc. (ver. 45), 
 even as Paul writes (Phil. iii. 12): "That I may appre- 
 hend having been apprehended by Christ Jesus." This is 
 in perfect accord with the peculiarity of Philip's char- 
 acter, which was marked by deliberation and slowness of 
 decision. 
 
 Philip findeth Nathanacl, who is generally regarded as 
 identical with the Bartholomew of the other Evangelists, 
 who all name him in connection with Philip. Possibly 
 the name Nathanacl (Theodore) might have been given 
 to Bartholomew on this occasion. Philip evidently knows 
 his friend Nathanacl. He knows how well he is acquainted 
 with Moses and the Prophets. The sober, devout study 
 of the Old Testament and the earnest hope for the 
 Messiah, who was to come, were prominent features of 
 Nathanael's character. Therefore Philip announces the 
 good news to him in these words : " W'c have found Him, 
 of whom Moses in the Law and the Prophets did write, 
 Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." Li perfect har- 
 
1.35-5'] CHAPTER I. 23 
 
 mony with this are the few directly personal words which 
 the Lord addresses to Nathanael : " An Israelite indeed 
 in whom is no guile." (See Psalm xxxii. 2 : " Blessed is 
 the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, in 
 whose spirit there is no guile.") No wonder that he is 
 completely overwhelmed as the Lord proceeds to remind 
 him of those quiet, sacred hours of prayer and meditation 
 spent under his fig tree ! Straightway his heart leaps 
 over the little stumbling-block — the lowly home of the 
 Nazarene — and he bursts out in the fullest and most com- 
 prehensive confession of Christ : " Thou art the Son of 
 God, Thou art the king of Israel," on which the Lord sets 
 His own seal and approbation : "Thou believest," as He 
 did on later occasions with Peter and Thomas. 
 
 And now with that solemn "Amen, Amen," "Verily, 
 verily I say unto you," which is so frequent in John's 
 Gospel, and which takes the place of the Old Testament 
 " Thus saith the Lord," the last sentence of this won- 
 derful first chapter is introduced, which pictures the beau- 
 tiful union between heaven and earth since the appear- 
 ance of the God-man — the heavens open, God's mes- 
 sengers active in lively intercourse between heaven and 
 earth ; another reminder of a well-known Old Testament 
 passage, the ladder in Jacob's dream with that precious 
 confession : " This is none other but the house of God, 
 and this is the gate of heaven." But this experience, 
 promised to Nathanael, is simply the reflex of what we 
 read in the 14th verse of this chapter: Beholding "the 
 glory of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace 
 and truth." 
 
 One word yet demands a few remarks before we leave 
 this chapter, '' tJic Son of Many The whole chapter 
 abounds in striking and glorious titles given to Jesus 
 Christ our Saviour. The eternal Logos ; the only begot- 
 
24 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i. 35-51. 
 
 ten Son of the Father ; the Lamb of God ; the Son of 
 God ; the King of Israel ; the Messiah. To these is now 
 added this new and significant name : " The Son of 
 Man," the Lord's favorite expression in speaking of 
 Himself. Following, as it does, in this connection, so 
 closely on the two names (used by Nathanael) : " Son of 
 God ; King of Israel," the term " Son of Man " naturally 
 seems to designate another important relation of Christ. 
 If He is the Son of God in His relation to the Father, 
 and the King of Israel in His relation to God's chosen 
 people, He is the " Son of Man " in His relation to the 
 human race as such. The Word incarnate is the seed of 
 the woman, belonging to mankind, unfettered by any 
 barriers of nationality. He is truly one of us. But He 
 is at the same time above all men. With Him our his- 
 tory takes a new departure. He is " tJic Son of Man 
 (cf. Psalm viii.), the second Adam, the new beginner. 
 But this He can only be, because He is not flesh born of 
 flesh, as other men, but the Word made flesh, true God, 
 born of the Father from eternity and true man, born of 
 the Virgin Mary. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 IV. The First Sign (John ii. i-ii). 
 
 i-ii. And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee ; and 
 the mother of Jesus was there : and Jesus also was bidden, and his disciples, 
 to the marriage. And when the wine failed, the mother of Jesus saith 
 unto him, They have no wine. And Jesus saith unto her. Woman, what have 
 I to do with thee ? mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the 
 servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. Now there were si,x water- 
 pots of stone set there after the Jews' manner of purifying, containing two 
 or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them. Fill the wa'erpots with 
 water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them. 
 Draw out now, and bear unto the ruler of the feast. And they bare it. 
 And when the ruler of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and 
 knew not whence it was (but the servants which had drawn the water knew), 
 the ruler of the feast calleththe bridegroom, and saith unto him, Everyman 
 setteth on first the good wine; and when men have drunk freely, then that 
 which is worse : thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning 
 of his signs did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his 
 disciples believed on him. 
 
 The first chapter closed with the promise of the Lord 
 to Nathanael : " Thou shalt see greater things than these 
 — the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending 
 and descending upon the Son of Man." The beginning 
 of the second chapter now brings the first sign of the 
 Lord, of which the Evangelist says with special emphasis : 
 " This beginning of His signs did Jesus in Cana of 
 Galilee and manifested His glory and His disciples 
 believed on Him." The word " sign " is one of the 
 characteristic and favorite terms of the Gospel of John. 
 The Synoptical Gospels use other words for the miracles 
 of the Lord, which mainly embody the idea of stupend- 
 
 25 
 
26 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ii. i-ii. 
 
 OLis deeds of superhuman power. With John they are 
 " signs," to indicate, to show, to signify something. 
 They demonstrate the div^ine glory of Christ and bring 
 men to behold, to see the Lord. People believe in Him 
 as they see the signs which He did (ji. 23). 
 
 On the third day after the Lord's departure from the 
 valley of the Jordan, on the sixth after the delegation 
 from Jerusalem to John the Baptist, the marriage in Cana 
 took place. We hold the present village of Kefer Kenna 
 — about six miles east of Nazareth — to be the site of 
 ancient Kana(and not Robinson's" Kanael Djelil," which 
 is too far off to the north, nearly ten miles N. N. E. of 
 Nazareth). The presence of Mary, the mother of the 
 Lord, and her probable connection with the family, 
 secured the invitation to Jesus and His disciples — 
 Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and possibly 
 James, the brother of John. It was something new in 
 Mary's experience with her son, to find Him, who had 
 heretofore led such a quiet, retired life, coming back 
 from His visit to the Baptist at the head of a little band 
 of followers, who looked up to Him not only as their 
 teacher (Rabbi), but as the promised Messiah of Israel, 
 in whom Moses and the Prophets were fulfilled. And it 
 was a great change for the former disciples of the Baptist, 
 to be led by their new Master straight up from the wil- 
 derness, from John's stern preaching of repentance, from 
 his " food of locusts and wild honey," to the marriage 
 feast in Kana ! (See Matt. xi. 18.) 
 
 And now the significance of that first sign at Kana, 
 which has been a stumbling-block -to many, unbelievers 
 and believers, though John and Andrew and all the dis- 
 ciples saw in it a manifestation of the glory of the Lord 
 and a strengthening of their faith. In the first place 
 there is a special significance in the occasion for this sign. 
 
II. i-ix.] CHAPTER IT. 27 
 
 It was done at a marriage. Within the four walls of the 
 house, in the narrow precinct of the family life the first 
 demonstration of New Testament blessings takes place, 
 thereby recognizing the fundamental importance of the 
 family as God's own sacred institution, also for the New 
 Testament dispensation. In the family, first of all, the 
 glory of the Lord is manifested. Out of the family His 
 church is to be built. 
 
 Again, there is a great special significance in this sign 
 affecting the relation between Christ and His mother Mary. 
 Whatever may have been her intentions or expectations, 
 when, the wine failing, she said to her Son : " They have 
 no wine," it is manifest that the Lord will have no inter- 
 ference — not even intercession — on her part in matters 
 that concern His Messianic ministry, the revelation of 
 His glory as the God-man. Eighteen years before this, 
 Mary had gone through a similar experience, when the 
 boy of twelve years defended Himself in the temple 
 against the unmerited rebukes of His mother with those 
 memorable words : " Wist ye not that I must be in my 
 Father's house, about my Father's business?" Now, 
 after His baptism and temptation, when He had formally 
 entered upon His public ministry as the Messiah, He is 
 more than ever "about His Father's business," and no 
 human creature, not even the mother that bore Him, is 
 allowed to interfere with that. However sharp the re- 
 buke may appear to our modern way of feeling, it is 
 evident that there was no resentment on Mary's part. 
 Her word to the servants proves this : " Whatsoever He 
 saith unto you, do it." This is Mary's last word recorded 
 in Scripture, a v/ord of quiet, humble, implicit obedience 
 and submission to her Lord and Master ; a last will and 
 protest on her part against the unscriptural exaltation 
 bestowed upon her by mediaeval Mariolatry, not only 
 
28 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ii. i-ii. 
 
 dishonoring her divine Lord, but robbing that humble 
 handmaid of God herself of her brightest jewel. 
 
 Again, there is a significance in this sign, in that it sets 
 forth the evangelical freedom and Joy of the Nezv Testa- 
 ment dispensation over against the rigid legalism of the 
 Old. The contents of the six water-pots " set there after 
 the Jews' manner of purifying," all changed into wine, 
 form a striking illustration to John i. 17. The law was 
 given by Moses, etc. At the opening of the New Testa- 
 ment era we see in the foreground not so much the 
 serious task of the kingdom of heaven, its struggles and 
 sacrifices, but rather its blessedness and comforts, even 
 as the sermon on the mount opens not with the duties 
 laid upon the citizen of God's kingdom, but with the 
 beatitudes enjoyed by him. The Lamb of God which 
 taketh away the sins of the world, certainly must go 
 through a fight and bear a burden, at the sight of which 
 we stand in awe; but here, at the beginning of His 
 mediatorial work, He grants us an outlook into the very 
 consummation of His kingdorn, with its final victory, 
 peace and glory ; the marriage feast at Kana foreshadows 
 the marriage of the Lamb, the tabernacle of God with 
 men, He dwelling with them, every tear wiped away, and 
 death no more, neither mourning, nor crying, nor pain 
 any more, the first things passed away, all things made 
 new (Rev. xxi. 3-6). And this is the last and highest 
 significance of the sign in Kana, that it typifies the final 
 transfiguration and glorification of nature itself, changing 
 its imperfections, its woes and sorrows into the glorious 
 liberty of the children of God. 
 
 V. The First Prophecy of the Lord Concerning 
 His Death and Resurrection (John ii. 12-25). 
 
 12-25. After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and 
 his brethren, and his disciples : and there they abode not many days. 
 
II. 12-25.] CHAPTER II. 29 
 
 And the passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to 
 Jerusalem. And he found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep 
 and doves, and the changers of money sitting : and he made a scourge of 
 cords, and cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen ; and he 
 poured out the changers' money, and overthrew their tables ; and to them 
 that sold the doves he said. Take these things hence ; make not my 
 Father's house a house of merchandise. His disciples remembered that it 
 was written, The zeal of thine house shall eat me up. The Jews therefore 
 answered and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that 
 thou doest these things ? Jesus answered and said unto them. Destroy 
 this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. The Jews therefore said, 
 Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou raise it up in 
 three days ? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he 
 was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he spake this : 
 and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. 
 
 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, during the feast, many 
 believed on his name, beholding the signs which he did. But Jesus did not 
 trust himself unto them, for that he knew all men, and because he needed 
 not that any one should bear witness concerning man ; for he himself 
 knew what was in man. 
 
 In the 1 2th verse there are two points of special impor- 
 tance. First the reference to the Lord's family: " He 
 and His mother and His brothers." Were these brothers 
 sons of Joseph by a first marriage? or of Joseph and 
 Mary, born after Him? There is nothing in Scripture 
 that would forbid this last and certainly most natural 
 understanding of this term. (Cf. Matt. xii. 46, xiii. 55 ; 
 Mark vi. 3 ; John vii. 5 ; Gal. i. 19; i Cor. ix, 5.) 
 
 The second point of importance is the statement that 
 the Lord with His disciples abode at Capernaum " not 
 many days." This is evidently said with a view to the 
 Synoptical record of the longer and repeated abode in 
 that place which had the honor of being called His own 
 city. The writer of the fourth Gospel knows of those 
 extended sojourns of Jesus in Galilee (see also John vi. 
 2), though in his Gospel he has comparatively little to say 
 about them. To him, the most important sphere of the 
 Lord's public ministry was Jerusalem and Judaea. He 
 
30 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ii. 12-25. 
 
 pays special attention to the testimonies of the Lord 
 given in the presence of the leaders of Israel in the holy 
 city, at the temple and at the great festival seasons, 
 especially Easter. 
 
 Here, then, the Messiah makes His first public appear- 
 ance (with His fan in His hand), ready to cleanse His 
 threshing-floor and to clear out the leaven from His 
 Father's house. The sanctuary of the temple itself was 
 surrounded by a number of courts ; the outer court of the 
 gentiles, that of the women, that of the men, that of the 
 priests, each one on a higher elevation than the preceding 
 one. In the outer court, with the silent approbation of 
 the authorities, a sort of market and exchange had been 
 established for the accommodation of visitors at festival 
 seasons, who could there buy their beasts of sacrifice and 
 exchange their Greek and Roman currency for temple 
 money, in which the annual tax (a quarter dollar) had to 
 be paid. It is easy to see that such a practice would, in 
 the course of time, naturally lead to many disorders in 
 the sanctuary. For eighteen years Jesus of Nazareth had 
 been a witness to these things on His regular annual visits 
 to Jerusalem. His heart was sore over the scandals dis- 
 honoring " His Father's house," which had been such an 
 attraction to the boy of twelve. Here, then, the reform- 
 atory work and the official testimony of the Messiah had 
 to begin. He opens and closes His public ministry with 
 the symbolical act of purifying the temple. (Luke xix. 
 45, 46, gives the account of the second act at the last 
 Easter.) With flaming zeal the Lord attacks the pro- 
 faners of the sanctuary ; the scourge in His hand, though 
 not as an instrument actually applied for punishment, but 
 as a symbol of His authority to exercise discipline. For 
 not to physical force did that crowd yield, but to the 
 majesty of His person. The disciples themselves are so 
 
II. I2.-25.] CHAPTER II. 31 
 
 deeply impressed with these strange proceedings that, 
 ahnost unconsciously, they turn into prophets, applying 
 to their Lord the Old Testament prophecy : " The zeal 
 of Thine house shall eat me up ! " This was indeed the 
 first divination of the passion of the Lord that passed 
 through their souls. Yes, the zeal for His Father's house 
 and business will eat Him up : will give him no rest until 
 His life shall be spent and His blood shed ! 
 
 On the other hand the Jews demand a sign in addition 
 to the sign which had just been shown before their 
 eyes. Such was the custom of their Pharisaic unbelief. 
 The Lord answers them with a mysterious utterance, 
 pointing indeed, as we will afterward see, to the greatest 
 of all His signs (death and resurrection), but in the form 
 of a parable, revealing and yet veiling a problem even to 
 the disciples, who did not fathom its depth until after the 
 death and resurrection of their Lord. The Jews also, 
 after their manner, retained that remarkable word in their 
 memory, using it as a testimony against the Lord before 
 the high-priest (Matt. xxvi. 61 ; Mark xiv. 57 f.), and even 
 afterwards in the tumultuous proceeding against the first 
 martyr, Stephen (Acts vi. 14). The difificulty of the 
 Lord's statement lies in the double sense of the word 
 " temple." The Jews limited its meaning to the visible 
 sanctuary, built, or rather restored, especially through the 
 efforts of Herod, during a period of forty-six years. The 
 Lord, using the term in a much deeper and more compre- 
 hensive sense, referred ultimately to the temple of His 
 body. " Go on," He says to the representatives of the 
 Old Testament Theocracy, " break up, destroy everything 
 here, as you are on the road to do: Ruin God's kingdom, 
 God's people, God's house and Him, who is greater than 
 the temple, God's Son, the divine Shekinah, dwelling 
 among you." With the slaying of the Messiah this work 
 
32 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ii. 12-25. 
 
 of destruction is virtually accomplished. It is the death- 
 knell of the Old Testament dispensation — its sacrifices, 
 its priesthood, its temple itself — remember the veil rent 
 in twain from top to bottom ! But the slain Messiah 
 rises from death, and the true kingdom of God, the 
 spiritual Israel, the New Testament temple of the Lord 
 is established ! Thus the demand of the Jews for a sign 
 is met by the Lord with a reference to the great central 
 sign and miracle of His life — His resurrection from the 
 dead. The same argument was employed by Him on 
 other occasions (see Matt. xii. 39) : " This evil and adul- 
 terous generation seeketh after a sign, and there shall no 
 sign be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet." 
 
 The chapter closes with a remarkable statement con- 
 cerning the impression made by the Lord during His stay 
 in Jerusalem. After all " Many believed on His name 
 beholding His signs, which He did do." There is a cer- 
 tain play of words here in the original. The Lord did 
 not quite believe in those believers. There was not in all 
 cases a relation of personal communication and confidence 
 established. Those that had been impressed to a certain 
 extent by His signs had to draw nearer to be bound to 
 Him in abiding, saving faith. Such a one was Nicodemus, 
 of whom we are told in the next chapter. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 The connection between the 3d and the 2d chapter is 
 obvious. At the close of the 2d the impression had been 
 recorded which the signs of the Lord made on many 
 people. They " believed on His name, beholding His 
 signs which He did.'' But at the same time the Evange- 
 list indicates that this was in most cases not yet a full, 
 clear, decided faith, but only a half belief which needed 
 to be pruned and trained to a full, mature development. 
 
 We are also reminded at the beginning of this chapter, 
 of the comprehensive and pathetic statement made in 
 i. 1 1 : He came unto His own, and they that were His 
 own received Him not ; but as many as received Him, to 
 them gave He the right to become children of God, even 
 to them that believe on His name. Though the great 
 mass of the people are indifferent to the testimony of the 
 Lord, still there are individuals emerging from the multi- 
 tude of unbelievers and half believers, who cast off the 
 restraints of reigning prejudices and come to Jesus, to 
 that same Jesus who said : No man can come unto Me 
 except it be given unto him of the Father and all that 
 which the Father giveth Me shall come unto Me ; and him 
 that Cometh unto Me, I will in no wise cast out (John vi. 
 65, 37). And we see them coming from very different, 
 yea, opposite conditions and surroundings. It would 
 hardly be possible to think of a more striking contrast 
 than that presented by Nicodemus and the Samaritan 
 woman, the highly respectable Pharisee, scholar, master 
 3 33 
 
34 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. i, 2. 
 
 in Israel and member of the Sanhedrim, and the poor 
 ignorant woman of Samaria, under the cloud of her past 
 life. 
 
 VI. The Conversation with Nicodemus (iii. 1-21). 
 
 I. CJiar act cr of Nicodemus and Jiis Motives in Coming to 
 Jesus (iii. i, 2). 
 
 1-2. Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler 
 of the Jews : the same came unto him by night, and said to him. Rabbi, 
 we know tliat thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these 
 signs that thou doest, except God be with him. 
 
 We cannot fail to mark a certain reticence and reserve 
 of the Evangelist concerning the character and intentions 
 of Nicodemus on the occasion of his first appearance, — 
 perhaps a hint to his readers not to judge the Old Phar- 
 isee prematurely. But knowing, as we do, the final out- 
 come of the intercourse between Nicodemus and the 
 Lord, we have a right even at this early point to consider 
 the whole man, as he presents himself in the light of later 
 developments with all his ups and downs, his advances 
 and retreats on the way to Jesus. He was a Pharisee 
 and a ruler of the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrim, 
 belonging to the inner circle and the highest caste of un- 
 believing Judaism. Considering the animus of the lead- 
 ing class displayed towards the Lord on the occasion of 
 the first purifying of the temple, we ought to give him 
 much credit for venturing to Jesus, even stealthily and at 
 night. But Nicodemus Avas " a man " before he was a 
 Pharisee, and it was the man in him, the hungering and 
 thirsting of a true human soul, which all his Pharisaism 
 could not satisfy, that made him come to the fountain of 
 truth. Without that direct, kind invitation, " Come and 
 see," which had brought Andrew and John to the Master's 
 room, Nicodemus found out where He abode and came 
 
in. I, 2.] CHAPTER HI. 35 
 
 and saw ! Though late at night, Jesus is up and awake 
 for him. 
 
 And now he is in, with Jesus and possibly a little group 
 of attentive listeners, the disciples of whom we heard 
 before, among them the writer of this Gospel. At the 
 point of beginning the conversation we find Nicodemus 
 all in ferment and conflict. On the one side a mighty 
 drawing to Jesus, great reverence and admiration for 
 Him, — an honest attempt to give "Him His due honor ; 
 on the other side still a looking to men, a fear of losing 
 his standing with them, a holding on to his former associa- 
 tions. " Rabbi, we know " — was this a greeting from a 
 small circle of men disposed like Nicodemus and Joseph 
 of Arimathasa, who had sent him as their commissioner 
 to Jesus ? We look upon it rather as a somewhat stiff 
 and awkward way of introducing himself as a member 
 of that privileged class, the rulers and Pharisees, an at- 
 Lcmpt to shelter himself in the perplexity of the moment 
 behind the dignity of his august colleagues, the councillors. 
 This " we know " was one of their characteristic phrases 
 over against " the multitude which knoweth not the law." ^ 
 And yet, what a remarkable concession and confession 
 these words are in the mouth of Nicodemus ! The words 
 and the signs of the Lord then had been telling on them ! 
 Here is the testimony of their conscience uttered by honest 
 Nicodemus, though he may stand alone in thus boldly 
 expressing it: " We know that thou art come from God." 
 This means a great deal in the language of Israel of that 
 day. They did expect one that was to come in the name 
 of the Lord. The '^ coming one'' is the standing name of 
 the JMcssiaJi. Nicodemus had certainly not forgotten the 
 
 ^ See also John ix. 24-29. We knmu that this man is a sinner. We know 
 that God hath spoken unto Moses, but, as for this man, we kiicrcu //^/whence 
 he is. 
 
36 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. i, 2. 
 
 Baptist's answer to the delegation from the Sanhedrito/5 
 " In the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not| 
 even Jic that conicth after me." The term " come from 
 God," then, recognizes an immediate divine authority, 
 distinguished from and above that of the regular ofificial 
 teachers and rulers ; and even beyond that, it borders on 
 the formal recognition of Jesus as the Messiah. But if 
 this was a bold advance in the opening words of Nico- 
 demus, it is quickly followed by a timid retreat in the 
 cautious words " a teacher " — and " God with him ; " — 
 this is after all nothing beyond purely human possibilities ! 
 It represents essentially that Pharisaic position of common- 
 rationalism, that the people only need a teacher able to 
 decide difficult theological questions and to interpret the 
 law, so that, being properly informed, men may do the will 
 of God according to their natural power and ability. 
 
 In all this Nicodemus has not yet asked a question. 
 But the Lord who needed not that any one should bear 
 witness concerning man, for He Himself " knew what 
 was in man," took up the very things which Nicodemus 
 needed most. He answered him. The salient points of 
 the whole dialogue are so many blows at the very heart 
 of Pharisaism. It may not be improper to compare this 
 first longer discourse in John with the Sermon on the 
 Mount in Matthew. They are essentially directed against 
 the same enemy, and the expositions made to Nicodemus 
 throw a singular light on the central theme of the Sermon 
 on the Mount : " Except your righteousness shall exceed 
 the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall 
 in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven." 
 
 2. TJie Necessity of a New Birth (iii. 3). 
 
 3. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee. 
 Except a man be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 
 
III. 3.] CHAPTER in. 2,1 
 
 The kingdom of heaven was in the mind of Nicodemus. 
 On this subject turns the " answer " of the Lord. He 
 meets the proud conceit of the Pharisaic " We know " 
 with the solemn, positive assurance of the " teacher come 
 from God : " " Verily, verily I say unto thee," — No out- 
 ward force or organization, no reconstruction of political 
 relations or reformation of life can build up the kingdom 
 of God or secure membership in it, but only a new birth, 
 by which men become the children of God (i. 12). Of 
 course Nicodemus had never doubted up to this point 
 that he himself was in the kingdom of God. Who in the 
 world should be, if he was not ? And now he is told that 
 he, as well as every one else, must be born anew, before he 
 can even see, have a clear conception of, much less a full 
 participation in this kingdom ! Whether we take it, to be 
 born anew, or to be born from*?^^^':'^, makes no difference in 
 the end : the absolute necessity of a new beginning is the 
 cardinal point in the Lord's answer. It is not a matter of 
 teaching certain doctrines, but of having a new life ; not 
 of doing or leaving undone certain things, but of beiiig a 
 regenerate man ; not of living differently, but of being 
 born anew. Men will never get into the kingdom of God 
 by reading, thinking, studying, inquiring, talking or fight- 
 ing about it, they must be born into it. And this " new 
 birth " is not, as it is far too commonly looked upon, a 
 mere figure of speech. It expresses a divine act anc 
 human experience, the reality of w^hich is in no wise 
 behind that of the natural birth of man. 
 
 3. The Nature and Means of the New Birth (iii. 4-8). 
 
 4-8. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born wlien he is 
 old? can he enter a 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 the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That 
 
38 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [iii. 4-8. 
 
 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 anew. The 
 wind bloweth wliere it listeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but 
 knowest not whence it cometh, and whither it goeth : so is every one that 
 is born of the Spirit. 
 
 The means or factors by which this new birth is to be 
 accompHshed are " water and Spirit," the earthly element 
 and the power from on high, side by side joined together 
 for this mysterious work, not the water without the 
 Spirit, nor the Spirit without the water, not a water 
 which is a figure of the Spirit, nor the Spirit as a spirit- 
 ual water, but the one as objectively and really as the 
 other ; though the creative, life-giving power is of the 
 Spirit. It is essentially a birth of the Spirit over against 
 the birth of the flesh ; which means the whole Adamitic 
 nature of man, not simply his corporalit3% but his moral 
 state in antagonism to the spirit of God (Gen. vi. 3). In 
 this bondage of natural corruption all that is born of flesh 
 is involved. There is no getting out of it. It holds every 
 one that comes into this world by natural birth (i. 13), no 
 matter how highly gifted, how well trained, how lofty 
 his aspirations, he is flesh, born of flesh, and every new 
 start in life, even if the impossible could happen and man 
 could enter a second time into his mother's womb and be 
 born (as Nicodemus said) — would still find him in the 
 same hopeless condition. But depressing and desperate 
 as this looks, the second clause of that verse has an assur- 
 ing tone about it. " That which is born of the Spirit is 
 spirit y There is then such a thing in this world of flesh, 
 as being born of the Spirit. It 'is a possibility and an 
 actual reality in spite of its mysteriousncss. This is fur- 
 ther shown in the following verses (vers. 7, 8), in which 
 the Lord so kindly points Nicodemus to an analogous 
 every-day occurrence in nature. Remember the " W'c 
 
!!i. 4-S.] CIIAPTLR m. 3(j 
 
 know," with which Nicodemus had introduced himself. 
 With all his knowledge the learned doctor is unable to 
 explain the whence and the whither of this natural pro- 
 cess. It is the mystery in it which the Lord means to 
 emphasize. " Thou knowest not," though there is no 
 denying the fact, that the wind is bloiving, for its voice is 
 distinctly heard. With other processes of nature we are 
 to some extent able to make out the whence and the 
 whither. We can follow the river up to the tiny brook- 
 let and to the spring where it bursts from the rock, and 
 down to the mighty ocean in which it is received. We 
 can dig up the root of the tree, we know the seed from 
 which it grew, we can follow its fruits to all their differ- 
 ent uses, we can even see the old barren tree cut down 
 and cast into the fire — but the wind, that freest motion 
 impelled by hidden power, is the most incalculable and 
 mysterious of all. Surely " there are more things in 
 heaven and earth than are dreamt of in our philosophy." 
 And if, even in the sphere of nature we must a hundred 
 times accept the verdict : "Thou knowest not," — much 
 more is this the case with the mysteries of spiritual life, 
 those great central questions : Whence ? Whither ? The 
 heart of man, more unfathomable than the deepest ocean ! 
 The fall of man, with its consequences, evil and death ! 
 The thoughts and ways of God for our salvation, — not as 
 our ways and our thoughts ! How can we know anything 
 certain about all this ? Who will tell us, when even the 
 teachers of Israel do not understand these things ? 
 
 4. TJic Heavenly Witness (iii. 9- 1 3). 
 
 0-13. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things 
 ':■•? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou the teacher of Israel, 
 a :f1 understandest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We 
 Sj^eak that we do know, and bear witness of that we have seen ; and ye re- 
 
40 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. 9-13. 
 
 ceive not our witness. If I told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how 
 shall ye believe, if I tell you heavenly things .'' And no man hath ascended 
 into heaven, but he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of man, 
 which is in heaven. 
 
 Thus far the conversation was all on knowing and 
 knowledge. Now it takes a new turn towards faith. He 
 who speaks to Nicodemus is not a teacher, like other 
 men, with wisdom gathered from the fathers, to be im- 
 parted to his pupils. He speaks as a heavenly witness 
 who demands yV////^ He does knozv heavenly things from 
 personal acquaintance, as the only begotten Son in the 
 bosom of the Father, who has come to declare them. 
 The glory of the Son of Man begins to beam in Nico- 
 demus' eye. " In heaven," " out of heaven," " into 
 heaven," that is His where? whence? whither? But 
 the central and most important statement at this point 
 is the whence, " descended out of heaven." Here is the 
 Lord's answer to that hidden question of Nicodemus 
 concerning His own person, which had been indicated in 
 the words : " a teacher come from God." He reveals to 
 him the mystery of His person, and insists on being ac- 
 cepted by him as a heavenly witness. At a later period 
 the Lord once rebuked the colleagues of Nicodemus and 
 his fellow-Pharisees : " Even if I bear witness of Myself, 
 My witness is true ; for I know whence I came and 
 whither I go, but ye know not zvhenee I eoinc or whitJier 
 I go'' (ch. viii. 14). If Nicodemus will now open his ears, 
 this charge will not apply to him. 
 
 5. The Serpent i)i the IJ^i/derness (m. 14, 15). 
 
 14, 15. Andas Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so 
 must the Son of man be lifted up ; that whosoever believeth may in him 
 have eternal life. 
 
 So far it was the testimony of the Lord concerning His 
 
in. 14, 15.] CHAPTER III. 41 
 
 person. Now for His testimony concerning His work. 
 It is all told in the simple story of the brazen serpent. 
 This was, no doubt, one of the most memorable of all 
 the experiences during Israel's journey through the wil- 
 derness. Yea, the grateful remembrance of it, which 
 they carried into the promised land, became a snare to 
 the Israelites, who burned incense to it under the name 
 Nehushtan, so that Hezekiah, in his work of reformation, 
 had to break it in pieces (2 Kings xviii. 4). Was there a 
 divination of the deeper, future significance of this figure 
 in the inclination of Israel, to turn it into an idol ? Here 
 is the meaning of the type unfolded : It means the aton- 
 ing and redeeming death of Christ on the cross. 
 
 The brazen serpent was the image of the fiery serpents 
 which destroyed the people. But, however much alike, 
 there was a great difference between them. The fiery 
 serpents full of deadly poison for every one they reached. 
 The brazen serpent without poison, harmless, wholesome 
 and salutary to all that looked to it in faith. But as the 
 serpent is the image of sin and its consequences, so Christ, 
 exalted on the cross, is the representative of the sin of the 
 world. " Him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our 
 behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God 
 in him " (2 Cor. v. 21). " God, sending his own Son in 
 the likeness of sinful flesh, and as an offering for sin, con- 
 demned sin in the flesh " (Rom. viii. 3). In Christ the 
 sin of the world presented itself for judgment. Christ 
 became a curse for us, as it is written : " Cursed is every 
 one that hangeth on a tree" (Gal. iii. 13). The brazen 
 serpent nailed to the pole is the picture of a conquered 
 serpent, which is made harmless. This is what was done 
 to the sin of the world in Christ on the cross. The fact 
 that He was there made sin for us, and suffered the pen- 
 alty of sin, has delivered us from the power of sin, death 
 
42 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. i4-:6. 
 
 and the devil. He that hung on the cross in the Hkenes:; 
 of the serpent, thereby bruised the head of the serpent. 
 Again, the serpent in the wilderness was lifted up high 
 above everything else, so that an unobstructed view of it 
 could be obtained by all that were bitten. Thus God has 
 openly set forth Christ crucified to be " a propitiation 
 through faith by His blood." Christ, the crucified one, 
 is to be known, to be seen from one end of this sin and 
 death-stricken world to the other. 
 
 And lastly : Those that looked to the brazen serpent 
 were saved. There is hardly, in all the Scriptures, a 
 more expressive picture of faith than this looking to the 
 serpent lifted up on the pole. How simple this means of 
 salvation ! However far off from the brazen serpent, 
 however deeply wounded by the venomous bites, how- 
 ever weak and unable to move, to run away or keep ofT 
 the destroyer, — a look to the pole, tJiat was still possible 
 to all. Such is God's way of faith. No effort of our 
 own, no work, no struggle, no sacrifice of man, but a 
 simple trusting, confident looking to Jesus, the Son of 
 Man, lifted up on the cross — that is all! It is salvation 
 for all. 
 
 6. The Father s Love the Headspring of Salvation (iii. i6). 
 
 i6. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, 
 that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. 
 
 The following verses (16-21) have been considered by 
 some (Erasmus, Tholuck and others) as not belonging to 
 the dialogue between the Lord and Nicodemus. but 
 simply as reflections or meditations of the Evangelist on 
 the subjects mentioned in that conversation. But wc 
 cannot share this theory. There is no break, but rather 
 the closest connection between ver. 15 and 16; the con- 
 
III. 1 6.] CHAPTER J I I. 43 
 
 versation would be without a proper conclusion if it should 
 stop at this point, and we are not willing to take that 
 jewel of Scripture passages, the i6th verse, "the Bible in 
 brief" (as Luther calls it), out of the Lord's own mouth. 
 This revelation of the eternal counsel of salvation must 
 be the direct word of the only begotten Son Himself, 
 who is in the bosom of the Father (i. i8). From the 
 Spirit, who is the author of regeneration, to the Son who 
 mediates and purchases our salvation with His atone- 
 ment, we now come to the Father, whose love gave the 
 Son for the life of the World. God loved, as the light 
 must light, and the fire must burn, so God loves. This 
 is His nature, for God is. love. But : God loved the 
 world ! we have often read and passed and recited it 
 thoughtlessly. It seems natural, as long as we do not 
 realize what sin is, and a world in sin ! But when this 
 begins to dawn upon our mind there is nothing greater 
 in heaven and upon earth than this: "God so loved the 
 world ! " Who will take the measure of this love, its 
 breadth and length and height and depth? Who will 
 realize the character and manner of this love? so that He 
 gave His only begotten Son, — mark, the "Son of Man," 
 of whom the Lord had spoken before, is identical with the 
 Son of God. He was given by the Father, not simply to 
 the world, hxxi for the world, given into death ! For this 
 love of God is a holy love, and though it could command 
 all the resources of God's omnipotence, wisdom and maj- 
 esty, still it could not save the world without satisfying 
 His justice by giving the Beloved into judgment and 
 death for the sin of the world. Mark also the universal- 
 ity of this love. The world is its object. We dare not 
 limit this to an " elect world." That would be the very 
 opposite of what John means by the term " world." Tl e 
 Gospel of John repeatedly emphasizes the world ^xi^ th? 
 
44 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. i6, 17. 
 
 object of God's gifts and God's plan of salvation. The 
 Bread of God giveth life unto the world (vi. 33) ; the bread 
 which I will give is My flesh, for the life of the world 
 (vi. 51). There is only one limit to this salvation; it is 
 the condition ol faith. This love of God in Christ must 
 be believed in, it must be accepted, appropriated by 
 thankful and appreciative hearts. How many out of this 
 perishing world will have their souls saved on this con- 
 dition ? How many in proportion to the multitude of 
 Israelites who, in the wilderness, looked up to the serpent 
 to save their bodies ? 
 
 7. Salvation, not Judgment, the Mission of the So)i of God 
 
 (iii. 17). 
 
 17. For God sent not the Son into the world to judge the world; but that 
 the world should be saved through him. 
 
 While we say in the creed that He shall come to judge 
 the quick and the dead, we believe that He zvas sent to 
 save, not to judge. So the Lord had once said to John 
 and James, those fiery sons of thunder, in that Samaritan 
 village, " The Son of Man came not to destroy men's 
 lives, but to save them." All this was certainly in direct 
 opposition to the Pharisaic programme of the Messiah's 
 kingdom. There the judgment of the Gentiles was one 
 of the most glorious features in the coming of the Mes- 
 siah ; while the Jews would be heirs to that kingdom, as 
 the descendants of Abraham and the keepers of the law 
 of Moses. But there is no distinction made here in this 
 "world" which the Son says, He was sent to save. 
 Nicodemus is counted in, and all the Pharisees are counted 
 in ; and sinners down to the thief on the cross, together 
 with all the Sadducees and publicans — only one way for 
 all to be saved : ye must be born anew ; ye must believe ! 
 Not what man is or does, but the labor, service and sacri- 
 
III. 17-19.] CHAPTER III. 45 
 
 fice of the true God Himself, in the person of Christ, is 
 the sah^ation for Jews and Gentiles. 
 
 8. The Present Judgnunit iueurred by Unbelievers 
 (iii. 18, 19). 
 
 19. He that believeth on him is not judged : he that believeth not hath 
 been judged already, because he hath not beheved on the name of the only 
 begotten Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light is come 
 into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light ; for their 
 works were evil. 
 
 But though this first advent of the Messiah is a time 
 of grace, to save, not to destroy, there is at the same 
 time a quiet inner judgment going on among men. 
 Seasons of grace are critical times, when men must decide 
 to accept or refuse what is offered by God's love. The 
 refusal of him that believeth not, cuts him off from that 
 love and its communion ; it is suicidal, a judgment passed 
 by himself. It comes with internal necessity upon every 
 one that believeth not. It is no outward act, but an in- 
 ward development. What can save a man if he will not 
 admit the one physician and take his medicine? This 
 certainly is a crisis, a decision, division and judgment : 
 The light cometh into this world to dispel its darkness, 
 to deliver men out of the power of darkness and translate 
 them into the kingdom of God, — but men loved the dark- 
 ness rather than the light. Such is man's love over 
 against God's love. God so loved the world that He 
 gave His only begotten Son — men so loved the darkness 
 that they would not come to the. light, yea, that they 
 would hate the light. 
 
 9. The Climax and the Parting Word to Nicodemus 
 
 (iii. 20, 21). 
 
 20, 21. For every one that doeth ill hateth the light, and cometh not to the 
 light, lest his works should be reproved. But he that doeth the truth com- 
 
45 THE GOSPEL OF Sr. JOHN. [111.20,21. 
 
 eth to the light, that his works may be made manifest, tliatthey have been 
 wrought in God. 
 
 It is a fearful climax with which the Lord unveils be- 
 fore Nicodemus the danger of holding back from the light. 
 The light is come. Men love darkness rather than light. 
 They do not come to the light. They hate the light ! 
 Nicodemus hears and shudders. Hating the light ! Is it 
 possible that it should ever come to that ? No, not with 
 him. He never had such an idea. And yet if he will not 
 accept the testimony of this witness, if he will go on with 
 his: But and How — if he will not decide to come out 
 fully into the light, where will it end with him ? 
 
 Mark also the reason of this aversion to the light which 
 the Lord points out so emphatically. It is because men's 
 zi'orks arc evil, because they practise ill, because they will 
 not have their works reproved ! Here is the moral root 
 of unbelief. These strong words of our Lord must not 
 be limited to open and gross immoralities ; they include 
 all the respectability of a Phariseean life with its self- 
 sufficiency and self-adoration, its desire to take honor and 
 glory from men. These are among those besetting sins 
 which become the habit and practice of an outwardly de- 
 cent life, but they are (faola, vile, rotten, good-for-nothing 
 things, unable to bring forth abiding fruit for eternity. 
 And they must be reproved. And men must humbly 
 submit to such reproof. The way of faith leads through 
 repentance. 
 
 Severe as all this was for the ears of a Nicodemus — and 
 it was all meant for him — the Lord after all gives him a 
 parting word of encouragement (ver. 2 1) of " coming to the 
 light, being made manifest, having works wrought in 
 God." As the Lord spoke on, Nicodemus had not an- 
 other word to say. He sat in silent submission under 
 those heavy blows, which shattered to pieces his whole 
 
III. 20-22.] CHAPTER III. 47 
 
 former life ; he sat and wondered at the man before him, 
 and the love of which He spoke and the power of darkness 
 to resist such love. And yet he was not quite ready to 
 surrender to it. It was a good thing to come to the 
 Lord, to sit under His teaching. But he must not be 
 ashamed to come to the Light, to submit to His reproof, 
 to yield to His love. He must reach a decision ! But 
 the time has come for parting. John does not tell us how 
 they parted, or what was the exact state of Nicodemus' 
 mind in that hour. Did he come again ? Were there 
 more conversations between him and the Lord ? Even 
 to this there is no answer. Certainly the Lord could not 
 tell him more than what he received on this first visit, — 
 it was enough for a life-time to study out. But as he 
 walked away through the lonely streets of the city, the 
 Lord's " Peace be with thee " ringing in his ears, and the 
 night wind fanning his burning head, two things were 
 weighing heaviest of all upon his struggling soul, those 
 two absolute " musts " in the discourse of the Lord : " Ye 
 must be born again," and " The Son of Man viiist be 
 lifted up." 
 
 Vn. Jesus in Jud^a and the Last Testimony of 
 John the Baptist (iii. 22-36). 
 
 I. Jesus in Judcea (iii. 22-24). 
 
 22-24. After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of 
 Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized. And John also was 
 baptizing in .-Enon near to Salim, because there was much water there ; and 
 they came and were baptized. For John was not yet cast into prison. 
 
 After His first public appearance in Jerusalem and the 
 conversation with Nicodemus, the Lord retires for a time 
 from the city into the province of Judasa. And even in 
 the character of His work there seems to be something 
 
48 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [in. 22-25. 
 
 like a retreat. He seems to step down to do the same 
 work which His forerunner, John the Baptist, was called 
 to do, and the result of the two men in the same region 
 doing essentially the same work, is a collision in the mind 
 of the disciples of John, which forms the occasion for 
 their master's last testimony of Christ. The locality and 
 the time are distinctly given in these verses. J^\\or\. is 
 probably the same as Ain in Jos. xv. 32, in the south of 
 the wilderness of Judah, on this side of the Jordan (while 
 the former locality of John's baptizing was beyond the 
 river). Concerning the time it is distinctly stated, that it 
 was before John's imprisonment. This is evidently said 
 with a view to the Synoptical account of the beginning of 
 the Lord's public ministry in Galilee. It corrects not the 
 statement itself, as found in the Synoptists (Matt. iv. 12), 
 but the possible misunderstanding that the Galilean work 
 began immediately after the baptism and temptation of 
 Christ. 
 
 2. TJie Occasion for the Last Testimony of the Baptist 
 (iii. 25, 26). 
 
 25-26. There arose therefore a questioning on the part of John's disciples 
 with a Jew about purifying. And they came unto John, and said to him, 
 Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou hast borne 
 witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him. 
 
 There were men among the disciples of the Baptist un- 
 able and unwilling to see the difference between John 
 and Christ, and, even now, not ready to believe their 
 master and to follow Christ as Andrew and his companions 
 had done. They were inclined to see the preparation 
 for the kingdom of God in strict asceticism. They were 
 in this respect more on the side of the Pharisees than of 
 Jesus : " We and the Pharisees fast oft ; but thy dis- 
 
III. 25-27.] CHAPTER III. 49 
 
 ciples fast not " (Matt. ix. 14).^ They would naturally 
 look upon the work of Jesus so near the Baptist with jeal- 
 ousy and consider it unkind and an interference with 
 the office of their master. This feeling of jealousy and 
 irritation was further stirred up by a Jew or Jews, probably 
 belonging to the ruling party, telling the disciples of 
 John in a mischievous manner of the remarkable success 
 of Jesus.- They come and complain to their Master, and 
 without entering into the particular question which had 
 arisen, he goes to the principles underlying their difficulty 
 and shows them his true relation to Christ, with a severe 
 rebuke, to the unbelief of God's chosen people, including 
 his own disciples. 
 
 3. The Last Testimony of the Baptist (iii. 27-36). 
 {a.) Christ and the Baptist (27-30). 
 
 27-30. John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it 
 have been 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 a 
 bride is a 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. 
 
 He opens with a broad, general principle which must 
 be recognized in the history of God's kingdom. Every 
 man has his place and work assigned to him, whether it 
 be Christ or John. From the beginning he had clearly 
 told his disciples that he was not the Christ, that he held 
 an inferior position. He is therefore not responsible for 
 this petty jealousy of his followers. Instead of com- 
 plaining, they should rather rejoice that the bridegroom 
 hasappeared, and that the bride, forsaking everything else, 
 
 ^ Even at the time of the writing of this Gospel there was a sect of 
 "Disciples of John " extant in Asia Minor. 
 4 
 
50 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [in. 27-30. 
 
 is looking to the Lord and husband. Thus even John 
 the Baptist invites his sullen disciples to the marriage 
 feast of the new covenant. And the sweetest and greatest 
 name he bears, and of which he may be justly proud, is 
 not *' the prophet," or " the messenger " or " the voice 
 crying in the wilderness " but " the friend of the Bride- 
 groom." There is no jealousy between the two Johns, 
 the Evangelist and the Baptist. The John who wrote 
 this, the disciple whom the Lord loved, who was on the 
 bosom of Jesus, rejoices in the name " friend of the 
 Bridegroom," which the other John claims for himself. 
 The Baptist sums up the relation between Christ and 
 himself in another pointed, comprehensive sentence which 
 not only describes most beautifully and truly the official 
 relation between the Messiah and His forerunner,but again 
 lays down a principle of far-reaching importance in God's 
 kingdom. "He must increase, but I must decrease."^ 
 It rounds off and supplements most beautifully the sen- 
 tence with which he had opened this explanation (ver. 27). 
 It ought to be the motto of every true servant of Christ. 
 It is the common human experience of all, that after a 
 period of growth and increase w^e must make room for 
 others that come after us. Nor will they stay forever. 
 The same decrease must follow their increase. It is a 
 bitter experience as long as man only looks to man, and 
 the worn-out weary worker must yield his place to fresh 
 and youthful forces. But it becomes sweet and blessed 
 if our yielding is to Him, whose kingdom has no end, 
 and for whom to lose and give up everything is 
 gain. 
 
 1 Cf. the ancient and significant arrangement of the Church by which the 
 birthday of the Baptist is celebrated in midsummer (June 24th), when the 
 days begin to decrease j the birthday of Christ in midwinter, when they 
 begin to increase, 
 
1 1 1 . 3 1 -36- ] CJIA r TER III. 5 1 
 
 {b) Christ and the World (\\\. t^i-^G). 
 
 31-36. He that cometh from above is above all ; he that is of the earth 
 is of the earth, and of the earth he speaketli : he that cometh from lieavea 
 js above all. What he hath seen and heard, of that he beareth witness; 
 and no man receiveth his witness. He that hath received his witness hath 
 set his seal to t/iis, that God is true. For he whom God hath sent speak- 
 eth the words of God : for he giveth not the Spirit by measure. The 
 Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that 
 believeth on the Son hath eternal life ; but he that obeyeth not the Son 
 shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him. 
 
 At this point in the testimony of the Baptist a similar 
 question is raised by a number of commentators (Bengel, 
 Tholuck, Olshausen and others), to that in connection 
 with the conversation with Nicodemus in the i6th 
 verse of this chapter, viz., whether the following verses 
 are to be regarded as a continuation of the words spoken 
 by the Baptist, or as the statement of the Evangelist. 
 We are decidedly in favor of the former view. It is the 
 conclusion of the Baptist's testimony concerning Christ's 
 position and reception in this world. 
 
 Let us mark the following prominent points in this 
 section : (i.) The absolute dignity and majesty of Christ, 
 whom John the Baptist has placed so high above himself. 
 He cometh from above ; He is above all, even all the 
 prophets and servants of God sent before. (2.) Next : 
 The foundation and charaetcr of His testimony ; its direct- 
 ness and authority. He speaks as a witness, in the 
 highest sense of the word, of that which He hath seen 
 and heard as the Lord Himself had said to Nicode- 
 mus : " We speak that we do know and bear witness of 
 what we have seen." (3.) Again : The deep insight of the 
 Baptist into the reception with which this witness meets 
 on the part of men. " No man receiveth His wit- 
 ness." This certainly is in direct opposition to what his 
 disciples had just been telling him, " All men come to 
 
52 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [iii. 31-36. 
 
 Him " (ver, 26). But their master is more sober and criti- 
 cal in his judgment of the popularity enjoyed by the 
 Lord. He knows that it is one thing " to come to Hivi^' 
 outwardly, attracted by His word and signs, as the 
 masses were at that time even in Judaea, — and another 
 thing to receive His testimony, with a humble, believing 
 heart. This bitter complaint is following us all through 
 this Gospel : 1. 5, the darkness apprehended not the 
 Light; i. 10, the world knew Him not; i. 11, His own 
 received Him not ; i. 26, in the midst of you standeth One 
 whom ye know not ; iii. 11, ye receive not our witness. 
 (4.) Still the Baptist viust modify his general sweeping 
 statement, as the Evangelist did (i. 12 — as many as re- 
 ceived Him, etc.); he testifies himself (ver. 33) : He that 
 hath received this zvitness hath set his seal to this, that 
 God is true. While the New Testament otherwise speaks 
 of God setting His seal upon His own people, ^ the Baptist 
 here speaks of the believers as setting their seal upon 
 their Saviour's testimony, that God is true ! As Paul 
 says : " I know in whom I have believed," and again : (2 
 Cor. 1. 20) — " How many soever be the promises of God, 
 in him is the yea : wherefore also through him is the 
 Amen, unto the glory of God through us." The reverse 
 of this is what John has written in his first Epistle (v. 
 10), " He that believeth not God hath made Him a liar." 
 (5.) But the believer s trust in this testimony rests on 
 safe ground : " For He whom God hath sent speaketh 
 the words of God : for He giveth not the Spirit by 
 measure." The speaker in this case is the Logos, who 
 declareth the Father and speaketh the words of God, 
 He to whom the Spirit is given Avithout limitation, " not 
 by measure," ever since the Baptist " beheld the Spirit 
 
 1 Cf. 2 Cor. i. 22, God, who also sealed us and gave us the earnest of the 
 Spirit in our hearts. 
 
III. 31-36.] • CHAPTER HI. 53 
 
 descending as a dove out of heaven, and it abode upon 
 Him." And still another reminiscence of the Lord's 
 baptism follows in the next verse : " The Father loveth 
 the Son." There John had heard the voice out of the 
 heavens saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I 
 am well pleased." He is sure to gain the victory, for 
 " the Father hath given all things into his hand." (6.) 
 And now the last parting word of the Baptist in this 
 Gospel: (ver. 36,) He that believeth on the Son, hath 
 eternal life ; but he that obcyeth (believeth) not the Son 
 shall not see life, but the wrath of God abidcth on him. 
 It is the same dilemma that we found in the conversation 
 with Nicodemus, and in fact everywhere throughout the 
 Scriptures, life or death, the love and grace of God or 
 the wrath of God, salvation or perishing, and the decision 
 altogether hanging on faith, either believing on the Son, 
 or not believing, refusing obedience to Him, into whose 
 hands the Father has given all things ! Either eternal 
 life for him who believes, or the wrath of God which 
 abideth on him, not the manifestation of temporary and 
 passing judgments, such as Israel had experienced time 
 and again ; but the final, irrevocable, abiding wrath, on 
 him that rejects the Son. This is the last solemn Avarn- 
 ing and testimony of the Baptist to his people, reminding 
 us strongly of that first preaching of his (Matt. iii. 12), 
 "He will gather his wheat into the garner; but the 
 chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire," and of the 
 closing words of that Messianic Psalm, ^ " Kiss the Son, 
 lest he be angry and ye perish from the way, when his 
 wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that 
 put their trust in him " (Ps. ii. 12). 
 
 ^ The Christmas Psalm of the ancient Church. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 This chapter also continues the history of the quiet and 
 modest beginnings of faith here and there, which, as said 
 before, form the theme of the first four chapters. After 
 the Lord's beginnings in Jerusalem and Judea (ch. i, 2, 
 3), it is now Samaritan faith and Galilean faith which 
 the Evangelist describes in the direct continuation of his 
 narrative. 
 
 VIII. Samaritan Faith (iv. 1-42). 
 
 I. Historical Introduction (iv. 1-6). 
 
 1-6. When therefore the Lord knew how that the Pharisees had heard 
 that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although 
 Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples), he left Judaea, and departed 
 again into Galilee. And he must needs pass through Samaria. So he com- 
 eth to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that 
 Jacob gave to his son Joseph : and Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, 
 being wearied with his journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the 
 sixth hour. 
 
 The connection between this and the preceding chapter 
 is close, though several months elapsed between the 
 Lord's retirement from Jerusalem and His departure for 
 Galilee. We saw how He withdrew from the capital 
 into the province of Judaea. Now comes a further retreat 
 from Judsea into Galilee. The reason for this is given in 
 the first two verses of the chapter. The Lord (with em- 
 phasis this title, which is not frequently used in the 
 Gospels ; much more so in the Epistles) knew that the 
 Pharisees had heard of the remarkable increase in the 
 number of His disciples; He knew also the spirit with 
 54 
 
IV. 1-6.] CHAPTER IV. 55 
 
 which they would notice it, the excitement and jealousy 
 it would create. And as He was unwilling to provoke a 
 conflict with them at this time, He left Judaea. This 
 move then means a further retirement, a temporary sus- 
 pension even, of His public work, which in Judnea had 
 chiefly consisted in preaching. Jesus Himself baptized 
 not, but His disciples. The reason for this was either 
 because He " Himself had to bring the Messianic baptism 
 of the Spirit, which was only a fact of the future " 
 (Luthardt), or for the simple, practical reason, that those 
 who would have received baptism from Him in person 
 should not be elated thereby as having received some- 
 thing more and better than the others. (For a similar 
 reason even Paul says that he would rather not baptize 
 but preach the Gospel, i Cor. i. 14.) 
 
 On His way to Galilee He must needs pass through 
 Samaria. The strictest Jews avoided the passage through 
 that province, preferring the round-about way through 
 Peraea, the country east of the river Jordan. And of the 
 Lord Himself it is said (Luke xvii,. ii), that on His way 
 from Galilee to Jerusalem He was passing betivccn Sama- 
 ria and Galilee (probably the correct translation of Snjp^ero). 
 Compare His injunction to the Apostles on the first send- 
 ing forth of the Twelve : " Go not into any way of the 
 Gentiles, and enter not into any city of the Samaritans ; 
 but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." 
 Remembering all this and the statement here, " He must 
 needs go," it is fair to say, that Samaria was not on the 
 programme of His journey, not even as a way station. 
 He had been forced to depart without loss of time. He 
 had to take the shortest route and consequently " must 
 needs pass through Samaria." The two days' sojourn in 
 that country was, if we might say so, an unexpected 
 episode. 
 
56 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [iv. 1-6. 
 
 For information about the history of the Samaritans 
 we have to turn to 2 Kings xvii. 24-41. After the de- 
 struction of the Northern kingdom, the king of Assyria 
 sent colonists from Babylon and other places, to possess 
 the cities of Samaria. They were a mixture of national- 
 ities and of religions. " They feared the Lord and served 
 their own gods." After the return of the Jews from 
 exile, the Samaritans offered their co-operation in the 
 rebuilding of the temple,^ and being refused they used 
 every possible influence with the king of Persia to oppose 
 the building of the temple in Jerusalem, while they built 
 their own on Mount Gerizim. Manasse, their first high- 
 priest, was the son-in-law of the Persian governor San- 
 ballat. This temple was destroyed 200 years afterwards 
 by Joannes Hyrkanus. The bitter hostility of the Jews 
 against the Samaritans is chiefly due to this. Their char- 
 acter was a Paganism under the mask of Judaism. There- 
 fore they were to the Jews a greater abomination even 
 than the Gentiles. Robinson (Palest. III. 328), says that 
 this relation continues essentially the same to the present 
 day. The Samaritans will neither cat nor drink, nor in- 
 termarry, nor have any intercourse with the Jews, except 
 for business or trade. (Cf. Ecclesiasticus 1. 27, 28). 
 
 The place to which the Lord came was not the site of 
 ancient Samaria itself, which was about 7 to 8 miles 
 further north, but Shechem, with which Sychar is iden- 
 tical, the in and n frequently changing into r as in Achar, 
 LXX.,for Achan ; Bar instead of Ben. (Others: Sychar, 
 the town of lying and intoxication^ The present name 
 of Shechem is Nablus, but the site of this place has moved 
 somewhat to the west of ancient Shechem. Jacob's well 
 is still found at the entrance into the narrow valley where 
 
 1 Ezra iv. ; Neh. iv. ; the scoffing Samaritans under Sanballat. 
 
IV. 7-15] CHAPTER IV. 57 
 
 Mt. Ebal (on the N. E.), and Mount Gerizim (S. W.), 
 confront each other. 
 
 The Lord reached this place at noon-tide, and while 
 the disciples, perhaps with the exception of John (Peter 
 and James?) went to the city to buy food, He sat down 
 by the well, weary and exhausted from the journey. 
 
 2. The Conversation with the Samaritan Woinan {xv. 7-26). 
 {a.) The Living JVater {\v. 7-15)- 
 
 7-15. There Cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith 
 unto her, Give me to driuk. P"or his disciples were gone away into the city 
 to buy food. The Samaritan woman therefore saith unto him, How is it 
 that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a Samaritan woman? 
 (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) Jesus answered and said 
 unto her. If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to 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 sons, and his cattle ? Jesus answered 
 and said unto her, Every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 
 but whosoever drinketh of the svater that I shall give him shall never 
 thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of 
 water springing up unto eternal life. The woman saith unto him. Sir, give 
 me this water, that I thirst not, neither come all the way hither to draw. 
 
 It was a region of holy and suggestive reminiscences 
 on which the eye of the Lord rested as He sat there. 
 Here the Patriarchs had waited for the promise ; here 
 Jacob had dug the well, a testimony of his firm, deep- 
 rooted trust in his good title as possessor of the promised 
 land ; here Joseph was buried; here from these mountains 
 of Ebal and Gerizim the solemn words of curse and bless- 
 ing had been spoken over Israel ; ^ but here also was the 
 home of the dismemberment of the body of Israel, — what 
 spiritual desolation and idolatry! The believing father's 
 1 Joshua viii. ;^y 
 
58 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i v. 7-15. 
 
 name used to hide the shame of strange children ; and 
 Israel itself, was it better than these mongrel Samaritans? 
 Was not Jeremiah's word true even at that time : " They 
 have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed 
 them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no 
 water " ? (Jer. ii. 13). 
 
 Thus Jesus sat by the well and there cometh a woman 
 of Samaria (a Samaritan woman) to draw water. Jesus 
 saith unto her: "Give me to drink." The need of His 
 true human body prompted this word ; but in speaking it 
 He was boldly reaching over the barrier which separated 
 Jews and Samaritans ; ^ He gave utterance to that deepest 
 yearning of His heart, thirsting for the salvation of im- 
 mortal souls, for which He would willingly give up His 
 night's sleep to Nicodemus and His noonday rest to the 
 Samaritan woman. 
 
 Ignoring her little way of tantalizing the Jew, who con- 
 descends to ask a Samaritan woman for a drink, the Lord 
 at once proceeds to speak to her of something greater 
 and better than this drink of water ; — indeed it does not 
 appear that the Lord ever got the drink He asked for, 
 until the woman went away to the city, leaving her 
 waterpot standing by the well. 
 
 ^' If thou knevvest the gift of God'' To know, to 
 recognize the gift of God in the sphere of nature is one 
 of the primary links to bind man to God, to remind him 
 of his Maker, to lead him back to Him, when he has gone 
 astray. The significance of all earthly gifts is to point to 
 Him from whom every good and perfect gift cometh, and 
 their very limitation is an impulse to seek something 
 higher than what satisfies only the need of the body. 
 
 1 Tlie Rabbis say : To eat the bread of a Samaritan is the same as eating 
 pork. Unprepared food in its natural condition, however, was exempt; but 
 to drink out of the same vessel was strictly prohibited. 
 
IV. 7-15-] CHAPTER IV. ^g 
 
 " If thou kiicwest the <^nft of God and ivJio it is that saith 
 to thee: Give me to drink." There must be then a con- 
 nection between "God's gift" and Him, that addresses 
 her. It is through Him that even the natural gifts come 
 to us and benefit us. What a " gift " again for the 
 Samaritan woman, this opportunity to meet this " Jew," 
 the man that addresses her. If thou knewest this! and 
 knewest what God means to give thee through Him and 
 wJio it is that speaks to thee ! It is the same theme for 
 the Samaritan woman, as well as for Nicodemus and the 
 Jevv^s, the central theme of the whole Gospel of John : 
 Who is He ? Who art Thou ? " Living water ! " — Here 
 is a theme of a parable for her, to think about ! But see 
 how this child of nature pours out with unrestrained 
 naivete a very flood of words, to let this ignorant stranger 
 know all about this interesting place, the excellency of its 
 water, its historical reminiscences, etc. This is good 
 enough for her ! What more could this man offer to her ? 
 How cold, indifferent and even hostile is man's attitude 
 towards God, wherever He offers him something more 
 than what satisfies his body and " his sons and his cattle." 
 Good provision for the necessities of this body ; and for 
 the ideal side of life, decent family and church connections, 
 a touch of national pride with stirring historical reminis- 
 cences, this is all that this woman seems to care for in this 
 life. Mark also the emphasis with which she dwells on 
 " our father Jacob," — not a whit less complacent than the 
 Jews, when they spoke of " our father Abraham," nor 
 does she fail to draw exactly the same conclusion as to 
 the dignity of the Lord: "Art thou greater than our 
 father Jacob ? " (See viii. 53 : Art thou greater than our 
 father Abraham ?) 
 
 Now the Lord shows unto her directly the unsatis- 
 factory character of the earthly gift : " Every one that 
 
6o " THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [i v. 7-15. 
 
 drinketh of this water, shall thirst again." Though it be 
 manna from heaven which the fathers did eat, — they die ! 
 Though it be water from Jacob's well they drink, they 
 will thirst again and again, until at last they crave for 
 Lazarus' finger to cool their tongue ! The Lord there- 
 fore offers something different : living water that shall 
 become a well of water springing up unto eternal life ! 
 Spiritual water seeking its own level, just as natural water 
 does. It springs from eternity. It rises to eternity ! It 
 is the spiritual life that leads to eternal life. 
 
 The woman's answer is not easy to understand. It is a 
 strange mixture of conflicting possibilities. How well it 
 sounds, that simple prayer in perfect accordance with the 
 Lord's direction : " Lord, give me this water that I thirst 
 not." Thus all souls may pray, that hunger and thirst 
 after righteousness, and "they shall be filled." But what 
 can we make of the second part of her response : " That 
 I have not to come all the way hither to draw " ? How 
 far from all true, spiritual understanding of the Lord is 
 this ! How grossly material ! Possibly there is a slight 
 touch of sceptical irony in it. " If Thou canst do such 
 wonderful things, I would like to see it." She would 
 have no objection to be thus relieved from some of the 
 burdens of the wearisome tread-mill of this life. It is 
 evident that there is no consciousness yet of her inner 
 spiritual need ; she must first be made to thirst, before 
 she will appreciate the " living water " which Jesus offers. 
 To awaken that spiritual thirst, to convince her of her 
 need and misery, the Lord in the following verse starts 
 anew in His soul-dealing with this woman. 
 
 (/;.) The Prophet (iv. 16-26). 
 
 16-26. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. 
 The woman answered and said unto him, I have no husband. Jesus saith 
 
IV. 16-26.] CHAPTER IV. 6i 
 
 unto her, Thou saidst well, I have no husband : for thou hast had five hus- 
 bands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: this hast thou 
 said truly. The woman saith unto him, Sir, 1 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. Jesus saith unto her. 
 Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor 
 in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father. Ve worship that which ye know 
 not : we worship tliat which we know: for salvation is from the Jews. But 
 the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the 
 Father in spirit and truth : for such doth the father seek to be iiis worship- 
 pers. God is a Spirit : and they that worship him must worship in spirit 
 and truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messiah cometh (which 
 is called Christ) : when he is come, he will declare unto us all things. 
 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he. 
 
 The Lord touches her conscience. He who knew 
 Nathanael's sacred hours of longing and meditation under 
 the ficf tree, knew also the dark secrets in the life of the 
 Samaritan woman. " Go call thy husband and come 
 hither." It is as if He said : Go bring hither thy sin and 
 shame! Gently but firmly He lays His hand upon the 
 sore point of her life (ver. i8). Her prompt answer, " I 
 have no husband," which seemed such a convenient escape 
 from this demand of the stranger, is turned into a word 
 of self-condemnation by Him with whom she has to do, 
 and " before- whose eyes all things are naked and laid 
 open" (Heb. iv. 13). She admits all that the Lord has 
 charged her with. " Lord, I perceive that thou art a 
 prophet," — both a confession of her guilt and a recognition 
 of the majesty of Christ. Indeed, here is a " greater " one 
 than Jacob and Joseph and all the fathers. Her heart 
 begins to thirst after the spring of living water. But 
 where does it flow ? Hardly here on Mount Gerizim, the 
 place of worship of her fathers? Perhaps in Jerusalem ? 
 Let this great Jewish Prophet answer the question. We 
 see how her Samaritanism, of which she made so much 
 at the opening of the conversation, is dwindling away 
 
62 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [iv. 16-26. 
 
 before the Lord. She is now perfectly ready to accept 
 the teaching of the Jewish prophet. And what a new 
 doctrine is this that He utters now! Would not His 
 disciples have been amazed and shocked at this demon- 
 stration of " zeal for His father's house"? Would not 
 His enemies who afterwards so bitterly denounced Him 
 as a " Samaritan " (John viii. 48), have found sufificient 
 ground for their accusation in the first sentence of the 
 answer of the Lord ? " Woman, believe me, the hour 
 Cometh when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem 
 shall ye worship the Father." The Jews then will have 
 no preference before the Samaritans? The Father who 
 is to be worshipped will have His children among them 
 all without distinction ? He will be Father to the Samar- 
 itans also ! There will be an end to all these hostile 
 barriers between Jews, Gentiles and Samaritans ! This 
 prophet will embrace them all in one fold, under one 
 shepherd ! What heresy this was to orthodox Jewish ears ! 
 
 And yet, though soaring high to this ideal of the com- 
 ing Church of God, the Lord does not mean to ignore the 
 historical, providential position of Israel ; the errors of 
 Mount Gerizim, the truth of Jerusalem : Ye worship 
 that which ye know not : we worship that which we 
 know : for salvation is from the Jews. And the Jews are 
 His kinsmen according to the flesh. Theirs are the 
 adoption and the glory and the covenants, and the giving 
 of the law and the service of God and the promises ; 
 theirs are the fathers and of them is Christ " as concern- 
 ing the flesh " (Rom. ix. 5). 
 
 There are two definitions of God in these words of 
 Jesus: God the Father, \.\idX simple, most popular and 
 practical one, which at once appeals to the human heart, 
 particularly when we hear of a Father seeking lost 
 children, that ought to return to Him and render Him 
 
IV. i6-26.] CHAPTER IV. 63 
 
 the honor due Him by true spiritual worship ; the other, 
 which seems to be the most abstract, mysterious and dif- 
 ficult of all : God is Spirit. Even Fichtc thought that 
 for a positive definition of God this was utterly useless 
 and unfitted. But even this definition has in this connec- 
 tion an eminently practical tendency. It is closely con- 
 nected with the idea of worshipping God in spirit and in 
 truth. The spirituality, the inner truthfulness, the life- 
 reality in man's worship, is thereby emphasized over 
 against outward forms, dead traditions, temporary limita- 
 tions and the letter of the law. God, being Father and 
 being Spirit, has children born of His Spirit, led by His 
 Spirit, participating in divine spiritual life. And those 
 only that are thus born of the Spirit are able to worship 
 Him in spirit and in truth. But our true knowledge of 
 God the Father-spirit, our partaking in His own spiritual 
 nature in becoming His children, is only made possible 
 through that mystery of divine love : The Word was 
 made flesh. The God in the flesJi reveals to us the God 
 who is spirit, and there is no true spirituality in religion, 
 either as knowledge of God, or as worship of God ^ out- 
 side of the incarnate Son of God. To be God's child 
 through the Only Begotten, to say with truly childlike 
 trust and obedience, Abba Father, this is to worship God 
 in spirit and in truth. 
 
 But what does the Samaritan woman do with all these 
 revelations that open such a grand future before her ? 
 She seeks refuge in the one ray of hope for the realiza- 
 tion of such great things, — that hope which found its way 
 even to benighted Samaria, and was preserved there, 
 though the Samaritans rejected the Prophets and clung 
 to Moses alone, — the hope of the Messiah : " I know that 
 Messiah cometh ; when he is come he will declare unto 
 
 1 Both belong together : " Ye must know whom ye worship." 
 
64 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [iv. 27-31. 
 
 US all things." But He is come: "I that speak unto 
 thee am He." More plainly and directly than either to 
 the seeking disciples, or to Nicodemus, or the Jews in 
 Jerusalem, was this announcement made to the Samar- 
 itan woman ! One of the most lofty and spiritual revela- 
 tions concerning God and His kingdom made before a 
 person whom no Jewish teacher would have deigned to ad- 
 dress. For even the disciples, without knowing the full 
 compass of this conversation, marvelled that He was 
 speaking with this woman {a woman). 
 
 3. Tlie Convcrsatio)i with the Disciples (iv. 27-38). 
 
 27-38. And upon this came his disciples ; and they marvelled that he 
 was speaking with a woman ; yet no man said, What seekest thou ? or, Why 
 speakest thou with her? So the woman left her water pot, and went away 
 into the city, and saith to the men, Come, see a man, which told me all 
 things thatfWtfrl did : can this be the Christ? They went out of the city, 
 and were coming to him. In the mean while the disciples prayed him, say- 
 ing, Rabbi, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know 
 not. The disciples therefore said one to another. Hath any man brought 
 him aught to eat ? Jesus saith unto them. My meat is to do the will of 
 him that sent me, and to accomplish his work. Say not ye. There are yet 
 four months, and t/ien cometh the harvest ? behold, I say unto you, Lift up 
 your eyes, and look on the fields, that they are white already unto harvest. 
 He that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal; that 
 he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. For herein is the 
 saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap that 
 whereon ye have not laboured : others have laboured, and ye are entered into 
 their labour. 
 
 How different the manner in which this Samaritan 
 woman left the Lord from the silent, meditative and un- 
 decided mood of Nicodemus! Leaving her water-pot, 
 she runs back to the town, determined to bring all the 
 people with her to the prophet, to see whether He be the 
 Christ. Meanwhile the conversation between the dis- 
 ciples and the Master takes place, starting with their re- 
 quest to Jesus : " Rabbi, eat," just as the former conver- 
 
IV. 31-3S] CHAPTER IV. 65 
 
 sation had opened with the Master's request : " Give Me 
 to drink." And yet, the Lord did neither eat nor drink- 
 in that hour. He was above that ; in a state of spiritual 
 exultation similar to that on the return of the seventy 
 (Luke X. 17-21) when He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and 
 said : " I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and 
 earth, that Thou didst hide these things from the wise 
 and understanding and didst reveal them unto babes : 
 yea Father, for so it was well pleasing in Thy sight ! " 
 He had had His feast during the absence of the disciples, 
 accomplishing His Father's work. " Four months yet 
 and then harvest," said the disciples, as they came along 
 through the sprouting fields, green with the fresh young 
 wheat springing up. December was this time, as the 
 harvest began in April. His sojourn in Judsea had there- 
 fore lasted eight months, from Easter till December. 
 But the Lord turns their attention to another harvest 
 field, the gathering in of immortal souls in the kingdom 
 of God. Lift up your eyes ! Look on the fields ! White 
 already unto harvest ! There they are coming to Him 
 (ver. 30), multitudes of Samaritans ! His word to the 
 woman has roused the whole place. After a short half 
 hour of sower's work, such a plentiful harvest ready for 
 the reaper ! And this time the sower and the reapers 
 (who are often so widely apart in the kingdom of God) 
 so close together, united in one harvest-joy ! It is the 
 privilege and the joy of the disciples to reap, it was the 
 labor of the Lord to sow. He had been at work. They 
 enter into His labor. 
 
 4. Believing Samaritans (iv. 39-42). 
 
 39-42. And from that city many of the Samaritans believed on him be- 
 cause of the word of the woman, who testified, He told me all things that 
 ti'er I did. So when the Samaritans came unto him, they besought him to 
 5 
 
66 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [iv. 39-42. 
 
 abide with them ; and he abode there two days. And many more believed 
 because of his word ; and they said to the woman, Now we believe, not be- 
 cause of thy speaking : for we have heard for ourselves, and know that this 
 is indeed the Saviour of the world. 
 
 Here follows the description of the joyous harvest to 
 which the Lord had just referred. What a result of this 
 half-hour's sowing over against the eight months' work in 
 barren Judaea ! The personal contact with the Lord had 
 a wonderful effect in developing the faith of the Samar- 
 itans, both extensively and intensively. Many more be- 
 lieved, now that they had an opportunity of hearing the 
 Lord Himself. And they believe now because of His 
 word, not because of the woman's speaking. They had 
 tasted the fountain itself, that spring of living water. 
 Whatever the service of men, parents, teachers, friends 
 and fathers in the Church may have done for us in telling 
 us of Jesus, our faith is fully and permanently established 
 only when we rest on the word of the Lord Himself. 
 These Samaritans, from their own hearing, have learned 
 to know that this is indeed the Saviour of the World! 
 (Only once more, i John iv. 14, this beautiful name is 
 given to the Lord.) Salvation is from the Jews. But 
 the Saviour is the Saviour of the world, gathering the 
 true worshippers of the Father from every kindred, every 
 tongue. 
 
 IX. Galilean Faith (iv. 43-54). 
 
 I. Historical Introduction (iv. 43-45). 
 
 43-45. And after the two days he went forth from thence into Galilee. 
 For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet hath no honour in his own country. 
 So when he came into Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all 
 the things that he did in Jerusalem at the feast : for they also went unto the 
 feast. 
 
 The remark of the Evangelist (ver. 44) : " For Jesus 
 
IV. 43-45-] CHAPTER IV. 67 
 
 Himself testified that a prophet hath no honor in his 
 own country," is somewhat difficult to understand in 
 this connection. How can this statement serve to ex- 
 plain the return of Jesus into Galilee at this time? The 
 Lord went forth into Galilee, where He had indeed been 
 before, without making an impression, without even a 
 special attempt to draw public attention upon Himself, 
 knowing that a prophet has no honor in his own country. 
 In full accord with this principle was the reception which 
 He now found among the Galileans. Having seen all 
 the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast, they 
 received Him. His reputation, so to speak, was first 
 made, not in His own country, but abroad, in the cap- 
 ital. 
 
 6*^:///^^, originally the " region," " territory," " borders " 
 (so in Josh. xiii. 2, the regions, that is, the Galilee of 
 the Philistines), the name of the northern district of 
 Palestine. Galilee (the borders), of the Gentiles (Isai. 
 ix. i; Matt. iv. 15), because the Jews (particularly the 
 tribe of Asher) had failed to take full possession of it, 
 leaving the important sea-towns in the hands of the 
 Phoenicians. Under the reign of Solomon this district 
 did not amount to much. King Hiram, of Tyrus, re- 
 fused the twenty Galilean towns offered for his cedars as 
 having no value whatever. At the time of Christ it was 
 different. It was then a populous and most fertile dis- 
 trict. Josephus speaks of 204 towns with more than 
 15,000 inhabitants, which would be equal to a population 
 of over four millions, that is, as dense as in China of the 
 present day. The inhabitants, ever sincethe return from 
 the captivity, represented a mixture of Jewish and Pagan 
 elements ; despised by the Jews as ignorant, uncouth 
 people, whose very language betrayed their lack of 
 culture. They were brave warriors, but impulsive, pas- 
 
68 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [rv. 46-48. 
 
 sionate, unsteady, always ready for revolutionary move- 
 ments. 
 
 2. The Noblcmaiis Lnibc/icf Rcbitkcd {\\f. 46-^^). 
 
 46-48. lie came therefore again unto Cana of Galilee, where he made 
 the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at 
 Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judaea into 
 Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, 
 and heal his son ; for he was at the point of death. Jesus therefore said 
 unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will in no wise believe. 
 
 The history of Galilean faith in the Gospel of St. John 
 begins with a very sharp rebuke of the unbelief which 
 the Lord meets at first sight. The nobleman of Caper- 
 naum was not a relation of Herod's family, but an officer 
 of the king's court, — possibly Chuza, the husband of 
 Joanna (Luke viii. 3), or Manacn (Acts xiii. i), the foster- 
 brother of Herod the Tetrarch.- This man (emphatically 
 said), from such surroundings and under such influences 
 as that court would naturally exercise, came to Jesus and 
 besought Him, that He would come down and heal his 
 son — thus conditioning the help he expected on the 
 bodily presence of the Lord. This request (essentially 
 the same as in the case of Jairus, and yet there was no 
 reproof there) Avas answered by that severe rebuke : 
 " Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will in no wise 
 believe." It was the manifest aim of the Lord in all 
 His pastoral dealings with individuals to bring them to 
 that faith which rests on the word and is begotten of 
 the word. All through the Gospel we observe the 
 progress from the sigji to the word, which follows or ac- 
 companies it, setting forth most fully its meaning. 
 Here the Lord came from Samaria, where the faith 
 which His presence created was altogether based on the 
 word: "Now we believe — for we have heard for our- 
 
IV. 49. 5o] CHAPTER IV. 69 
 
 selves," — no sign to be seen there, only the word to be 
 heard. And this is the very thing in which the noble- 
 man's faith was lacking. 
 
 3. TJie NoblcnuDi s Faith Supported anel Trained (iv. 
 
 49, 50). 
 
 49-50. The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die. 
 Jesus saith unto him. Go thy way ; thy son liveth. The man believed the 
 word that Jesus spake unto him, and he went his way. 
 
 The result shows that, however weak, there was in that 
 man a beginning of faith which the severe trial to which 
 it was subjected by the Lord could not extinguish, and 
 which was consequently strengthened and quickened by 
 that very trial. The father holds on to that one helper 
 for whom he had come all the distance between Caper- 
 naum and Cana. He simply repeats his petition, with 
 whatever defects and awkwardness it betrayed, em- 
 phasizing it with those touching words in which we 
 see the father's heart trembling under the agony of 
 that moment : Come down — " ere my eJiild die!' Jesus 
 saith unto him : " Go thy way, thy son liveth. The man 
 believed the word that Jesus spake unto him and he 
 went his way." The second word of the Lord was in- 
 deed another trial for the nobleman's faith. But of a 
 much more positive character. If it required an un- 
 limited, unreserved trust and surrender on the part of the 
 nobleman, it furnished at the same time the means and 
 support for such confidence in that simple word of 
 Jesus: " Thy son liveth ! " To accept the precious gift 
 these words conveyed, and to follow the direction they 
 implied, " go thy way," — believing, rejoicing, never 
 doubting, but obeying — this was the act of faith which 
 filled the Evangelist's heart with wonder and gladness 
 
yo THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [iv. 50-54. 
 
 Avhen he wrote, many years afterwards, " The man be- 
 Heved the word that Jesus spake." Thus far there was 
 nothing for his eyes, no sign to be seen — only a word for 
 his ear and his heart ; but in this word, by the divine 
 power it contained, a real act of deHverance at the very 
 time when the word was spoken. 
 
 4. The Noblonaiis Faith Crozvncd .with Experience (iv. 
 
 51-54)- 
 
 51-54. And as he was now going down, his servants met him, saying, 
 that his son lived. So he inquired of them the hour when he began to 
 amend. They said therefore unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the 
 fever left him. So the father knew that // 7uas at that hour in which Jesus 
 said unto him, Thy son liveth : and himself believed, and his whole house. 
 This is again the second sign that Jesus did, having come out of Judaea into 
 Galilee. 
 
 The reahties of the word, though invisible for a time, 
 and objects of faith alone, become visible at last. The 
 testimony of his servants meets the nobleman at the gate 
 of the city with the very same word which Jesus had 
 given him, and which had been his rod and his staff on 
 his journey home : " Thy son liveth." He inquired of 
 them the hour when he began to amend — -surely not 
 from any motive of doubt concerning the connection 
 between this change and the word of Jesus, but to as- 
 certain to his own fullest assurance and satisfaction that 
 it was at the same hour. So the father " -^wrTC " and 
 " believed." What a progress from that first stage of his 
 coming to Jesus: " Except ye see signs and wonders ye 
 will not believe." 
 
 5. TJie NoblcDian s House Believing. 
 Like the faith of the Samaritan woman, that of the 
 
IV. 53-] CHAPTER IV. yj 
 
 nobleman also has a wonderful power of expansion. His 
 whole house is brought to Jesus by the blessed experi- 
 ence of that day. The good news of the recovery of the 
 sick child is far surpassed by the greater and better 
 news: " My whole house liveth by faith in the Lord Jesus 
 Christ ! " 
 
 Thus far then the Evangelist has presented the begin- 
 nings of faith in the incarnate Word : in the disciples, 
 through the testimony of the Baptist, their first personal 
 acquaintance with the Lord and the manifestation of His 
 glory at the marriage of Cana ; among the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalein (ii. 23) during that first passover ; in Nicodcnins, 
 the learned Pharisee ; in the Samaritan woman and the 
 people of SycJiar, and finally in Galilee, in the nobleman s 
 family of Capernaum. 
 
 But now the curtain drops on these precious scenes, 
 full of encouragement. We will see different things in 
 the next eight chapters (ch. v.-xii.) : The unbelief that re- 
 jects the Word ; conflict after conflict against the faith- 
 ful witness ; an evergrowing hostility which culminates 
 in the counsel to put Him to death. 
 
SECOND PART— CHAPTERS V— XII. 
 
 THE HOSTILITY OF UNBELIEF THAT REJECTS THE 
 INCARNATE WORD. 
 
 The eight chapters from the fifth to the twelfth which 
 form the central part of the Gospel of St. John, introduce 
 the history of the great conflict between the Lord and 
 His unbelieving adversaries, and the development of their 
 opposition into that bitter hatred which finally resolved to 
 put Him to death. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 I. The Beginning of the Conflict in Jud^a (v. 1-47). 
 
 I. The Healing of tJic Sick Man in BctJiesda (v. 1-16). 
 
 1-16. After these things there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went 
 up to Jerusalem. 
 
 Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in 
 Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a multitude of them 
 that were sick, blind, halt, withered. And a certain man was there, which 
 had been thirty and eight years in his infirmity. When Jesus saw him 
 lying, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith 
 imto him, Wouklest thou be made whole ? The sick man answered him. 
 Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool : 
 but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus sailh 
 unto him. Arise, take up thy bed, and walk. And straightway the man 
 was made whole, and took up his bed and walked. 
 
 Now it was the sabbath on that day. So the Jews said unto him tliat 
 
 was cured. It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for thee to take up thy bed. 
 
 But he answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, 
 
 Take up thy bed, and walk. They asked him, Who is the man that said 
 
 72 
 
V. I, 2.] CHAPTER V. 73 
 
 unto thee, Take up ///_)' ^c^/, and walk ? Hut he that was healed wist not 
 who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in the 
 place. Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, 
 Behold, thou art made whole : sin no more, lest a worse thing befall thee. 
 The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus which had made 
 him whole. And for this cause did the Jews persecute Jesus, because he 
 did these things on the sabbath. 
 
 The first question which arises in connection with this 
 miracle is one of considerable importance for the chronol- 
 ogy of the public ministry of the Lord. What feast of 
 the Jews was it that is mentioned in the first verse of the 
 chapter? If we read " tlic feast," ^ as the marginal note 
 in the revised version indicates, the question is settled in 
 favor of the Passover. In this case we have here the 
 second Passover, during the public life of the Messiah, 
 followed by the third in John vi. and the fourth and last in 
 John xii., making in all about three and one-half years of 
 Christ's public ministry. But if we read "<7: feast, "^ it 
 was most likely the festival of Purim (in March), and the 
 Passover, spoken of in John vi., may have been in the same 
 year, thus making the public life of the Lord only two 
 and one-half years. 
 
 The site of the pool of Bethesda cannot satisfactorily 
 be established in modern Jerusalem. The common tradi- 
 tion finds it in a large fosse " Birket Israil " 360 by 130 
 feet, north of the Temple mountain close to St. Stephen's 
 Gate, on the eastern wall of the city, which, however, 
 was most likely a part of the system of defence connected 
 with the tower of Antonia. The revised version omits 
 the last clause of the 3d and the whole of the 4th verse 
 of the received text, and it must be admitted, on very 
 strong authority. The periodical moving of the water, 
 which occurs to the present day in a number of remitting 
 
 1 Codd. N, C. & E. ; & Tischendorf. 
 
 2 Codd. A. B. & D. ; Tregelles, Westcott & Ilort, & Godet. 
 
74 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [v. 3-16. 
 
 and intermitting fountains throughout the country, could 
 then have been the result of natural causes. The com- 
 mon superstition of the present inhabitants, which, as 
 Thompson remarks (p. 459), ascribes this phenomenon to 
 the agency of demons, believed to occupy all such places, 
 seems rather to point to an original supernatural influence, 
 as indicated in the 4th verse of the received text. 
 
 The miraculous healing of the sick man, in which Jesus 
 had taken the initiative, without being asked, and during 
 which He observed, as we would say, a strict incognito, 
 provoked the conflict wi.th His adversaries, because He 
 did these things on the Sabbath day, the continual occa- 
 sion for conflicts with His antagonists, also according to 
 the Synoptical accounts. (Cf. Luke vi. i-ii.) 
 
 2. TJie Lord's Discourse Following the Miracle at the Pool 
 of BetJiesda (v. 17-47). 
 
 (rt.) The Personal Relation between the Father and the 
 Son the Explanation of the Latter s Works (v. 1 7-30). 
 
 17-30. But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh even until now, 
 and I work. For this cause therefore the Jews sought the more to kill 
 him, because he not only brake the sabbath, but also called God his own 
 Father, making himself equal with God. 
 
 Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, 
 
 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but 
 what he seeth the Father doing: for what things soever he doeth, these the 
 Son also doeth in like manner. For the Father loveth the Son, and shew- 
 eth him all things that himself doeth : and greater works than these will 
 he shew him, that ye may marvel. For as the Father raiseth the dead and 
 quickeneth them, even so the Son also quickeneth whom he will. For 
 neither doth the Father judge any man, but he hath given all judgement 
 imto the Son; that all may honour the Son, even as they honour the 
 Father, He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which 
 sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and 
 believeth him that sent me, hath eternal life, and cometh not into judge- 
 ment, but hath passed out of death into life. Verily, verily, I say unto you. 
 
V. 17, 1 8.] CHAPTER V. 75 
 
 The hour cometh, 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, even so gave he to the Son also to have life in himself : and he gave 
 him authority to execute judgement, because he is the Son of man. Marvel 
 not at this ; for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall 
 hear his voice, and shall come forth ; they that have done good, unto the 
 resurrection of life ; and they that have done ill, unto the resurrection of 
 judgement. 
 
 I can of myself do nothing : as I hear, I judge : and my judgement is 
 righteous ; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of him that sent 
 me. 
 
 In the plain opening word.s of the Lord we find both 
 the foundation of the whole discourse which follows, and 
 the occasion for the bitter attacks of His enemies. " My 
 Father worketh even until now and I work." There are 
 two points in this short sentence ; and both were instinct- 
 ively felt by the antagonists of the Lord. He is at work, 
 in spite of the Sabbath. This is the one point. And He 
 is in union with the Father, that is the other point. Or 
 as the Jews express it without equivocation : " He not 
 only brake the Sabbath but also called God His own 
 Father, making Himself equal with God." The year be- 
 fore, when He appeared in the Temple with the scourge 
 in His hand, they could not, however much embittered 
 against Him, make out a case to prosecute Him. For the 
 zeal He there displayed was for the sanctuary in Jerusa- 
 lem. But now they find two charges at one time : break- 
 ing the Sabbath, and the blasphemy of making Himself 
 equal with God. Mark the distinction, which His enemies 
 made between what He actually said, when He called 
 God His own Father ; and the claim He thereby made, of 
 being equal with God, which in their eyes was not a 
 reality, and therefore nothing but a blasphemous assump- 
 tion : " making Himself " what He was not — equal with 
 God. (As in viii. 53, Whom makest Thou Thyself?) 
 
 There is a heavenly peace, a truly Sabbatic restfulness. 
 
76 THE GOSPEL OF ST. /OHM. [v. 17-20. 
 
 unruffled by the anger of His adversaries, in the answer of 
 the Lord. Let your Rabbis discern the thirty kinds of 
 work, forbidden on the Sabbath day, let them dispute 
 that difficult question, whether it be lawful to heal, or 
 even to comfort an afflicted fellow-man on that day. My 
 Father worketh and so do 1. And if He were not at 
 work, preserving, keeping, blessing, protecting His people, 
 laboring for their eternal welfare and salvation, where 
 would our Sabbath be? With the mere ceasing from 
 Avork nothing is gained on the Sabbath day. But to work 
 with the Father, for the Father, in the spirit of the 
 Father, this is a Sabbath, pleasing in His eyes. How 
 natural it is for the Son to work as the Father worketh ! 
 He can do nothing of Himself, but that He seeth the 
 Father doing. It is a moral impossibility for Him. Being 
 one with the Father and fully conscious of His will and 
 purpose, He cannot (as He was tempted to do, and as it 
 would have been an easy thing for Him physically to do) 
 change those stones into bread, or cast Himself down 
 from the pinnacle of the temple. But He seeth the 
 works of the Father ; for the Father loveth the Son and 
 showeth Him all things that Himself doeth. Love has 
 no secrets. And the love of the Father and the Son is 
 the basis of their full understanding and working together. 
 We have heard before that great word on God's relation 
 to the world: God so loved the world! Here we have 
 the still greater word on the relation between the Father 
 and the Son, which grants us an insight into the eternal 
 mysteries of the Holy Trinity. The father loved the 
 Son. There has always been the Loving one and the 
 Beloved one, independent of the created world. There 
 has always been that communication and understanding 
 between Father and Son, by which the Son becomes the 
 interpreter, the executor of the Father's works. They 
 
V. 21-25-] CHAPTER V. 77 
 
 are shown to Him, that is, in the end, they are committed 
 to Him. They are all done through Him. 
 
 And now the two greatest works, which in their ful- 
 ness are yet to be revealed through the Son, are set forth 
 in vers. 21-29. The work of raising the dead or quicken- 
 ing, and the work oi judging. In these two, the creative 
 and the judicative, all that God does towards men is 
 comprehended and consummated. And these two works 
 are committed to the Son. He is henceforth exclusively 
 the life-giver and the judge of the world. And the pur- 
 pose for which these works are thus officially committed 
 to the Son, is that all may honor the Son even as they 
 honor the Father. Equal works, equal honor, this is the 
 principle underlying this sentence. What a solemn 
 warning to the enemies of the Lord who charged Him 
 with blasphemy for " making Himself equal with God ! " 
 
 But on the other hand what a kind invitation for all 
 (in ver. 24) to share in those two blessed experiences, of 
 having eternal life and not coming into judgment, by accom- 
 plishing that great step, passing '' out of death into life." 
 Observe here that humble, winning form in which the 
 testimony of God, with all its inherent power of convic- 
 tion is, so to speak, placed on the same level with ordi- 
 nary, trustworthy, human evidence : " who believeth 
 Him " the same as the Lord said to the Samaritan woman, 
 " Believe Me " — just as man speaks to man and friend to 
 friend. 
 
 The great work of life-giving, quickening, is first intro- 
 duced (ver. 25 f.) as the spiritual raising of the spiritually 
 dead. It is the present work of the Saviour, which goes 
 on wherever His voice is heard, and brings divine life to 
 the hearts of all that believe and obey. Afterwards the 
 resurrection of the body and the future judgment are set 
 forth as the crowning works of the Son. Life is given by 
 
78 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [v. 26-36. 
 
 Christ as the eternal Son of God, in whom, from the be- 
 ginning, was the fountain of hfe for all creatures. Judg- 
 ment is exercised by Christ as the Son of Man, Thus, 
 by divine appointment, man is to be judged by his peer ; 
 by Him who is the most humble and the most loving of 
 men, who has borne the sins of men. On the judgment- 
 seat sits grace itself in the person of Him who can be 
 touched with the feeling of our infirmities, having been 
 tempted in all points like as we are. Who then will 
 complain of injustice, if judged and condemned by the 
 Son of Man ? 
 
 ((^.) Tlie Testimony of the Father (v. 31-40). 
 
 31-40. If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. It is another 
 that beareth witness of me ; and I know that the witness which he wit- 
 nesseth of me is true. Ye have sent unto John, and he hath borne witness 
 unto the truth. But the witness which I receive is not from man : howbeit 
 I say these things, that ye may be saved. He was the lamp that burneth 
 and shineth ; and ye were willing to rejoice for a season in his Hght. But 
 the witness which I have is greater than that ^ John : for the works which 
 the Father hath given me to accomplish, the very works that I do, bear wit- 
 ness of me, that the Father hath sent me. And the Father which sent me, 
 he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, 
 nor seen his form. And ye have not his word abiding in you : for whom he 
 sent, him ye believe not. Ye search the scriptures, because ye think that in 
 them ye have eternal life ; and these are they which bear witness of me ; and 
 ye will not come to me, that ye may have life. 
 
 In speaking of these great works, the Lord may well 
 have read an expression of utter astonishment on the 
 faces of His adversaries. Where is the authority for such 
 great things on His part? To answer this the Lord sets 
 forth the testimojiy which proves His authority and dig- 
 nity ; not His own personal testimony, nor even that of 
 John the Baptist, but that of a greater One, the Father. 
 The works (ver. 36) which the Father has given Him : the 
 
V. 31-36] CHAPTER V. 79 
 
 direct word of the Father Himself (ver. 37), and the scrip- 
 tures (ver. 39), represent this testimony in its fuhiess. 
 
 The Lord accommodates Himself to His opponents to 
 such an extent that, at this point, He admits that His 
 own testimony in the sense of the Jews would not be 
 conclusive and convincing evidence in His own case (ver. 
 31.)^ He therefore appeals to other witnesses. But even 
 John the Baptist's testimony He is willing to forego in this 
 connection. He will not appeal to him and receive his 
 testimony fiom him (ver. 34). Not from the human mes- 
 senger as such, but from Him that sent him does the testi- 
 mony for Christ derive its value and dignity. Most clearly 
 and strikingly the transient character of John's office and 
 testimony is described by the Lord : when He calls him 
 a burning and shining lamp, and Israel " willing to rejoice 
 for a season in this light." This " rejoicing" is rather a 
 suspicious feature. Was that all ? John's solemn preach- 
 ing of repentance nothing but a passing sensation ! If it 
 had really taken hold of their hearts, would it not have 
 caused them a deep godly sorrow rather than rejoicing ? 
 But they were not anxious to have their souls enlightened 
 by that lamp. They rejoiced and were proud that their 
 Judaism was shiningonce more in new lustre, through the 
 appearance of this great prophet, after prophecy had 
 been silent for four centuries. 
 
 Where the testimony of the Father Himself is to be 
 found, is set forth directly in ver. 36-39. It is to be 
 found in the zvorks which the Father has given Him to 
 accomplish, not simply the single miracles and signs, such 
 as the healing of the sick man in Bethesda, but the whole 
 great task of His life itself, the great double-work of 
 
 ^ Quite different in viii. 14 : " Even if I bear witness of myself, my witness 
 is true," because in that connection He emphasizes His consciousness of His 
 divine nature and origin : " I Icnow whence I came." 
 
8o THE GOSPEL OF ST. JO //.V. [v. 37-40. 
 
 life-giving and judging. Again : The testimony of the 
 Father was the most direct one (ver. 37). " He hath borne 
 witness of me," in the voice heard on the occasion of 
 the Lord's baptism : " Him ye shall hear." Lastly : 
 The testimony of the Father is to be found in the word 
 of the Scriptures. The two different interpretations of 
 ver. 39 are indicated in the Revised Version : " Ye search 
 the scriptures," in the context, as accepted by the 
 majorit}^ of modern commentators: and "Search the 
 scriptures" on the margin and in the Authorized Ver- 
 sion (the interpretation of the Peshitto, Chrysostom, 
 Augustine, Luther, Calvin and others). Preferring the 
 former, we find in these words both a concession and a 
 warning to the Jews. They have the word, but have it 
 not abiding in them (ver. 38). They have a knowledge 
 of Scripture, based on thorough researches, on great 
 familiarity with the contents of its letter. And even more 
 than that. They have an idea ('Joxc-Tre) of having eternal 
 life in them. But what are all these researches in Scrip- 
 ture, what are all the minutiae of rabbinical or theological in- 
 terpretation, what is even the exalted idea of Scripture as a 
 means and guarantee of eternal life, unless Christ be found 
 in the Scriptures ! " They bear witness of Me." This is 
 the one main thing. Christ is the centre and the sun of 
 the Scriptures (here the O. T. Scriptures). No life in the 
 Scriptures or through the Scriptures, except through 
 Christ. But the testimony of Him is in all the Script- 
 ures, this plural covering the whole of the O. T. Canon. 
 
 {c.) Unbelief of the /ezvs, Lamented and Explained 
 (v. 41-47)- 
 
 41-47. I receive not glory from men. But I know you, that ye have not 
 the love of God in yourselves. 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. 
 
V. 41-47] CHAPTER V. 8i 
 
 How can ye believe, which receive glory one of another, and the glory 
 that Cometh from the only God ye seek not ? Think not that I will accuse 
 you to the Father : there is one that accuseth you, er'cn Moses, on whom ye 
 have set your hope. For if ye believed Moses, ye would believe me ; for he 
 wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my 
 words ? 
 
 With the 41st verse beghis the third and last section 
 of this discourse. The Lord shows the real and inner- 
 most cause of the unbelief of the Jews and the conse- 
 quences of it. Their unbelief springs from their selfish 
 pride, which craves honor from men, whilst it is in- 
 different to the glory coming from the only God. What 
 else is faith, but to give ourselves up to God, fully, com- 
 pletely, in every sense of the word, so that we are no 
 longer anything in ourselves, but God is everything in 
 us, by His all-sufficient grace. This love of God towards 
 men, appropriated by the believer, is not in the hearts of 
 those men as something which they realize and experi- 
 ence. Therefore they receive not the greatest gift of 
 that love, Him who came in His Father's name. Mark 
 how directly and clearly the Lord here announces Him- 
 self as the one expected Messiah, come from God. We 
 are not to look for another (Matt, xi, 3). And if " an- 
 other" Cometh, it can only be a false Christ, or even an 
 Antichrist. 
 
 The Lord having thus far defended Himself against 
 the insinuations and accusations of His enemies, now 
 proceeds to attack them most vigorously and with a 
 weapon which they had looked upon as their greatest 
 strength : — " There is one that accuseth you, even LIoscs, 
 on whom ye have set your hope. For if yc believed 
 Moses, ye would believe Me." Moses accuses them not 
 only through the laiu which was given him as the media- 
 tor, but also through his whole testimony concerning the 
 history of God's kingdom and particularly as the great 
 
82 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [v. 45-47. 
 
 prophet, who wrote of Christ and pointed to Him. If 
 the Scriptures in general bear witness of Christ, the same 
 is now said in particular of those Scriptures which were 
 written by Moses, and written of Christ, bearing witness 
 of Christ. Let our modern teachers and students of the 
 Pentateuch remember these words of our Lord and 
 Master. 
 
 It is a very severe charge against the Jews : " Ye be- 
 lieve not Moses," but true in every aspect. Did they 
 believe what Moses said on fallen man, that he was flesh 
 striving against the Spirit of God (Gen. vi. 3), and that 
 " every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only 
 evil continually " (Ibid. ver. 5)? Did they believe what 
 Moses said of the hope and experience of the Patriarchs, 
 especially of Abraham, how he believed in the Lord and 
 how the Lord counted it to him for righteousness? Did 
 they believe what Moses said of the Law and its curse 
 upon every one " that will not do all these command- 
 ments " ? Did they believe what was meant by all those 
 Mosaic institutions of the sacrifices, and the tabernacle, 
 and the priesthood, and by such types as the Passover 
 and the serpent in the wilderness ? Indeed, where did 
 Moses not write of Christ ? Accepting the writings of 
 Moses, they must believe the words of Jesus. It is one 
 testimony, an organic unity from the very beginning. 
 
 The tables are completely turned at the close of this 
 discourse of the Lord ; the two points of attack have 
 been reversed against Christ's accusers themselves. They 
 appeared in the beginning as tjie special advocates of 
 Moses, defending his sabbath, protesting against its 
 breaking. And now they stand here as the men who 
 themselves, in their innermost heart, dishonor and disbe- 
 lieve Moses, and are in turn accused by him. Again, 
 they seemed at the outset most zealous for the honor of 
 
V. 4 5-47 J CHAPTER V. 83 
 
 God in persecuting Him who made Himself equal with 
 God ; but now they stand convicted as men anxious to 
 receive glory from one another and utterly indifferent 
 to the true glory of God ! They are Jews only outwardly, 
 in the flesh, and not inwardly, in the spirit, whose praise 
 is not of men but of God (Rom. ii. 28, 29. Jehudah, 
 God's praise). Thus the great battle is opened between 
 the Lord and His adversaries, and it is a conflict for life 
 and death. But there is now a pause for a while, made 
 by the Lord's retirement into Galilee. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 II. The Crisis in Galilee. 
 
 (A.) TJie Miraculous Feeding {y\. 1-15). 
 (B.) TJie MectingivitJi His Diseiples on tlie Water {y\. 16-21). 
 
 X-21. After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the sea of 
 Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. And a great multitude followed hiin, 
 because they beheld the signs which he did on them that were sick. And 
 Jesus went up into the mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. Now 
 the passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Jesus therefore lifting up 
 his eyes, and seeing that a great multitude cometh unto him, saith unto 
 Philip, Whence are we to buy bread, that these may eat .' And this he said 
 to prove him ; for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered 
 him. Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that 
 every one may take a little. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's 
 brother, saith unto him, There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, 
 and two fishes : but what are these among so many .' Jesus said. Make the 
 people sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat 
 down, in number about five thousand. Jesus therefore took the loaves ; 
 and having given thanks, he distributed to them tliat were set down; like- 
 wise also of the fishes as much as they would. And when they were filled, 
 he saith unto his disciples. Gather up the broken pieces which remain over, 
 that nothing be lost. So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets 
 with broken pieces from the five barley loaves, which remained over unto 
 them that had eaten. ^Vhen therefore the people saw the sign which he 
 did, they said. This is of a truth the prophet that cometh into the world. 
 
 Jesus therefore perceiving that they were about to come and take him 
 by force, to make him king, withdrew again into the mountain himself 
 alone. 
 
 And when evening came, his disciples went down unto the sea ; and they 
 entered into a boat, and were going over the sea unto Capernaum. And it 
 was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. And the sea was 
 rising by reason of a great wind that blew. When therefore they had rowed 
 about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they behold Jesus walking on the 
 84 
 
VI. 1-4] CHAPTER VI. 85 
 
 sea, and drawing nigh unto the boat; and they were afraid. But he saith 
 unto them, It is I ; be not afraid. TRey were willing therefore to receive 
 him into the boat : and straightway the boat was at the land whither they 
 were going. 
 
 The healing of the nobleman's son in Capernaum had 
 been the beginning of signs wrought in the public ministry 
 of the Lord in Galilee. The miraculous feeding of the 
 5,000 is the culmination of the Galilean signs. All the 
 four Gospels record it, but its fullest, deepest significance, 
 both in point of history and of doctrine, has only been 
 brought out in the fourth Gospel. Its date was about a 
 year after the discourse in Jerusalem related in ch. v. 
 Here is the principal period of His Galilean activity, 
 which is more fully described by the Synoptists. 
 
 The locality of the miraculous feeding is distinctly 
 mentioned by St. Luke. It was Bethsaida ; but not 
 Bethsaida on the west side of the Lake of Galilee, the 
 home of Andrew, Peter and Philip, but Bethsaida Julias, 
 situated on the left bank of the river Jordan, a little to 
 the north of the point where it enters the Lake of Galilee. 
 
 The Lord had intended to retire for a little season of 
 rest, to the north-east shore of the lake, together with His 
 disciples. But as the multitude pressed after Him, He 
 forgot His need of rest and gave Himself up to their 
 wants, just as we have seen it before in His dealings with 
 Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman. It was the last 
 Passover before His passion and death, and the Lord was 
 willing to give to the Galilean multitude, in the miracu- 
 lous feeding and the discourse connected with it, a sign 
 and a word which should prepare them for the events of 
 the following year, and reveal Him as the bread of Life, 
 giving Himself for the life of the world. But what was 
 the effect ? The long suspended and frequently dis- 
 appointed Messianic expectations of those passionate, 
 
86 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vi. 15-21. 
 
 warlike Galileans threatened to lead to a revolutionary 
 outbreak. " They were about to come and take Him 
 by force, to make Him king." But this attempt was 
 promptly frustrated by the Lord ; He withdrew again 
 into the mountain Himself alone to pray, having con- 
 strained the disciples to enter into the boat and to go 
 before Him unto the other side (Matt. xiv. 22). This 
 separation even from the disciples in that hour naturally 
 leads us to ask : Was there danger even in their midst ? 
 Had they also been tainted with this spirit of insurrec- 
 tion, with the desire after a Messiah-king of their own 
 making ? Or had the movement even been instigated by 
 one of the twelve, the same who at the close of this 
 chapter is so significantly called a devil? Even in the 
 following event the scenes of next year's Passover are 
 foreshadowed. A stormy night — the lonely disciples 
 struggling helplessly on the raging sea — their Lord not 
 among them, far away on the mountain to pray ; but 
 after the short separation a sudden reappearance of their 
 blessed Lord with the sweet and comforting salutation : 
 It is I ; fear not ! — Does not this change from the storm 
 to the calm, from the separation to reunion, from fear 
 and anxiety to joy and peace, suggest the great change 
 from the darkness of Good Friday to the light of glorious 
 Easter morning? 
 
 (C.) The Discourses Following these Miracles in Capernaum 
 (vi. 22-59). 
 
 I. Historical Introduction (vi. 22-24). 
 
 22-24. On the morrow, the multitude which stood on the other side of 
 the sea saw that tliere was none other boat there, save one, and that 
 Jesus entered not with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples 
 went away alone (howbeit there came boats from Tiberias nigh unto the 
 
VI. 22-24-] CHAPTER VI. 87 
 
 place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks) : when the 
 multitude therefore saw that Jesus was not there, neither his disciples, they 
 themselves got into the boats, and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. 
 
 After the miraculous feeding the people had remained 
 on the other side (the N. E. shore) of the Lake of Galilee. 
 Seeing that the Lord had sent off His disciples in the 
 boat, whilst He remained on their side, they naturally 
 expected to find Him again on the following day. In 
 this they were disappointed, and consequently they used 
 their first opportunity — some boats from Tiberias coming 
 near the place where they ate the bread — to cross over 
 to Capernaum. To their great surprise they find the 
 Lord there, and at once the welcome thought of a new 
 miracle suggests itself to their minds : How could He 
 ever have come across the lake ? They were sure that 
 He had not crossed the lake in one of their boats. 
 Therefore the question : Rabbi, when camest Thou 
 hither ? And here is the starting-point for all the dis- 
 courses that now follow. Not the enjoyment of miracu- 
 lous signs, the satisfying of mere curiosity, the alleviation 
 of temporary needs and distress is what they ought to 
 seek from Him, but eternal life itself, which the Son of 
 Man shall give them, if they will only believe in Him. 
 This idea of apprehending the Lord Himself, appropriat- 
 ing and assimilating Him by personal faith, forms the 
 principal subject of these discourses. They are narrated 
 in that lively, graphic form of the dialogue, which is so 
 characteristic of this Gospel, and presents most of its 
 great facts and doctrines with truly dramatic realism. 
 
 2. TJie Jcii'S Asking Questions (vi. 25-40). 
 
 25-40. And when they 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 signs, Init 
 
88 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN: [vi. 25-34. 
 
 because ye ate of the loaves and were filled. Work not for the meat which 
 perisheth, l)ut for the meat which abideth unto eternal life, which the Son 
 of man shall give unto you : for him the Father, even God hath sealed. 
 They said therefore unto him, What must we do, that we may 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. They said therefore unto 
 him. What then doest thou for a sign, that we may see, and believe thee .' 
 what workest thou .'' Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness ; as it is 
 written. He gave them bread out of heaven to eat. Jesus therefore said 
 unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you. It was not Moses that gave you 
 the bread out of heaven ; but my Father giveth you the true bread 
 out of heaven. For the bread of God is that which cometh down 
 out of heaven, and giveth life unto the world. They said therefore unto 
 him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. Jesus said unto them, I am the 
 bread of life : he that cometh to me shall not hunger, and he that believeth 
 on me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, that ye have seen me, and 
 yet believe not. All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me; 
 and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I am come 
 down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent 
 me. And this is the will of him that sent me, that of all that which he hath 
 given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. For 
 this is the will of my Father, that every one that beholdeth the Son, and 
 believeth on him, should have eternal lif ; and I will raise him up at the 
 last day. 
 
 There are four distinct questions or requests, with 
 which the Jews approach the Lord. The first has been 
 referred to already. Rabbi, when earnest Thou hither ? 
 (ver. 25). The second is found in ver. 28 : What must 
 we do, that we may work the works of God ? The third 
 in ver. 30 : What then doest Thou for a sign, that we 
 may see and believe Thee ? what workest Thou ? The last 
 is the direct petition of the Jews (ver. 34) : " Lord, ever- 
 more give us this bread." The main points of this dia- 
 logue are as follows: Not for the meat which perishetli, 
 but for the meat which abideth unto eternal life, they 
 ought to work. But how can they work for this ? Not 
 by doing certain works prescribed by the law, but through 
 that one work, which is God's work indeed, believing on 
 Him, whom He hath sent. Faith, then, is not in this con- 
 
VI. 28-35] CHAPTER VI. 89 
 
 nection the work ivrougJit by God (though other scripture 
 passages undoubtedly describe it also in this light), but it 
 is the one work demanded by God, the one thing pleasing 
 to God, just as Luther used to say of the first command- 
 ment : " It is the intent of this commandment to require 
 such true faith and trust of the heart as regards the only 
 true God and rest in Him alone. So you have here the 
 true honor and service of God which pleases God, and 
 which He commands under penalty of eternal wrath, viz., 
 that the heart knows no other trust or confidence than in 
 Him " (Large Catech.). 
 
 Still the carnal mind of the Galileans unfolds itself 
 more and more. If Christ be such a great messenger or 
 commissioner from God, demanding such faith, where are 
 His signs? That of yesterday was good enough as far as 
 it went. But, after all, those barley loaves make rather a 
 poor show, compared with the manna from heaven, on 
 which the fathers were fed. If Jesus be greater than 
 Moses, surely His gifts and signs ought to surpass those 
 of Moses. This leads to the direct, positive statement of 
 the Lord : I am the bread of life, given by the Father, 
 out of heaven, and giving eternal life. Thus the atten- 
 tion of His hearers is concentrated upon Himself, His 
 person. Instead of asking for gifts, however great and 
 wonderful, from His hand, they ought to ask for Himself. 
 Not : Give us such and such bread ! But give us Thy- 
 self, thou heavenly Bread, that we may eat and live 
 through Thee ! 
 
 3. The Jeivs Murmuring (vi. 41-51). 
 
 41-51. The Jews therefore murmured concerning him, because he said,' 
 1 am the bread which came down out of heaven. And tliey said, Is not 
 this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother.we know ? how doth 
 he now say, I am come down out of heaven ? Jesus answered and said 
 
go THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. ' [vi. 41-47. 
 
 unto them, Murmur not among yourselves. No man can come to me, ex- 
 cept the Father which sent me draw him : and I will raise him up in the 
 last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught of 
 God, Every one that hath heard from the Father, and hath learned, 
 Cometh unto me. Not that any man hath seen the Father, save 
 he which is from God, he hath seen the Father. Verily, verily, 
 I say unto you, He that believeth hath eternal life. I am the bread of life. 
 Your fathers did eat the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is 
 the bread which cometh down out of heaven, that a man may eat thereof 
 and not die. I am the living bread which came down out of heaven : if 
 any man eat of this bread, he shall life for ever : yea and the bread which I 
 will give is my flesh, for the live of the world. 
 
 We know, from the Synoptical Gospels, that a number 
 of scribes and Pharisees had gone to Galilee, just about 
 that time, to watch the Lord, and, if an occasion should 
 offer itself, to stir up the people against Him (Matt. 
 XV. i). Such men most likely were among this multi- 
 tude. They would naturally be the first to point out 
 the seeming presumptuousness in that claim of Christ, 
 "that He came down out of heaven," whilst to them He 
 was " this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and 
 mother we know." The Lord does not begin to reveal 
 to them the mystery of His supernatural birth. An ap- 
 peal to this will never create faith where there is none. 
 It rather requires a believing heart to apprehend and ap- 
 preciate that fact in all its bearings. Instead, therefore, 
 of disputing with them on this holy myster}% He begs 
 and warns them to submit to the drawing of the Father, 
 and to come to Him. For the Father not only gives the 
 Son, but also draws to the Son and gives Him all that 
 come unto Him (see also ver. 37), and find everlasting life 
 in Him. Do not, He says to His hearers, refuse to be 
 taught of God, hear Him, learn from Him, come unto 
 Me (ver. 45). 
 
 From the statement made before, that He is the Bread 
 of life,which came down out of heaven, He cannot retract 
 
VI. 48-54] CHAPTER VI. 91 
 
 anything. It is solemnly repeated, and He adds another 
 important feature to it, which rather increases its weight, 
 and is not calculated to make it more acceptable to the 
 Jews. "Yea," He says, in a manifest climax : "and the 
 bread which I will give is My flcsJi for the life of the 
 world'' {vet. 51 close). God is going to prepare a new- 
 Passover feast, to which not only His chosen people of 
 old, but the whole world, is bidden. Christ is the Pass- 
 over Lamb. His life is to be given on the cross for the 
 life of the world. The Lamb of God, which taketh away 
 the sin of the world, by His atoning death, redeems the 
 world from the bondage of sin and death, and becomes 
 the heavenly meat for a starving world hungering after 
 eternal life. 
 
 4. The Jeivs Striving One with Another (vi. 52-59). 
 
 52-59. The Jews therefore strove one with another, saying, How can 
 this man give us his flesh to eat? Jesus therefore said unto them, Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you, except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink 
 his blood, ye have not life in yourselves. He that 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 abideth in me, and I in him. As 
 the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he that 
 eateth me, he also shall live because of me. This is the bread which came 
 down out of heaven : not as the fathers did eat, and died : he that eateth 
 this bread shall live for ever. These things said he in the synagogue as he 
 taught in Capernaum. 
 
 In this third and last section, the discourses of the Lord 
 on the great theme: "The Bread of Life," culminate. 
 In the first we had the simple statement : I am the 
 Bread of Life, that came from heaven. In the second 
 the important point is added : The bread spoken of is His 
 flesh, given for the life of the world. In the third and 
 last, the eating and drinking of His flesh and blood is the 
 
92 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vi. 52-56. 
 
 main point presented, as introduced by the question of 
 the Jews: " How can this man give us his flesh to eat? " 
 The language used by the Lord in this section is indeed 
 strong meat, not only for the Jews of that time, but for 
 Christians and believers of all times. This whole passage 
 does not refer directly and specifically to the Lord's Sup- 
 per, or the sacramental eating and drinking of His body 
 and blood. The ordinance of the Lord's table, by Christ's 
 direct appointment, has its own earthly, visible elements 
 of bread and wine. Without these, we have no sacramental 
 partaking of Christ, however closely we may be united 
 with the Lord by faith, howeverheavenly may be our enjoy- 
 ment of His presence through the word and the Spirit. 
 But there is not the slightest reference to either bread or 
 wine, the elements in the Lord's Supper. The Lord 
 speaks of Himself as the living bread, very much in the 
 same manner as He spoke of the living water to the 
 Samaritan woman. Moreover, we have such statements 
 as those in the 53d and in the 56th and following verses. 
 In the former we read : " Except ye eat the flesh of the 
 Son of Man, and drink His blood, ye have not life in 
 yourselves." Dare we limit this absolute rule, which al- 
 lows of no exception, to the partaking of the Sacrament 
 of the Lord's Supper ? What becomes of those who (for 
 very good reasons) live and die without ever having come 
 to that sacrament ? The children that have never been 
 admitted to it? The adults who, for peculiar reasons, 
 against their own will, have been prevented from receiv- 
 ing it? Shall it be said of them all : " Ye have not life 
 in yourselves " ? And in the 56th verse we read : " He 
 that eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood abideth in 
 Me and I in him." Accordingly, the relation to the 
 Lord, and the connection with Him through the eating 
 of His flesh and drinking of His blood, must be not of a 
 
VI. 51-59-] CHAPTER VI. ^3 
 
 temporary and periodical, but of an abiding character. 
 So this statement also seems to preclude the specific 
 reference of this passage to the sacrament. 
 
 The eating and drinking of the flesh and blood of the 
 Son of Man is a description, in strongly figurative lan- 
 guage, of the personal appropriation by faith of the 
 blessings resulting from the atoning death of Christ. But 
 more than this. It is not only the truths taught by the 
 Lord, or the benefits purchased and conveyed by Him, 
 that are to the believing Christian meat indeed, unto 
 eternal life. It is the Lord Himself, Jesus Christ, not 
 simply in His divine nature, dwelling in our hearts through 
 the Spirit, but the whole, undivided Godman, with His 
 human nature also, including His glorified body. This 
 whole Christ must be ours, in order to have life everlast- 
 ing. He must be appropriated, assimilated by true faith, 
 and this mystic union with Him, the glorified Godman, 
 is most beautifully and strikingly represented by this 
 figure of eating His flesh and drinking His blood. It is 
 undoubtedly the strongest, most realistic picture of faith, 
 and its result the complete appropriation of Christ, His 
 whole work and His whole person, divine and human ; 
 one of the principal characteristic features of the Gospel 
 of John, with its wonderful heavenly realism. 
 
 (D.) The Wavering Disciples and the Crisis (vi. 60-71). 
 I. The Wavering Disciples (vi. 60-65). 
 
 60-65. Many therefore of his disciples, when they heard this, said, 
 This is a hard saying ; who can hear it t But Jesus knowing in himself 
 that his disciples murmured at this, said unto them, Doth this cause you 
 to stumble ? What then if ye should behold the Son of man ascending 
 where he was before ? It is the spirit that quickeneth ; the flesh profiteth 
 nothing: the words that I have spoken unto you are spirit, and are life. 
 But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the be- 
 
94 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vi. 60-63. 
 
 ginning who they were that believed not, and who it was that should 
 betray him. And he said, For this cause have I said unto you, that no 
 man can come unto me, except it be given unto him of the Father. 
 
 These revelations of Christ concerning the mystery of 
 His person, and the true, innermost nature of faith, that 
 appropriates Him, became a stumbling block to all who 
 looked upon Him simply with the eyes of human reason, 
 considering Him merely as a great prophet, mighty in 
 deed and word, or as the great organizer of an outward 
 kingdom glorious before men. There came first the mur- 
 muring: This is a hard saying, who can hear it? and 
 afterwards direct apostasy, " many of His disciples went 
 back and walked no more with him." Even His attempt 
 to give them a key for the correct understanding of those 
 mysterious utterances concerning His own flesh and blood 
 is of no avail. He points them to His coming ascension : 
 " What, if you shall behold the Son of Man ascend to 
 where He was before?" He tells them of His heavenly 
 glory which He had before coming into this world, to 
 which He expects to return by His ascension and in 
 which even this flesh of His is going to participate. What 
 He said of His flesh and blood was said of the glorified 
 Christ. He spoke of the flesh united to the Godhead and 
 glorified by the Spirit. The power of quickening, of 
 giving life, which He ascribed to His flesh given for the 
 life of the world, is not in the pure, earthly, human flesh 
 as such, but in the Spirit. Without it the flesh profiteth 
 nothing. But Christ is the incarnate Word : the God 
 in the flesh ; not flesh, born of the flesh as other men, but 
 begotten of the Spirit as the Son of Mary, and glorified 
 by the Spirit. Of Christ's flesh, therefore, we cannot say : 
 it profiteth nothing. It is the flesh of the Godman and 
 therefore siveth life to the world. Yea we are bold to 
 say: God outside of the flesh profiteth nothing! We 
 
VI. 63-6S.] CHAPTER VI. 95 
 
 have no God that will save and give life to the perishing 
 world except the God in the flesh, the incarnate Son of 
 God, born of the Virgin Mary. 
 
 2. TJie Decision of the Tivelvc (vi. 66-69). 
 
 66-6g. Upon this many of his disciples went back, and walked no more 
 with him. Jesus said therefore unto the twelve, Would ye also go away .^ 
 Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go ? thou hast the 
 words of eternal life. And we have believed and know that thou art the 
 Holy One of God. 
 
 At this critical point in the midst of these wavering dis- 
 ciples the Lord demands a decision on the part of the 
 twelve. (The twelve have never been named in this 
 Gospel ; but are spoken of as well known to the readers.) 
 The question of the Lord : Would ye also go away ? must 
 not be understood as it is frequently taken, as a most 
 pathetic lament, with a certain touch of sentimentality 
 about it. It is in itself full of manly strength and resolu- 
 tion, insisting on an open, honest decision for or against 
 Christ, on the principle announced by Him on another 
 occasion: He that is not with Me, is against Me. He that 
 gathereth not with Me scattereth. This is the dilemma. 
 Now take your choice ! 
 
 Peter, as on other occasions also, becomes the spokes- 
 man for the others. It must not be supposed that he or 
 the others at that time were able to grasp the full meaning 
 and import of the Lord's teaching on those weighty sub- 
 jects. Nor does the Lord Himself expect or demand this 
 on the part of the twelve, and much less from the great 
 mass of the people. All that He asks is that implicit 
 trust and confidence, which is so vigorously expressed in 
 the words of Peter. " To whom shall we go ? Thou 
 hast [the] words of eternal life." Away from Thee — every- 
 
96 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vi. 69-71. 
 
 thing is empty, dark and dead. With Thee all is light, 
 life and abundance. We \\-3,\q believed 2iX\<^ know (observe 
 the order of these two terms) tiiat Thou art the Holy 
 One of God,^ guileless, undefiled, separated from sinners 
 and higher than the heavens, sanctified, consecrated and 
 sent into the world by the Father. See Heb. vii. 26 ; John 
 X. 36. — Also Peter's address in the temple (Acts iii. 14, 
 " Ye denied the Holy and Righteous One"). 
 
 3. TJie Devil amoyig Them (vi. 70, 71). 
 
 70-71. Jesus answered them, Did not I choose you the twelve, and one 
 of you is a devil .' Now he spake of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for 
 he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve. 
 
 A painful disharmony mars the beauty of that joyous 
 accord which Peter had sounded. The Lord is ready 
 and willing that the crisis, brought about in that hour, 
 should go clear through the inner circle of the twelve. 
 Twelve He has chosen and one of them is a devil ! The 
 preceding discourses of the Lord had had the effect upon 
 Judas Iscariot, of bringing about the decision, in the 
 depth of his heart, against Jesus. But he was not ready 
 yet to break with Him outwardly. He held on to his 
 connection with the disciples of the Lord. Jesus was to 
 him a means to a selfish end, and his attachment to His 
 cause a matter of business. He probably had his own 
 ideas and plans to carry out, at a later period, with better 
 success, what had been a failure in Galilee after the feeding 
 of the 5,000 : viz., to proclaim Jesus King of a new Jewi.sh 
 
 1 The usual reading is : Christ, the son of the living God, as in Peter's 
 confession. Matt. xvi. 16. But the best authorities have the reading of the 
 Revised Version. It is evident, that, from a desire to make the two con- 
 fessions of Peter as nearly alike as possible, the words used in Matt. xvi. 
 have been inserted here by some copyists. 
 
VI. 70, 71.] CHAPTER VI. 97 
 
 empire, with himself as the secretary of the treasury. 
 He seems to have succeeded very well in hiding his true 
 character from the disciples. Only the ever-watchful eye 
 of the beloved disciple followed him with misgiving and 
 suspicion. He clearly indicates this many years after- 
 wards in the constant refrain, with which that name is 
 mentioned in his Gospel : " he it was. that should betray 
 Him, being one of the twelve." 
 7 
 
•CHAPTER VII. 
 
 III. The Conflict in Jerusalem again taken ur 
 . (ch. vii., viii.). 
 
 (A.) Historical Introduction (vii. 1-13). 
 
 r-13. And after these things Jesus walked in Galilee; for he would not 
 walk in Judaea, because the Jews sought to kill him. Now the feast of the 
 Jews, the feast of tabernacles, was at hand. His brethren therefore said 
 unto him. Depart hence and go into Judcea, that thy disciples also may be- 
 hold thy works which thou doest. For no man doeth anything in secret, 
 and himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, 
 manifest thyself to the world. For even his brethren did not believe on 
 him. Jesus therefore saith unto them, My time is not yet come ; but your 
 time is alway ready. The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, be- 
 cause I testify of it, that its works are evil. Go ye up unto the feast : I go 
 not up yet unto this feast ; because my time is not yet fulfilled. And hav- 
 ing said these things unto them, he abode still in Galilee. 
 
 But when his brethren were gone up unto the feast, then went he also 
 up, not publicly, but as it were in secret. The Jews therefore sought him 
 at the feast, and said. Where is he ? And there was much murmuring 
 among the multitudes concerning him : some said. He is a good man ; 
 others said. Not so, but he leadeth the multitude astray. Howbeit no man 
 spake openly of him for fear of the Jews. 
 
 A period of six months intervenes between the events 
 recorded in the preceding chapter and the Lord's visit to 
 the festival of tabernacles, recorded in the seventh. This 
 feast of tabernacles, one of the three great festivals of the 
 Jews, — Passover and Pentecost being the other two — 
 was the gayest and most joyous of- all. It was celebrated 
 in the month of October and lasted eight days ; the Jews 
 during this time dwelling in tents or huts built of green 
 boughs on the streets or on the roofs of their houses. 
 " Every morning, at the time of the morning sacrifice, a 
 98 
 
VII. I-I3.] CHAPTER VII. no 
 
 golden pitcher was filled with water from the fountain of 
 Siloah and, with a song of thanksgiving, was poured out 
 at the side of the altar in remembrance of the miraculous 
 supply of water in the wilderness. Every evening, at the 
 time of the evening sacrifice, a brilliant light blazed forth 
 from golden candlesticks in the court of the temple, in 
 remembrance of the fiery pillar in the wilderness." As 
 this festival drew nigh, the brothers of Jesus, who did 
 not yet themselves believe in Him, urged Him to go up 
 and manifest Himself as the Messiah in Jerusalem and 
 Judaea, where He had formerly been, gathering a number 
 of disciples (John iv. i.) They could not understand, why 
 the Lord should hide His Messianic authority and mirac- 
 ulous powers under the bushel, in obscure Galilee. They 
 were anxious that He should show Himself in Judjea and 
 make an impression there on the ruling classes. But they 
 have no conception of the real attitude of the world towards 
 Jesus ; that it hates Him for His testimony, and that 
 such a manifestation as His brothers urge Him to make, 
 would necessarily lead to a fatal outburst of that hatred. 
 But the time has not yet come for this. "This feast" 
 (ver. 8, with special emphasis) is not the one to which He 
 will go up as Messiah-King, to manifest Himself to His 
 people. The Passover of the following year is appointed 
 for that. And then the great crisis will come. But for 
 the present. His visit to this feast cannot be public, but 
 must be, as it were, in secret. 
 
 (B.) Three Discourses djiring the Feast of Tabernacles 
 (vii. 14-36). 
 
 I, Christ's Authority for Teaching (vii. 14-24). 
 
 14-24. But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into 
 the temple, and taught. The Jews therefore marvelled, saying, Howknow- 
 eth this man letters, having never learned ? Jesus therefore answered 
 
loo TIIF. GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vii. 14-17. 
 
 them, and said, My teaching is not mine, but his that sent me. If any man 
 willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it be of God, 
 or whether I speak from myself. He that speaketh from himself seeketh his 
 own glory : but he that seeketh the glory of him that sent him, the same is 
 true, and no unrighteousness is in him. Did not Moses give you the law, 
 and j^/' none of you doeth the law .' Why seek ye to kill me ? The multi- 
 tude answered. Thou hast a devil : who seeketh to kill thee .' Jesus 
 answered and said unto them, I did one work, and ye all marvel. For 
 this cause hath Moses given you circumcision (not that it i.i of Moses, but 
 of the fathers) ; and on the sabbath ye circumcise a man. If a man receiv- 
 eth circumcision on the sabbath, that the law of Moses may not be broken ; 
 are ye wroth with me, because I made a man every whit whole on the 
 sabbath .'' Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judge- 
 ment. 
 
 It was undoubtedly owing to the special summons of 
 the Father that Jesus went to the sanctuary and taught 
 pubhcly. His sudden appearance, while causing great 
 surprise and anger among His enemies, created a deep 
 impression upon the multitude. He shows such a thorough 
 knowledge of the Scriptures.^ Who had been His 
 teacher? Whence His theology ? Surely not from the 
 scribes and Pharisees. The doctrine proclaimed by Christ, 
 and in so far His doctrine, is in reality the Father's that 
 sent Him. What a humility on the part of "the only 
 begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father and 
 hath declared Him " (John i. 18). Both the origin and 
 the contents of His doctrine are indicated in this paradox. 
 He is the one whom the Father sent, so that in His person 
 the law and the prophecy, and all the hopes and ideals of 
 humanity should be fulfilled, He being the way and the 
 truth and the life. And the evidence of the divine char- 
 acter and authority of His teaching is to be found by all 
 those who honestly will to do the P^ather's will, wherever 
 that will may be found, whether in the Law, or in the 
 
 ' Not " letters," learning in general, but the .Scriptures, as Luther trans- 
 lates. Comp. John v. 47, the writings of Moses. 
 
VII. 17-23] CHAPTER VIL lOi 
 
 Prophets, or in the conscience of man. The moral char- 
 acter of Christianity is the testimony of its divine power 
 and authority. It is the Old Testament principle : "The 
 fear of the Lord — the beginning of wisdom," which is here 
 by the Lord Himself applied to the New Testament 
 revelation of the Gospel. The heart, the conscience, the 
 will of man are involved in his search after truth. 
 Wherever there is an honest will, an upright, sincere res- 
 olution, not the actual doing, or perfection in doing, the 
 will of God (which is impossible), men will be drawn to 
 Christ ; they will appreciate the^/ft of God in the Gospel, 
 having made an honest effort to do the wiV/ of God as 
 they know it. The humility and unselfishness of Christ, 
 who " seeketh not His own glory," will always be one of 
 the most prominent features that impress the honest in- 
 quirer after truth. 
 
 But how about His adversaries and their character for 
 uprightness and unselfishness? The Lord boldly and 
 unsparingly uncovers their murderous designs, to the 
 utter amazement of the people. To them it appears as 
 sheer madness, owing to demoniac influences, that Christ 
 should make such a statement. The leaders know better, 
 and to them the Lord addresses the following argument, 
 passing without notice the excited interruptions of the 
 multitude. The Lord reminds His antagonists of that 
 one work which at the very outset had provoked their 
 deadly enmity, the healing of the sick man at the pool of 
 Bethesda on the Sabbath day (John v. 1-18). He takes 
 up the question of the authority of the Sabbatic law of 
 Moses and beats the Jews on their own ground, showing 
 that the law of the Sabbath is made to yield to the law 
 of circumcision, wherever the eighth day after the birth 
 of a son happens to be a Sabbath day. And however 
 important circumcision may have been under the old 
 
I02 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vii. 25-27. 
 
 covenant, Christ's act of healing and saving the whole 
 man, body and soul, in time and eternity is far greater. 
 If it be right and lawful to apply circumcision, the sign 
 of the old covenant, to the newly-born Israelite on the 
 Sabbath day, who will deny the full New Testament sal- 
 vation offered and conveyed by Christ on the day of 
 Sabbath, to a son of Abraham ? 
 
 2. WJicnce is Christ? (vii. 25-32). 
 
 25-32. Some therefore of them of Jerusalem said, Is not this he whom 
 they seek to kill .' And lo, he speaketh openly, and they say nothing unto 
 him. Can it be that the rulers indeed know that this is the Christ .' How- 
 beit we know this man whence he is : but when the Christ cometh, no one 
 knoweth whence he is. Jesus therefore cried in the temple, teaching and 
 saying, Ye both know me, and know whence I am ; and I am not come of 
 myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not. I know him ; be- 
 cause I am from him, and he sent me. They sought therefore to take 
 him : and no man laid his hand on him, because his hour was not 
 yet come. But of the multitude many believed on him ; and they said. 
 When the Christ shall come, will he do more signs than those which this 
 man hath done? The Pharisees heard the multitude murmuring these 
 things concerning him ; and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent offi- 
 cers to take him. 
 
 As the Lord in the preceding section had proclaimed 
 the divine origin and authority of His doctrine, He now 
 takes occasion to proclaim the divine authority and 
 origin of His person. The boldness of His utterances, 
 and the hesitation of His antagonists to say anything 
 against Him, made a deep impression upon the people. 
 The thought even suggested itself, that He might pos- 
 sibly be the Messiah. But it is promptly dismissed by 
 those rnen who are unable or unwilling to " judge right- 
 eous judgment," who will always "judge according to 
 appearance." The Messiah's origin is to be wrapped in 
 mystery, but the pedigree of this " carpenter's son " is 
 
VII. 2.S-34] CHAPTER VII. 103 
 
 well known to them ! But now the Lord emphatically 
 and solemnly, with a loud voice, testifies, that He is sent 
 by the true God whom they do not know. No wonder 
 therefore that they also fail to know Him and the mys- 
 tery of His person. For it is in bitter irony that He 
 says: " Ye both know Me and know whence I am." The 
 wavering multitude is again deeply affected by this 
 declaration of Jesus. Could He not, after all, be the 
 Messiah? Could any more signs be expected of the 
 Messiah? These ominous murmurings lead to a meet- 
 ing of the Sanhedrim, where it was resolved that He 
 should at once be arrested and tried. But the fear of 
 the multitude, especially of the pugnacious Galileans, 
 puts off the execution of this plan, and for the present the 
 Lord remains unmolested. 
 
 3. His ApproacJiing Departure (vii. 33-36). 
 
 33-36. Jesus therefore said, Yet a little while am I with you, and I go 
 unto him that sent me. Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me : and 
 where I am, ye cannot come. The Jews therefore said among themselves 
 Whither will this man go that we shall not find him? will he go unto the 
 Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks ? What is this word 
 that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me : and where I am, ye 
 cannot come ? 
 
 A solemn testimony intended for the leaders who had 
 just sent their officers to seek and to apprehend Him. 
 What Jesus here says is the warning of an impending 
 judgment on them. He who had so often invited all 
 inquirers to come unto Him, who had given His assur- 
 ance, " Seek and ye shall find," now speaks of a time 
 when they shall seek Him but not find Him, — a righteous 
 judgment upon those who are planning the murder of the 
 Messiah. The delegate of the Father returns to Him 
 
I04 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [vii. 35-37. 
 
 who sent Him, to report on the result of His mission. 
 (Compare Luke xiv. 21.) But His menace is met with 
 sneers and derision. He will depart to the Gentiles, 
 seeing that He can do nothing with Israel, the people of 
 God ! To appreciate the true meaning of these words 
 we must remember the unspeakable contempt with 
 which these children of Abraham looked down upon the 
 heathen. And yet with all their abuse and mockery 
 they become true prophets of the time Avhen Christ's 
 Gospel of salvation turns from them to the Gentiles. 
 (See Acts xiii. 46.) 
 
 (C.) The Discourses on the Last Day of the Feast. 
 I, Jesus tJie Fountain of Life (vii. 37-52). 
 (rt'.) Tlic Words of the L^ord (vii. 37-39). 
 
 37-39. Now on the last day, the 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 spake he of the Spirit, which they that be- 
 lieved on him were to receive : for the Spirit was not yet giveti ; because 
 Jesus was not yet glorified. 
 
 On the last day, the most joyous and exultant of the 
 whole celebration, when, at the fetching of the water and 
 the usual libation, Psalms cxiii.-cxviii. and, possibly, Isaiah 
 xii. 3 were sung, Jesus spoke these words, standing and 
 crying with a loud voice. They are in a different spirit 
 from those threatening words of warning which, in the 
 preceding section, had been addressed to the rulers. 
 They offer once more a kind and urging invitation to all 
 who truly hunger and thirst after His righteousness. 
 The commonly received interpretation finds here the 
 statement, that the believers, having tasted the goodness 
 
VII. 38, 39] CHAPTER VII. 105 
 
 of the Lord and being filled with His Spirit, will them- 
 selves become springs of life and wells of salvation to 
 the world. (See Matt. v. 13, 14. The disciples, the salt 
 and the light of the world.) But the words of comment 
 which the Evangelist adds to this utterance of the Lord 
 seem to demand a different interpretation. According 
 to John's understanding the " rivers of living water " 
 meant "the Spirit which they that believed on Him were 
 to receive." That Spirit comes from Christ, the 
 " fountain of the Spirit," as Iren<neus calls Him, and 
 therefore the words " out of his belly " must not be re- 
 ferred to the individual believer, nor even, in the first 
 place, to the Church, the body of Christ, but to Christ 
 Himself, the Rock (see i Corinth, x. 4) of whom it was 
 said (Exodus xvii. 6) : " Thou shalt smite the Rock and 
 there shall qoxxxq frojn zvitliin it waters, and the people 
 shall drink." This meaning of the passage becomes 
 very clear if we adopt a different punctuation, reading as 
 follows, without the slightest change of the original : 
 " If any man thirst let him come [unto Me] and let 
 him that believeth on me, drink ; as it is written," etc. ^ 
 
 {b^ The Division in the Multitude (vii. 40-44), 
 
 40-44. Some of the multitude therefore, when they heard these words, 
 said, This is of a truth the prophet. Others said, This is the Christ. But 
 some said, What, doth the Christ come out of Galilee ? Hath not the 
 scripture said that the Christ cometh of the seed of David, and from Beth- 
 lehem, the village where David was ? So there arose a division in the 
 multitude because of him. And some of them would have taken him ; but 
 no man laid hands on him. 
 
 The effect of the words of the Lord upon the multi- 
 
 1 This is found in a .Strassburg edition of the New Testament of 1524. 
 Bengel calls it a plausible punctuation ; and men like Rambach, Francke, 
 Roos and Stier have adopted it. 
 
io6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vii. 40-48. 
 
 tude is here described. The different opinions concern- 
 ing Christ which are here represented, remind us of the 
 account given by the disciples concerning the thoughts 
 of the people (Matt. xvi. 14 f.). Some deny His Messi- 
 anic character because He comes from Galilee. They are 
 sure that Christ must be born in Bethlehem, the city of 
 David, as the Sanhedrim itself, years ago, correctly an- 
 swered the question of the Magi (Matt. ii. 5 compared 
 with Micah v. 2). And yet the very men who are so sure 
 and orthodox concerning Christ's coming from Bethle- 
 hem, are ready to " take Him," when the officers were 
 sent for that purpose. 
 
 (^.) TJie Chief Priests and Pharisees (vii. 45-52). 
 
 45-52. The officers therefore came to the chief priests and Pharisees ; 
 and they said unto them, Why did ye not bring him ? The officers answered, 
 Never man so spake. The Pharisees therefore answered them, Are ye also 
 led astray.' Hath any of the rulers believed on him, or of the Pharisees.'' 
 But this multitude which knoweth not the law are accursed. Nicodemus 
 saith unto them (he that came to him before, being one of them), Doth 
 our law judge a man, except it first hear from himself and know what he 
 doeth } They answered and said unto him. Art thou also of Galilee } 
 Search, and see that out of Galilee ariseth no prophet. 
 
 The officers return without their prisoner but with a 
 remarkable testimony in His favor, showing the deep 
 impression which His words had made upon them. But 
 this testimony arouses the highest indignation and wrath 
 on the part of the Sanhedrim. Never before did they 
 show themselves so arrogant, defiant and overbearing. 
 The example and authority of the '' rulers and Pharisees " 
 is laid down as the absolute standard, to be followed 
 blindly by the people. And yet even in this sweeping and 
 passionate statement there is an element of truth, as we 
 find in i. Cor. i. 26 f. But what a cruel contempt and 
 
VII. 49-52] CHAPTER Vn. 107 
 
 condemnation of " this accursed multitude which know- 
 eth not the law!" If this charge was correct, who was 
 responsible for this ignorance of the multitude, except 
 they themselves, the teachers and doctors of the law ? 
 And how about their own knowledge and observance of 
 the law? Nicodemus has the presence of mind, with a 
 ready sarcasm, to apply the standard of the law to the 
 conduct of the rulers. They certainly know what is 
 written in Exodus xxiii. i and Deuteronomy i. 16 ff. How 
 can they judge a man, contrary to the letter and the 
 spirit of the law, without hearing him? But, of course. 
 it is one thing to know the law, another thing to remem- 
 ber it at the right time, and to do it. Nicodemus, though 
 here for the first time taking iiis stand against the rulers, 
 is still extremely cautious and diplomatic in his dealings 
 with them. He has not a word to say directly of Christ, 
 or for Christ. He takes his position simply on the law, 
 the acknowledged stronghold of the Pharisees themselves. 
 While in his heart he means to defend Christ, by his 
 mouth he only appears as an advocate of the law. But 
 he will not be able to deceive them for any length of 
 time. His true sympathies will betray him sooner or 
 later. With the instinct of partisanship they scent the 
 Galilean in him. With unparalleled effrontery they 
 trample upon the truth : " Out of Galilee ariseth no 
 prophet." And having thus flippantly disposed of plain 
 historical facts, of Jonah, and Elijah, and Nahum, and 
 Hosea, the Galilean prophets of Jewish history, they 
 boldly claim this flagrant perversion of facts as the result 
 of scientific research, and undeniable historical evidence : 
 " Search and see ! " 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 i-ii. [And they went every man unto his own house: but Jesus went 
 unto the mount of Olives. And early in the morning he came again into 
 the temple, and all the people came unto him ; and he sat down, and 
 taught them. And the Scribes and the Pharisees bring a woman taken in 
 adultery ; and having set her in the midst, they say unto him. Master, this 
 woman hath been taken in adultery, in the very act. Now in the law 
 Moses commanded us to stone such : what then sayest thou of her ? And 
 this they said, tempting him, that they might have -d)hereof\.o accuse him. 
 But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground. But 
 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 with his finger wrote on the ground. And 
 they, when they heard it, went out one by one, beginning from the eldest, 
 even unto the last : and Jesus was left alone, and the woman where she was, 
 in the midst. And Jesus lifted up himself, and said unto her, Woman, 
 where are they ? did no man condemn thee .' And she said, No man, 
 Lord. And Jesus said. Neither do I condemn thee: go thy way; from 
 henceforth sin no more.] 
 
 This passage, we are convinced, does not originally belong to the fourth 
 Gospel. It is not found in the best and most ancient manuscripts, such as 
 the Sinaitic (n) the Vatican (B), probably also the Alexandrine (A) Codex. 
 The ancient Syriac version (Peshitto) omits it. The most prominent and 
 learned of the Fathers have no knowledge of it. The language is not that 
 of John. Its whole spirit and character is that of the Synoptists. Even 
 those manuscripts that contain it, show great uncertainty as to the correct 
 text. The twelve verses have more than sixty various readings. Nor is 
 there a full agreement in the place assigned to this section ; some have it 
 after John vii. 52, others after John vii. 36, others at the end of the fourth 
 Gospel, others after Luke xxi. The passage- clearly interrupts the context 
 of John's Gospel at this point. Without it, there is a steady progress and 
 clear connection between the end of the seventh chapter and the continua- 
 tion of the Lord's discourses in viii. 12, ff. But the event narrated in these 
 verses undoubtedly belongs to the life of Christ. It is a fact and no fic- 
 
 108 
 
vin. 12.] CHAPTER VIII. 109 
 
 tion. Most likely it belongs to the last days after the Lord's entrance into 
 Jerusalem, when He was constantly beset with trying questions, mostly 
 concerning the law, by the Scribes and Pharisees. The Lord's going out in 
 the evening to the Mount of Olives and returning to the temple early in the 
 morning fits exactly into the history of those last days before His passion 
 and death. See Luke xxi. 37, 38. 
 
 We continue our exposition with the following section : 
 
 2. Jesus the Light of the World {y\\\. 12-20). 
 
 12-20. Again therefore Jesus spake unto them, saying, I am the light of 
 the world : he that followeth me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall 
 have the light of life. The Pharisees therefore said unto him. Thou bear- 
 est witness of thyself; thy witness is not true. Jesus answered and said 
 unto them. Even if I bear witness of myself, my witness is true ; for I 
 know whence I came, and whither I go ; but ye know not whence I come, 
 or whither I go. Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man. Yea, aud if 
 I judge, my judgement is true; for I am not alone, but I and the P'ather 
 that sent me. Yea and in your law it is written, that the witness of two 
 men is true. I am he that beareth witness of myself, and the Father that 
 sent me beareth witness of me. They said therefore unto him, Where is 
 thy Father .' Jesus answered. Ye know neither me, nor my Father : if ye 
 knew me, ye would know my Father also. These words spake he in the 
 treasury, as he taught in the temple : and no man took him ; because his 
 hour was not yet come. 
 
 The Lord, in speaking these words, is found essentially 
 in the same surroundings as in the previous section. 
 Possibly the lighting of the large candelabra in the inner 
 court may have suggested this new theme. But it was 
 certainly a scriptural idea, set forth in numerous prophet- 
 ical passages, such as Isaiah xlii. 6, xlix. 6, ix. 2, Ix. 3. 
 (The Messiah " a light of the Gentiles," and " My salva- 
 tion unto the end of the earth " ; " They that dwell in the 
 land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light 
 shined.") As indicated even in these Old Testament 
 passages, the divine idea of light implies salvation and 
 life for those that are rescued from the dominion of 
 darkness. It is not the light of a purely theoretical 
 
no THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. Viii. 12-20. 
 
 knowledge, but has an eminently practical meaning. To 
 be filled with this light is the end of our walking in dark- 
 ness and the beginning of having the light of life, follow- 
 ing the Lord Jesus as the Saviour and the Leader. 
 
 The opposition of the Pharisees is growing more bitter 
 with every new step in the Lord's argument. Their in- 
 terruptions are becoming more frequent, impatient and 
 venomous. The " Light of the World " is promptly at- 
 tacked and denounced as a false witness. Light and 
 truth belong together. How can He be the " Light of 
 the World," if His testimony is not true? They deny 
 His authority and right to testify of Himself. But what 
 would the light be, if it did not testify of itself? Who 
 will deny this innate right and power to the " Light of 
 the World " ? As the sun shines, so the Light of the 
 World must testify of its own presence and blessed in- 
 fluence ; otherwise it would cease to be light ; it would 
 become one of the powers of darkness. True, the Lord 
 had once Himself admitted : " If I bear witness of My- 
 self, My witness is not true " (John v. 31). But there He 
 spoke of Himself xarri ffdjr/.a, according to the flesh, simply 
 as man, like other men and teachers. But here He takes 
 a higher stand, asserting His divine authority. Of this 
 He is fully conscious, and it must be part of His testi- 
 mony to the world and a very important part of it. So 
 He appeals to that same principle of the law, on which 
 His enemies claim to stand : " that the witness of two 
 7nen is true." If that be so, how much more the witness 
 which is borne by Himself and the Father! This appeal 
 is met with the sneering question : " Where is thy 
 Father?" The Lord answers it with a solemn warning: 
 Not to know the Son is not to know the Father. To 
 listen to the Son, to come to Him, to know Him and to 
 have Him is to know and to have the Father. But these 
 
VIII. 21-23.] CHAPTER rin. Ill 
 
 men will reject the Father's testimony as well as that of 
 the Son. The two witnesses are lost on them. 
 
 3. The Lifting up of the Son of Man (viii. 21-30). 
 
 21-30. He said therefore again unto them, I go away, and ye shall seek 
 me, and shall die in your sin : whither I go, ye cannot come. The Jews 
 therefore said. Will he kill himself, that 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 sliall die in your sins : for e.xcept ye believe that I am /le, ye shall 
 die in your sins. They said therefore unto him. Who art thou .-' Jesus said 
 unto them, Even that which I have also spoken unto you from the begin- 
 ning. I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you : howbeit 
 he that sent me is true ; and the things which I heard from him, these speak 
 I unto the world. They perceived not that he spake to them of the Father. 
 Jesus therefore said, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall 
 ye know that I am /u; and that I do nothing of myself, but as the Father 
 taught me, I speak these things. And he that sent me is with me; he hath 
 not left me alone ; for I do always the things that are pleasing to him. As 
 he spake these things, many believed on him. 
 
 Another and more emphatic reference to Christ's im- 
 pending departure, which means for many of the Jews 
 the terrible judgment of "dying in their sin"; not the 
 ruin of the nation as such, but the damnation of the in- 
 dividuals, who will persist in their unbelief and thus be 
 lost in their sinful state. The men who are bent on 
 becoming instrumental in His "removal," as they are 
 already planning to murder Him, interrupt Him with a 
 venomous suggestion of suicide, the most horrible and 
 damnable way of " departing " in the eyes of the Jews, 
 The Lord's answer to this infernal charge of His enemies 
 proves, indeed, that He is " from above," while they are 
 " from beneath," — not simply from the earth, from this 
 world. Deeper, more infernal depths seem to be indi- 
 cated, from which their thoughts take their origin. See 
 ver. 44, where the full meaning of this " xdrw'' ("from 
 
112 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [viii. 24-29. 
 
 beneath") is revealed in the statement : " Ye are of your 
 father, the devil." In striking contrast to tliis character 
 of the Jews, the Lord now fully reveals Himself as the 
 Saviour, the Messiah of His people. He is the one who 
 saves men from dying in their sin. And the only way 
 to be delivered from this state of perdition is to believe 
 in Him, to believe that He is the promised Messiah, the 
 way, the truth and the life, as Isaiah says (xliii. 10, 11), 
 " that ye may know and believe Me and understand that 
 I am He; I, even I, am the Lord and besides Me there 
 is no Saviour." 
 
 The question of the Jews : " Who art thou ? " is not 
 to be taken as the honest question of an inquirer. It is 
 too late for that. Wherever that question had been 
 found in the heart of a true Israelite, without guile, it 
 had been abundantly answered by the Lord in His pre- 
 ceding declarations. But in the mouth of these men it 
 is a contemptuous and indignant rejection of Christ's 
 Messianic declaration. The Lord, however, undisturbed 
 by their interruption, afifirms even more directly and em- 
 phatically, that the word He speaks, and by which He is 
 revealed as the incarnate Word, that " hath declared the 
 Father," is the true answer to their question. I am, He 
 says, principally and absolutely, the very one I claim to 
 be in what I speak, in My words and testimony. But, as 
 He testifies of Himself, He also testifies concerning His 
 antagonists, their sin and their judgment ; and this testi- 
 mony is as true as that which reveals His own person. 
 The time will come when they shall find out who He is, 
 when they have lifted Him up on the cross. The Father 
 who is with Him, even through those darkest hours, will 
 vindicate Him fully by His glorification, declaring Him 
 to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection 
 from the dead (Rom. i. 4). For the " lifting up " of 
 
VIII. 30-32.] CHAPTER Vni. 113 
 
 the Lord certainly includes the crown as well as the cross, 
 and it is the glory following the passion that will open 
 the eyes of some of the Jews; though, of course, in lift- 
 ing Him up on the cross, they never dreamed of becom- 
 ing the means to His glorification. 
 
 4. Last Words on and after the Feast of Tabernacles 
 (viii. 31-59)- 
 
 {a>j Whose Servants are the Jews? (viii. 31-36). 
 
 31-36. Jesus therefore said to those Jews which had believed him, If 
 ye abide in my word, then are ye truly my disciples ; and ye shall know 
 the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered unto him, 
 We be Abraham's seed, and have never yet been in bondage to any man : 
 how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free .^ Jesus answered them, Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you. Every one that committeth sin is the bondservant of 
 sin. And the bondservant abideth not in the house for ever: the Son 
 abideth for ever. If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free 
 indeed. 
 
 The preceding testimony of the Lord had wrought a 
 beginning of faith in a number of Jews. They " believed 
 Him." There was a certain willingness to receive His 
 word, yea, to accept Him as their Messiah, provided that 
 He should satisfy their Messianic notions and expecta- 
 tions. "Believing Jews" is certainly a startling com- 
 bination in the gospel of St. John, a kind of contradictio 
 in adjecto, a paradox. There is a conflict between those 
 two words and it must be settled. Will " the Jew " ob- 
 tain the victory over that incipient faith, or vice versa? 
 The Lord knows their hearts with the Jewish leaven 
 they still contain. And He at once proceeds to test 
 their faith. Will they abide in His word ? that is the 
 question. Will they recognize and appreciate the true 
 spiritual liberty, offered and conveyed by His everlasting 
 truth, or will they still cling to their own phantoms of 
 8 
 
114 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [vm. 32-36. 
 
 liberty, to be realized by a Messiah after their own heart, 
 in breaking the yoke of Roman bondage ? There is a 
 fascination even for the natural man, that has not cast 
 off every ideal, in those two words : truth and freedom. 
 But nowhere are they to be realized except in Christ. 
 Truth first and then freedom. To be bound to God by 
 His everlasting truth, is to be free from the deception of 
 error, from the bondage of sin, and of the laws and tradi- 
 tions of men.^ But the self-righteous, proud and phari- 
 saic spirit of those " believing Jews " is at once aroused 
 by the Lord's reference to their delivery from a state of 
 bondage. " We have never yet been in bondage to any 
 man." Is it possible that they should have forgotten 
 the bondage of " Abraham's seed " in Egypt, under the 
 Philistines and surrounding nations, in Babylonia and 
 now under Roman rule ? It can hardly be that they 
 mean to refer to their national, political independence. 
 But they claim true spiritual liberty and independence in 
 the sphere of religion. They are the Lord's temple, 
 " the guide of the blind, a light of them which are in 
 darkness, having the form of knowledge and of the truth 
 in the law" (Rom. ii. 19,20). The Lord therefore must 
 speak more plainly and directly of the freedom He offers 
 them in His word of truth. He appeals to their con- 
 science by introducing sin and its servitude, for which 
 they, that are under it, are fully responsible, because by 
 their own act they "commit" sin. And the consequence 
 of this bondage to sin is the forfeiture of sonship in the 
 Father's house. The true Son 9f the house alone, who 
 abideth forever, can free those bondservants and restore 
 them to their position as children. 
 
 ^ See Luther's two great Reformation-Manifestos of 1520: On the 
 Babylonian Captivity of the Church ; and The Freedom of the Christian 
 Man. 
 
VIII. 37-42-] CHAPTER VIII. 115 
 
 {b^ Wliosc Children arc the Jezvs? (viii. 37-47). 
 (Not Abraham's ; not God's ; but the Devil's.) 
 
 37-47. I know that ye are Abraham's .seed; yet ye seek to kill me, be- 
 cause my word hath not free course in you. I speak the things which I 
 have seen with my Father: and ye also do the things which ye heard from 
 your father. They answered and said unto him, Our father is Abraham. 
 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 heard from God : this did not Abraham. Ye do the 
 works of your father. They said unto him. We were not born of fornica- 
 tion ; we have one Father, even God. Jesus said unto them. If God were 
 your Father, ye would love me : for I came forth and am come from God ; 
 for neither have I come of myself, but he sent me. Why do ye not under- 
 stand my speech ? Even because ye cannot hear my word. Ye are oiyour 
 father the devil, and the lust.s of your father it is your will to do. He was 
 a murderer from the beginning, and stood 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 thereof. But because I say the truth, ye believe me 
 not. Which of you convicteth me of sin ? If I say truth, why do ye not 
 believe me ? He that is of God heareth the words of God : for this cause 
 ye hear thc7n not, because ye are not of God. 
 
 The Lord readily admits the historical fact that the 
 Jews are Abraham's seed according to their natural 
 descent. But He denies that they are Abraham's true 
 children in a spiritual sense, because they show a very 
 different spirit from that of Abraham. The difference of 
 spirit points to a difference of origin. On the one side 
 Christ speaking the things which He has by direct intui- 
 tion from His Father ; on the other side the Jews doing 
 the things which they have from their father by hearing 
 his deceitful and malignant suggestions. The manner in 
 which they receive what He tells them from the Father, 
 their opposition to His word, which takes no root and 
 makes no headway with them, proves that they are 
 
Ii6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [viii. 40-44. 
 
 neither Abraham's nor God's children. Their inspiration 
 is from a different source, as clearly shown by their mur- 
 derous intentions. Instead of loving Him, the Father's 
 Son and messenger, they seek to kill Him, a man who 
 tells them the truth which He has from God, yea who is 
 Himself of God. What a climax : first homicide, next 
 murdering truth; finally deicide ! Such a state of things 
 has only one explanation : they are the children of the 
 devil, in full accord with him, moved by his spirit, iilled 
 with his desire to destroy both truth and life, that is, to 
 lie and to kill. By this statement the Lord teaches no 
 Manicheism or Gnostic dualism, dividing the world and 
 the race absolutely and helplessly between God and the 
 devil. He holds them morally responsible for this rela- 
 tion of sonship to the devil. It is their ivill to do his 
 lusts. In the realm of their innermost thoughts and in- 
 clinations they place themselves in accord with the devil 
 by their own volition and decision. The nature and 
 spirit of their father, the devil, is fully characterized in 
 the 44th verse. He is the murderer and liar from the 
 beginning, that is, the first to introduce such perversion, 
 the destruction of life and truth, into God's creation, by 
 seducing the first man to sin and thus bringing death 
 upon him. And back of this murderous act of his there 
 is his own attitude and decision with reference to God's 
 truth. " He stood not in the truth," or, as the author- 
 ized version and also Luther's have it : " he abode not in 
 the truth." We are aware that a strictly philological in- 
 terpretation emphasizes the present state and condition 
 of Satan as denoted by the Greek verb here used. Even 
 Bengel insists that the Lord refers, not to the fall, but to 
 the present state ('* non lapsus sed status ") of the devil. 
 And yet this present " status " clearly implies the idea 
 of his not continuing in the truth, and points to the his- 
 
VIII. 44-47-] CHAPTER Vin. 11*^ 
 
 torical fact of a fall (lapsus) by which it must have been 
 preceded. Thus we are brought back to the authorized 
 version, with which the Latin, German, French, Italian, 
 Dutch and Spanish translations agree. It is now the 
 very nature of the devil to lie, with no idea of a pos- 
 sibility of his ever speaking the truth. For when the 
 devil speaks the truth he is lying most outrageously. 
 And yet there is a difference between this father of liars 
 and his children. When the Jews hate and pervert the 
 truth they speak after their father. When the devil lies 
 " he speaketh of his own." With him it is original and 
 primary, with his children it is secondary and derived. 
 But under the influence of their father these Jews are so 
 far estranged from truth, that they oppose and hate 
 Christ because He saith the truth ; the very essence of 
 devilry ! The whole argument is summed up by the 
 Lord in a purely negative form : " Ye are not of God." 
 This is, of course, essentially the same as "ye are of your 
 father, the devil," but it is a much gentler expression, in 
 harmony with the renewed and urgent entreaty : " Why 
 do ye not believe Me ? " 
 
 (r.) TJic Eternal Majesty of Christ (viii. 48-59). 
 
 48-59. The Jews answered 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 dishonour me. But I seek not mine own 
 glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth. Verily, verily, I say unto 
 you. If a man keep my word, he shall never see death. The Jews said 
 unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and 
 the prophets ; and thou sayest, If a man keep my word, 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.'' Jesus answered. 
 If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing: it is my father that glorifieth me; 
 of whom ye say, that he is your CJod; and ye have not known him: but I 
 know him ; and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be like unto you, a 
 liar: but I know him, and keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced 
 
Il8 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHX. [viii. 4S-51. 
 
 to see my day ; and he saw it, and was glad. The Jews therefore said 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. 
 Th'=!y took up stones therefore to cast at him : but Jesus hid himself, and 
 went out of the temple. ^ 
 
 In these verses the dispute between the Lord and the 
 Jews reaches its cHmax, the Jews charging Him with 
 having a demon, and finally throwing stones at Him as a 
 blasphemer. First they call Him a Samaritan, an apos- 
 tate from the orthodox Israelitic faith, who has separated 
 himself from the covenant of Abraham's seed. To this 
 they add the even more serious charge, that He " has a 
 devil." This is to be distinguished from the Scripture- 
 term which designates those unfortunate ones who were 
 possessed by the devil. It is a clumsy return of His 
 charge that they are the children of the devil. It re- 
 minds us of what is said of Judas Iscariot, " Satan en- 
 tered into him " (John xiii. 27). But terrible as it may 
 sound, if Christ's words are mere presumption and not 
 absolute truth, then no words of condemnation are too 
 strong for Him. In His answer the Lord makes no 
 reference to the title " Samaritan," not only because He 
 meant to spare the Samaritans, among whom His word 
 had gained many believers, but also because in the fullest 
 sense of the word He is Himself " the good Samaritan " 
 whose picture He drew in Luke x, 30-37. But the other 
 charge He cannot pass unnoticed. He positively rejects 
 and disproves it by the fact that " He honors His 
 Father." And surely, the God who has said : " Them 
 that honour Me, I will honour " (i Sam. ii. 30), must vin- 
 dicate the honor of Christ. He will seek it and judge. 
 And this vindication consists in the fact, that those who 
 keep Christ's word, believing His doctrine, trusting His 
 promise and obeying His mandate, shall not see death, 
 
VIII. 51-5S] CHAPTER VIII. UQ 
 
 but have everlasting life and salvation.^ This assurance 
 of the Lord certainly includes the triumph also over the 
 terrors of physical death on the part of the believer. 
 The Jews, however, misrepresent and twist His words by 
 confining their meaning exclusively to physical death ; 
 though they are correct in recognizing in them a claim 
 of superiority over Abraham and the prophets. This is 
 what they are determined to deny under all circumstances, 
 but this is the very centre of all the teaching of the Lord. 
 In answer to their charge of unbearable presumption 
 (" What makest Thou Thyself? ") the Lord again asserts 
 His humility. It is the Father that glorifieth Him. 
 And to the Father He leaves it. His personal relation 
 to the Father is very strongly emphasized by Him in this 
 connection, over against the pretension of the Jews that 
 " He is their God." " My Father," this is the sum and 
 substance of His testimony from the first word in the 
 temple to the last word on the cross. Having thus es- 
 tablished His filial relation to the Father, He explains 
 more particularly His relation to Abraham, showing to 
 the full extent His superiority over him. Two distinct 
 statements are made : " Abraham rejoiced to see His 
 day," when he received the promise concerning his seed 
 and was looking forward in faithful expectancy to its 
 fulfilment. " And he saw it and was glad," referring to 
 Christ's historical advent in the flesh, which was made 
 known to Abraham, as probably to other departed saints, 
 in the other world. This whole testimony culminates in 
 that wonderful word, which truly reflects the heavenly 
 glorj^ of the everlasting Son : " Before Abraham was, I 
 
 1 On February 17th, 1546, the day before his death, Luther wrote the 
 following words in the album of a friend : " We must all meet death and 
 depart ; but the Christian does not taste nor see death ; he is not afraid of 
 it, as other men." 
 
I20 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [viii. 59. 
 
 am." Here is the antithesis of the finite and the Infinite, 
 the creature and the Creator.^ He who is before Abra- 
 ham has had His day, came into human existence in 
 space and time (John i. 14). The Jews fully and cor- 
 rectly understood the Lord as claiming in these words 
 divine character and majesty. They therefore promptly 
 proceed to inflict the punishment which the Mosaic law 
 prescribed for the blasphemer (Leviticus xxiv. 16). At 
 this critical moment the Lord disappears from among 
 His people and from their temple, an indication of the 
 impending withdrawal of His presence from Israel, when 
 His word is to be fulfilled : " Behold your house is left 
 unto you desolate " (Matt, xxiii. 38). 
 
 1 Agnoscite Creatorem ; discernite creaturam . Augustine. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Conflict with the Unbelieving Jews Reach- 
 ing ITS Climax (Ch. ix, to xii.). 
 
 I. The Healing of the Man Born Blind (ch. ix.). 
 {a) The Fact itself {\y.. 1-12). 
 
 r-l2. And as he passed by, he saw a man bUnd from his birth. And 
 his disciples asked him, saying. Rabbi, who did sin, this man, or his par- 
 ents, that he should be born blind ? Jesus answered. Neither did this man 
 sin, nor his parents : but that the works of God should be made manifest 
 in him. We must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the 
 night Cometh, when no man can work. When 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 anointed his eyes with the clay, and said unto 
 him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam (which is by interpretation, Sent). 
 He went away therefore, and washed, and came seeing. The neighbours 
 therefore, and they which saw him aforetime, that he was a beggar, said. 
 Is not this he that sat and begged ? Others said, It is he : others said. No, 
 but he is like him. He said, I am he. They said therefore unto him. How 
 then were thine eyes opened.' He answered. The man that is called Jesus 
 made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to Siloam, and 
 wash : so I went away and washed, and I received sight. And they said 
 unto him, Where is he .'' He saith, I know not. 
 
 There is no interval of any consideration between the 
 close of the 8th and the opening of the 9th chapter. 
 The healing of the man born blind took place immedi- 
 ately after the Lord left the temple, when the Jews took 
 up stones to cast at Him ; or at least on the same day. 
 There is really no cause why the Lord should not have 
 met that unfortunate man, sitting and begging, some- 
 
 121 
 
122 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ix. 1-5. 
 
 where on the street leading from the temple. In this 
 case also, as with the sick man in Bethesda, the initiative 
 to the healing came from the Lord without a petition on 
 the part of the blind man. " He saw a man blind from 
 his birth." The Lord's looking at him betrayed that 
 peculiar interest in his case which led to his healing. 
 
 As the Lord fixed His eyes upon that man, the atten- 
 tion of the disciples was also attracted. But they look 
 upon this case from a different point of view. The ques- 
 tion which occupies their minds is : how did he ever get 
 into this miserable condition ? whose fault was it ? his 
 own personal fault ? or, as he was born blind, rather the 
 faiilt of his parents ? The question of rescue from this 
 condition does not for a moment occur to them. They 
 consider it an utterly hopeless case, simply an object of 
 theological inquiry or speculation, but not of helping and 
 restoring charity. The Lord on the other hand promptly 
 rejects the idea of a special sin of the man himself or his 
 parents, more than the sins of others who are blessed 
 with seeing children. To Christ not the " whence ? " but 
 the "whither?" is the principal question in this affliction. 
 And to this He presents a striking and hopeful answer : 
 " That the works of God should be made manifest in 
 him ; " in this case clearly not God's work of judgment, 
 but that of life giving, of restoring to light. For this He 
 hath been sent and in such work His disciples must join 
 with Him : " We must work the works of Him that sent 
 Me." How can we bring light to this poor afflicted one? 
 Surely this trial has come upon him not that he should 
 sit in darkness forever, but that he should enjoy the light 
 and the glory of God in a peculiar manner. What a 
 blessed word, full of hope for the blind man : " I am the 
 Light of the world and I am here to work while it is 
 day!" And so the Light of the world dispels the lifelong 
 
IX. 5-13-] CHAPTER IX. 123 
 
 darkness of this unfortunate one. A new creation-morn- 
 ing dawns upon him. " Let there be Ught ! " and it was 
 light. The process and method of healing however was 
 in this case rather extended and circumstantial ; for the 
 double purpose of trying and of training the faith of that 
 man and for hiding His own majesty and miraculous 
 power, as if the softly going waters of Siloam had done 
 it all (Isai. viii. 6). 
 
 {b^ Investigation by the Pharisees (ix, 13-34). 
 
 The detailed account of the thorough examination of 
 this miracle by the Pharisees, with all the questioning 
 and testifying connected with it, is of special interest, 
 because it presents a rare case of actual, critical inquiry 
 into one of the scriptural miracles, with all the witnesses 
 on hand. It has been repeatedly declared by the oppo- 
 nents of miracles that if they could be convinced by 
 credible witnesses of the reality of such supernatural 
 proceedings, they would at once renounce their infidelity 
 and skepticism and embrace Christianity. But the atti- 
 tude of the Pharisees clearly proves what an illusion this is, 
 and how true the popular saying, that " a man convinced 
 against his will is of the same opinion still." They 
 remind us of that bold statement of one of the most 
 radical representatives of unbelief (Voltaire), that if a 
 miracle should be performed in one of the public squares 
 of Paris in the presence of a thousand witnesses and 
 himself, he would rather distrust those two thousand and 
 two eyes than believe it ! 
 
 I. First Appearance of the Man before the Pharisees 
 (ix. 13-17)- 
 
 13-17. They bring to the Pharisees him that aforetime was bhnd. Now 
 
124 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ix. 13-17. 
 
 it was the sabbath on the day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his 
 eyes. Again therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he received his 
 sight. And he said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, 
 and do see. Some' therefore of the Pharisees said, This man is not from 
 God, because he keepeth not the sabbath. But others said. How can a 
 man that is a sinner do such signs ? And there was a division among them. 
 They say therefore unto the blind man again. What sayest thou of him, in 
 that he opened thine eyes .' And he said, He is a prophet. 
 
 Some busybodies, not necessarily with a design to 
 denounce the Lord, bring the man that had been healed 
 before the Pharisees. But at this first appearance of the 
 man before them, the opposite impressions, which divided 
 the multitude in their opinion concerning Christ, are re- 
 flected also in this meeting of the Pharisees. " There 
 was a division among them " (ver. 16). From one and 
 the same historical fact directly opposite conclusions were 
 drawn by the two parties. The plain fact in the case 
 was : the man born blind had been healed on the Sabbath. 
 The one party, starting with the last point of this histor- 
 ical fact (" on the Sabbath-day "), argue from this after 
 this manner : On the Sabbath-day some work had been 
 done, which ought not to have been done. Therefore 
 the man who did it or caused it to be done is not of God, 
 but a sinner, to be rejected and condemned, together with 
 his work. The other party argues in this way : There 
 has been a case of healing, a most extraordinary case of 
 giving sight to a man born blind (" a thing never heard 
 of since the world began," ver. 32), This is clearly a 
 manifestation of divine power, and therefore the one who 
 did it is to be received and trusted as a great prophet. 
 
 2. Questioning his Parents (ix. 18-23). 
 
 iS-23. The Jews therefore did not believe concerning him, that he had 
 been l)lind, and had received his sight, until they called the parents of 
 him that had received his sight, and asked them, saying, Is this your 
 
IX. 1 8-2 1.] CHAPTER IX. 125 
 
 son, who ye say was born blind ? how then doth he now see ? His par- 
 ents answered and said, We know that this is our son, and that lie was born 
 blind ; but how he now seeth, we know not ; or who opened his eyes, we 
 know not : ask him ; he is of age ; he shall speak for himself. These things 
 said his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed 
 already, that if any man should confess him to be Christ, he should be put 
 out of the synagogue. Therefore said his parents, lie is of age; ask him. 
 
 However, the men representing the former view are 
 determined to have their own way, to upset the historical 
 fact of the miraculous healing itself. They "did not 
 believe concerning him, that he had been blind and had 
 received his sight." There has not been a miraculous 
 healing. Surely this man was not really blind ; one of 
 the many cases of beggars on public highways, feigning 
 certain physical ailments in order to secure the alms of 
 those that pass by. We will promptly settle the case. 
 Call his parents. They must know all about it. " Is 
 this your son who ye say was born blind ? how then does 
 he now see?" His parents answered and said: " We 
 know that this is our son, and that he was born blind," 
 so far their positive evidence. Mark how clearly and 
 directly to the point are all the questions and answers 
 throughout this investigation. We are in the atmosphere 
 of the court-room. The whole proceeding is one of legal 
 exactness. Point after point the evidence is secured and 
 the facts, thus presented, are indeed stubborn things. 
 The foundation of the miracle is clearly established by 
 the testimony of the parents. They are competent to 
 speak of the case. This man is their son and he was 
 born blind. As to the manner and method of his receiv- 
 ing sight, they cautiously withhold their testimony. 
 " How he now seeth, we know not ; or who opened his 
 eyes we know not." They were not eye-witnesses to 
 that. But their very refusal to give testimony on what 
 they had not seen with their own eyes makes their evi- 
 
126 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ix. 24. 
 
 clence on the fundamental fact, that their son was born 
 bhnd, all the more irresistible. It was a desperate attempt 
 at the very outset to demonstrate the absence of a mir- 
 acle in this case. And it becomes more desperate than 
 ever as the Pharisees are now compelled to recall the 
 first and principal witness, who alone could answer the 
 question : " how doth he now see ? " 
 
 3. Second Appearance and Expulsion of the Man Born 
 Blind (ix. 24-34). 
 
 24-34. So they called a second time the man that was blind, and said 
 unto him, Give glory to God : we know that this man is a sinner. He 
 therefore answered, Whether he be a sinner, I know not : one thing I 
 know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see. They said therefore unto him, 
 What did he to thee .'' how opened he thine eyes .'' He answered them, 
 I told you even now, and ye did not hear ; wherefore would ye hear it again "i 
 would ye also become his disciples ? And they reviled him, and said. Thou 
 art his disciple ; but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God hath 
 spoken unto Moses : but as for this man, we know not whence he is. The man 
 answered and said unto them, Why, herein is the marvel, that ye know not 
 whence he is, and yet he opened mine eyes. W^e know that God heareth 
 not sinners : but if any man be a worshipper of God, and do his will, him 
 he heareth. Since the world began it was never heard that any one 
 opened the eyes of a man born blind. It this man were not from God he 
 could do nothing. They answered and said unto him, Thou wast 
 altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us .'' And they cast him out. 
 
 " So they called a second time the man that was blind 
 and said unto him : Give glory to God : we know that 
 this man is a sinner," — a bold unscrupulous attempt to 
 intimidate him. But the simplicity, straightforwardness 
 and courage of the man completely baffle them. " He 
 is of age — said his parents, — he shall speak for himself." 
 And did he not speak for himself and for Him, who made 
 him whole ? The Pharisees are aware what a dangerous 
 witness this man is going to be ; they therefore move 
 heaven and earth to make him deny his Physician and 
 
IX. 24-33-] CHAPTER IX. 127 
 
 Saviour. " We know that this man is a sinner," and 
 what "we know," you are expected to accept, and to 
 abide by it without criticism or contradiction. But he 
 will not accept it. " Whether He be a sinner I know not : 
 one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, I now see." 
 This is the theology of living facts over against prejudiced 
 dogmatism. The " one thing he knows " is better than 
 all that their wisdom claims to know. The Light of the 
 world has opened his eyes. He has been taught by God. 
 And he proceeds undauntedly to give them a taste of his 
 theology too, after having given his legal evidence in their 
 court of inquiry. " We know that God heareth not sin- 
 ners, but if any man be a worshipper of God and do His 
 will, him He heareth. Since the world began it was never 
 heard that any man opened the eyes of a man born blind. 
 If this man were not from God, He could do nothing." 
 Good sound Mosaic theology and common-sense and logic 
 besides ! A regular syllogism, with Major, Minor and Con- 
 clusion. Here is the sign, you cannot deny, established 
 beyond the possibility of a doubt by the testimony of 
 eye-witnesses. Will you not draw the correct conclusion, 
 as Nicodemus, your ruler, did : " No man can do these 
 signs, except he come from God, and God be with him " ? 
 
 There is a wonderful life-realism pictured in the scenes 
 of this chapter. We see everything as plainly before our 
 eyes as if we stood in person between those contending 
 parties. We see the reflexion of the " Light of the World " 
 beaming on the face of this man whose eyes have been 
 opened. We see the flash of heavenly joy in his bright 
 sparkling eyes, as he exclaims again and again : I received 
 sight ! (ver. 11); I do see! (ver. 15). One thing I know 
 — now I see ! (ver. 25). He opened mxwo. eyes ! (ver. 30). 
 
 But all the light and joy of this testimony is lost on the 
 Pharisees. If they only could, they would gladly force him 
 
128 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [ix. 34-38. 
 
 back to the darkness in which he was born (as they after- 
 wards resolved to kill Lazarus in order to stop the mouth 
 of the testimony of his resurrection). But being unable 
 to do that they cast him out in furious passion. 
 
 (f.) Jesus the Saviour of the Blind and the Judge of the 
 Seeing (ix. 35-41). 
 
 35-41. Jesus heard that they had cast him out ; and finding him, he said, 
 Dost thou beUeve on the Son of God ? He answered and said, And who 
 is he, Lord, that I may believe on him ? Jesus said unto him, Thou hast 
 both seen him, and he it is that speaketh with thee. And he said. Lord, I 
 believe. And he worshipped him. And Jesus said, For judgement came I 
 into this world, that they which see not may see ; and that they which see 
 may become blind. Tiiose of the Pharisees which were with him heard 
 these things, and said unto him, Are we also blind ? Jesus said unto them, 
 If ye were blind, ye would have no sin : but now ye say. We see : your sin 
 remaineth. 
 
 Jesus heard that they had cast him out. So He went 
 after him, and finding him, He said : " Dost thou believe on 
 the Son of God ? " At the time of the healing the man 
 born blind had not seen the Lord. He had been sent away 
 to the pool of Siloam with his eyes still closed, and immedi- 
 ately after the healing he was dragged before the Phari- 
 sees. But now for the first time his eyes rest on the 
 Lord, whom he at once recognizes by the well-known 
 voice. He whom he had learned to know as his great 
 physician, whom he had already confessed before men as 
 a prophet come from God, reveals Himself to him as the 
 very Son of God. " Thou hast seen Him, and He It is 
 that speaketh with thee." Thus the man born blind is 
 led from light to light ; from the light of the body to the 
 light of the soul ; from the knowledge of the great prophet 
 to saving faith in the Son of God. 
 
 But He who came as a Saviour for the blind that they 
 
IX. 39-4 1 J CHAPTER IX. 129 
 
 might see, is at the same time the judge of those which 
 see " that they may become bHnd." Those which see 
 not are the same whom the proud Pharisees characterized 
 as " the multitude which knowcth not the law," and whom 
 the Lord Himself speaks of as the " babes." Those which 
 see are the men who are full of their "we know," and 
 whom the Lord characterizes as the " wise and under- 
 standing." The amount of knowledge which they 
 actually had, even concerning the Christ, the Son of God, 
 laid a fearful responsibility on them. They were the 
 men of the parable, who, when the Lord of the vineyard 
 sent His beloved Son, reasoned one with another, saying : 
 "This is the heir; let us kill him, that the inheritance 
 may be ours" (Luke xx. 9-18). To them applied those 
 words of warning in the sermon on the mount : " The 
 lamp of the body is the eye : if therefore thine eye be 
 single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine 
 eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If 
 therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great 
 is the darkness! " (Matt. vi. 22). 
 9 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 II. The Discourses Following the Healing of 
 THE Man Born Blind (Ch. x.). 
 
 (A.) First Discourse (x. 1-2 1). 
 
 I. Christ the Shepherd (x. 1-6). 
 
 1-6. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door 
 into the fold of the sheep, 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. When he 
 hath put forth all his own, 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. This parable spake 
 Jesus unto them : but they understood not what things they were which he 
 spake unto them. 
 
 As the connection between the 8th and 9th chapters, 
 so also that between the 9th and loth is close and direct. 
 What the Lord says in the first discourse on the Shep- 
 herd, the Door and the Flock will be felt to have a pecu- 
 liar force, if we remember that by His side was the man 
 who had been so tyrannically treated by the rulers in Israel, 
 who had learned to know the voice of the Good Shepherd 
 and clung to Him undisturbed by those blind leaders of 
 the blind, the thieves and robbers that enter not by the 
 door into the fold, but climb up some other way. 
 
 Some think that the Lord was standing by the sheep 
 gate (John v. 2), and as the sun was setting the sheep came 
 
 130 
 
X. 1-3.] CHAPTER X. 131 
 
 flocking in from the valley of the Kidron and the slopes 
 of the Mount of Olives. But we need no such substratum 
 for His parable of the Shepherd. The Old Testament 
 abounds in passages based on this figure, from the Shep- 
 herd of Joseph (Gen. xlix. 24, in the prophecy of Jacob) 
 down to the " idol shepherd that leaveth the flock " (in 
 Zechariah xi.). The details of the allegory of the Lord 
 set forth in these verses present no difficulties to the 
 reader. The fold is the theocracy, the people of God 
 chosen and separated from others through God's cove- 
 nant. Those that lord it over the sheep by cunning or 
 violence (as thieves and robbers) are the ruling Pharisees 
 who approach the sheep by their own arrogant self-ap- 
 pointment, not in God's own proper way, through the 
 door, the office instituted by Him, and Christ the true 
 mediator of all pastoral vocation in Israel. The porter 
 who opens the door and lets the shepherd in to his 
 flock may be the Holy Spirit, or, if we prefer a mo.re con- 
 crete historical figure, the forerunner of the Lord, John 
 the Baptist. The Shepherd, even in these first verses, 
 though still spoken of with a certain reserve, is Christ 
 Himself, not the pastors or shepherds in general. His 
 voice the sheep hear. There is something in the very 
 sound of His words that awakens an echo in the hearts 
 of all true Israelites. "Thine are we (2 Chron. xii. 18). 
 Thou art our Shepherd." And He calleth His own 
 sheep by name ; there is an intimate personal relation be- 
 tween Him and His own ; as even in our natural relations 
 it is the exclusive privilege of those nearest and dearest 
 to us to call us (and to be called by us) by the proper 
 name. And He leadeth them out'' — not simply forth to 
 green pastures, beside the still waters, in the paths of right- 
 eousness (Ps. xxiii.), but oiit of the narrow enclosure of the 
 Old Testament theocracy. He brings them forth into a 
 
132 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x. 3-10. 
 
 large place. This deliverance from the former state of 
 bondage is not accomplished without considerable labor 
 and effort on the part of the Shepherd. But after He has 
 succeeded in "putting forth all His own" He goeth be- 
 fore them, and they follow Him freely and joyfully 
 whithersoever He may lead them ; and no stranger shall 
 disturb them ; they would flee from Him rather than fol- 
 low His voice. 
 
 2. Christ the Door (x. 7- 10). 
 
 7-10. Jesus therefore said unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, 
 I am the door of the heep. All that came before me are thieves and rob- 
 bers : but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door : by me if any man 
 enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and go out, and shall find past- 
 ure. The thief Cometh not, but that he may steal, and kill, and destroy : 
 I came that they may have life, and may have // abundantly. 
 
 The parabolic saying contained in these verses is by no 
 means identical with the preceding one. " Christ is the 
 door ; " this presents an entirely new aspect, different 
 from the figure of the Shepherd. He is " the door of the 
 sheep." Does this mean the door to the sheep for those 
 who approach them as their shepherds and pastors ? They 
 must enter to the sheep through Christ as the door, in 
 -His name, in His Spirit, not in their own name, as thieves 
 and robbers ? Or does the term, " the door of the sheep," 
 simply mean the door by which the sheep enter into the 
 kingdom of heaven, finding life and abundance in it? 
 The 8th verse seems to point to the former view. The 
 9th verse seems as decidedly to point to the latter view. 
 Perhaps they might both be combined : Christ the door 
 for shepherd and flock. No open door for the shepherd 
 to the flock, except through Christ. No open door for 
 the sheep to the life and abundance of the heavenly 
 kingdom except through Christ. Through Him they go 
 
X. ii-iS.] CHAPTER X. 133 
 
 in by faith, through Him they go out, confessing their 
 faith and proving it by the love of the brethren. 
 
 3. One Flock and One Shepherd (x. 1 1-18). 
 
 11-18. I am the good shepherd : the good shepherd layeth down his 
 life for the sheep. He that is a hirehiig, and not a shepherd, whose own 
 the sheep are not, beholdeth the wolf coining, and leaveth the sheep, and 
 fleeth, and the wolf snatcheth them, and scattereth t/iein : he Jleeth because 
 he is a hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd ; 
 and I know mine own, and mine own know me, even as the Father know- 
 eth me, and I know 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 sliall hear my voice ; And they shall become one flock, 
 one shepherd. Therefore doth the Father love me, because I lay down my 
 life that I may take it again. No one taketh it away 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 received I from my Father. 
 
 This passage, containing the well-known parable of the 
 good Shepherd who layeth down his life for the sheep, 
 illustrates most clearly how the so-called parables in the 
 Gospel of St. John go far beyond the sphere of a real 
 simple parable. A statement like this: " I am the good 
 Shepherd. The good Shepherd layeth down His life for 
 the sheep," ceases to be a parable. It is a literal heavenly 
 reality. Christ is not like unto a good Shepherd as He 
 is likened unto a sower, etc. He is emphatically and truly 
 tJie good Shepherd. And in the natural sphere there is 
 no such thing as a shepherd who would willingly, by his 
 own free choice and determination, resolve to lay down 
 his life for the sheep. In looking over the whole passage 
 we at once recognize how dif^cult, yea impossible, it is, 
 to draw the line between the parabolic or allegorical 
 speech and the direct doctrinal statement. True, there 
 are the shepherd, the sheep, the wolf, the hireling, the 
 fold, the flock, — all figurative terms according to the 
 
134 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x. 14-16. 
 
 common understanding. But then : Christ layeth down 
 His life, Christ knows His own ; His own know Him ; 
 the Father knoweth Him ; Heknoweth the Father. The 
 Father doth love Him because He lays down His life. 
 He has power to lay it down and has power to take it 
 again. Where is there a parable in all this? These are 
 all plain direct statements of great historical realities. TJie 
 good Shepherd who layeth down His life for the sheep is 
 nowhere to be found in reality, except in the person and 
 in the passion of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this passion 
 and death of Christ is emphatically described as His own 
 free choice and act, done with full power and freedom. 
 His death is the culminating and consummating act of 
 His love. It is a remarkable feature of the Gospel of St. 
 John, that the solemn word of the passion of the Lord 
 accompanies us through its whole narrative. It appears 
 earlier in it than in any other Gospel. In the very first 
 chapter we were pointed to the Lamb of God which 
 taketh away the sin of the world. In the 2d it was " the 
 temple of His body " that was to be destroyed. In the 
 3d the serpent in the wilderness, the type of the lifting 
 up of the Son of Man ; in the 5th the Jews seek to kill 
 Him because He called God His own Father ; in the 6th, 
 it is His flesh (and blood) which He will give for the life 
 of the world ; in the 7th He asks His enemies : Why seek 
 ye to kill Me? in the 8th they take up stones to cast at 
 Him ; and here it is the good Shepherd laying down His 
 life. 
 
 And these passion-thoughts naturally suggest mission- 
 thoughts. As the Lord afterwards said: " If I be lifted 
 up from the earth I will draw all men unto Myself," so 
 He speaks of " other sheep not of this fold : them also I 
 must bring and they shall hear My voice ; and there shall 
 be one flock and one shepherd." Mark well : the only 
 
X. i6-22.] CHAPTER X. 135 
 
 means to bring others to His flock, to unite them all, Jews 
 and Gentiles, under the one good Shepherd, is the hear- 
 ing of His voice. No true Mission work except through 
 His voice. No true Union work except through His 
 voice. Where men refuse to listen to His voice, there 
 men may be gathered to men, but they are not brought 
 to Him, and the flock is in reality one flock only as far as 
 it is one in the faith in the good Shepherd. 
 
 4. Impression of these Words on the Jews (x. 19-21). 
 
 19-21. There arose a division again among the Jews because of these 
 words. And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad ; why hear 
 ye him ? Others said. These are not the sayings of one possessed with a 
 devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind .' 
 
 The words of the Lord made essentially the same im- 
 pression which we found on different occasions before 
 this. "There was a division among them." On the one 
 side He is charged with having a devil (demon) and 
 people are warned : Do not hear Him ! On the other side 
 some are ready to draw a similar conclusion to that of the 
 blind man whom He had healed : " Can a devil open the 
 eyes of the blind ? " 
 
 (B.) Second Discourse {on the Feast of Dedication\ 
 I. Historical Introduction (x. 22-24). 
 
 22-24. And it was the feast of the dedication at Jerusalem : it was win- 
 ter; and Jesus was walking in the temple in Solomon's porch. The Jews 
 therefore came round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou 
 hold us in suspense ? If thou art the Christ, tell us plainly. 
 
 Two months intervene between the festival of taber- 
 nacles and the feast of the dedication, the former being 
 kept in the month of October, the latter in December. 
 In the interval the Lord was absent from Jerusalem, but 
 
136 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x. 22-24. 
 
 it is hard to decide where He spent the time between 
 those two dates. He may have gone back to GaHlee, or 
 He may have stayed in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, 
 but certainly He did not show Himself in the city. The 
 feast of the dedication was not one of the ancient Mosaic 
 institutions. It was introduced at the time of the Mac- 
 cabees in memory of the re-consecration of the temple 
 after its profanation by Antiochus Epiphanes (i Maccab. 
 iv. 50 f. ; 2 Maccab. x. 6 ff.). It was called the feast of 
 the lights, from the magnificent illuminations with which 
 it was celebrated. Jesus was walking in the temple in 
 Solomon's porch, on account of the inclemency of the 
 weather. This porch was on the east side of the temple 
 plateau, on a steep precipice overhanging the valley of 
 Jehoshaphat ; it was said to be one of the few remnants 
 of the ancient Solomonic temple and, at the time of 
 Christ, belonged to the court of the Gentiles. There He 
 was walking, as if to indicate that He was ready to take 
 leave of His people and offer His salvation to the Gen- 
 tiles. There the Jews surrounded Him, demanding, as 
 they said, a plain and direct answer to the question : 
 "Art Thou the Christ?" 
 
 2. First Section of the Discourse : I and the Father 
 arc One (x. 25-31). 
 
 25-31. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believe not : the works 
 that I do in my Father's name, these bear witness of me. But ye believe 
 not, because ye are not of my sheep. 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, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My 
 Father, which hath given t/iem unto me, is greater than all ; and no one is 
 able to snatch fhem out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one. 
 The Jews took up stones again to stone him. 
 
 What answer should He return to their question ? By 
 
X. 24-31] CHAPTER X. 137 
 
 a plain affirmative He would have surrendered Himself to 
 their carnal ideas of the Messianic kingdom. By answer- 
 in<T in the negative He would have denied His own divine 
 mission. He knows that their question is not one of 
 honest inquiry, coming from a sincere desire to have 
 light on a dark and hitherto unintelligible subject. It is 
 not His fault that they are not in the clear on this point ; 
 but it is their own unwillingness to accept and believe 
 Him. He therefore simply refers to His former testi- 
 mony and that of His works. " I told you — My works 
 witness of Me— but ye believe not." There is no lack 
 of testimony ; but there is no faith on their part. They 
 are not of His sheep. They do not know His voice, 
 though they hear His words ; and consequently they do 
 not follow Him, nor enjoy the life and safe protection of 
 His faithful and strong pastoral hand. My sheep, He 
 says, are in My hand. The Father has given them unto 
 Me. I have not assumed power and authority over them, 
 without commission from on high. They are in the 
 Father's hand ; in one hand, for I and the Father are one. 
 The word " one" in the original of the New Testament is 
 neuter, which is lost in the English (and French) transla- 
 tions; while it is preserved in the Latin (" unum "), in 
 the German (eins), in the Italian (una stessa cosa) and in 
 the Spanish (una cosa). The Father and the Son are one 
 in power and authority and this only because they are 
 one in divine nature and essence. " We are," He says, 
 against any attempt to wipe out the distinction of per- 
 sons " one " ; (one essence, one nature), He says against a 
 mere moral oneness in spirit ; and against any attempt to 
 rob the Son of His full, co-equal divinity. The answer of 
 the Jews to this statement of Christ, is clear beyond the 
 possibiHty of a misunderstanding. " They took up stones 
 again to stone Him." They heard and understood cor- 
 
138 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x. 31. 
 
 rectly. They did not put anything into His words 
 which was not there by His own meaning and intention. 
 He claims oneness with the Father, equality with the 
 great Jehovah. They hold that He has no right to this 
 claim ; that He is guilty of blasphemy and deserves 
 the penalty of death. And if Jesus of Nazareth is what 
 ancient and modern humanitarians say of Him, however 
 profusely they may compliment Him for the purity and 
 loftiness of His moral and religious principles and doc- 
 trines, then the Jews were right and were bound by the 
 law of Moses to stone Him to death. There is no third 
 possibility. Either Christ is what He claims in these 
 words, and then adoration and worship are due Him as 
 the Eternal Son of the living God, our King and our 
 Saviour. Or Christ is not what He says, and then : Down 
 with Him! Stone Him to death, for all the talk of His 
 moral loftiness is scattered to the wind by that one hor- 
 rible accusation : '* He being a man made Himself God." 
 To our conceited and arrogant generation it may seem a 
 small matter to claim co-equality with God. But it is 
 tlie diabolical sin, the very essence of devilry, that the 
 creature makes himself God. 
 
 3. Second Part of the Discourse : Christ's Defence against 
 the Charge of Blasphemy (x. 32-39). 
 
 32-39. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you 
 from the Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews 
 answered him. For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy ; and 
 because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. 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 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 them, though ye believe 
 not me, believe the works : that ye may know and understand that the 
 
X. 3--3<^-] Cir AFTER X. 139 
 
 Father is in me, and I in the Father. They sought again to take him : and 
 he went forth out of their hand. 
 
 The Lord disarms His enemies yet for a little while, in 
 the first place by pointing to His good (beautiful) works, 
 which He has shown them from the Father. The works 
 are referred to as manifestations of His union with the 
 Father, of His Messianic commission and His true Son- 
 ship. And yet those very works, instead of proving to 
 them Christ's true character, excited their hatred, stirred 
 up the conflict, and finally caused the council to put Him 
 to death. 
 
 Again He points them to their" law," to that scripture 
 which "cannot be broken," to show that on the indisput- 
 able authority of good theocratical language, the prin- 
 ciple cannot be established, that it would be blasphemy 
 under all circumstances to speak of a man as God ? It 
 is the very ABC concerning the idea of the Godman to 
 which He introduces them. Psalm Ixxxii. 6, it was said to 
 the rulers and judges in Israel : " Ye are gods," though 
 they "judge unjustly" and "shall die like men." Thus 
 these sinful men, the incumbents of a theocratic office, 
 are called " gods " because their office was instituted 
 by God and their authority is from on high. But the 
 Messiah is the theocratical office-bearer in the ab- 
 solute sense. All offices are united in Him, He is 
 prophet, priest and king. From Him emanate and 
 in Him culminate all the offices of the Old Cove- 
 nant. He is sent, sealed, sanctified and consecrated for 
 His Messianic work by the Father Himself. Can He be 
 charged with blasphemy, because He says : " I am the 
 Son of God ? " The term " Messiah " and the name 
 " Son of God " are by no means identical. The title 
 "Messiah" reveals His divine commission, it specifies His 
 work, which He was sent to accomplish. And the works 
 
I40 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x. 3S-42. 
 
 He is doing must demonstrate Him as the great divine 
 office-bearer, the Anointed of God. But if He is proved 
 to be the Messiah by His Avorks, He is also entitled to 
 the name " Son of God," not as an ornamental title, 
 without reality ; but in the full sense of His essential 
 union with the Father: " the Father in Me and I in the 
 Father." 
 
 4. Chris fs Retreat to Pcrcea (x. 40-42). 
 
 40-42. And he went away again beyond Jordan into the place where 
 Jolin was at the first baptizing ; and there he abode. And many came unto 
 him ; and they said, John indeed did no sign : but all things whatsoever 
 John spake of this man were true. And many believed on him there. 
 
 The response to this testimony of the Lord is an- 
 other attempt " to take Him " on the part of His enemies. 
 But He "went forth out of their hand, away beyond 
 Jordan," that is, into Peraea. The Synoptists also speak 
 of this sojourn of Christ in that region shortly before His 
 coming to Jerusalem at the last Passover. Both Mat- 
 thew (xix. 1-2) and Mark (x. i) tell us of great multitudes 
 that followed Him and of His healing them there and 
 teaching them as He was wont. This is in full accord 
 with John's record in verses 41 and 42: "Many came 
 unto Him, and many believed on Him there." After all 
 the sad and disheartening experiences with " His own " 
 in Jerusalem, there was yet some harvest joy in store for 
 the heavenly Sower. Believers in Samaria, believers in 
 Galilee, and now believers also in Peraea. As we ap- 
 proach the end of the Lord's public ministry, there is 
 once more a precious testimony for John the Baptist, his 
 memory is kept fresh and green by the Evangelist, his 
 former pupil, from the beginning to the close of his 
 Gospel. The people of that region where John was at 
 the first baptizing have not forgotten the revered prophet. 
 
X. 41, 42.] CHArTER X. 141 
 
 "John indeed did no sign." For good reasons God had 
 not granted them to Christ's forerunner. There would 
 have been even greater danger of confounding him with 
 Christ, and thus the dif^culty in coming from John to 
 Christ w^ould have been considerably increased. *' But 
 all things whatsoever John spake of Christ were true." 
 They were true, at the time they were spoken, though 
 the people did not at that time recognize and appreciate 
 them in their full meaning. Truth is truth, even should 
 there be not a single soul to accept it and believe it. 
 Could anything greater and more creditable be said of 
 John the Baptist or of any other messenger and witness 
 of the Lord than this simple testimony : " All things 
 whatsoever he spake of this man were true " ? 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 III. The Raising of Lazarus. — The Crisis in 
 JUD^A (ch. xi.). 
 
 (A.) Sickness and DeatJi of Lazarus and Message to 
 Jesus (xi. I- 1 6). 
 
 1-16. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the village of 
 Mary and her sister Martha. And it was that Mary which anointed the 
 Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Laza- 
 rus was sick. The sisters therefore sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, 
 he whom thou lovest is sick. But when Jesus heard it, he said. This sick- 
 ness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may 
 be glorified thereby. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. 
 When therefore he heard that he was sick, he abode at that time two days 
 in the place where he was. Then after this he saith to the disciples. 
 Let us go into Judsea again. The disciples say unto him, Rabbi, the Jews 
 were but now seeking to stone thee ; and goest thou thither again ? Jesus 
 answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day ? If a 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 the light is not in him. 
 These things spake he : and after this he saith unto them. Our friend 
 Lazarus is fallen asleep; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. 
 The disciples therefore said unto him. Lord, if he is fallen asleep, he will 
 recover. Now Jesus had spoken of his death : but they thought that he 
 spake of taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus therefore said unto them plainly, 
 Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to 
 the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him. Thomas 
 therefore, who is called Didymus, said unto his fellow-disciples. Let us also 
 go, that we may die with him. 
 
 With the eleventh chapter we now come to the greatest 
 of all the signs of Jesus, the raising of Lazarus, which 
 matured the crisis in Judaea, just as the feeding of the 
 
 142 
 
XI. I.] CHAPTER XI. 143 
 
 5,000 had a similar effect in Galilee. It is acknowledged 
 on all sides that this miracle of the Lord eclipses 
 everything else. It is the last, most brilliant flash of the 
 Light of the World before sunset.^ 
 
 But why are the other three Gospels silent on this 
 greatest and most impressive of all the miracles of the 
 Lord ? There must have been weighty reasons for pass- 
 ing it by. We must remember that the Synoptists 
 represent the earliest tradition of the life and work of 
 the Lord as it was told and retold in the gathering of 
 the first Christian congregations, and in their regular 
 services from Lord's day to Lord's day. This tradition, 
 as it began to take a fixed form since the day of Pen- 
 tecost, only a few weeks after the events here recorded, 
 avoided for good and weighty reasons any special refer- 
 ence to the quiet little family in Bethany, and particularly 
 to Lazarus, who had been raised from the dead. The 
 avowed design of the rulers and Pharisees, to kill Lazarus 
 also(xii. 10) is in itself sufficient to explain this silence. And 
 then, great as the miracle in Bethany was, it w'as in its 
 turn eclipsed by the greater one in Joseph's garden on 
 Easter morning. The resurrection of the Lord formed 
 the one prominent theme on which all the rays of the 
 synoptical record unite. If the raising of Lazarus helped 
 to cause and to accelerate the death of the Lord, the 
 resurrection of Christ was the great victory of the Mes- 
 siah-King, which is supreme in the Synoptical account. 
 
 The little village of Bethany (house of the poor, the 
 suffering), situated on the eastern slope of the southern 
 part of Mount Olivet, is designated as the home of Mary 
 and Martha, though the names of these sisters had never 
 
 1 Spinoza said of this miracle, if he could.be convinced of the historical 
 reality of the raising of Lazarus, he would willingly demolish his whole 
 pliilosophical system and accept the common Christian faith. 
 
144 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 1-5. 
 
 before been mentioned in the fourth Gospel, — an evidence 
 tliat they were supposed to be known to all the readers. 
 Though Martha was evidently at the head of the little 
 family in Bethany, Mary's name is mentioned first in this 
 connection, on account of her significant anointing of the 
 Lord, which is told in the next chapter. The message 
 by which the sisters inform the Lord of their brother's 
 sickness is framed in the most tender and delicate man- 
 ner. " Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick." 
 They do not despair of His love, or find fault with 
 Him, because he whom He loves is sick. They know 
 that those whom the Lord loves may, yes must, have 
 their share in the sufferings and trials of this life. They 
 do not ask the Lord to come, though, of course, it is 
 their firm belief, if only the Lord were here, the brother 
 would not die. 
 
 The Lord's attitude in the face of this touching appeal 
 seems rather strange at first sight. " This sickness is not 
 unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God 
 may be glorified thereby," — and then " He abode at that 
 time two days in the place where He was." And, as if 
 to solve the riddle, contained in these two sentences, the 
 Evangelist inserts between them the assuring statement : 
 " Now — however strange this may seem to you — Jesus 
 loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus." But " the 
 Son can do nothing of Himself." He is bound to the 
 hour which the Father will show Him. At the hour when 
 the message from Bethany reached the Lord, Lazarus 
 was dying or, most likely, dead already, and then, accord- 
 ing to Oriental custom,^ he was buried on the very same 
 
 1 Not, however, the ancient custom of the Patriarchs or the Egyptians, 
 but of later origin ; possibly arising from an anxiety to avoid the contact 
 with the dead, and thereby to become unclean according to the Levitical 
 law. 
 
XI. 6-1 6.] CHArTEK XL 145 
 
 day when Christ heard of his sickness. Two days after 
 this the Lord startled His disciples with the sudden 
 announcement : " Let us go into Jud.va again." They 
 dread it as the place where His life is in manifest danger. 
 But Christ knows His time and His safety in the way of 
 His calling. True, the last hour of the day of His life is 
 approaching ; but He still walks in the light of His day ; 
 under the Father's guidance and protection. Thus it is 
 impossible for Him to stumble (ver. 9, 10). At last He 
 tells His disciples, who did not understand the heavenly 
 terminology, " Our friend Lazarus is fallen asleep ; " in 
 plain earthly language, " Lazarus is dead." And imme- 
 diately the heavenly victory of faith and life over the 
 temporary conquests of death bursts out again triumph- 
 antly in the following words : " I am glad for your sakes 
 that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe ; 
 nevertheless, let us go unto him." But the disciples are 
 not yet able to catch the spirit of their triumphant 
 Master. Peter, the always ready spokesman, is speech- 
 less at this point. In his heart there is another " Be it 
 far from Thee, Lord," but he suppresses it, remembering 
 the rebuke received before. Another must speak for the 
 twelve this time. It is Thomas, the one who of all the 
 disciples is inclined to see the darkest side and to cling 
 with morbid tenacity to his gloomy, desperate forebodings. 
 Lazarus dead ! The Lord going to Jud?ea and sure to be 
 killed there ! Every light extinct ! Nothing left to us, 
 but to go also and to die with Him! If there is not 
 much faith in these words, there is certainly a heroic 
 devotion in them, ready to go into death for the beloved 
 Lord. 
 10 
 
146 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHxY. [xi. 17-19. 
 
 (B.) TJie Miracle of the Raising of Lazarus (xi. 17-44). 
 
 I. Arrival of Jesus and Conversation ivitJi Martha 
 (xi. 17-27). 
 
 17-27. So when Jesus came, he found that he had been in the tomb 
 four days already. Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen 
 furlongs off; and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to con- 
 sole them concerning their brother. Martha therefore, when she heard that 
 Jesus was coming, went and met him : but Mary still sat in the house. 
 Martha therefore said unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother 
 had not died. And even now I know that, whatsoever thou shalt ask of 
 God, God will give 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. Jesus said unto her, T am the resurrection, and the life : 
 he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live : and whosoever 
 liveth and believeth on me shall never die. Believest thou this ? She saith 
 unto him, Yea, Lord : I have believed that thou art the Christ, the Son of 
 God, even he that cometh into the world. 
 
 By the time that Jesus arrived in Bethany Lazarus had 
 been in the tomb four days. (The first, the day when 
 Jesus received the message ; the second and third were the 
 days of His delay in Pertea ; the fourth the day of His 
 journey). The distance from Per^ea to Bethany was 
 about twenty miles, so that, starting early in the morning, 
 He could reach the village on the afternoon of the same 
 day. During these days before the Lord's arrival " many 
 of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console 
 them concerning their brother." These friends of the 
 family evidently belonged to the ruling party in Jerusa- 
 lem, and it is not impossible that they used the affliction 
 which had come upon the sisters, to try their influence with 
 the bereaved household against Jesus, who, to all human 
 appearances, was tarrying unnecessarily in Peraea and 
 leaving the sisters to their sorrow. 
 
 Martha, whose character all through this chapter is in 
 
XI. 20-25.] CHAPTER XL 147 
 
 striking harmony with her portraiture in Luke x. 38-42, 
 is the first to meet the Lord on His arrival : " Lord, if Thou 
 hadst been here my brother had not died. And even now 
 I know that whatsoever Thou shalt ask of God, God will 
 give Thee." And to the prompt, positive assurance of 
 the Lord : " Thy brother shall live again," she answers : 
 " I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection, 
 at the last day." There is in these expressions of 
 Martha a mixture of light and darkness, strength and 
 weakness. She makes no complaint against the Lord on 
 account of His absence. She expresses an implicit and 
 heroic confidence in Him. His presence would have 
 kept the destroyer from their threshold. And even now 
 there is no limit to what He may still obtain from God, 
 on His asking. In all this we recognize the elements of 
 strong faith in the words of Martha. But the way she 
 speaks of His asking God (aheiv 0e6v') is rather indefinite, 
 and not up to the standard of His divine majesty. And 
 her answer to the Lord's direct promise — " Thy brother 
 shall live again " — is a considerable fallingoff from the ex- 
 alted position her faith seemed to have taken before. What 
 the Lord sets before her, so to speak, within present reach, 
 she pushes off to a distant future. And what He offered 
 as a special gift and privilege from Himself she treats as 
 a sort of commonplace, which it needed no prophet to 
 tell her. She knew that herself. All the Jews could 
 tell her that, who had come to console them concerning 
 their brother. But here is another comforter. He has 
 infinitely more to give than this abstract reference to a 
 future day of resurrection. '^ I aju \.\\c resurrection and 
 the life ; He that believeth on Me, though he die, yet 
 shall he live, and whosoever liveth and believeth on Me 
 shall never die." Here again is that great, ever re- 
 curring " I am," the living water for the Samaritan wo- 
 
148 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 25-27. 
 
 man, the living bread from heaven for the Jews in Caper- 
 naum ; and here " the resurrection and the Hfe " for Mar- 
 tha and Mary and Lazarus and whosoever will believe on 
 Him. It is the very soul and centre of this whole chapter. 
 What an advance from that indistinct, far-off " he shall 
 rise again on the resurrection at the last day " to this 
 positive, direct, personal " I am the resurrection and the 
 life — believest thou this?" Here is the great point for 
 Martha, the ** one thing needful " on this occasion. To 
 look to the present Saviour ; to grasp and to have life in 
 Him by faith even now in the face of death and the 
 tomb ; not simply looking forward with resignation to a 
 distant future, and hoping for something better to come, 
 but having and possessing now, in the midst of the dark- 
 est, dreariest present, Him who is the resurrection and the 
 life. This is the true faith of the Christian, this is what 
 Martha ought to believe. 
 
 Christ is the resurrection because He is the life. In 
 Him is life and in Him the constant victory of life in its 
 conflict with death, that is resurrection. He is the Life 
 of the living and the resurrection of the dying. Through 
 Him we reverse the old song, " In the midst of life we are 
 in death," and say : " In the midst of death we have life 
 through Jesus Christ our Lord." Believing in Him we 
 draw His life, with all its victorious power over death, 
 into the very centre of our personality, so that death can- 
 not touch it. Whosoever has been awakened to new life 
 by faith in Christ, has nothing to fear from death ; he lives 
 a life which death itself, so far from harming it, can only 
 bring to its fullest, most glorious development. He says 
 with Paul : " To me to live is Christ and to die is 
 gain." 
 
 Martha's response to these mighty words of the Lord 
 is another plain but comprehensive confession added to 
 
XI. 27-31] CHAPTER XI. 149 
 
 those of the Samaritan \voman (iv. 29), Simon Peter 
 (vi. 68-69), and the man that was born bhnd (ix. 36-38): 
 " Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, even He that 
 Cometh into the world." Comparing it with the question 
 of the Lord (v. 26), we observe that this is not an exact 
 answer to that question. She is not yet ready and able 
 to take in all the rich treasures contained in the statement 
 of the Lord : " Resurrection — life — believing on Him — 
 never dying." But she can grasp Him in whom all this is 
 treasured up ; who has it all and gives it all, Jesus, her 
 Lord. Of Him she takes hold and clings to Him, the 
 Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world. In 
 Him she has the one and all she needs. 
 
 2. Meeting with Mary (xi. 28-37). 
 
 28-37. And when she had said this, she went away, and called Mary her 
 sister secretly, saying, The Master is here, andcalleth thee. And she, when 
 she heard it, arose quickly, and went unto him. (Now Jesus was not yet 
 come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha met him.) 
 The Jews then which were with her in the house, and were comforting her, 
 when they saw Mary, that she rose up quickly and went out, followed her, 
 supposing that she was going unto the tomb to weep there. Mary there- 
 fore, when she came where Jesus was, and saw him, fell down at his feet, 
 saying unto him. Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. 
 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which 
 came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, and said, Where 
 have ye laid him? They say unto him. Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. 
 The Jews therefore said. Behold how he loved him ! But some of them 
 said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of him that was blind, 
 have caused that this man also should not die "> 
 
 The Master must have asked for Mary, for Martha 
 called her out to meet Him. He was unwilling to come 
 into the house for fear of creating an excitement. But 
 He could not be hidden. The Jews in the house followed 
 Mary first to the Lord, then to the tomb. At the meet- 
 ing with the Lord we hear from Mary the same words 
 
150 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 32-37. 
 
 which had been on the sisters' Hps all through those weary 
 and anxious hours at the sickbed and deathbed of Laza- 
 rus : " Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not 
 died." More she cannot say ; she sinks down under the 
 weight of her sorrow at the feet of Jesus. Nor has the 
 Lord anything to say to her. Seeing her weeping and 
 the Jews also weeping, He " was moved with indignation 
 in the spirit and troubled Himself." This emotion must 
 not be confounded with the weeping of the Lord (v. 36). 
 The marginal note of the Revised Version gives us the 
 full meaning of the original. Christ was filled with in- 
 dignation. The woe and misery of this world, particu- 
 larly the destruction and sorrows of death, the source from 
 which all this weeping sprang, the sin of the world, and 
 behind all this the prince of this world, with the power of 
 death, to whose bondage even His beloved ones were sub- 
 ject, so that their eyes were holden, that they could not 
 see the glory of God, — all these thoughts provoked in 
 His spirit a holy wrath and indignation. He masters 
 His emotion with the question : " Where have ye laid 
 him?" And they lead Him to the tomb with that sug- 
 gestive invitation : " Come and see." He came, He saw, 
 He conquered. But before the glory of the God-man is 
 thus manifested. His true human heart, His tender feeling 
 and compassion is revealed. Jesus wept. And even here 
 in this sanctuary of the holy narrative, once more a division 
 among the Jews; — some, deeply moved by the tears of 
 the Lord, the testimony of His love for Lazarus; others, 
 finding fault with " this man " even at this point, for not 
 preventing the death of Lazarus. 
 
 3. Jcsns at the Tomb (xi. 38-44). 
 
 38-44. Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the tomb. 
 Now it was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus saith, Take ye away 
 
XI. 3<S-40-] CHATTER XT. 151 
 
 the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him. Lord, 
 by this time he stinlteth : for he hath been dead four days. Jesus saith 
 unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou believedst, thou shouldest 
 see the glory of God .> So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up 
 his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou heardest me. And I knew 
 that thou hearest me always : but because of the multitude which standeth 
 around I said it, that they may believe that thou didst send me. And 
 when he had thus spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come 
 forth. He that was dead 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. 
 
 Gradually, step by step, the Lord leads them up to the 
 greatest of all His signs. Whatever human hands can 
 do in assisting and preparing the way for Him they are 
 allowed to do : " Take ye away the stone." But Martha 
 half interferes with this order of the Master, quite over- 
 come with the natural horror at the thought that the 
 body should be brought out at this stage, for a last 
 parting look of the Friend and Master. Her faith is at 
 its lowest ebb in the face of the fearful realities of death 
 which obtrude themselves on the senses. There is not a 
 trace left in her words of that trust, " that whatsoever 
 He shall ask of God, God will give Him." Every hope 
 is finally relegated to " the last day." The answer of the 
 Lord is a direct, though gentle rebuke of her lack of 
 faith : " Said I not unto thee that if thou believedst, thou 
 shouldest see the glory of God ? " Where our natural 
 senses perceive nothing but death and destruction, with 
 all its horror and humiliation, there the Lord calls in that 
 " sixth sense," as faith has sometimes been named, " to 
 see the glory of God." Faith and nothing but faith is 
 the organ to perceive the glory of God. The natural 
 man desires first to see and then to believe, Christ re- 
 verses the order : first believe and thou shalt sec! Be- 
 lieving is seeing the glory of God in His present word. 
 Therefore the Lord reminds Martha pointedly of His 
 
1^2 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 40-42. 
 
 word : '' Said I not unto thee — " He had said so in the 
 message returned to Bethany: "This sickness is not unto 
 death but for the glory of God that the Son of God may 
 be glorified thereby." He had said so, when He assured 
 Martha, " he that believeth on Me, though he die, yet 
 shall he live." (See also ii. 11 and i. 14.) 
 
 And now, the stone being taken away, Jesus lifted up 
 His eyes and said : Father, etc. (ver. 41 and 42). This 
 praying of Jesus with eyes lifted up to the hills whence 
 Cometh our help, together with the weeping of Jesus 
 (ver. 36), marks the true human nature of the incarnate 
 Word, which in this narrative of the glorification of the 
 Son of God is again and again most graphically brought 
 out. What a reminder this prayer was to Martha of that 
 highest flight of her faith, when she had said, " I know 
 that whatsoever Thou shalt ask of God, God will give 
 Thee." And yet, what a correction and advance beyond 
 Martha's ideas. Instead of " God," it is the " Father," 
 Instead of asking, it is " I thank Thee." How far above 
 the petitions to which Martha referred, is this triumphant 
 " Father, I thank Thee that Thou heardest me and I 
 know (knew) that Thou hearest Me always." 
 
 And " the multitude " also, " which standeth around," 
 is in the Lord's mind, as He utters this prayer. In spite 
 of their opposition and unbelief, with which they grieved 
 Him so often, it is the yearning of His heart, that, if it 
 were possible, even now they might be enabled to catch 
 the inspiration of this hour and join in " seeing the glory 
 of God." Never was there sucli an opportunity for the 
 Lord, in the face of death and corruption, surrounded by 
 a multitude which filled the very air with the miasma of 
 unbelief, — to make the boldest and most solemn appeal 
 to the Father, to testify of the Son, to glorify Him be- 
 fore the world, to give Him that most impressive of all 
 
XI. 42-44] CHAPTER XL 153 
 
 His works, which would enable them to beheve that the 
 Father did send liim. There is only one parallel to the 
 crisis of this scene in the whole compass of sacred history ; 
 it is Elijah on Mount Carmel, standing before the altar, 
 surrounded by the multitude and crying to the Lord, 
 God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob : " Hear mc, O Lord, 
 hear me, that this people may know that Thou art the 
 Lord God." But the scene at Lazarus' tomb is a New 
 Testament scene, and its glory is not that of fiery Elijah, 
 like a great and strong wind, rending the mountains, 
 breaking the rocks in pieces, and bringing inexorable 
 judgment upon the enemies of Jehovah. It is the glory 
 of the only begotten Son of the Father full of grace and 
 truth. And therefore, before He manifests this glory 
 that their eyes may see it, the Son of God is willing to 
 grant to their hearts an insight into His relation to the 
 Father and the wonderful communion between the 
 Father and the Son. The multitude, as far as it was 
 possible to admit them to it, received in that prayer at 
 Lazarus' tomb a taste of those treasures and mysteries 
 unfolded to the disciples in the parting discourses and in 
 the mediatorial prayer (John xiii.-xvii.). " And when He 
 had thus spoken. He cried with a loud voice : " Lazarus 
 come forth." Nothing could be more majestic than the 
 simplicity of the two little words which .in the original 
 embody the command of the Lord to Lazarus. There is 
 not even a verb in them. " Hither ! Out of there ! " 
 that is all. Out of the tomb, the darkness, dishonor and 
 corruption ; JiitJier to Christ, to resurrection and life, to 
 light and glory imperishable and undefiled ! " He that 
 was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave- 
 clothes ; and his face bound ^ about with a napkin." 
 Every little touch of that memorable scene noticed by 
 the eye-witness, photographed on the spot in the memory 
 
154 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 44, 45. 
 
 of the beloved disciple. And " Jesus saith unto them : 
 Loose him and let him go ! " The last word of the Lord, 
 sealing His triumph over death and the tomb, " Let 
 him go." He knew what the breaking of this tomb, the 
 loosing of Lazarus' bonds meant for Himself ! It was 
 His own death warrant. A few days, and Christ Himself 
 will be " bound hand and foot with grave-clothes," and 
 the stone and seal will lock the tomb in Joseph's garden. 
 But it is " the resurrection and the life " which they en- 
 close in that tomb. It is impossible that it should hold 
 Him. Again a few days and Peter and John and those 
 devout women find the stone rolled away — this time by 
 angels' hands — from the sepulchre. They enter in, no 
 odor of corruption there ; they behold the linen cloths 
 lying, and the napkin, that was upon His head, rolled up 
 in a place by itself. Other hands had attended to the 
 " loosing " there. And angels greet them with the 
 Easter-message : " Why seek ye the Living among the 
 dead ? He is not here. He is risen ! " 
 
 (C.) The Effect of the Miracle (xi. 45-57). 
 I. On those Present at the Tomb (xi. 45-46). 
 
 45-46. Many therefore of the Jews, which came to Mary and beheld 
 that which he did, believed on him. But some of them went away to the 
 Pharisees, and told them the things which Jesus had done. 
 
 The Evangelist has not a word to say of the effect 
 which the miracle in Bethany had on the members of 
 that little family itself, on Martha and Mary and Lazarus. 
 It belongs to those things which can be better felt than 
 described. But he speaks of the multitude which had 
 witnessed that sign. Some hold that those verses mean 
 to say : "The impression made by the raising of Lazarus 
 was the same on all those that were present ; even those 
 
XI. 46, 47] CHAPTER XT. 155 
 
 that went away to the Pharisees and told them the things 
 which Jesus had done," believing on Jesus and trying to 
 convince the Pharisees of His true Messianic authority 
 and character. But the manifest contrast between the 
 " many " that believed and the " some " that went away 
 to the Pharisees, seems to forbid this interpretation. We 
 find here again the well-known " division " among the 
 Jews. Those that went to the Pharisees, being probably 
 the same who found fault even when the Lord was weep- 
 ing at the tomb, did not make their report to the rulers 
 in a kindly spirit, nor in a neutral attitude, simply asking 
 for their opinion, but with hostile intention. 
 
 2. Effect on the Chief Priests (xi. 47-53). 
 
 47-53. The chief priests therefore and the Pharisees gathered a council, 
 and said, What do we } for this man doeth many signs. If we let him 
 thus alone, all men will believe on him : and the Romans will come and 
 take away both our place and our nation. But a certain one of them, 
 Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at 
 all, nor do ye take account that it is expedient for you that one man should 
 die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. Now this he said 
 not of himselt ; but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus 
 should die for the nation ; and not for the nation only, but that he might 
 also gather together into one the children of God that are scattered abroad. 
 So from that day forth they took counsel that they might put him to 
 death. 
 
 The Chief Priests and the Pharisees on hearing the 
 news of the raising of Lazarus, " gathered a council and 
 said : What do we ? for this man doeth many signs." 
 Note the testimony which, however, unwillingly, they 
 give here, as on other occasions, concerning the Lord 
 and His powerful manifestations. " This man doeth 
 many signs." It reminds us of the concession and con- 
 fession with which Nicodemus introduced himself to the 
 Lord. But of these " many signs " even the last and 
 
156 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xi. 47-50. 
 
 greatest only proves that icy death and the tomb itself 
 will yield to the power of Jesus, rather than the unbeliev- 
 ing hearts of the Pharisees. " If we let Him thus alone," 
 they continue, " all men will believe on Him, and the 
 Romans will come and take away both our place and our 
 nation." The logic of this high-sounding patriotism 
 sounds rather forced and obscure. Why should the 
 believing on Christ bring the Romans upon them and 
 involve the nation in a catastrophe ? It could only be 
 understood on another premise which remains hidden 
 in their hearts : Believing on Christ means falling away 
 from the authority of the rulers and chief priests. And 
 to this threatened loss of their influence they will not 
 quietly submit. There Avill be a disturbance, and thus an 
 opportunity will be offered to the Romans to wipe out 
 finally the national independence of Israel. This last 
 part of their statement is correct enough in itself. It is 
 a true prophecy, unconsciously uttered, like that of 
 Caiaphas which follows. " The Romans will come and 
 take away their place and their nation," but not because 
 they believe on Jesus of Nazareth and accept Him as the 
 Messiah, but because they knew not the time of their 
 visitation and rejected the stone, of which it is written : 
 " Every one that falleth on that stone shall be broken to 
 pieces ; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will scatter 
 him as dust" (Luke xx. 18). 
 
 " But a certain one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest 
 that year, said unto them : Ye know nothing at all, nor 
 do ye take account that it is expedient for you that one 
 man should die for the people and that the whole nation 
 perish not." These are the words of the heartless, un- 
 scrupulous politician, an overbearing, domineering char- 
 acter of one-sided cold intellectualism, to whom men are 
 only means to reach his own selfish ends. By destroying 
 
xr. 50-52.] CHAPTER XI. 157 
 
 the man who claimed to be the Messiah, he advises them 
 to secure the favor and good-will of the Romans. And 
 the people, being involved in the killing of the Messiah, 
 would then be freed from His powerful influence, and 
 bound more firmly than ever to Pharisaic leadership. 
 This was the logic of the astute politician in the see of 
 the highpriest, and history showed that it was correct 
 enough as far as it went. 
 
 But his words had a significance, far beyond what 
 Caiaphas meant and was conscious of, for Christ Himself 
 and His everlasting kingdom. " This he said not of himself : 
 but being highpriest that year, he prophesied that Jesus 
 should die for the nation ; and not for the nation only, 
 but that he might also gather together into one the 
 children of God that are scattered abroad." There are 
 some passages in the Old Testament indicating that, 
 under certain circumstances, the highpriest in his official 
 capacity asked counsel before the Lord for leading men 
 " after the judgment of Urim" (Exod. xxviii. 30 ; Numb, 
 xxvii. 21, in Joshua's case, i Sam. xxii. 10, the priest 
 inquired of the Lord for David, i Sam. xxx. 7, David 
 himself inquiring of the Lord, in the highpriest's ephod), 
 and thus became a mediator of divine revelation for 
 certain specified cases. But in later times there is no 
 trace of such revelation through the highpriest. The 
 office of prophesying belonged to the prophet, whenever 
 there were prophets in Israel. But Caiaphas " being 
 highpriest that year prophesied." Every time, when 
 Caiaphas is mentioned, that year is emphasized (ver. 49, 
 51, and ch. xviii. 13). The Evangelist does not mean to 
 tell his readers (as some have interpreted him) that the 
 office of the highpriest changed its incumbent from year 
 to year. He is too much of a Jew to make such a mis- 
 statement. He knows that the office of the highpriest 
 
158 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JO H^^. [xi. 51-52. 
 
 according to the Mosaic law was to be for life. But he 
 also knows that in those days, owing to constant political 
 disturbances and outside influences, there were frequent 
 changes of incumbents of that ofifice. Still Caiaphas held 
 it for at least eleven years (25-36 A. D.). And holding 
 the highest theocratic office in that year of the death of 
 Christ, he designated Jesus as the sacrifice for the people. 
 There is a deep divine irony in the fact, that "the perish- 
 ing priesthood, against the knowledge and the will of the 
 office bearer," had thus to announce the one true atoning 
 offering of the New Testament Highpriest, by which all 
 the sacrifices and the priesthood itself of the Old Testa- 
 ment were to be fulfilled and abolished for ever; as 
 Daniel said " to finish the transgression and to make an 
 end of sins and to make reconciliation for iniquity and to 
 bring in everlasting righteousness ; He shall cause the 
 sacrifice and the oblation to cease" (Ch. ix. 24, 27). 
 
 But this great New Testament principle "one died for 
 all" (see 11 Cor. v. 14), reaches far beyond the limits of 
 the Jewish nation, " not -for the nation only, but that He 
 might also gather together into one the children of God 
 that were scattered abroad." So far from bringing ruin 
 upon His people, as the Pharisees said, He will spread 
 salvation and blessing among the Gentiles and add to the 
 true spiritual Israel those that were far off and strangers 
 from the covenants of the promise, making them fellow- 
 citizens with the saints and of the household of God 
 (Eph. ii. 11-19). 
 
 Thus the unwilling and uncooscious prophecy of the 
 highpriest of the Jews forms the most appropriate and 
 striking introduction to the history of Christ's passion. 
 Through the open door of that council-room of the San- 
 hedrim in Jerusalem we are permitted to cast a glance 
 into the heavenly council chamber, where " the deter- 
 
XI. 51-56.] CHAPTER XI. 159 
 
 minatc counsel and foreknowledge of God " (Acts ii. 23) 
 ordained, that it " behooved the Christ to suffer these 
 things and to enter into His glory ; " and we are assured 
 that, whatsoever human and satanic craft and wickedness 
 may plan in those days, God's counsel of salvation will 
 overrule it all, bringing light out of darkness, and glory 
 and victory out of what seemed to be shame and defeat. 
 
 3. TJie Lord's Retreat into Ephraivi (xi. 54-57). 
 
 54-57. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews, but de- 
 parted thence into the country near to the wilderness, into a city called 
 Ephraim ; and there he tarried with the disciples. Now the passover of 
 the Jews was at hand ; and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country 
 before the passover, to purify themselves. They sought therefore for Jesus, 
 and spake one with another, as they stood in the temple. What think ye "i 
 That he will not come to the feast ? Now the chief priests and the Pharisees 
 had given commandment, that, if any man knew where he was, he should 
 shew it, that they might take him. 
 
 The exact situation of Ephraim, to which place the 
 Lord retired, cannot be determined. It was evidently to 
 the north-east of Jerusalem, on the borders of the wil- 
 derness of Judah, giving the Lord a choice between the 
 Easter-caravans from Galilee or from Peraea, whenever He 
 was ready to join the pilgrims to that last Passover. The 
 excitement, caused by the raising of Lazarus, continued 
 unabated even after the Lord's departure. There are 
 the pilgrims from the country, on their arrival in Jeru- 
 salem, standing around in groups on the temple area, the 
 questions as to Jesus of Nazareth and His coming to the 
 feast being the principal theme of their conversation. 
 " What think ye ? Will He come ? Or will He not come 
 to the feast?" Thus they continually asked, until these 
 questions found their final answer by the multitude itself 
 in their jubilant : " Hosanna ! Blessed is He that cometh 
 
i6o THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHA\ [\i. 56,57. 
 
 in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel." Such 
 an open, pubhc entrance, the enemies of Christ would 
 fain have prevented. They planned to take Him quietly 
 before the feast, and to deliver Him up in Jerusalem as 
 a criminal. A Jewish tradition (Babyl. Gemara, about 
 550 A. D.) says, that for forty days before the passover a 
 court-crier publicly proclaimed : " He must be stoned to 
 death, that man who leads the people astray by His de- 
 ceptions. Whosoever has anything to say in His de- 
 fence, let him come forward and speak. But nothing 
 being found to defend Him, He was crucified on Passover 
 evening." — (Lightfoot, quoted by Godet.) 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 IV. The End of the Public Ministry of Christ 
 
 (Ch. xii.). 
 
 (A.) The Supper at Bethany (xii. i-8). 
 
 1-8. Jesus therefore six days before the passover came to Bethany, 
 where Lazarus was, whom Jesus raised from the dead. So they made him 
 a supper there : and Martha served ; but Lazarus was one of them that 
 sat at meat with him. Mary therefore took a pound of ointment of spike- 
 nard, very precious, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with 
 her hair : and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment. But 
 Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, which should betray him, saith. Why 
 was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the 
 poor? Now this he said, not because he cared for the poor; but because 
 he was a thief, and having the bag took away what was put therein. 
 Jesus therefore said. Suffer her to keep it against the day of my burying. 
 For the poor ye have always with you ; but me ye have not always. 
 
 From Ephraim the Lord went down to Jericho and 
 there j'oined one of the caravans of pilgrims coming up 
 from Pergea for the Easter festival in Jerusalem. Plaving 
 arrived with them in the neighborhood of the city, prob- 
 ably on Friday evening, in the week previous to His 
 death, He stayed in Bethany while the other travellers 
 at once proceeded to Jerusalem. The Supper which was 
 there prepared for Him took place on the Sabbath pre- 
 ceding the Passover. It was not in the house of Martha, 
 nor arranged by her family exclusively, but by the larger 
 circle of friends in Bethany, believers on Christ, who 
 thereby boldly expressed their devotion to Him in the 
 face of the hostility and persecution, instigated by the 
 II i6i 
 
l62 TJIE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 2, 3. 
 
 Rulers in Jerusalem. Of course Martha was there and 
 Lazarus and Mary, each of them in that peculiar place 
 and attitude ascribed to them respectively in the Gospel : 
 Martha serving, Lazarus sitting at meat with Him, and 
 Mary coming in with the precious ointment. 
 
 Matthew and Mark record this anointing of the Lord 
 after His entrance into Jerusalem ; using it as a most 
 beautiful opening of the Passion-history, in striking con- 
 trast to the betrayal of Judas. But their arrangement 
 here, as on other points, is m.ore with reference to matter 
 than to time ; whilst the fourth Gospel is most exact in 
 its chronological statements. Especially here, where we 
 come to the last week of the Lord's life before His death 
 and resurrection, we find the Gospel of St. John as careful 
 and detailed in its dates as in the first week of the Lord's 
 public ministry, described in the first two chapters. The 
 incident at the Supper in Bethany is most fully recorded 
 by John, and its connection both with the raising of 
 Lazarus and the death and resurrection of the Lord, is 
 clearly indicated in this Gospel. 
 
 The anointing of the Lord with that precious spikenard 
 the value of which, so well known to Judas, was about 
 fifty dollars of our money, was prompted in part by 
 Mary's feeling of gratitude to the Lord for all that He 
 had done for her family, for the restoration of her 
 brother, for the spiritual blessings which He had showered 
 upon them. Nothing is too precious and expensive, let 
 it all go in the service and for the glory of her Lord and 
 Master. As the odor of that ointment filled the whole 
 house, so her very soul is poured but in fervent devotion 
 to Jesus. She is indifferent even to the possible charge 
 of a lack of modesty, for unloosing her hair and wiping 
 the feet of the Lord with the ornament of her woman- 
 hood. Mary's action was however severely criticised on 
 
XII. 4-7-] CHAPTER XII. 163 
 
 the part of the disciples. Matthew and Mark only tell 
 us of an indignation among them and the objections 
 made by " some." But John marks the one who was the 
 author of this attack, and who, of all the apostles and 
 guests at the table in Bethany, was certainly least fitted 
 and disposed to appreciate the act of Mary, — Judas 
 Iscariot, the betrayer and the thief. His unkind criticism 
 arose not simply from that spirit of covetousness which 
 was his besetting sin, but he was provoked by all these 
 manifestations of love and devotion for the Lord, and ever 
 since the Lord had designated him as the " devil " (John 
 vi. 70), he was ready for an outburst at any time. His 
 opportunity in this case was well chosen. The plain 
 practicable principle of utility, dressed up in the garb of 
 charity for the poor, carried away even a number of dis- 
 ciples. Certainly not John. He came nearest to under- 
 standing Mary, and he saw deepest into the lie and hypo- 
 crisy of Judas, who did not in reality care for the poor, 
 but for the bag which he carried, and in which he took 
 away what was put therein. 
 
 The Lord Himself takes up the defence of Mary. Hers 
 was a beautiful work, done to Him, not without deep 
 meaning and for a good purpose. The very thing which 
 Judas denies, the Lord asserts in a manner particularly 
 severe for the man whose heart was filled with thoughts 
 of betrayal. If Judas was planning the preparatory 
 steps for the death of the Lord, Mary was getting ready 
 for the burial of Him whom Judas killed. " It was 
 right that she kept this against the day of My burying." 
 Not that Mary was conscious of the full prophetical 
 and typical meaning of her act. Her love to Christ makes 
 her a prophet, as Caiaphas had turned prophet through 
 his hatred to Him. But apart from that beautiful signi- 
 ficance in Mary's act, anticipating His death and burial, 
 
164 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xn. 7, 8. 
 
 the Lord in His defence points out some principles of 
 abiding value for His church of all times. One is, when 
 He tells His disciples: " The poor ye have always with 
 you," with ample opportunity and constant obligation 
 to do them good. But the idea, that Mary should turn 
 her precious ointment into money, and that the 300 
 pence realized thereby should be given to the poor, 
 thus contributing towards the wiping out of the differ- 
 ence between the rich and poor, is a Judas-idea, 
 not approved of by the Lord, however practical, useful 
 and taking it may appear even to the disciples. What- 
 ever human sin and selfishness may do to widen the 
 distance between rich and poor, and to drive them into 
 two hostile camps threatening destruction to the whole 
 fabric of society, the difference (not the alienation, the 
 enmity, the cruel indifference and bitter hatred) between 
 rich and poor is of divine appointment, and no Utopian 
 plans of to-day or of " two hundred years from to-day " 
 will ever wipe out this plain statement of the Lord : 
 *' The poor ye have always with you." 
 
 • The other point is this : that over against the principle 
 of barren utilitarianism, the Lord pleads in favor of Mary's 
 wastefulness : " She has done a beautiful work to Me " 
 (on Me). Whatever beautiful and precious earthly trea- 
 sures the tender devotion of His own may lay at Jesus' 
 feet, in the service of God's house, this He will accept and 
 call it a beautiful work, provided that it be a work done 
 in the spirit of Mary, proceeding from a devout and truly 
 believing heart, seeking Christ and His glory alone and 
 not the honor of self and family. 
 
 (B.) Excitement among the Common People and Counsel of 
 the Chief Priests to put Laaarus to Death (xii. 9-1 1). 
 
 9-1 1. The common people therefore of the Jews learned that he was 
 
xii. 9-12..] CHAPTER XIT. 165 
 
 there : and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might see 
 Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead. Kut the chief priests 
 took counsel that they might put Lazarus also to death ; because that by 
 reason of him many of the Jews went away, and beUeved on Jesus. 
 
 At the news of the presence of Christ in Bethany many 
 of the common people went out to see not only Him but 
 also Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. And 
 this seeing of the risen Lazarus resulted in leading many 
 to faith in Christ. For this reason the unscrupulous 
 rulers determined that Lazarus also should die. Nothing 
 could prove more strongly the significance of that last 
 and greatest miracle of the Lord, than this desperate 
 scheme of putting Lazarus back into the tomb to stop 
 the mouth of this testimony of Him, who is the resurrec- 
 tion and the life. 
 
 (C.) Entrance into Jerusalem (xii. 12-19). 
 
 12-19. ^^'^ ''^6 morrow a great multitude that had come to the feast, 
 when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took the branches of 
 the palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried out, Hosanna: 
 Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel. 
 And Jesus, having found a young ass, sat thereon ; as it is written, Fear 
 not, daughter of Zion : 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. The multitude therefore that 
 was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb, and raised him from 
 the dead, bare witness. For this cause also the multitude went and met 
 him, for that they heard that he had done this sign. The Pharisees there- 
 fore said among themselves. Behold how ye prevail nothing : lo, the world 
 is gone after him. 
 
 If the supper in Bethany was held on the Sabbath, the 
 following day, on which the entrance into Jerusalem took 
 place, was the first day of the week, our Sunday, the tra- 
 ditional day for keeping the memory of this glorious 
 
i66 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 12-16. 
 
 manifestation of Christ as the Messiah, Thus far every 
 attempt on the part of the followers of Christ, to make 
 a public demonstration in His favor, had always been 
 promptly frustrated by the Lord. But now, the hour of 
 His passion and death having arrived, He is willing to be 
 publicly known and proclaimed as the promised Messiah, 
 that Cometh in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel. 
 He even takes Himself an active part in the arrangement 
 of this procession which is to make Him known as the 
 one in whom all the prophecies are fulfilled. No one in 
 the excitement and enthusiasm of that hour would ever 
 have thought of the young ass on which the Messiah- 
 King was to ride into His own city. But He thought 
 of it and "found it, "as John briefly but comprehensively 
 says: He found it, because He sent for it ; He needed 
 it for the exact fulfilment of the passage in Zechariah 
 (ix. 9). Not on the stately, warlike horse, nor on the 
 mule, as some of the illustrious kings of the Old Testa- 
 ment dispensation, but on the despised ass did He enter 
 Jerusalem, — the emblem of the lowliness and humility of 
 this King, and of the peaceful character of His kingdom, 
 since the earliest times an object of ridicule and sneering 
 on the part of His adversaries. The disciples themselves 
 do not seem to have caught the exact significance of 
 this feature, at that time. They were still dreaming of 
 glorious thrones in the Messianic kingdom. But the 
 multitude, if they were not ready to read Zechariah 
 (ix. 9) into this event, still had sufficient light shed 
 upon it by their jubilant antiphones taken from the iiSth 
 psalm, which was commonly acknowledged and accepted 
 as Messianic. They greet Him with palm branches and 
 with their devout and joyous " Hosannah," which has 
 been fittingly called the theocratic " God save the king" 
 (for in its original meaning it is a prayer: Help now. 
 
XII. 13-19] CHAPTEK XII. 167 
 
 help then, O Lord) — one of the words of that heavenly 
 language, which have found their way to all nations, 
 tongues and books, equally used and understood by all 
 the lovers of God's kingdom the world over, expressing 
 the same joy, devotion, adoration, praise and trust for 
 all (like Allelujah, Kyrie, Immanuel, Jehovah, Amen), 
 
 In this connection also the fourth Gospel points out the 
 influence of the miracle of Bethany on the multitude in 
 the procession. This jubilee was a testimony on the part 
 of those that were " with Him when He called Lazarus 
 out of the tomb and raised him from the dead " (17). 
 And the same cause moved the multitude which " went" 
 out from Jerusalem and " met Him" (ver. 18). The two 
 streams meeting on the slope of Mount Olivet originally 
 sprang from the same source — the deep impression of the 
 raising of Lazarus was the common source. Of course 
 there were other " mighty works which they had seen," 
 and over which they might rejoice and praise God with a 
 loud voice at the descent of the Mount of Olives (Luke 
 xix. 37). But foremost of all was that last miracle ; it 
 was in every body's mouth. They " met Him, for that 
 they heard that He had done this sign." 
 
 To the Pharisees it was an occasion of utterdisgust and 
 discouragement. They stand aside, but in sulking isola- 
 tion, like the elder brother, angry at the sound of music 
 and dancing on the return of the prodigal. Oh, how those 
 Hosannas grate on their ears ! It is all in vain ! " Ye 
 prevail nothing. Lo the world is going after Him." 
 Another prophecy, dictated by bitter hatred and yet true 
 to the end of the world. Yea, the world is gone after 
 Him. It counts its very years as" Annos Domini." This 
 is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our 
 faith (i John V. 4). And "in the name of Jesus every 
 knee shall bow, of things in heaven and things on earth 
 
l68 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 19-21. 
 
 and things under the earth, and every tongue shall confess 
 that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father " 
 (Phil. ii. 10, 1 1). 
 
 D. Tlie Greeks Knocking at the Door of the Kingdom 
 (xii. 20-36). 
 
 I. TJie Historical Fact (xii. 20-22). 
 
 20-22. Now there were certain Greeks among those that went up to 
 worship at the feast : these therefore came to PhiHp, which was of Beth- 
 saida of GaUlee, and asked him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus. Philip 
 Cometh and telleth Andrew : Andrew cometh, and Philip, and they tell 
 Jesus. 
 
 On the feast of Tabernacles the Jews had sneeringly 
 asked of the Lord : " Will He go among the Greeks and 
 teach the Greeks ?" (John vii. 35). Here is the answer in a 
 request coming from the Greeks. It is at the same time 
 a striking illustration how that unwilling and unconscious 
 prophecy of the Pharisees : — " All the world gone after 
 Him" — is already beginning to be fulfilled. There is 
 something wonderfully striking and significant at this 
 point in this plain, modest petition : " We would see 
 Jesus." The men who uttered it were Greeks, not Jews 
 among the Gentiles ("Hellenists"), but real Gentiles 
 themselves, who had been drawn, in tlie deeper yearning 
 of their heart, to the covenant people of the Old Testa- 
 ment, to its revelation, its sanctuary and services, and who 
 came from year to year , or at longer intervals from time 
 to time, to worship in Jerusalemin the court of the Gen- 
 tiles. " We would see Jesus." The one great theme 
 which was on the lips of every one in those days had also 
 taken possession of their hearts ; but will they like Him 
 as He was to be seen before the end of that week, lifted 
 up on the cross, with the words written in Greek over 
 
XII. 21, 22.] CHAPTER XII. 169 
 
 His head : " Jesus of Nazareth the king of the Jews"? 
 Or will it be with them as the prophet of old wrote: 
 "When we shall sec Him there is no beauty that we 
 should desire Him " ? (Isaiah liii. 2). 
 
 Their wish, which certainly implied a personal inter- 
 view with the Lord, was first modestly communicated to 
 Philip. With his characteristic deliberateness, bordering 
 on indecision, he does not reach a conclusion for himself. 
 He hesitates to bring the Lord into contact with these 
 Gentiles at the very point, when, for the first time. His own 
 people had publicly received Him as the Messianic King 
 of Israel. So Philip lays the question before Andrew, 
 who is much more resolute and prompt in coming to a 
 decision. Thus the two Apostles with Greek names, 
 Philip and Andrew, lay this question of the Greeks before 
 the Lord. It is difficult to say at what exact date between 
 the Lord's entrance and the last supper this took place. 
 It is the only incident recorded in the Fourth Gospel out 
 of the many important dialogues and discourses belonging 
 to this period, and narrated by the Synoptists. From 
 Monday till Wednesday of that week we have the second 
 purifying of the temple, the cursing of the figtree, the 
 disputes with Pharisees^ Sadducees and scribes, probably 
 the case of the adulterous woman (John viii. i), the great 
 discourse against the Pharisees (Matt, xxiii.) and the pro- 
 phecies of the Lord concerning the last things, the judg- 
 ment over Jerusalem and the world. The interview with 
 the Greeks is differently placed, from the day of the Lord's 
 entrance down to Thursday in Passion week, which was 
 most likely spent in the quiet retreat of Bethany. John 
 does not tell us directly whether the request of the Greeks 
 was granted by the Lord. It would be strange, indeed, if 
 it was not. But of much greater interest to the Evan- 
 gelist is the deep and manifold significance of this request 
 
lyo TJ/E GOSPEL OF ST. JOI/jV. [xii. 23, 24. 
 
 of the Greeks, and this is set forth most fully in the follow- 
 ing verses (23-36). 
 
 2. Significance of this Fact (xii. 23-36.) 
 {a.) For the Lord Himself {xW. 23-30). 
 
 23-30. And Jesus answereth them, saying, The hour is come, that the 
 Son of man should be glorified. Verily, verily, I say unto you. Except a 
 grain of wheat fall into the earth and die, it abideth by itself alone ; but if 
 it die, it beareth much fruit. He that loveth his life loseth 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 the 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. There came therefore a 
 voice out of heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it 
 again. The multitude therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it 
 had thundered: others said, An angel hath spoken to him. Jesus answered 
 and said. This voice hath not come for my sake, but for your sakes. 
 
 Jesus answered " them," the disciples and the Greeks 
 with them. The Lord sees in this appeal of the Greeks 
 an indication that the hour for His glorification, which 
 His mother and His brothers have long been so anxious 
 to see (John ii., John vii.) has at last arrived. The scripture 
 is being fulfilled which said : " I shall give Thee the 
 heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of 
 the earth for Thy possession" (Ps. ii. 8). The Son of 
 Man, rejected by the Jews, is accepted by the Gentiles, — 
 this is the first stage of His glorification. But the very 
 fact of His rejection by the Jews, which precedes and in- 
 troduces His acceptance on the part of the Gentiles, in- 
 volves His passion and death. " Except the grain of wheat 
 fall into the earth and die, it abideth by itself alone ; but 
 if it die it beareth much fruit." The great law of heaven, 
 which His whole life has upheld and realized, is the 
 
XII. 24-26.] CHAPTER XII. 171 
 
 mystery of love, giving up Himself for the welfare of 
 others. But this mystery of love is at the same time the 
 mystery of life ; it is the law of nature also that the 
 sacrificing of the grain, its burial and death in the ground 
 is the indispensable condition of a new abundant harvest. 
 Here then we have, in the sphere of nature, implanted in 
 it by the Creator's hand and by the Logos through whom 
 all things were made, the very earliest prophecy and 
 type of the mystery of redemption and the atoning sacri- 
 fice of Christ. The Lord metes out the mysteries of 
 God's redeeming love to different classes of men in dif- 
 ferent forms and figures. The serpent in the wilderness 
 for Nicodemus, the Old Testament scholar and teacher ; 
 but the grain of wheat for the Greeks, those children of 
 nature, who had no knowledge of Moses and the Pro- 
 phets, but who, in their mysterious services, especially the 
 worship of Ceres (Demeter) in Eleusis, acknowledged 
 "the principle of a new life after death, founded on the 
 process of nature by which seed sown in the ground must 
 first die and rot before it can yield new life, a process 
 which the annual going and coming of Persephone, the 
 daughter of Demeter was designed to illustrate" (Encycl. 
 Brit. " Ceres," Vol. V. 345). But this principle of self- 
 sacrificing love, as identical with the principle of new life 
 out of death, is announced by the Lord as one that must 
 be applied to all His followers. They must all be ready 
 to sacrifice self, for he that loveth his life loseth 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 — in the humiliation of the cross and the glory 
 of resurrection — there shall also My servant be." These 
 words were of peculiar emphasis and solemnity in this 
 connection, spoken in the presence of the Greeks, whose 
 fundamental conception of this world and human life 
 
172 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 26-29. 
 
 in it, was based, not on the principle of self-denial and 
 sacrifice, but on that of self-indulgence and enjoy- 
 ment. 
 
 But this reference to His sufferings and the glory here- 
 after, fills the Lord with deepest anguish and horror at 
 the thought of what is before Him, the " hour " which 
 now has come, the " cup " which He must take and drink. 
 The fourth Gospel passes by the agony in the garden, but 
 in this scene it gives an anticipation of its woe and sor- 
 rows, its struggles and prayers. " Now is My soul trou- 
 bled ; and what shall I say : Father, save Me from this 
 hour? (Thus the marginal reading of the Rev. Version 
 correctly suggests.) But for this cause came I unto this 
 hour. Therefore, My only prayer shall be : ' FatJicr, 
 glorify Thy nanie.' What are My trouble and sorrows, if 
 only Thy name be glorified and Thy council be accom- 
 plished." There is a remarkable and close parallelism 
 between the conflict and its solution, here and in Geth- 
 semane. " Not Mine, but Thy will be done." 
 
 For the third time in the life of the Lord there is a 
 heavenly " Amen " of recognition, in the voice of the 
 Father. As in the hour of His baptism, and again on the 
 mount of transfiguration, so here the Father distinctly 
 testifies in words which say of the Son's prayer : " Yea, 
 yea, so shall it be." The prayer was : " Father, glorify 
 Thy name." The answer is: "I have both glorified it 
 and will glorify it again." The reality of this sign, the 
 voice from heaven, is not in the least affected by the dif- 
 ferent attitude of the hearers with regard to it. To some 
 it was nothing but a sound of distant thunder; to others 
 it seemed like angels' voices; to the Son, and no doubt 
 to the Evangelist also, who was there as a witness, the 
 words themselves were as distinct as those of any speaker 
 uttered before human ears. There were different grades 
 
XII. 29-32.] CHAPTER XII. 173 
 
 of ability to perceive and understand it ; but the sign was 
 acknowledged by all, — a voice, a sound from heaven. 
 
 (/^.) For the World {^\\. 31-33). 
 
 31-33. Now is the judgement of this world : now shall the prince of this 
 world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all 
 men unto myself. But this he said, signifying by what manner of death he 
 should die. 
 
 The hour of the glorification of the Son of Man means 
 an hour of " crisis," of judgment for the world : " Now is 
 the judgment of this world : now shall the prince of this 
 world be cast out." It is the most momentous time in 
 the history of the human race. The cross on Calvary 
 marks the point from which the ways of individuals and 
 of nations separate. There, as old Simeon had said, the 
 thoughts of many hearts shall be revealed (Luke ii. 35). 
 The final judgment is only the confirmation and publica- 
 tion of this separation and judgment which divided men 
 all along, on the principle of believing or rejecting the 
 word of the Cross. 
 
 But, apart from this subjective judgment in the hearts 
 of men there is also, in this hour of the glorification of 
 the Son of Man, an objective judgment executed against 
 the prince of this world. At the moment of Christ's ele- 
 vation on the cross, he is dethroned, cast out. His power 
 is broken. The crucifixion of the Son of God was the 
 most daring piece of satanic craft and power ; it was, in 
 its purport and intention, deicide itself. And yet in its 
 final effect it was not more than bruising the heel of the 
 woman's seed, whilst in that very act the serpent's Jiead 
 was crushed. Satan being thus dethroned, the Son of 
 Man will be exalted on His throne, to rule and draw the 
 hearts of men. But the throne with which His reien 
 
174 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 32-34. 
 
 begins, on which it is firmly cstabHshed, is the cross. "If 
 I be lifted up from the earth I will draw all men unto 
 Myself." There is a wonderful power of attraction and 
 of separation in the cross of Christ. It draws all men to 
 Him, it is the concentration of God's world-redeeming 
 love. But it draws men to a crucified Saviour. It sepa- 
 rates forever the world, with all that it holds great and 
 noble and wise and good, from the kingdom of Christ. 
 The cross is the wall between the world and the Church, 
 as Paul glories in " the cross of Christ through which the 
 world hath been crucified unto me and I unto the world " 
 (Gal. vi. 14). And again that same cross of Christ breaks 
 down forever the partition walls of ancient creeds and 
 nationalities. As Jews and Gentiles had joined hands in 
 executing the satanic design of killing Christ, so they are 
 to join hands in the common inheritance of all the bless- 
 ings purchased by the Prince of Life with His own pre- 
 cious blood. There is henceforth " no distinction between 
 Jew and Greek : for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is 
 rich unto all that call upon Him" (Rom. x. 12). Here, 
 then, in this blessed assurance: " I will draw all men to 
 Myself," is the distinct and direct answer of Christ to the 
 application of the Greeks : " We would see Jesus." 
 
 (<f.) For Israel (xii. 34-36). 
 
 34-36. The multitude therefore answered him, We have heard out of 
 the law that the Christ abideth forever; and how sayest thou, The Son of 
 man must be lifted up ? who is this Son of man .-' Jesus therefore said unto 
 them, Yet a little while is the light among you. Walk while ye have the 
 light, that darkness overtake you not : and he that walketh in the darkness 
 knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have the light, believe on the 
 light, that ye may become sons of light. 
 
 These things spake Jesus, and he departed and hid himself from them. 
 
 The multitude, representing, of course, the Jewish 
 
xn. 34-36.] CHAPTER XII. 1 75 
 
 hearers of the Lord, refer to a certain difficulty in their 
 way concerning the kingdom of the Messiah, They have 
 learned to consider it, as they think, on the authority of 
 Scripture, as an everlasting, visible kingdom on earth. 
 How does this accord with Christ being lifted up from 
 the earth, literally " out of the earth ? " (Margin, reading 
 R. v.). Is this Son of Man really identical with the Mes- 
 siah ? Who is this Son of Man ? 
 
 Jesus therefore "said" unto them: "Yet a little while 
 is the light among you," etc. His words were not an 
 answer to their question. That answer had been given 
 time and again. But the Lord does give them a last and 
 solemn warning. The sun of salvation is about setting in 
 Israel. The night will soon overtake them. Then Israel 
 will grope in the darkness, knowing not whither it goeth, 
 — the wandering Jew forever without light, peace and 
 home. This is Christ's parting word to the multitude of 
 Israel. 
 
 (E.) Final Reviczv of tlic Unbelief of tlic J civs {;^\\. 37-43). 
 I. Tlieir Unbelief Prophesied by Isaiah (xii. 37-41.) 
 
 37-41. But though he had done so many signs before them, yet they be- 
 lieved not on him : that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, 
 which he spake, 
 
 Lord, who hath believed our report ? 
 
 And to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed ? 
 For this cause they could not believe, for that Isaiah said again, 
 
 He hath Ijlinded their eyes, and he hardened their heart ; 
 
 Lest they should see with their eyes, and perceive with their heart, 
 
 And should turn, 
 
 And I should heal them. 
 These things said Isaiah, because he saw his glory ; and he spake of him. 
 
 What the Gospel of John had indicated in the Prologue 
 
176 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x 11. 37-41. 
 
 already, that though " He came unto His own, His own 
 received Him not," is now once more at the end of the 
 whole narrative stated as a historical fact, and both the 
 guilt and the responsibility of the people and the judg- 
 ment of God in this fact are shown forth. The point has 
 been reached, when the Lord has finished His whole tes- 
 timony to His people. He now departs and hides Him- 
 self from them. The time of the manifestation of His 
 glory in His words and His many signs (only six of which 
 John had narrated) is passed ; and passed without bring- 
 ing the people as a people to belief on Christ. The 
 Gospel of John here deals with the same difficult and 
 momentous theme to which Paul devoted those three 
 chapters (ix.-xi.) in his Epistle to the Romans, the unbelief 
 of Israel. And here, as in other passages of the New 
 Testament, where this attitude of God's chosen people is 
 referred to, the fundamental prophecy of Isaiah is intro- 
 duced, which presents the unbelief of Israel in the light 
 of divine judgment (Matt. xiii. 14, Acts xxviii. 26, 27). The 
 respective import of these two distinct quotations from 
 Isaiah must be well marked. The first, from Isa. liii. i, 
 states the unbelief of Israel as the responsible act and 
 guilt of the people themselves. To the wise and great in 
 this world there was " no form nor comeliness " in the ap- 
 pearance of the Messiah, " no beauty that they should 
 desire Him." For this reason they were not willing to 
 believe on Him and to receive Him. But there is another 
 aspect yet to this unbelief, as set forth in the second 
 passage from Isaiah vi. They could not and should not 
 believe on Him. There was a divine judgment in this. 
 Having hardened their hearts and closed their eyes 
 against God's gracious revelation in Christ, their eyes are 
 blinded and their hearts are hardened by God's own 
 righteous act of punishment. 
 
XII. 42, 43J CHAPTER XII. 177 
 
 2. Cozvardly Fear of the Pharisees (xii. 42, 43). 
 
 42-43. Nevertheless even of the rulers many believed on him ; but be- 
 cause of the Pharisees they did not confess it, lest they should be put out 
 of the synagogue : for they loved the glory of men more than the glory of 
 God. 
 
 That this judgment of God upon Israel as a whole did 
 not exclude individuals from coming to Jesus, appears 
 from the following verses. " Nevertheless even of the 
 rulers many believed on Him." The way was open, if 
 they only had been strong and courageous enough to 
 come out boldly for the Lord, as Joseph and Nicodemus 
 did when their time came. But the conflict wath the 
 Pharisees was too much for them. After all they loved 
 the glory of men more than the glory of God. And this 
 was the very sin of the Pharisees and the principal 
 obstacle of faith, as the Lord had said of them long before 
 this, " How can ye believe which receive glory one of an- 
 other, and the glory that cometh from the only God ye 
 seek not?" (John v. 44). 
 
 (F.) Summing up of the Lord's Testimony (xii. 44-50). 
 
 44-50. And Jesus cried and said, He that beheveth on me, believeth not 
 on me, but on him that sent me. And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him 
 that sent me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth 
 on me may not abide in the darkness. And if any man hear my sayings, 
 and keep them 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 say- 
 ings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall 
 judge him in the last day. For I spake not from myself; but the Father 
 which sent me, he hath given me a commandment, what I should say, and 
 what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is life eternal : 
 the things therefore which I speak, even as the Father hath said unto me, 
 so I speak. 
 
 I f we have followed attentively the narrative of the fourth 
 12 
 
lyS THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xii. 44-50. 
 
 Gospel to this point, if we remember the positive state- 
 ment verse 36 that after that last discourse, occasioned 
 by the appearance of the Greeks, Jesus departed and hid 
 Himself from them, the question naturally suggests itself 
 at the opening of the 44th verse : When and where, under 
 what circumstances did Jesus deliver .this last discourse, 
 if such it be, contained in verses 44-50? We fail to find 
 any special occasion for it, such as the fourth Gospel 
 clearly states in the introduction of every other discourse 
 of the Lord. After the climax of the Lord's testimony 
 to the Jews, verses 35 and 36, there is no room in the his- 
 torical order of events, recorded in the fourth Gospel, for 
 this section, verses 44-50, as a historical discourse of Christ, 
 delivered then and there during those last days before 
 His passion and death. We therefore believe that in 
 these verses the Evangelist presents a brief summary of 
 the principal points of the testimony of Christ ; every 
 word of it spoken by the Lord before or after this, but at 
 this point arranged by John himself as a final offset to 
 the unbelief of the Jews. The Evangelist cannot part 
 from that picture of Israel's hopeless unbelief without 
 pointing out once more, in a sort of epilogue, how 
 clearly, solemnly and fully Christ had testified before their 
 ears, and offered them all the light and help they needed 
 to come out of their unbelief and to embrace Jesus as the 
 Saviour of the world. The absolute dignity and author- 
 ity of Christ's person and work is briefly and pointedly 
 summed up in this section : Christ the Son of God, sent 
 by the Father, to save the world. His word the absolute 
 divine message to the world. Whosoever rejects it, will 
 be judged by that same word on the last day. 
 
THIRD PART— CHAPTERS XUI.— XXI. 
 
 THE TRIUMPH OF FAITH.-THE INCARNATE WORD 
 GLORIFIED AMONG HIS OWN. 
 
 CHAPTER XIIL • 
 
 I. Historical Introduction to the Parting 
 Discourses of the Lord (xiii. 1-30). 
 
 I. Jesus Washing the Disciples' Feet (xiii. 1-17). 
 
 1-17. Now before the feast of the passover, Jesus knowing 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 during supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas 
 Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, ytww, knowing that the Father had 
 given all things into his hands, and that he came forth from God, and 
 goeth unto God, riseth from supper, and layeth aside his garments ; aitd he 
 took a towel, and girded himself._ Then he poureth water into the bason 
 and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel 
 wherewith he was girded. So he cometh to Simon Peter. He 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 understand 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 also my hands and my head. Jesus 
 saith unto him, He that is bathed needeth not save to wash his feet, but 
 is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew him that 
 should betray him ; therefore said he. Ye are not all clean. 
 
 So when he had washed their feet, and taken his garments, and sat down 
 again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you.' Ye call me 
 Master^and Lord : and ye say well ; for so I am. If I then, the I-ord and 
 the Master, have washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's 
 feet. For I have given you an example, that ye also should do as I have 
 
i8o THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [xiii. 1-3. 
 
 done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, A servant is not greater than 
 his lord ; neither one that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye 
 know these things, blessed are ye if ye do them. 
 
 With the thirteenth chapter we reach the third and 
 last section of the Gospel of St. John, setting forth the 
 triumph of faith ; the incarnate Word glorified among 
 His own. The first half of this section (chapters xiii. to 
 xvii.) stands in striking contrast to the preceding middle 
 section of this Gospel. There we saw the fierce conflict 
 between the Lord and His adversaries growing hotter and 
 hotter until it reached its climax in the determination to 
 kill both Him and Lazarus. Here we leave this battle- 
 field and enter into that quiet, peaceful sanctuary in 
 which the Lord is closeted with His disciples for the last 
 parting hours. Being delivered from that one antagon- 
 istic element, which had still been defiling that sanctuary, 
 Judas Iscariot, they are at last alone among themselves 
 in full harmony. And now the deepest lessons are taught 
 to the disciples. They are introduced into the pro- 
 foundest mysteries of the Holy Trinity. Their knowl- 
 edge, faith and love expand and are strengthened as 
 never before. Now they " believe that He came forth 
 from God " (xvi. 30). 
 
 The fourth Gospel, whilst it refrains from recording for 
 a fourth time the history of the institution of the Lord's 
 Supper, supplements the Synoptical account at this 
 point with that most significant and valuable narrative 
 of the washing of the disciples' feet. 
 
 John in introducing this history by a sort of prologue 
 presents the heavenly aspect of the case. It was now 
 that Easter on which Christ was to be given as the true 
 Paschal Lamb. The hour was come that He should de- 
 part out of this world unto the Father. Fully conscious 
 of this, and knowing that the Father had given all things 
 
XIII. 3-5-] CHAPTER XIII. i8i 
 
 into His hands and that He came forth from God and 
 goeth unto God — He riseth from supper and layeth aside 
 His garments ; and He took a towel and girded Himself ; 
 then He poureth water into the bason and began to wash 
 the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel 
 wherewith He was girded. In full sight of His divine 
 majesty and glory this deepest humiliation of minister- 
 ing to His disciples as a servant ! This is the divine, the 
 heavenly aspect of this act. But there is still another 
 side to it, a lower earthly aspect, which must be con- 
 sidered in order to realize fully the character of that 
 scene. The Gospel of St. Luke (ch. xxii.) furnishes us 
 the most important features in this respect. The Lord 
 had taken special care, as the house-father of His family 
 of twelve, to have that supper properly prepared. Peter 
 and John had been directed by Him to make all the 
 arrangements in detail. And when the hour was come. 
 He sat down and the apostles with Him. And He said 
 unto them : " With desire I have desired to eat this 
 passover with you before I suffer." But over against this 
 heavenly frame of mind, in which the Lord sat down, 
 what a different spirit in the hearts of those men who met 
 with Him at that table ! Here was one of the twelve 
 who had made up his mind by this time, to reward the 
 Lord for all the love received from Him during the past 
 three years, by betraying Him. Here were eleven of the 
 twelve who after their three years' intimate communion 
 with their Master, the most meek and lowly in heart, at 
 this very time entered upon those solemn evening hours 
 with "a contention among them, which of them is 
 accounted to be greatest." If we follow Luke in his 22d 
 chapter down to the end of the 27th verse, we at once 
 recognize the connection between that contention and the 
 Lord's acting " in the midst of them as he that serveth," 
 
l82 THE GOSPEL OE SJ'. JO JEW [xm. i, 5. 
 
 that is, by washing their feet. Upon I'eler and John, to 
 whom all the arrangements for the supper had been 
 committed, the duty devolved, to see also to the washing 
 of the feet of the company ; and, if there was no servant 
 present, to attend to it themselves, or secure the service 
 of one of the apostles for this work. But here the con- 
 tention arose. No one was ready to stoop down to this 
 menial service. And thus the only-begotten Son of the 
 Father, the Lord and King of heaven and earth, Himself 
 rises from His couch, and being " the chief becomes as he 
 that doth serve." This He does in the first place, as He 
 distinctly states, as an example : " If I, the 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 also should do as I have done to you." It was 
 Christ's love to His own, a love without limit, loving " to 
 the uttermost " {zl'i to riku?, ver. i) which He had demon- 
 strated in this act and the example of this love He means 
 to impress upon their hearts. It is, in the most graphic 
 and telling form, that new commandment : " That ye 
 love one another, even as I have loved you, that ye also 
 love one another" (ver. 34,35). This love must be 
 ready and willing to minister to the need of the brother 
 in outward acts of service, not shrinking even from the 
 meanest, most uncommon and repulsive, wherever the 
 necessity arises. But, as the Lord Himself, as we will 
 presently see, gave to the outward, bodily washing a 
 deeper spiritual significance, so the application of this 
 example must also be in the sphere of that spiritual 
 washing and cleansing, which Paul describes in Gal. vi. i, 
 2. " Brethren if a man be overtaken in any trespass, ye 
 which are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of meek- 
 ness ; — bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfil the 
 law of Christ." Such service can be efTectively done only 
 
xin. r>-r7.] CHAPTER Xf/f. i3^ 
 
 in that spirit of true humility, which acts on the principle 
 " if any man would be first, he shall be last of all L.nd 
 minister of all " (Mark ix. 35). 
 
 But this washing of the feet is also a type of Christ's 
 work of redemption. This deeper spiritual meaning of 
 the foot-washing comes out fully in the dialogue between 
 the Lord and Peter, resulting from his refusal to have 
 his feet washed by his Master. The one principal aim 
 of the whole work of Christ in all His words and deeds 
 was, not to establish a glorious kingdom before the eyes of 
 men, or to proclaim profound philosophical truths before 
 the ears of men, but to absolve and cleanse the hearts of 
 men from sin and guilt, and this work of absolution and 
 cleansing He can only accomplish by His own deepest self- 
 humiliation ; even as the Son of Man came not to be min- 
 istered unto, but to minister and to give His life a ransom 
 for many. The blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin. 
 This is the meaning of that most comprehensive and 
 solemn word to Peter: " If I wash thee not thou hast 
 no part with Me." Not what men may do in their admira- 
 tion and enthusiasm for Christ, gives them a position in the 
 kingdom of God; but that one great experience: "I 
 am washed and cleansed by Jesus." Without it I cannot 
 have part with Him, and having once obtained pardon 
 through Him, I must still be washed by Him from day 
 to day, not forgetting the cleansing from daily sins. 
 
 2. Judas Iscariot Forced to Withdravj (xiii. 18-30). 
 
 18-30. I speak not of you all : I know whom I have chosen : but that 
 the scripture may be fulfilled. He that eateth my bread lifted up his heel 
 against me. From henceforth I tell you before it come to pass, that, when 
 it is come to pass, ye may beheve that I am he. Verily, verily, I say unto 
 you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me ; and he that rc- 
 ceiveth me receiveth him that sent me. 
 
1 84 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x 1 1 1 . 13- 26. 
 
 When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in the spirit, and testified, 
 and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. 
 The disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake. There 
 was at the table reclining on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus 
 loved. Simon Peter therefore beckoneth to him, and saith unto him. Tell 
 us who it is of whom he speaketh. He leaning back, as he was, on Jesus' 
 breast saith unto him, Lord, who is it ? Jesus therefore answereth. He it is, 
 for whom I shall dip the sop, and give it him. So when he had dipped 
 the sop, he taketh and giveth it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. And 
 after the sop, then entered Satan into him. Jesus therefore saith unto him, 
 That thou doest, do quickly. Now no man at the table knew for what in- 
 tent he spake this unto him. For some thought, because Judas had the 
 bag, that Jesus said unto him, Buy what things we have need of for the 
 feast ; or, that he should give something to the poor. He then having 
 received the sop went out straightway : and it was night. 
 
 From the beginning of this chapter the Evangehst has 
 repeatedly directed our attention to the fact, that the 
 betrayer is still present with the twelve ; that there is no 
 peace and comfort among them so long as this thorn is 
 felt in the flesh ; and that the crisis has now come ; it is 
 time to have it extracted and the body freed from its dis- 
 turbing influence. In the introduction already (ver. 2) 
 the Evangelist refers to the fact that " the devil put it 
 into the heart of Judas Iscariot to betray Him." In the 
 tenth verse there is the second reference to him in the 
 words of the Lord : " Ye are clean but not all, for He 
 knew him that should betray Him." Again in the i8th: 
 " I speak not of you all : I know whom I have chosen : but 
 that the Scripture may be fulfilled : He that eateth My 
 bread, lifted up his heel against Me." Then in the 21st 
 the direct announcement by the Lord : " One of you 
 shall betray Me." And at last the final marking of the 
 traitor : *' He it is for whom I shall dip the sop and give 
 it him. So when He had dipped the sop He taketh and 
 giveth it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. And after 
 the sop then entered Satan into him," — an evident climax 
 
XIII. 27-] CHAPTER XIII, 185 
 
 as compared to the statement in the second verse. " He 
 then having received the sop went out straightway : and 
 it was night." 
 
 It is the Satanic character of the sin of Judas, which 
 is most strongly emphasized in the fourth Gospel. But 
 this does not forbid an attempt on our part to compre- 
 hend in some measure the psychological development of 
 that son of perdition. We think it most probable that 
 Judas, besides his mean love of money, was burning with 
 a desire to see the establishment of a glorious Messianic 
 kingdom which would force itself upon the people by the 
 display of signs and wonders. Even now, in betraying 
 the Lord, Judas may have indulged in the hope that he 
 would thereby compel Christ to overwhelm His adver- 
 saries by a miraculous manifestation of His power and 
 glory. We remember the scene on the pinnacle of the 
 temple, at the temptation of Christ, when Satan said to 
 Him : " If Thou art the Son of God, cast Thyself down." 
 But Judas, by his betrayal, pushes the Lord off from the 
 pinnacle, expecting to see Him spread the pinions of His 
 miraculous power, and save Himself from the catastrophe 
 of an ignominious fall. He did not believe that the 
 Lord was seriously ready and willing to die. Had He 
 not thus far carefully avoided, and successfully escaped 
 from all the attempts on His life made by His persecu- 
 tors? Judas felt sure that He would be fully able to cope 
 with all the power and cunning of His adversaries, and 
 therefore he did not see much danger in delivering Him 
 into their hands. They would be double losers in the 
 end. Their money safe in Judas' bag ; their prisoner 
 safe out of their hands. Thus nothing would be lost 
 ultimately to Christ or to himself. But if these were his 
 calculations, he soon enough found himself undeceived. 
 As he pushed off the Lord by his betrayal, to his utmost 
 
i86 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiii. 27-32. 
 
 horror and dismay he saw Him sink and sink ; submit to 
 the power of His enemies in absolute self-surrender. 
 Despair seized him. Everything lost in this bold, unscru- 
 pulous game. So he brought back the thirty pieces of 
 silver, the price of blood, to the chief priests and elders 
 and went away and hanged himself. 
 
 II. First Parting Words Addressed to the 
 Eleven (xiii. 31 — xiv. 4). 
 
 I. TJie Son of Man Glorified (xiii. 31-32). 
 
 31-32. When therefore he was gone out, Jesus saith, Now is the Son 
 of man glorified, and God is glorified in him ; and God shall glorify him in 
 himself, and straightway shall he glorify him. 
 
 Being freed from the presence of the traitor, though 
 the departure of Judas Iscariot means the hour of passion 
 and death for Himself, the Lord enjoys a foretaste of the 
 glory in store for Him. He actually enters upon the road 
 to His immediate glorification. " Now is the Son of 
 Man glorified," — this is the grand and glorious begin- 
 ning of the parting discourses of that evening; a shout 
 of victory at the very opening of the battle, in the night 
 in which He was betrayed. Not less than five ^ times in 
 these two short verses the word " glorify " is used. The 
 Son of Man is glorified, — in looking back over His past 
 life He can boldly claim that His whole life-work was 
 nothing but glorifying the Father, and thereby He Him- 
 self is glorified. The Son of Man is glorified in that 
 present hour as He now willingly takes up the cross to 
 seal and to crown His life-work by His obedience unto 
 death. The Son will be glorified, and that without 
 delay, by His exaltation to the right hand of the Father. 
 
 1 Four times in the reading accepted in the Revised Version. 
 
XIII. 33' 34] CHAPTER XIIT. 187 
 
 2. The Imminent Depa?'ture (xiii. 33). 
 
 33. 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 
 unto you. 
 
 The Lord addresses His disciples in the most affection- 
 ate manner as dear little children. The great human 
 heart of the true man Jesus feels most tenderly the im- 
 pending separation. He cannot spare them the same 
 hard truth, which He had before announced to the Jews. 
 He goes and they cannot come, whither He is going. 
 They will miss Him. And they will seek Him, but, dif- 
 ferent from the Jews, they will find Him again. They 
 will not, as it was said to the Jews, die in their sins. 
 They will live through Him and in Him and with Him 
 in glory, though for the present they cannot possibly go 
 with Him, The passion and the death of atonement are 
 exclusively His own. No one can share with Him the 
 agony of these hours ; but they shall share with Him the 
 glory in His Father's mansions (xiv. 3). 
 
 3. The Nezu Commandment (xiii. 34-35). 
 
 34-35. A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one 
 another; even 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. 
 
 In their sorrow over the Lord's, departure, the disciples 
 are to find comfort in fulfilling this new commandment 
 of loving one another even as He had loved them. The 
 question naturally presents itself : What is the new fea- 
 ture in this love, with which the disciples' are charged ? 
 For, certainly, the love of God and of our fellow-men was 
 as old as the Old Testament law itself. Nor can the new- 
 ness of this commandment of love be found in a concen- 
 
1 88 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [x in. 34-36. 
 
 tration upon the narrow circle of believers, the " Philadel- 
 phia," or brotherly love, of which we read a good deal in 
 the Epistles. The characteristic feature of this new com- 
 mandment of love must be found in the words : " even as I 
 have loved you." The Christlike love is the original and 
 new feature in this " new commandment " of the New 
 Testament. It is love learned from the example of Christ ; 
 love inspired by His redeeming love ; love begotten of the 
 wondrous love of the Saviour, for this end has He " loved 
 His own to the uttermost end" (xiii. 3) that they might 
 love one another. Christ's love, apprehended by faith, is 
 the quickening power of the love of His disciples. Men 
 cannot honestly exalt love, and Christianity as " the relig- 
 ion of love," and yet at the same time cast out faith, the 
 only hand that grasps the love of the God-man. 
 
 4. Peter s Interruption Answered by the Lord {xin. 36-38). 
 
 36-38. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, whither goest thou ? Jesus 
 answered, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now ; but thou shalt 
 follow afterwards. Peter saith unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee 
 even now ? I will lay down my life for thee. Jesus answereth. Wilt thou 
 lay down thy life for me .'' Verily, verily, I say unto thee. The cock shall 
 not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice. 
 
 This conversation with Peter, or one very similar to it, 
 is recorded by Matthew and Mark at a later period of the 
 passion history, on the way to the Garden. But the ac- 
 count of Luke (xxii. 33, 34) seems to support John. And 
 why should it be impossible that similar words were 
 spoken more than once on that memorable evening, when 
 Peter's heart was full to overflowing with devotion to his 
 Lord and anxiety about His departure? It seems to us, 
 the question of Peter at this point is so directly con- 
 nected with the immediately preceding statement of the 
 Lord : " Whither I go ye cannot come," that it cannot be 
 
xiil. 36.] CHAPTER XIII. 189 
 
 detached from it without doing violence to the whole 
 context. 
 
 Peter is the same as we found him at the washing of the 
 feet, rash, forward, full of self-reliance, enthusiastically 
 devoted to his Lord, but lamentably misjudging his own 
 strength. The Lord in the first place does not directly 
 answer Peter's question. He simply reaffirms His former 
 statement : " Whither I go thou canst not follow." But He 
 qualifies it by the addition of the " now " and the further 
 explanation: " thou shalt follow afterwards." His time will 
 come; it has not yet arrived;^ but it is sure to come, 
 when Peter once begins to deny himself, to give his old 
 Adam into death ; as a mature Christian he will even be 
 honored with a martyr's death (as prophesied also John 
 xxi. 18, 19). 
 
 ^ Quid festifias, Petre? nofidum te Suo Spiritu soliaavit Petra. (Why 
 in such a hurry, Peter ? the Rock {Petra) has not yet established or con- 
 firmed thee with His Spirit. (Augustine.) ■ 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 5. Tlie Disciples Comforted Concerning the Lord's 
 Departure (xiv. 1-4). 
 
 1-4. 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; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and pre- 
 pare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto myself ; that 
 where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go, ye know the way.j 
 
 At the opening of this chapter Luther says of this and 
 the following discourses : " Here the Lord has abundant- 
 ly poured out those precious consolations, which all 
 Christians enjoy, and which men ought to seek in all their 
 trials and tribulations. Moreover we have here a sum- 
 mary of all the principal articles of Christian doctrine, 
 most powerfully established, as nowhere else in the Scrip- 
 tures, such as: the doctrine of three distinct Persons in 
 the Trinity; of the divine and human nature of Christ 
 and His eternal, indivisible Person ; also of the righteous- 
 ness of faith and the true consolation for an anxious con- 
 science." 
 
 As in the question of Peter, so here in these assuring 
 words of Christ we recognize the close connection with 
 the announcement of His imminent departure which had 
 considerably disturbed and discouraged the disciples. 
 The one great panacea against such tribulations is faith, 
 faith in God and faith in Christ. We prefer the transla- 
 tion in the marginal note of the R. V., taking the two 
 190 
 
XIV, 1-3-] CHAPTER XIV. 191 
 
 verbs as two emphatic imperatives : " Believe in God, 
 believe also in Me." Faith in God is the foundation of 
 faith in Christ. But faith in Christ is the only way to a 
 truly saving and crowning faith in God, that really gives 
 Him all His due honor. In demanding the same faith 
 for Himself, as is due to God, Christ unmistakeably claims 
 co-equality with God. 
 
 The Lord has now reached that point in the history of 
 His life when the world will refuse Him a place. In a few 
 hours Jerusalem will resound with the cry : Away with 
 Him ! Cast Him out ! Crucify Him ! And in the face of 
 this He speaks with perfect peace and assurance of heaven- 
 ly mansions for Himself and His own, abiding-places, 
 where no one will be disturbed or expelled. " If it were 
 not so I would have told you." These words are general- 
 ly understood as a simple affirmation of His positive 
 statement, on which His disciples can absolutely rely. 
 A better meaning of this sentence, however, is obtained, 
 by reading it as a question : " If it were not so, would I 
 have said to you that I am going to prepare a place for 
 you ? " 
 
 His going, then, is for the benefit of His disciples, to 
 prepare a place for them in the Father's house. But He 
 will come again and receive them unto Himself, that they 
 may be where He is. When and where is this coming of 
 the Lord and this receiving of His disciples realized? Is 
 it on Easter, when the risen Saviour appears to His dis- 
 ciples ? or on Pentecost when He sends down His Spirit 
 from on high ? or at the hour of their death, when He 
 delivers them from all evil and takes them to Himself, to 
 be forever with the Lord ? is it on His second advent 
 when the new heaven and the new earth shall greet the 
 glorified saints? Combine all these in one grand per- 
 spective : He comes to His people whenever and wher- 
 
192 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. 5-7. 
 
 ever they need Him, so that they on their part may be 
 fully prepared to enter His heavenly mansions. 
 
 in. Further Interruptions of the Disciples 
 Answered by the Lord (xiv. 5-11). 
 
 I. TJionias (xiv. 5-7). 
 
 5-7. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest ; 
 how know we the way ? Jesus saith unto him, 1 am the way, and the 
 truth, and the life : no one cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had 
 known me, ye would have known my Father also : from henceforth ye 
 know him, and have seen him. 
 
 Thomas is the " pessimist " among the disciples. 
 Being by nature of a gloomy, melancholy disposition, he 
 finds it difficult to come to a simple, childlike faith. But 
 at the same time he is a most earnest and sincere inquirer, 
 who will surely find the right way in the end according 
 to the Lord's own promise : " Seek and ye shall find." 
 At this point he is the mouthpiece of all the Apostles, 
 expressing their consternation and perplexity at the 
 Lord's impending departure. Therefore the answer to 
 his question is in reality addressed to all the disciples, 
 who still fail to comprehend Christ's peculiar relation to 
 the Father, and are consequently anxious concerning His 
 future. In the Lord's answer the principal idea, to which 
 everything else is subordinate, is evidently that of the 
 way. He is the way to the Father and to the Father's 
 house, not the guide to point out the way, but the Way 
 itself ; and the only way, to the exclusion of all other 
 ways and means of coming to the Father. He is the 
 Way, because He is the Truth, the absolute fullness and 
 reality of God's revelation to man and man's reconcilia- 
 tion with God. Being the Truth, He is also the Life. 
 Divine Truth, as represented by Him, personified in Him. 
 
XIV. 6-S.] CHAPTER XIV. 193 
 
 is a quickening power, begetting and preserving lifc.^ 
 Even in His death, yea, through His very death, He is 
 the Life of the world. As He was now ready to depart 
 for His passion and death, the disciples needed to be 
 strongly impressed with the fact that He is the Life, all 
 the developments of the next twenty-four hours to the 
 contrary. No justice is done to this brief and compre- 
 hensive statement of the Lord, if we divest it of all 
 reference to His mediatorial office, His passion and death. 
 Mark also the divine character and truly heavenly 
 majesty shining forth in these words. No mere man 
 could ever speak thus of himself without insane pre- 
 sumption and conceit. At the close of the Lord's answer 
 (ver. 7), there is both a rebuke and an encouragement 
 for the disciples ; a rebuke, because they do not yet 
 know Him as they ought to know Him by this time ; an 
 encouragement, that even now they are further advanced 
 in their Christian knowledge than they themselves 
 
 realize. 
 
 2. Philip (xiv. 8-1 1). 
 
 8-1 1. 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 dost 
 thou not know me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; 
 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 say unto you I speak 
 not from myself : but the Father abiding in me doeth his works. Believe me 
 that I am in the Father, and the Father in me : or else believe me for the 
 very works' sake. 
 
 The naive request of Philip undoubtedly contains 
 precious elements of truth. He is ready to accept Christ 
 as the way to the Father, as the only one who can show 
 the Father ; and with Christ's revelation of the Father 
 he declares himself perfectly satisfied. To see the Father, 
 
 1 See John vi. 63. Also the twofold meaning of the German word : 
 zeugen — testify and beget. 
 13 
 
194 THE GOSPEL OE ST. JOHN. [xiv. 9-11. 
 
 as shown by Christ, would be to Philip the climax of 
 earthly happiness ; all the yearning and thirsting of the 
 human soul after God would be completely quenched, if 
 Christ would only " show the Father." And yet there 
 is a decided tone of rebuke in the gentle answer of the 
 Lord. Philip was yet far from realizing the experience, 
 described in the prologue of the Gospel (John i. 14) : 
 " We beheld His glory, — as of the only-begotten Son of 
 the Father, full of grace and truth." In this petition 
 that the Father should be shown, Philip may have meant 
 something after the manner of the Old Testament Theo- 
 phanies. But his very demand for something or some 
 one to see, in addition to Christ, betrays a lack of faith 
 and of a correct appreciation of the true relation between 
 Christ and the Father. He that hath seen Him hath 
 seen the Father. While the line of distinction between 
 the person of the Father and the person of the Son is 
 clearly maintained, yet it is stated with equal distinct- 
 ness that the Father is in the Son and the Son in the 
 Father. The Son is the absolute revelation of the Father. 
 Whatever can be shoivn of the Father, so as to bring men 
 to a personal knowledge of and communion with the 
 Father, is shown in the Son and in Him alone. Behold 
 the Father's power and majesty in the works of the Son ; 
 the Father's love in the words of the Son ; the 
 Father's holiness in the life of the Son. Outside of 
 Christ there is no saving knowledge of the Father.^ 
 
 And there is only one way to realize this : it is by be- 
 lieving that Christ is in the Father and the Father in 
 Him, on the testimony of His works, and particularly 
 His words. The correct petition therefore must now be 
 
 1 Cf. Luther's repeated and vigorous protest : I know and will know of 
 no other God, except the One that lieth in the manger and is nailed to the 
 cross, etc. 
 
XIV. 12.] CHAPTER XIV. ig^ 
 
 addressed to the Spirit : " Show us tJie Son, for if we 
 know and see the Son, we know and have the Father." 
 
 IV. The Parting Words Continued (xiv. 12-31). 
 I. The Disciples Doing the Woi'ks of Jesus (xiv. 12-14). 
 
 12-14. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works 
 that I do shall he do also ; and greater zvorks than these shall he do ; be- 
 cause I go unto the 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 me 
 anything in my name, that will I do. 
 
 The questions, by which Thomas and Phihp interrupted 
 the Lord's discourse, having been answered, Jesus pro- 
 ceeds with the principal theme — the encouragement and 
 consolation of His disciples in view of His impending 
 departure. As in the preceding verses (10 and 11), so 
 here also everything is based upon faith : " He that 
 believeth on Me." In the power of that faith, works, 
 great works, are to be done. The reference to work is 
 in itself wholesome medicine for hearts aching with sor- 
 row over the loss of one so near and dear. But the Lord 
 uses the very strongest language to magnify the life-work 
 of the disciples. Not only shall His work be continued 
 by them, but they shall even do greater works. It is 
 His going to the Father, His passion, death and glorifi- 
 cation, that paves the way for these greater works to be 
 done by the disciples. Strange as this may seem, it is 
 literally true. The work of the Lord's public ministry 
 on earth, with its miracles and preaching, had its clear!}' 
 defined limitations. " He was not sent but to the lost 
 sheep of the house of Israel." And in addition to these 
 theocratical, national and geographical barriers there was 
 the all-important fact, that the Holy Spirit had not yet 
 been shed abroad, for Jesus was not yet glorified. But 
 
196 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. 12-14. 
 
 now, after His going to the Father, what a mani- 
 festation of power from on high through the Apostles ! 
 The result of Peter's one Pentecostal sermon, far sur- 
 passes everything that was ever given to Christ during 
 the three years of His public ministry. The same is true 
 of St. Paul's mission-work from Damascus and Arabia to 
 Spain. " The Apostles' work reached further than 
 Christ's," says Luther. " They filled the whole world ; 
 Christ only a little corner." 
 
 These works of the disciples, however, are in reality 
 Christ's own works. He continues to be at work: "The 
 works that / do " are works carried on in the present, 
 not merely works done in the past. Now these greater 
 works are given to the disciples by the glorified Christ in 
 answer to their prayers which they offer in His name. 
 Thus the " Ora" (pray) and " Labora" (work) are beau- 
 tifully and permanently blending in the life-work of the 
 disciples. Such prayer is to be in the name of Jesus, that 
 is, in living faith in God's revelation in Christ, praying at 
 His command, by His authority, pleading His interces- 
 sion as the only mediator through whom we may come to 
 the Father; praying after His own mind, in His spirit, 
 for the cause of His kingdom; and finally, even calling 
 upon Christ Himself, our Saviour, as the true God. This 
 last feature we maintain even though the pronoun " me " 
 in the 14th verse (" If ye shall ask Mc anything in My 
 name") should be eliminated from the text, as we believe 
 it ought to be.^ 
 
 2. Praying for Another Covi'fortcr (xiv. 15-17). 
 
 15-17. If ye love me ye will keep my commandments. And I will pray 
 the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may be with you 
 
 1 Though Tischendorf and Westcott retain it on the testimony of the 
 Sinaitic and Vatican MSS. 
 
XIV. 15-] CHAPTER XIV. 197 
 
 for ever, even the Spirit of truth : whom the world cannot receive ; for it 
 beholdeth him not, neither knoweth him : ye know him ; for he abideth 
 with you, and shall be in you. 
 
 There is a close connection between the 15th and the 
 following verses. In making the precious promise 
 (vers. 16 and 17) the Lord insists on a condition: the 
 disciples must love Him and, in proof of this love, keep 
 His commandments. Then He will ask the Father to 
 give them another " Paraclete," the Spirit of truth. 
 This is the first full and direct announcement by the Lord 
 of that great Pentecostal fact, the coming of the Holy 
 Ghost, that had been referred to on former occasions as 
 the best gift which God's children could possibly ask from 
 their heavenly Father. 
 
 Here, as in all the subsequent utterances of the Lord 
 on this subject, the personality of the Spirit is strongly 
 emphasized. He speaks of Him as " another Paraclete 
 or Advocate," implying that in the first place Christ 
 Himself was the Comforter, that is, the Advocate of the 
 disciples, as He is represented in i John ii. i. As the 
 " Logos " in the gospel of St. John is clearly a divine 
 person, so also is the " Paraclete," who carries on the 
 work of the Logos. All the verbs in this context, which 
 describe the different acts of Jesus, of the Father and of 
 the Comforter, bear a decidedly personal character. They 
 represent throughout acts that can be predicated only of 
 persons: the /r«_;'/^^ or asking on the part of the Son; 
 the giving on the part of the Father ; the abiding on the 
 part of the Spirit. 
 
 The '' Paraclete," the one who is called in, or called 
 upon for assistance, is the " Advocate," the counsel and 
 assistant, to plead one's cause, to represent one and to 
 make intercession. Thus Luther explains the term : 
 " One, who is the advocate or support (Beistand) of the 
 
igg THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. i6, 17. 
 
 accused, who takes charge of his case, to defend him, to 
 plead his cause, to assist him with his counsel, admoni- 
 tion, instruction and encouragement, as it may be 
 needed." ^ 
 
 This Paraclete is the Spirit of truth. In addition to 
 the word which Christ left to the disciples they shall also 
 have the Spirit Himself, the Spirit of grace, of faith, 
 of adoption, of prayer, of love, of holiness, power and 
 glory. In the midst of the discomfort which the Lord's 
 departure causes to the disciples, there comes this blessed 
 assurance to them that this other Comforter shall abide 
 with them, yea, in them forever ; of course not in the sense 
 of a gift that could under no circumstances be lost. 
 However great and precious a privilege it was to have 
 the Lord as personal friend and counsellor during His 
 life on earth, it is a greater gift that henceforth the 
 disciples were to have the Paraclete in their own hearts. 
 Thus they will truly become Christian characters, ripened 
 into full Christian manhood. 
 
 This possession of the " Paraclete " is the characteristic 
 mark of the disciples over against the world, which can- 
 not receive Him and does not behold nor know Him. 
 As it would not receive the Logos (John i. 10, 11), it will 
 have nothing to do with this " other Paraclete." It will 
 not look to Him for light, advice or assistance. It looks 
 away from Him, having its eyes fixed upon the visible, 
 tangible things of God's creation, and ignoring the 
 heavenly, invisible gifts and graces of God's redemption. 
 
 1 The German word " Troster " which -is used in Luther's version for 
 " Comforter," in its ancient meaning corresponds very closely to the Greek 
 "paracletos." It is related to " trauen " (trust) and means a protector on 
 whom we may rely. The same meaning is attached to the English term 
 " Comforter," as first used by Wicliff in his version of the Bible. The 
 " Comforter" in the language of ancient English law is one who gives sup- 
 port or assistance. 
 
XIV. i8.] CHAPTER XIV. 199 
 
 3. The Lord Coming ivith the Father (xiv. 18-21). 
 
 18-21. I will not leave you desolate: I come unto you. Yet a little 
 while, and the world beholdeth me no more ; but ye behold me : because 
 I live, ye shall live also. In 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 will manifest myself unto him. 
 
 As the Lord had before addressed His beloved disciples 
 as "little children " (xiii. 33), He now describes their con- 
 dition after His departure as that of desolate orphans. And 
 such indeed was their state between the passion and the 
 resurrection of Christ. Though lasting only " a little 
 while," it was a perfect abyss of despondency through 
 which they had to pass in those hours. But here are 
 His promises: " I come unto you. Ye behold Me. I 
 live." Their fulfilment began with the re-appearance of 
 the risen Lord on Easter-day, and culminated, for the 
 Apostles in their lifetime, on the day of Pentecost. But 
 the coming of the Lord and the coming of the promised 
 Paraclete are not absolutely identical. It must never be 
 forgotten that in distinction from the presence of the 
 Spirit the glorified Christ is still true man, with a full 
 human nature, including even a human body, which 
 shares in His divine glory. It is the one, undivided 
 Christ, in His state of glory, that promises to come to, 
 and to be with His disciples. 
 
 When He shows Himself as the living One to His 
 desolate disciples, when He brings His peace from the 
 tomb, their hearts are filled with joy, their doubt and 
 unbelief is ended, they begin to live in a new and heavenly 
 sense of that word. And when on the day of Pentecost 
 they are all filled with the Holy Ghost, they realize what 
 it is to live through Christ, in Christ, for Christ. The 
 
2 00 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. 20-22. 
 
 reality and fullness of this new life is unfolded before our 
 eyes in the Book of Acts. Compare those men, as we 
 know them from the narrative of the Acts since the day 
 of Pentecost, with their attitude in the history of the 
 Gospels. Truly, those men, their words and discourses, 
 their acts and lives, have become immortal through the 
 living Christ, whom they witnessed. Their names are 
 written on the walls of the heavenly Jerusalem (Revela- 
 tion xxi. 14). They are live men through their living 
 Saviour. 
 
 In that day the disciples shall gain that true insight 
 into the relation between the Father and the Son and 
 between the Son and themselves: " I in My Father. Ye 
 in Me. I in you." For this is life eternal that they 
 should know the only true God and Him whom He did 
 send, even Jesus Christ (John xvii. 3). 
 
 4. To whom will He manifest Himself ? (xiv. 22-24). 
 
 22-24. Judas (not Iscariot) saith unto him, Lord, what is come to pass 
 that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world .' Jesus 
 answered and said unto him, If a rnan love me, he will keep my word: 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 words : and the word 
 which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me. 
 
 Another interruption or interpellation on the part of 
 the disciples, this time by Judas Lebbaeus or Thaddseus. 
 With undisguised naive astonishment he asks: " What in 
 the world has happened, that Th-ou wilt manifest Thyself 
 unto us and not unto the world? " He is evidently not 
 conscious of the sharp contrast between the spirit of the 
 world and the .spirit of Christ's disciples. So far from judg- 
 ing the world for its alienation from God, he shows a cer- 
 tain humility in his amazement that the disciples should 
 
XIV. 22-24-] CHAPTER XIV. 20I 
 
 be so much nearer to the Lord than the world. But there 
 is yet another side to this question of Judas. It reminds 
 us somewhat of the demand of Christ's unbeHeving 
 brothers that lie should manifest Himself to the world 
 (John vii. 4). The dilTficult problem before the eyes of 
 Judas is this: Shall the manifestation of Christ be con- 
 fined to the small circle of disciples, and shall the world 
 be shut out from it? What, then, becomes of the Mes- 
 sianic kingdom in this world? " What sort of a king is 
 He to be, who will show Himself to no one and will 
 manage His kingdom in such a mysterious, secret way, 
 that no one shall see Him or know Him, except the few 
 who love Him?" (Luther). 
 
 Over against this question and the spirit which under- 
 lies it, the Lord, without entering fully into it, simply 
 emphasizes the internal, spiritual character of His revela- 
 tion and of His kingdom. The mark of His disciples as 
 over against the world, is their loving the Lord and 
 keeping His word. And these are the souls in which 
 the Father and the Son will take up their abode through 
 the Pentecostal coming of the Spirit, — the full New 
 Testament realization of the Old Testament Shekinah. 
 " A true and glorious day of Pentecost and a powerful 
 demonstration of the Spirit, a heavenly gathering or 
 concilium in two directions : the hearts being enlightened 
 and filled by the Holy Spirit with the love of Christ ; 
 and again the love of Christ and of the Father shining 
 forth manifesting itself toward the believers " (Luther). 
 This passage indeed sets forth the true idea and defini- 
 tion of the Church of Christ : the assembly of Saints and 
 Believers, gathered around the word of Christ, who love 
 the Lord, who are the beloved of the Father, and with 
 whom the Triune God is dwelling, they themselves being 
 temples of the Holy Ghost. It is therefore a most ap- 
 
202 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. 25, 26. 
 
 propriate selection by which this passage (John xiv. 
 23-30) was taken for the Gospel of the day of Pentecost. 
 
 5. TJie TcacJiiyig of the Holy Spirit (xiv. 25, 26). 
 
 25-26. These things have I spoken unto you, while^^/ abiding with you. 
 But the Comforter, even the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my 
 name, he shall teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that 
 I said unto you. 
 
 The Lord refers here again to His imminent departure. 
 The time of those direct personal communications between 
 Christ and His disciples is now at an end. But their 
 learning, studying and growing in knowledge is not ended. 
 As the parting Lord gives them over to the instruction 
 of the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth, now definitely called 
 "the Holy Spirit," their knowledge of Christ's truth will 
 be better developed and increased than during the days 
 of their Master's visible presence. The Holy Spirit is to 
 be sent by the Father in Christ's name, that is, not simply 
 by His request, through His mediation, but in His place, 
 to manifest and to glorify the Son. His work is to teach 
 the disciples and to remind them of all that Christ said 
 unto them. These two statements, describing the work 
 of the Spirit, must not be separated from each other, 
 much less be considered as in any way antithetical to each 
 other. The Holy Spirit in teaching the disciples all things 
 does not introduce absolutely new doctrines of which they 
 never heard before. All His teachings are based upon 
 Christ's. They are the development of the seed sown 
 by Christ. The real character of the Spirit's teaching is 
 to repeat, to freshen, to expand, to deepen the knowledge 
 of truth received before in the words of the Master. 
 " Nothing is to be taught " says Luther, " in the Chris- 
 tian Church by the Holy Spirit, but what the Apostles 
 
XIV. 27.] CHAPTER XIV. 203 
 
 had heard from Christ." Most vigorously does he pro- 
 test against the Romanist's claim, that their "traditions" 
 contain a great deal of what the Holy Spirit had to teach 
 after the Apostles' times, which they themselves had 
 never known or taugflit. 
 
 6. TJie Peace of Jesus (xiv. 27). 
 
 27. 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 fearful. 
 
 Possibly after a short pause the Lord begins with 
 this " Farewell," the salutation commonly used in the 
 Orient to the present day on coming or going. The term 
 is taken from the Old Testament " Shalom," which sig- 
 nifies not a subjective feeling of pleasure or happiness, 
 but an objective state of health, a condition of absolute 
 well-being (Isaiah liii. 5). This peace is more fully char- 
 acterized as Christ's peace: '' My peace I give unto you." 
 This is not simply a repetition, but an explanation. It is 
 the peace which no one has to give but the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, who has obtained it for us by His going to the 
 Father. His whole salvation is included in this word 
 (Acts iv. 12). This gift is essentially different from the 
 world's way of giving. Of course, zvJiat the Lord gives is 
 not what the world gives. But here it is more the Jiozv 
 the Lord gives, that differs from the world's giving. The 
 world says : Peace ! Peace ! and yet there is no peace, 
 for the wicked have no peace. But while the world in 
 hollow phrases boasts of peace, Christ gives a heavenly 
 reality, a peace that passeth all understanding. Hold- 
 ing first to this peace, the disciples' hearts must not be 
 discouraged, though they may be disturbed for a time. 
 The greatest disturbance awaited them within the next 
 
204 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xiv. 28, 29. 
 
 day in the passion and death of their Lord. And yet, 
 out of the wreck of all their earthly, carnal aspirations, 
 the " peace " of Christ was saved to them by the triumph 
 of Easter-day. 
 
 7. TJie Believers Joy in Christ's Departure (xiv. 28, 29). 
 
 28-29. Ye heard how I said unto you, I go away, and I come unto you. 
 If ye loved me, ye would have rejoiced, because I go unto the Father: for 
 the P"ather is greater than I. And now I have told you before it come to 
 pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe. 
 
 Divine thoughts and human thoughts are the very 
 reverse of each other. The disciples think that because 
 they love Him they cannot but sorrow over His departure. 
 The Lord thinks, if they love Him they must rejoice over 
 it. For it means His going to the Father, from a state 
 of humiliation and suffering to a state of exaltation, of 
 glory. This is what He intends to say by the statement : 
 "The Father is greater than L" There is no comparison 
 in these words between the divinity of the Father and the 
 human nature of the Son, but the Lord compares, as 
 Calvin also explains, " His present state with the 
 heavenly glory " to which He is going. Before going 
 to the Father He was, as Luther says, " a poor, miserable, 
 suffering Christ, but now with the Father He is a great, 
 glorious, living and almighty Lord over all creatures." 
 
 8. Jesus and tJie Prinee of the 1 For /d {xiv. 30, 31). 
 
 30-31. I will no more speak much with j^ou, for the prince of the world 
 Cometh : and he 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. 
 
 Satan is the Prince of the World (sometimes even 
 called the God of this world), not de jure (of right), but 
 
XIV. 30, 3i] CHAPTER XIV. 205 
 
 de facto (as a matter of fact). In the unlimited self-re- 
 liance of this position he comes to try his power even 
 against the Holy One of Israel. He attacks Him in the 
 dark hours of His passion, not only through those men 
 who acted as his tools, but in that mysterious personal 
 conflict (Luke xxii. 53), which took place in Christ's agony 
 in the garden before any of His captors laid their hands 
 on Him (Heb. ii. 14, 18). But though the enemy may 
 attack and molest Him he will gain nothing. He has no 
 hold on Him ; there is no sin, no weakness that would 
 give him any claim on Christ. Of this the Lord is fully 
 conscious, and by this thought He encourages and 
 strengthens Himself against the Prince of darkness. 
 Though it might look as if He was, for a time, helplessly 
 overpowered by the Evil One, still in this very conflict 
 the world shall find the greatest demonstration of Christ's 
 love to the Father and His faithfulness in carrying out 
 the Father's commission. It is not through the over- 
 whelming attack of the enemy that He is forced into His 
 passion, but it is His loving obedience to the Father that 
 leads Him to the cross and to the tomb. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 V, New Parting Discourse (Ch. xv. and xvi.). 
 
 I. TJie Vine and the Branches (xv. i-8). 
 
 1-8. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every 
 branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away : and every branch 
 that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may bear more fruit. Already 
 ye are clean because of 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 : so neither 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 bear- 
 eth much fruit : for apart from me ye can do nothing. If a man abide 
 not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered ; and they gather 
 them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, 
 and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done 
 unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit ; and so 
 shall ye be my disciples. 
 
 After the concluding words of the preceding chapter 
 the question naturally presents itself as to the circum- 
 stances and surroundings under which the words con- 
 tained in chapters xv. to xvii. were spoken. After the 
 positive order, given by Christ : " Arise, let us go hence," 
 we cannot doubt that the disciples did arise, ready to 
 start with their Lord for any place of destination to 
 which He might lead them. The most common explana- 
 tion ever since the time of Chrysostom is, that at that 
 point the Lord left the upper room, where He had spent 
 the evening, to go to Gethsemane, and that the following 
 discourses were spoken on the road to the garden, or at a 
 quiet, secluded spot on the slope from the eastern wall 
 206 
 
XV. I.] CHAPTER XV. 207 
 
 of the city to the valley of the Kidron. Some inter- 
 preters even go so far as to suggest, that, " stopping on 
 the way before a vine covered with branches," the Lord 
 took up the theme of the parable of the vine. But we 
 find it extremely difficult to think of a place quiet enough 
 for the following discourses, and particularly for the 
 sacerdotal prayer, on the road through the city to Geth- 
 semane ; especially if we remember that during this pass- 
 over-week all Jerusalem, including its immediate neighbor- 
 hood, was crowded with pilgrims from all parts of the 
 country. We are therefore more inclined to picture the 
 scene, following the fourteenth chapter, in this manner: 
 that the disciples, after rising from the table, remained 
 standing, grouped around their Master in that upper 
 room, and that then and there the words in ch. xv. to 
 xvii. were spoken. 
 
 The contrast between the opening of the fifteenth chap- 
 ter and the conclusion of the fourteenth is quite striking. 
 After the reference to " the old bitter foe" lurking in the 
 darkness ready to assault the Lord, this peaceful picture of 
 the vineyard and the quiet work of the husbandman on 
 the branches of the vine ! We need not look around for 
 any outward objects suggesting the fruitful theme of this 
 parable. The Lord's Supper, with its cup of blessing, 
 which had just been instituted, would indeed have been 
 suggestion enough. But even apart from this, the figure 
 of the vine was perfectly familiar to the Israelites, not 
 only because the vine was one of the chief products of 
 their country, but because the Old Testament scriptures 
 repeatedly use the vineyard with its work and its fruit as 
 an illustration of the Israelitic theocracy (Psalm Ixxx. 
 9 ff. ; Isaiah v. i ff. ; Jeremiah ii. 21 ; Ezekiel xix. 10).^ 
 
 ' At the benediction of the first cup of the Passover the Israelites 
 offered the following prayers : " Blessed art Thou, Lord God, the King of 
 
2o8 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv. i. 
 
 And now, at the very time when His judgment was ready 
 to fall upon His Old Testament vineyard, God makes a 
 new beginning, in choosing and preparing this vine of the 
 New Testament by whose fruitful branches He is to be 
 better praised and glorified than by the sour grapes of 
 the former dispensation. 
 
 The Father the husbandman, the Lord Jesus the true 
 vine, the disciples the branches, — these are the leading 
 points of the parable. The Father plants this vine in 
 His own vineyard, giving His only-begotten Son into 
 this world, making Him the life and salvation of a lost 
 race through His passion, death and resurrection ; giving 
 to the Son those that are to believe in Him, and watching 
 over their growth and development as living, fruitful 
 branches. The Son, as the true vine, stands between the 
 husbandman and the branches. He belongs to both, as 
 the vine planted by the husbandman and as the vine on 
 which the branches grow. It is impossible for the hus- 
 bandman to have branches that will bear fruit for His 
 honor and glory, without having that particular vine 
 planted for that purpose ; that is, speaking without figure, 
 it is only through the incarnation and the redemption 
 wrought by the Son, that the Father will have a king- 
 dom, accomplishing the salvation of immortal souls. 
 The relation of the branches to the vine is not the out- 
 come of a natural process, such as our natural birth. It 
 is the result of our being engrafted into Christ through 
 baptism for a real, personal life-union. 
 
 Thus this parable of the true- vine contains the whole 
 secret of true Christianity. It is far more than having 
 Christ for a teacher or example, more even than having 
 
 the World, who hast created the fruit of the vine." And " Blessed art Thou, 
 Lord God, the King of the World, who has chosen us above every 
 nation." 
 
XV. 1-8.] CHAPTER XV. 209 
 
 Him for our Mediator and Ilighpriest ; it is life from 
 Him, through Him, with Him and in Him, as Paul says 
 (Gal. ii. 20) : " I live, and yet no longer I, but Christ 
 liveth in me." 
 
 The detailed accounts concerning the relation of the 
 branches to the vine and their development, are full of 
 solemn warning, admonition and encouragement to the 
 disciples. The fate of the unfruitful branches is pictured 
 with terrible clearness : " taken away (ver. 2), cast forth, 
 withered, gathered, cast into the fire, burned " (ver. 6). 
 A judgment, beginning already in this life and extending 
 into eternity, reminding us strongly of the preaching of 
 John the Baptist : " Every tree that bringeth not forth 
 good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire " (Matt, 
 iii. 10). To avoid this the branches must be subject to 
 the pruning discipline of the husbandman. It is either 
 aipziv or -/.aOaiptv^ ; either the things that are evil must 
 be taken away, and thus the branches cleaned, or we 
 ourselves will be cut off. On the other hand, those 
 branches that begin to bear fruit have the promise of 
 being watched over and constantly improved by the 
 pruning, purifying discipline of the Father. In this the 
 Son also has His share, for it is through Christ's word 
 that the disciples are being cleaned. With His words 
 abiding in them and the open access to the throne of 
 grace through Him, the disciples will be kept as such 
 in the spirit of true discipleship, bringing forth much 
 fruit to the honor and praise of the Father. 
 
 2, Abiding in His Love by Keeping His Coniiuandnients 
 (xv. 9-17). 
 
 9-17. Even as the Father hath loved ine, I also have loved you : abide 
 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. 
 14 
 
2IO THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv. 9, 10. 
 
 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy may be in you, and that 
 your joy may be fulfilled. This is my commandment, that ye love one 
 another, even 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 
 the things which I command you. No longer do I call you servants; for 
 the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth : but I have called you 
 friends ; for all things that I heard from my Father I have made known 
 unto you. Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you, 
 that ye should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide : that 
 whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 
 These things I command you, that ye may love one another. 
 
 The life-union between the vine and the branches is 
 substantially a union of love. It is true, this love makes 
 its demands upon the disciples and must be evidenced by 
 keeping His commandments, but it is not, in the first 
 place, the result of an outward, legal commandment. It 
 springs from that unspeakable gift of love which the 
 disciples have received in Christ : " I have loved you." 
 Here is the beginning of this loving union between Christ 
 and His own, as between the vine and the branches. 
 And with what manner of love has He loved them ! 
 " Even as the Father hath loved Me." Here is the true 
 head-spring of all love, the love existing 'from eternity 
 between the Father and the Son. All the love between 
 Christ and His own is simply the outcome of the Father's 
 love to Him and in Him; the flowing over of that divine 
 love upon men, who thus receive a taste of the loving 
 communion between the Father and the Son, and become 
 aware that they owe their life and salvation to this love 
 which brought the everlasting Son into this world of sin 
 and death. 
 
 To abide in this loving union with Christ, the disciples 
 must needs keep His commandments. A great deal is 
 included in this comprehensive term " ;//j' love:''' His 
 love to us ; our love to Him; our love to the brethren 
 which binds us together in spiritual union with our 
 
XV. lo, II.] CHAPTER XV. 2ii 
 
 fellow-believers. The keeping of His commandments in 
 this connection certainly has nothing of a legalistic bond- 
 age in it. There is an inspiring parallelism and example 
 to it, when the Lord says : " Even as I have kept My 
 Father's commandments and abide in His love." The 
 love of the Father has moved the Son to undertake the 
 work of redemption. " Lo, I come : I delight to do Thy 
 will " (Psalm xl, 7, 8). Down to the very end of His 
 earthly life, through all the details of His life, passion 
 and death, Christ has this unbroken testimony with Him 
 of an absolute, loving, faithful submission to the will of 
 the Father. (See the opening of John's account of the 
 passion of Christ at the beginning of chapter xiii., and 
 especially the agony in the garden of Gethsemane with the 
 prayer: " Thy will be done.") Thus also the love of the 
 disciples to Christ is to be demonstrated and preserved in 
 a similar manner by keeping His commandments. 
 
 With the love of Christ also the joy of Christ will be 
 the blessed inheritance of the disciples. " These things 
 have I spoken unto you, that My joy may be in you and that 
 your joy may be fulfilled." This means neither His joy 
 in them or over them, nor their rejoicing in Him, but it 
 refers to that quiet, holy, inward cheerfulness, which 
 characterized Christ during the years of His life on earth. 
 Though we have no record of special manifestations of 
 great outward joy, but rather the distinct testimony, that 
 the Lord wept, at least, on three different occasions, still 
 the picture of Christ's life on earth, as drawn by the 
 Evangelist, gives us the impression, that through all the 
 conflicts of His life He was full of a heavenly peace and 
 joy, of which the world had no conception. This joy of 
 His sprung from His consciousness of the love of God, 
 His unity with the Father, and it does not leave Him 
 even now on the way to the cross. Such heavenly joy is 
 
212 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv. 11-13. 
 
 to pass over to the disciples, so that they may, in this 
 respect, be like their Master, and enjoy a perfect, heav- 
 enly peace, surpassing all the happiness they may have 
 had before. 
 
 Christ Himself is the headspring and the example of 
 every good and perfect thing which His. disciples are to 
 have. Their joy is to be like His joy ;. their love is to be 
 like His love. In order to give His disciples an approxi- 
 mate idea of that love from which their own brotherly 
 love is to draw its inspiration, the Lord condescends to a 
 truly human comparison : " Greater love hath no man 
 than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." 
 These words are, in this connection, not meant to bring 
 out the full purpose and meaning of His death, as an 
 atonement for the sins of the world. We know that 
 Christ died not only for these. His friends. " He is the 
 propitiation not for our sins only, but for the sins of the 
 whole world " (i John ii. 2). And " God commendeth His 
 love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ 
 died for us " (Rom. v. 6-8). But in speaking of the 
 sacrifice of His life the Lord here simply describes His 
 unbounded devotion to those beloved ones, whom He 
 honored with His love and friendship then and there. 
 Of course, the general character and bearing of Christ's 
 love, as manifested in His atoning death, must at once be 
 recognized, when the question is raised : " How is it that 
 these weak, erring, sinful men ever became the ' friends ' 
 of the Holy One of Lsrael?" We answer, with Luther : 
 " Formerly they were His enemies, but now they are 
 friends, simply because He counts them as such. Not 
 that they had done Him any good, but He is doing them 
 all the good He can. For such ' friends ' He layeth 
 down His life, who never did Him any good ; but He 
 loved them and made them friends." 
 
XV. 14, 15-] CHAPTER XV. 213 
 
 While the Lord insists that, in order to abide in His 
 friendship, the disciples must " do the things which I 
 command you," He nevertheless strongly emphasizes the 
 honor of the title " friend " over against the title and 
 position of " servant." "Ye are My friends, — no longer 
 do I call you servants." Abraham, the father of be- 
 lievers, enjoyed this high honor of being called the friend 
 of God (Jas. ii. 23). Once before the Lord had, indeed, 
 called the disciples " friends " (Luke xii. 4), but not with 
 that clearly defined distinction from " servants," as in 
 this passage. And certainly in the narrative of the Syn- 
 optical Gospels the disciples appear throughout in the at- 
 titude of servants. But now, in these last discourses, when 
 they are drawn so closely to the heart of their departing 
 Master, they are honored with the position of " friends." 
 The fact that the fullest and most confidential com- 
 munications are passed from person to person, is every- 
 where among men recognized as an evidence of close 
 friendship. The same is here mentioned by the Lord to 
 prove the intimate relation into which He has admitted 
 the disciples. " I have called you friends ; for all things 
 that I heard from My Father, I have made known unto 
 you." They are to have a full insight into God's plan of 
 redemption. It is, of course, one thing, and the first 
 thing, that the Lord should communicate to the disciples 
 those things which He has heard from the Father. But 
 it is another thing, and also essential to the continuation 
 of that honored and privileged position of friends, that 
 the disciples must show an interest in these revelations, 
 and strive to penetrate into an ever fuller and deeper 
 understanding of God's mysteries. The statement that 
 the Lord made known to the disciples all things that He 
 heard from His Father is not in conflict with what we 
 read in chapter xvi. 12: "I have yet many things to 
 
214 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv, i6. 
 
 say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now." His com- 
 munications to them were necessarily all along condi- 
 tioned by their capacity to grasp them ; and a most im- 
 portant part of these communications is the doctrine, that 
 the Paraclete will come to take the Lord's place and to 
 guide them into all truth. 
 
 Having thus magnified the privileged position of His 
 disciples, the Lord adds another statement which will 
 have the effect to keep them humble, by reminding them 
 of the origin of their relation as friends. There is no 
 equality here, and reciprocity as in the usual relations of 
 human friendship. The distance is too great between 
 the disciples and their " friend " whom they more and 
 more learn to recognize as their Lord and their God. 
 The initiative in forming this friendship-relation is al- 
 together with Christ. They did not choose Him but He 
 chose them. How vividly did John remember all the 
 details of that first call ! (See the personal reminiscences 
 contained in John i. 37-41.) The choosing of the 
 Twelve which the Lord here so strongly emphasizes as 
 His own act and decision, was a very solemn and impor- 
 tant event in His life. " He went out into the mountain 
 to pray ; and He continued all night in prayer to God ; 
 and when it was day. He called His disciples " (Luke vi. 
 12, 13). And how much patience, condescension, com- 
 passion and intercession was needed through those three 
 years of His public ministry, to keep them from falling 
 away, to hold them steadfast in their relation as friends ! 
 
 Having chosen them, the Lord "appointed them that 
 they should go and bear fruit and that their fruit should 
 abide." They must "^c?." Thus far they stayed with Him 
 and clung to Him, as their friend, instructor and rector, 
 whose eyes were constantly upon them, and to whom they 
 could look for advice and oversight. But now the time 
 
XV. i6.] CHAPTER XV. 215 
 
 is coming when they themselves must go. They must 
 face a hostile world. They must stand up in mature man- 
 hood and fight their own battles. They go forth, no 
 longer servants, who receive their order from day to day, 
 from hour to hour, but friends, who understand their 
 friend at the right hand of the Father. Of course this 
 new position of manly responsibility is not one of loose 
 and unbounded independence and subjectivism. They 
 go, but they keep close to His word and Spirit, thus abid- 
 ing in His truth. 
 
 Thus going they shall bear fruit. Their lifework is not 
 to be the doing of certain outward things, mechanically, 
 here a little, there a little after an atomistic fashion ; it is 
 bearing fruit : there is to be a coherent, organic growth 
 on the tree of their Christian character, a unit of un- 
 broken development. 
 
 And the fruit which they bear shall abide. There is 
 eternity in this word. Whatever influence may have 
 been gained by prominent men in the history of the 
 world, lasting possibly through many centuries, as in the 
 case of the ancient greek poets and philosophers, all this 
 dwindles into nothing before this word of Christ : " fruit 
 that shall abide." It abideth not only after they are 
 gone, or after their generation is gone, but after this 
 present world is gone. It is fruit following them into 
 eternity and abiding there for ever and ever ! However 
 lowly his outward position in this world may be, every 
 Christian that is faithfully working out his salvation with 
 fear and trembling, and conscientiously doing his duty 
 towards God's kingdom, is bearing fruit for eternity. 
 
 3. T/ie World's Hatred agaijist the Diseiples {x.v. 18-25). 
 
 18-25. If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before 
 it haled yon. If ye were of the world, tlie world would love its own : but 
 
2l6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv. i8, 19. 
 
 because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, there- 
 fore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, A 
 servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted me, they will also 
 persecute you ; if they kept my word, 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. If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had 
 not had sin : but now they have no excuse for their sin. He that hateth 
 me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works 
 which none other 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 
 may be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause 
 
 In the preceding verses the Lord has drawn a picture 
 of the wondrous love which has its heavenly and ever- 
 lasting source in the union between the Father and the 
 Son, which is revealed on earth through the Son, which 
 is reflected in the disciples : the Father loves the Son ; 
 the Son loves the disciples, whom the Father has given 
 Him; the disciples recognize the Father's love through 
 the Son. But there is a strange and unexpected anti- 
 thesis to this manifestation of love. These beloved 
 disciples are hated by the world. In them Christ is 
 hated by the world, and in Christ the Father ; a con- 
 tinuous revelation of hatred from below, over against 
 the revelation of love from above. The Lord must 
 speak to the disciples most fully and directly of this 
 hatred of the world, in order to guard them against 
 taking offence in this unexpected experience that awaits 
 them. They are to be forewarned and forearmed. They 
 must not look upon it "as though a strange thing 
 happened unto them" (i Peter iv. 12). The fact that 
 Christ's own people are hated by the world, must not be 
 a discouragement for the disciples, but rather the reverse: 
 it proves that they are not of the world, but of Christ. 
 
 It would indeed be a bad sign for the disciples if the 
 world should not hate them. For in this case the world 
 would recognize " its own " in them, and this worldly 
 
XV. 19, 20.] CHAPTER XV. 217 
 
 spirit would be agreeable and lovable to the world. We 
 find in this term an indication of that deep-seated 
 egotism of the world, which, even where it seems to love, 
 does not really and truly love the person, but only its 
 own principles, its anti-godly, anti-christian spirit. Herod 
 and Pilate may recognize and love in each other the 
 common aversion and opposition to God's kingdom, they 
 may thus for a while be united against Christ, but at the 
 bottom of their heart they are bitterly opposed to each 
 other, they hate each other personally. 
 
 The Lord is very careful in defining the reason why 
 the disciples will be hated by the world. It is because 
 they are not of the world, because He has chosen them 
 out of the world. This principle must be most conscien- 
 tiously applied to individual cases. Wherever Christians 
 meet with the enmity and hatred of the world, they must 
 carefully examine themselves, whether it is not through 
 their own faults, sins and shortcomings that the ani- 
 mosity and hostility of the world is drawn out against 
 them. Certainly " the name of the Lord " and Christian- 
 ity as such, should not be charged with what is due to 
 their own personal perversity. Peter, by his own sad 
 experience, had learned to draw this line of distinction 
 very carefully. " Let none of you suffer as an evildoer — 
 but if a man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed ; 
 but let him glorify God in this name. Blessed are ye if 
 ye are reproached for the name of Christ" (i Peter iv. 
 14-15). This blessed name, the open confession of 
 Christ as the Son of the everlasting God and the Messiah, 
 sent by His Father, must be the true and real cause of the 
 world's enmity which they have to encounter. 
 
 The Lord reminds the disciples of His words, spoken 
 before, that the servant is not greater than his Lord, nor 
 the disciple above his Master. They will fare no better 
 
2i8 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHX. [xv. 20-22. 
 
 than He. And this very experience of the hatred of the 
 world is part of the '' perfecting " of the disciples in the 
 hkeness of their Master (Luke vi. 40). It is certainly to 
 the encouragement of the disciples that these words are 
 spoken. As surely as the world recognizes in them the 
 Master's likeness, so surely will they receive the very 
 same treatment as Christ. If it persecuted Him, it will 
 also persecute the disciples ; if it kept His word, it will 
 keep theirs also. But did the world ever keep His word? 
 What is the evidence on this point as the disciples had it 
 before their eyes ? Did not the Lord Himself declare to 
 His enemies : "Ye do not understand My speech even 
 because ye cannot hear My word " (John viii. 43). Must 
 we then take this reference of Christ to the keeping of 
 His word as a bitter irony, which meant to state the very 
 opposite, namely a sharp complaint that the world, as 
 world, never received and kept His word, and that the 
 disciples must not expect anything better ? Some com- 
 mentators, however, still hold that these words of the 
 Lord are to be taken in their direct, literal meaning, that 
 after all there were some men in the midst of an un- 
 believing world, who did receive and keep His word, and 
 that the disciples also might expect the same result from 
 their preaching and teaching. While this is certainly 
 true and fully borne out by the testimony of the Book of 
 the Acts, we might still question whether this idea would, 
 in this connection, be in its proper place. 
 
 With peculiar emphasis the Lord brings out the re- 
 sponsibility of the world for its refusal to receive His 
 word. If He had not spoken, — if He had not done 
 among them the things which none other did, they had 
 not had sin ; but now they are without excuse. The 
 world cannot possibly plead ignorance. They know all 
 about Jesus, who has testified before their ears again 
 
XV. 22-25-] CHAPTER XV. 219 
 
 and again concerning His divine character and mission. 
 But they hardened themselves against His testimony in 
 the fixed determination not to yield to Him, not to ac- 
 cept His word; thus showing their opposition and hatred 
 against Him and the Father who sent Him. And in ad- 
 dition to the testimony of His words there is that of His 
 works, done among them, before their eyes, undeniable 
 facts, which proved too strong even for their searching 
 criticism, as in the case of the man that was born blind 
 (John ix.). But even this testimony is lost on them. 
 What a monstrous conclusion, in conflict with logic and 
 philosophy, as well as religion. They have seen His 
 works and seen Him in those works, the exponent of the 
 Father's love for our fallen and dying race, and — they 
 hate both Him and the Father! This is that great " new 
 sin," as Luther calls it, " the sin against His word " and 
 testimony, for which there is absolutely no excuse. 
 
 But this very opposition is to be understood as a direct 
 sign and evidence of Christ's Messianic character and pos- 
 ition. It was all foreseen and foretold by the spirit of 
 prophecy. The sixty-ninth Psalm, to which the Lord 
 here refers, was commonly accepted as a Messianic psalm 
 by the Jewish scholars in the days of our Lord. It is 
 one of the psalms most frequently quoted in the New 
 Testament, particularly in connection with the passion 
 of the Lord. Being thus assured from the word of God, 
 in the Old Testament, concerning the enmity of the world 
 against the Messiah, the disciples are sufficiently fortified 
 against the danger of taking offence in this experience. 
 The hatred of the world appears in the light of God's 
 word, as a testimony both for the Messiah and for His 
 disciples: No true Christ without the hatred of the 
 world ; no true Christians without the hatred of the 
 world. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 V. New Parting Discourse — Continued. 
 4. Jesus Sending the Spirit (xv. 26 — xvi. 15). 
 
 XV. 26-27. 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 bear witness of me : and ye also bear witness, because ye 
 have been with me from the beginning. 
 
 XVI. i-i 5. These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be 
 made to stumble. They shall put you out of the synagogues : yea, the hour 
 Cometh, that whosoever killeth you shall think that he offereth service 
 unto God. And these things will they do, because they have not known 
 the Father, nor me. But these things have I spoken unto you, that when 
 their hour is come, ye may remember them, how that I told you. And 
 these things I said not unto you from the beginning, because I was with 
 you. But now I go unto him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, 
 Whither goest thou ? But because I have spoken these things unto you, 
 sorrow hath filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth ; It is ex- 
 pedient for you that I go away : for if I go not away, the Comforter will not 
 ome unto you ; but if I go, I will send him unto you. And he, when he is 
 come, will convict the world in respect of sin, and of righteousness, and of 
 j udgement : of sin, because they believe not on me ; of righteousness, because 
 I go to the Father, and ye behold me no more; of judgement, because the 
 prince of this world hath been judged. 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 shall guide you into all the truth : for he shall not speak from 
 himself; but what things soever he shall hear, these shall he speak : and he 
 shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall glorify me : 
 for he shall take of mine, and shall declare // unto you. All things whatso- 
 ever the Feather hath are mine : therefore said I, that he taketh of mine, 
 and shall declare it unto you. 
 
 The Lord Himself departing, and the hatred of the 
 world impending, what could be more welcome to the 
 
 220 
 
XV. 26, 27.] ^ CHAPTER XVT. 221 
 
 disciples at this point than the renewed promise of the 
 coming of the Paraclete (advocate, comforter) of whom 
 the Son had spoken before ? Two distinct statements 
 are made concerning this " Spirit of Truth." First : The 
 Lord "will send Him unto the disciples from the 
 Father." Second: " He proceedeth from the Father." 
 These two statements are not identical. The one is in 
 the future tense, referring to the outpouring of the Spirit 
 on the approaching day of Pentecost. The other is in 
 the present tense, referring to the never-changing present 
 of Eternity ; the Spirit's relation to the Father being 
 described as an everlasting proceeding from the Father. 
 As the Father is included in the act of sending the Spirit 
 on the day of Pentecost, the Son is not excluded in the 
 everlasting " proceeding " of the Spirit. The Nicene 
 creed rightly says of the Holy Spirit, " Who proceedeth 
 from the Father and the Son," though there is no direct 
 literal reference to the latter in the passage here be- 
 fore us. 
 
 The Holy Spirit shall " bear witness " of Christ, — an- 
 other distinctly /^rj't';^/ activity ascribed to Him. He 
 is to be a witness of Christ in the first place to the apos- 
 tles themselves. In the face of the hatred of the world, 
 the disciples are to be strengthened and comforted by the 
 Holy Spirit assuring them, that in spite of the hostility 
 of the world, Jesus is the Christ, the Way and the Truth 
 and the Life. It is through this influence of the Holy 
 Spirit that the disciples themselves come to that full and 
 clear understanding of Christ, and that bold and correct 
 utterance, which makes them true witnesses of the cruci- 
 fied and risen Lord. By His inspiration their testimony 
 is made sure and infallible. But there is a clear distinc- 
 tion between two kinds of testimony in these words of the 
 Lord. The Spirit testifies, and the apostles testify. And 
 
222 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xv. 27. xvi. i, 2. 
 
 they hold this position as witnesses even now, before the 
 day of Pentecost. Before their preaching went forth into 
 the world, before their epistles and gospels were written, 
 the disciples were called and in some measure enabled to 
 be the witnesses of the Lord. " That which we have heard, 
 that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we 
 beheld and our hands handled — declare we unto you " 
 (i John i. i). "We were eye-witnesses of His majesty. 
 We ourselves heard the voice come out of heaven, when 
 we were with Him on the holy mount " (2 Peter i. 16-18). 
 Two features then are beautifully and inseparably blend- 
 ing in the testimony of the apostles : the human factor 
 and the divine ; their knowledge of Christ as eye-wit- 
 nesses of His life, and their knowledge of Christ through 
 the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. As mere men the 
 apostles are credible witnesses, being plain, honest, con- 
 scientious men, who simply report what they have seen 
 and heard. And as the inspired organs of the Holy 
 Spirit they have a right to insist that their message be 
 accepted " not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, 
 the word of God " (i Thess. ii. 13). 
 
 XVI. I. The aim of the Lord in all these statements 
 is, that the disciples should not be made to " stumble," 
 when these violent persecutions which are here predicted, 
 should fall upon them. It was indeed a terrible thought 
 for the sincere and faithful Israelite, to be put out of the 
 synagogue, as "the Jews had agreed already that if any 
 man did confess that He was Christ, he should be put out 
 of the synagogue" (John ix. 22). This was the very 
 thing that kept many of the chief rulers from confessing 
 Him "lest they should be put out of the synagogue by 
 the Pharisees" (John xii. 42). But not only excommuni- 
 cation but proscription and death itself awaited them. 
 And, worst of all, the fanaticism of their persecutors 
 
XVI. 2-6.] CHAPTER XVI. - 223 
 
 glories in these acts of violence against the Christians as 
 a veritable " service unto God," though the Lord pro- 
 tests that they arise from not knowing the Father nor 
 the Son.i 
 
 On former occasions the Lord had indeed already re- 
 ferred to such experiences of His disciples. See Matt, 
 v. 10-12; X. 17-21 ff., 36; Luke vi. 22; xii. ii ff. But 
 the real principle of all these persecutions had never be- 
 fore been so fully declared, namely, the hatred of the 
 world against God Himself. 
 
 In view of all these revelations it is no wonder that the 
 hearts of the disciples should be filled with sorrow on 
 account of the departure of their Lord. But the full 
 meaning, the aim and end of this departure (the 
 "whither?") was not yet understood by them. And 
 thus it could happen, that the very same words which for 
 centuries have been an inexhaustible fountain of conso- 
 lation and joy for thousands of believers, filled the hear- 
 ers with sorrow when they were first spoken. The dis- 
 ciples were overwhelmed with the Lord's going away 
 frojn them; but Wis going to the Father was nothing to 
 them. For this reason the Lord emphasizes the 
 "Whither?" They ought to enquire into the aim and 
 end of His way, and they would find that His going to 
 the Father means going to a state of exaltation, to heav- 
 enly glory. 
 
 The Lord then proceeds to unfold before the disciples 
 
 1 Luther, the faithful and devoted child of the Mediaeval Church, tasted this 
 bitter cup to the very dregs. His remark on this passage " they will sing 
 a Te Deum laudamus over these things " proved to be an exact prophecy 
 with regard to the massacre of .St. Bartholomew, Aug. 24, 1572. When the 
 news of this horror reached Rome, the Pope, attended by the Cardinals 
 and other ecclesiastical dignitaries, went in long procession to the Church 
 of .St. Louis, where the Cardinal of Lorraine chanted a Te Deum. (See 
 Henry White : The Massacre of St. Bartholomew, p. 466.) 
 
224 ^-^^ GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 7-9. 
 
 the blessings resulting from His departure. " If I go not 
 away the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I go 
 I will send Him unto you." Only after the Lord has 
 been glorified by His death and resurrection can the 
 Spirit come (John vii. 39). And only when they are 
 deprived of the visible, bodily presence of the Lord will 
 the apostles themselves be in a proper condition to re- 
 ceive the Holy Ghost and to be benefited by His great 
 deepening work in their souls. Thus far outward, visible 
 things and material conceptions of God's kingdom had 
 engrossed their minds, but now they will become truly 
 spiritual. 
 
 The work of the Paraclete will have two objects : the 
 world and the hearts of the disciples. The world will be 
 convicted by Him in respect of sin and of righteousness 
 and of judgment. In whatever form and in whatever 
 circles " the world " may be found, it will be thus at- 
 tacked, reproved, convicted by the testimony of the 
 Spirit, whether it will submit to it by repentance and 
 faith, or harden itself against it. Of Sin the world will 
 be convicted, " because they believe not on Christ'' This 
 is indeed a new definition of sin, not recognized in the 
 world. At the very best "the world" will count as sinful 
 the things forbidden in the second table of the decalogue. 
 The sphere of " believing " or not believing is generally 
 regarded by the world as a matter of freedom and in- 
 difference, for which men ought not to be held morally 
 responsible. But now, under this new testimony of the 
 Holy Spirit, the refusal to accept Christ and to believe 
 in Him is to be considered the one great culminating sin 
 above all others. All the sin of the world, however 
 heinous the transgression of the divine law may be, can 
 be overcome and wiped out, men can be delivered from 
 its guilt, its power and condemnation through God's grace 
 
XVI. lo.] CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 225 
 
 in Christ. But where Christ is refused, men will remain 
 in their sin, in spite of the Gospel, and thus bring upon 
 themselves everlasting ruin. Of righteousness the world 
 is to be convicted " because I go to the Father, and ye be- 
 hold Me no more'' This also is a new and .startling defi- 
 nition. We know what an important place the idea of 
 " righteousness " held in the teaching of the Jewish 
 doctors, and in the practice of the chief rulers, scribes 
 and Pharisees, at the time of Christ's public life on earth. 
 We also know how severely Christ condemned " the 
 righteousness of the Pharisees and scribes" (Matt. v. 20; 
 Matt. vi. ; Matt, xxiii. ; Luke xviii. 9). But now, to find 
 out what righteousness is, the eyes of the world are 
 directed to that same Christ, in whom they would not 
 believe, whom they cast out and rejected, but who went 
 to the Father, through the shame of the cross to the 
 glory of resurrection and ascension. " The Holy and 
 Righteous One whom the Jews denied, the Prince of Life 
 whom they killed, was raised from the dead " (Acts iii. 
 14, 15). Thus He was "justified in the Spirit " (i Tim. 
 iii. 16), " declared to be the Son of God with power, ac- 
 cording to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection of 
 the dead " (Rom. i. 4). Christ's going to the Father im- 
 plies then, in the first place. His own personal vindication 
 and justification, as the One who knew no sin, who did 
 not suffer and die for His own sin. But He was made 
 sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteous- 
 ness of God in Him (2 Cor. v. 21). Our righteousness 
 then is, to " believe on Him that raised Jesus our Lord 
 from the dead, who was delivered up for our trespasses, 
 and was raised for our justification " (Rom. iv. 24, 25). 
 Thus Christ's going to the Father establishes not only 
 His own personal vindication, but at the same time our 
 justification before God through faith in the crucified 
 15 
 
226 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. i r-14. 
 
 and risen Saviour. It is a righteousness not of works, 
 but of faith, not of seeing, but of beHeving on Him who 
 went to the Father through His passion, death and glori- 
 fication. Of judgment the world is to be convicted by 
 the Spirit of truth, " because the prince of this ivorld hath 
 been Judged.'" In the passion and death of Jesus Christ 
 there was indeed an act of judgment passed before the 
 eyes of the world. Jesus of Nazareth seemed to be 
 judged and cast out as a criminal, even as the great Plato 
 divined in his famous description of the treatment of the 
 " righteous " one, if he should ever appear in this world. ^ 
 But in reality it is not Christ, the Prince of Life, who is 
 judged, but the Prince of this world. His power is 
 broken. The serpent's head is bruised. His cause is 
 lost. With him the world is doomed. The final and 
 eternal judgment awaits it, and every one will fall under 
 it who does not find delivery from his sin in the right- 
 eousness of Christ. 
 
 Besides this work of convicting the world of sin, right- 
 eousness and judgment, the Paraclete finds a great deal 
 to do in the hearts of the believing disciples : He shall 
 guide them into all truth. He shall glorify Christ in their 
 hearts. There are yet many things the Lord has to say 
 to the disciples, but they cannot bear them now. From 
 different sides the enemies of truth have tried to shield 
 themselves behind these words. Here the Romanists 
 
 1 Plato, De republ. II,, 361 ff. in a passage which has often been quoted 
 by ancient and modern writers on evidences of Christianity, says : " First 
 of all he must be deprived of his good narne, — next, of all his possessions, 
 except righteousness; he must be brought into conflict with his rulers, so 
 that he is actually treated as the most unrighteous, though he has done 
 nothing unrighteous whatsoever. Such a righteous one would be bound, 
 scourged and his eyes put out, and having endured all these tortures, he 
 would be nailed to the pole, so that it would be manifest that he was 
 anxious not to appear as righteous, but to be so in reality." 
 
XVI. 12-15] CHAPTER XVI. 227 
 
 seek to establish the authority of their innumerable tradi- 
 tions, decrees and decisions set up by their councils and 
 the " infallible " bishop of Rome. But if those things 
 are the truth that were taught in the councils of the 
 mediaeval church, " Then," says Luther, " the apostles 
 have never come into possession of the full truth." On 
 the other hand, modern Rationalism has claimed this 
 passage in favor of what it calls " a progressive Chris- 
 tianity." The gospel of Christ, with the plain facts of 
 the Apostles' Creed, it is said, must be developed into the 
 " gospel of the Spirit," meaning thereby the spirit of the 
 time, to which, one after another, the old truths are to 
 be sacrificed, leaving nothing but a sort of molluscous 
 Christianity, without the strong backbone of the great 
 Gospel-facts. 
 
 Over against such views we hold that the Spirit did 
 '■'guide the disciples into all truth " and that this word of 
 our Lord assures to us both the credibility and the suffi- 
 ciency of the apostolic testimony in the canon of the 
 New Testament. Moreover the Lord lays down the 
 standard, by which whatever claims to be the Spirit's 
 witnessing must be tested : " He shall not speak of Him- 
 self ; He shall take of Mine ; He shall glorify Me.'' Even 
 as the Son Himself did not speak of His own, but re- 
 vealed what He had from the Father, so the Spirit con- 
 tinues that same revelation of the Father and the Son. 
 And as the Spirit is a spirit of prophecy, it is naturally 
 His province to " declare the things that are to conic y 
 Though the Lord Himself, especially in His eschatological 
 discourses (Matt. xxiv. and xxv.) had dwelt on the last 
 things, still there were many points concerning the con- 
 summation of Christ's kingdom, which were to be fully 
 brought out by the Apostles, as taught by the Holy 
 Spirit. (See i Thess. iv. 13 ; 2 Thess. ii. 1-12 ; Rom. xi. 
 
228 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 15. 
 
 25, 26; I Cor. XV. 50; 2 Peter iii. 10 and the Book of 
 Revelation.) The passage closes with one of the most 
 direct and comprehensive testimonies as to the divinity 
 of Christ and His co-equality with the Father, whose 
 throne and whose glory belong likewise to the Son, in 
 whom dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily 
 (Col. ii. 9). Nothing less than this is contained in this 
 statement : " All tilings, ivJiatsocvcr the Father hath, are 
 itiiiie." 
 
 5. Last Words to the Disciples (xvi. 16-33). 
 
 16-33. A little while, and ye behold me no more; and again a little 
 while, and ye shall see me. Some of his disciples therefore said one to 
 another, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye behold 
 me not ; and again a little wiiile, 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 know not what he saith. Jesus perceived that they were 
 desirous to ask him, and he said unto them. Do ye inquire among your- 
 selves concerning this, that I said, A little while, and ye behold me not, 
 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 : ye shall be 
 sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman when she 
 is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come : but when she is deliv- 
 ered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for the joy that 
 a man is born into the world. And ye therefore now have sorrow : but I 
 will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no one taketh 
 away from you. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, venly, 
 I say unto you. If ye shall ask anything of the Father, he will ^ive it you 
 in my name. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name : ask, and ye 
 shall receive, that your joy may be fulfilled. 
 
 These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs : the hour cometh, 
 when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but shall tell you plainly 
 of the Father. In that day ye shall ask in my name : and I say not unto 
 you, that I will pray the Father for you ; fen" the Father himself loveth you, 
 because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came forth from the 
 Father. I came out from the Father, and am come into the world : again, 
 I leave the world, and go unto the Father. His disciples say, Lo, now 
 speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. Now know we 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 answered them. Do ye 
 
XVI. 1 6-20.] CHAPTER XVI. 229 
 
 now believe ? Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is come, that ye shall be 
 scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and_j'^/Iam 
 not alone, because the Father is with me. These things have I spoken 
 unto you, that in me ye may have peace. In the w^orld ye have tribula- 
 tion ; but be of good cheer ; I have overcome the world. 
 
 The first question in the consideration of this passage 
 is, what is implied in the promise of Christ to the disci- 
 ples : " Ye shall see Me ? " Is it His return after His resur- 
 rection ? or His coming through the Paraclete on Pente- 
 cost ? or His second Advent to judge the quick and the 
 dead? or are we to combine all these three dates, in order 
 to do full justice to this promise of the Lord ? There 
 can hardly be any doubt that with the words : " A little 
 while and ye behold Me no more " the Lord refers to His 
 imminent death. And consequently it seems most nat- 
 ural and in keeping with the context to think of the re-ap- 
 pearance of the risen Lord when He says: "And again 
 a little while and ye shall see Me." The " little while " 
 before His departure and " the little while " between 
 His departure and His re-appearance would thus be most 
 evenly balanced. 
 
 These words of the Lord, however, were evidently a 
 great mystery to the disciples. Their perplexity is graph- 
 ically described in verses 17, 18, culminating in the con- 
 fession : " We know not what He saith." Most tenderly 
 does the Lord meet them in their difficulty by repeating 
 the very question that agitates their hearts. And yet in 
 the following argument He does not really and fully 
 enter upon an explanation of the " little while," but He 
 gives them a graphic description of the wonderful change 
 which those two experiences represent : first not behold- 
 ing Him, and then seeing Him again. It is a change 
 from weeping and lamenting, in sorrow over the beloved 
 dead, into jo}'. The antagonism between the disciples 
 
230 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 20, 21. 
 
 and the world which has before been described in the 
 hatred and persecution of the disciples, is once more mani- 
 fested in this connection : The world rejoicing and the 
 disciples sorrowful, and vice versa. These two different 
 impressions and experiences on the part of the world and 
 the disciples are not simply simultaneous in time, but 
 they are based on one and the same fact. The very 
 same thing that makes the world rejoice, makes the disci- 
 ples lament : The departure of the Lord, His death and 
 disappearance. Not to see Christ, is the joy of the 
 world and the sorrow of the disciples. The world is glad 
 that He is dead and buried out of sight. But on Easter 
 morning the scales are turned. The empty tomb be- 
 comes the joy of the disciples, and the terror of the 
 world. 
 
 Again : the great change from sorrow into joy is not 
 simply a new and opposite experience following the first 
 one. There is the closest connection between the sorrow 
 that precedes and the joy that follows. It is not only one 
 after another, but one out of the other. Their sorrow 
 itself shall be turned into joy — " as the water was turned 
 into wine," says Bengel, so that the very thing that was 
 first the cause of sorrow and lamentation, shall be recog- 
 nized by them as a wonderful source of joy and happi- 
 ness. When the disciples shall have learned to under- 
 stand the full meaning of the cross of Christ, the very 
 passion and death of the Lord will be to them the object 
 of boundless joy and glorying (Gal. vi. 14). " Worthy is 
 the Lamb that hath been slain to receive the power, and 
 riches, and wisdom, and might, and honour, and glory, and 
 blessing" (Rev. v. 12). 
 
 The most realistic illustration not only of this sudden 
 transition from sorrow to joy, but of the fact that the 
 woe itself is turned into joy, is given in the figure of the 
 
XVI. 21, 22.] CHAPTER XVI. 231 
 
 woman in travail. Out of the hour of anguish, peril and 
 pain comes the great joy, " that a man is born into the 
 world." Though with these words the Lord meant to 
 illustrate the experience of the disciples only, there is a 
 striking parallelism between His own experience and 
 theirs from Good Friday to Easter morning. The very 
 agony through which He passed in the garden of Geth- 
 semane and on the cross of Calvary when His hour had 
 come, brought into life that glorious victory of Easter 
 morning, by which He triumphed over sin, death and the 
 devil. Thus the Lord's own anguish was turned into 
 joy. But the real and direct application of this figure is 
 to the disciples. To them those dark hours of the pas- 
 sion of their Lord, brought the most terrible experience of 
 their life. Never before were the apostles so overwhelmed 
 with the consciousness of their unworthiness, never before 
 did they suffer such bitter pangs of despair and of judg- 
 ment over their sin, as in the night when the Lord was 
 betrayed, when they all forsook Him, when Peter denied 
 Him. And never was the healing, quickening grace of 
 their Lord and Saviour greater before their eyes, than 
 when He met them with the Easter-greeting of forgive- 
 ness and reconciliation : Peace be with you ! Out of 
 that deep sorrow of repentance came that grateful, joy- 
 ful faith, which grasped the risen Saviour, and found in 
 Him, who had been delivered up for their sins, a full and 
 abiding justification, the very righteousness of God 
 (Rom. iv. 25 ; 2 Cor. v. 21). 
 
 This great change from sorrow to joy is altogether due to 
 the Lord. He takes the initiative : " I zvill sec you again^ 
 His promise had been that in Galilee He would appear 
 again to His disciples and gather anew His scattered 
 flock. But after the great victory is won, the good Shep- 
 herd cannot wait so long. He looks after His distressed 
 
232 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 22, 23. 
 
 disciples^ on the very day of His resurrection, in the City 
 of Jerusalem. And the joy He brings them is of a two- 
 fold character. It is a joy for their hearts and it is an 
 imperishable joy which no one taketh away from them. 
 This cannot be said of any of the so-called joys of the 
 world. They leave the very centre of the human person- 
 ality, the heart, unhappy and dissatisfied. But the dis- 
 ciples have the promise, that their heart shall rejoice and 
 that it shall be a lasting joy in an " inheritance incor- 
 ruptible and undefiled and that fadeth not away," " a joy 
 unspeakable and full of glory " (i Pet. i. 4, 6, 8). There 
 is a special comfort and encouragement in this assurance 
 of the Lord. With the antagonism existing between the 
 disciples and the world, they must be prepared to have 
 their joy meet with the interference and opposition of 
 the world. It is an offence to the world and if it only 
 could, the world would fain rob them of their joy. But 
 no one shall take it away from them. 
 
 Two important features are mentioned by the Lord as 
 characteristics of that perfect joy which He promises to 
 His disciples. In the first place: a clear insight into the 
 whole plan of salvation, as it will be understood by them 
 in the light of Christ's resurrection, making it unnecessary 
 for them to ask any more of such questions as they had 
 hitherto been addressing to the Lord. And then : an 
 open access to the throne of the Father, in the name of 
 the Son, that is, such privileges in their prayers as the 
 beloved children, as they have never enjoyed before. 
 This latter point is introduced by the Lord in that solemn 
 " Verily, Verily " (ver. 23) which always indicates a 
 matter of particularly grave importance or of special dif- 
 ficulty for the understanding of the disciples. There had, 
 
 ^ Remember also the saving look Christ gave to Peter after his denial 
 (Luke xxii. 61). 
 
XVI. 23, 24-] CHAPTER XVI. 233 
 
 indeed, been no lack of references to prayer in the teach- 
 ings of the Lord up to this point. From the very begin- 
 ning of His pubHc utterances the Lord had dwelt on the 
 necessity and the blessings of prayer and the assurance 
 of an answer from the heavenly Father. The Sermon on 
 the Mount already contains tiie model prayer for the 
 disciples, " the Lord's Prayer " (Matt. vi. 9-13), as well as 
 those positive and direct promises: Every one that 
 asketh, receiveth ; and he that seeketh findeth; and to 
 him that knocketh it shall be opened (Matt. vii. 7-9). 
 New features are added to these in Luke xi. 1-13 ; Luke 
 xviii. 1-8; Matt, xviii. 19; xxi. 22, and in a number of 
 passages in these last discourses, John xiv. 13, 14; xv. 7, 16. 
 But at this point we have the culmination of all the former 
 statements of the Lord concerning the prayers of His 
 disciples. He tells them plainly that hitherto they have 
 " asked nothing in His name." Their prayers up to this 
 point, at their very best, were like the prayers of the Old 
 Testament Saints. But a higher stage is to be reached : 
 Praying in the name of Jesus. Through the passion, 
 death and resurrection of the Lord the full and free access 
 has been opened to the Father's throne. Now begins the 
 true New Testament kind of prayer. The work of recon- 
 ciliation must be completed, the spirit must be given, 
 before there can be truly a prayer in the name of Jesus, 
 the prayer of a reconciled child of God, assured of the 
 Father's love, a prayer addressed to God as the Father, 
 in the name of His only begotten Son, our only Mediator. 
 The New Testament Church has most beautifully and 
 appropriately established the rule to close all her prayers, 
 particularly those precious and comprehensive collects, 
 with the expressed and distinct appeal to the Lord : 
 "through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord." But beau- 
 tiful and correct as this usage is, we know that the mere 
 
234 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 24, 25. 
 
 addition of these words will not make our prayer in 
 reality a prayer in the name of Jesus, To be such in 
 spirit and in truth it must be offered by a heart believing 
 in the redemption of Christ, and filled with the spirit of 
 Christ, having the same mind which was also in Jesus 
 (Phil. ii. 5) and which was manifested in His prayer in 
 the garden. To such a prayer there is, in reality, no 
 limitation or condition set by the Lord. " If ye shall ask 
 anytliing o[ the Father He will give it you in My name." 
 No wonder that to such a privilege of a praying child the 
 promise is attached of a perfect and boundless gratifica- 
 tion : "Ye shall receive, that your joy may be fulfilled." 
 Any gift that had been earnestly desired, hoped for and 
 asked for, brings joy to the heart of the recipient. And 
 here is promised to the believing child of God the con- 
 summation of his deepest yearnings, his loftiest hopes 
 and aspirations, — that is, a perfect joy and satisfaction. 
 
 As the Lord had, in the preceding words, spoken to the 
 disciples of a new and higher stage in their prayer- 
 ful communion with God, so He now (ver. 25) also holds 
 out to them a higher stage with reference to His commu- 
 nication to them. Hitherto He spoke unto them " in 
 proverbs,'' but the hour is coming, when He shall " tell 
 them plainly of the Father." There is evidently here a 
 distinction between a more indirect, obscure, primitive 
 form of teaching, and one direct, full and plain, leading 
 them into the very centre of God's revelation. In the 
 former class we must include even these discourses to 
 which the disciples had now been listening, and which 
 contained so much that was yet dark and unintelligible 
 to them. The second stage of communications will be 
 reached after the resurrection of the Lord, and partic- 
 ularly with the day of Pentecost, when the Paraclete, the 
 Spirit of truth, shall teach them all things and bring to 
 
XVI. 25-27.] CHAPTER XVI. 235 
 
 their remembrance all that He said unto them (John 
 xiv. 26). This higher stage of knowledge and the higher 
 stage of prayer shall be simultaneous. The time when 
 they shall know " plainly " of the Father will be the time 
 when they shall speak directly to the Father : " I say not 
 unto you, that I will pray the Father for you " (ver. 26). 
 This seems somewhat strange and unexpected in the light 
 of such passages as i John ii. i, Rom. viii. 34, and Heb. 
 vii. 25, which represent Christ as the advocate of His 
 people before the Father, who is at the right hand of 
 God, who also maketh intercession for us, who is able to 
 save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God 
 through Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession 
 for them. And certainly there are times and conditions 
 when the disciples in the future also will need the inter- 
 cession of Christ's mediatorial prayers. But when they 
 approach the Father in the name of the Son, as recon- 
 ciled and beloved children, they have Christ already on 
 their side and in their very prayers, being assured of the 
 Father's love through Him. Surely these are "great 
 and wonderful things, that we are to be like Christ and 
 His brothers and the Father's own dear children, beloved 
 by Him for Christ's sake " (Luther). 
 
 Such a state, however, can only be thought of where 
 the relation between the disciples and their Master implies 
 the following features (ver. 27): (i) the Father Himself 
 loveth them ; (2) they have loved Christ ; (3) they have 
 believed that He came forth from the Father. If we re- 
 verse the order of these statements, we find the following 
 facts and experiences, which, in successive order, lead up 
 the disciples to that blessed state: (i) Christ cometh 
 forth from the Father ; (2) the disciples believe this, and 
 thus they believe in Him, not only in His divine mission, 
 but also in His divine nature, as the everlasting Son of 
 
236 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvr. 28-30. 
 
 the everlasting Father; (3) the disciples love Christ; 
 (4) the Father loveth the disciples. 
 
 Thus the Lord has reached the point where He can 
 sum up in one short, comprehensive statement, all that 
 He had to say in these parting discourses, in fact, all 
 that He had ever taught the disciples. He does this in 
 the words : " I came out from the Father, and am come 
 into the world : again I leave the world and go unto the 
 Father" (ver, 28). Here is, in the briefest form, the 
 whole testimony of Christ concerning His person and 
 work, everything that the Church confesses of His eternal 
 pre-existence and co-existence with the Father, His in- 
 carnation, His mediatorial office. His humiliation and ex- 
 altation, His passion, death and glorification. We are 
 inclined to think that this was really intended as the con- 
 clusion of these discourses. But the subsequent naive 
 remarks of the disciples called for some additional closing 
 words of a more personal, pastoral character. The dis- 
 ciples show (vers. 29 and 30) that the words of the Lord 
 have made a deep impression upon them. At this mo- 
 ment everything seems perfectly clear to them. They 
 think they understand Him now, as speaking " plainly " 
 and not in " proverbs." They come out with a cheerful, 
 hearty confession of faith : " We believe that Thou camest 
 forth from God." Beautiful and touching as all this may 
 be, there is no doubt that the disciples were mistaken in 
 their judgment of their state of mind, their progress in 
 the faith. The very reason they give for their present 
 understanding and believing, shows that there is no real 
 progress in this respect, no real grasping of the great and 
 comprehensive truths which the Lord had communicated 
 to them. The fact that the Lord had anticipated their 
 questions, thus proving that He " knoweth all things," 
 was the real cause of their present readiness to believe. 
 
XVI. 30-3-] CHAPTER XVI. 237 
 
 But even now the contents of their faith, by their own 
 statement, are quite fragmentary, if compared with the 
 testimony of the Lord. Their confession of faith contains 
 only one half of what the Lord had just set forth. They 
 stop with this sentence : " that Thou camest forth from 
 God." They are silent on the other half of His testimony, 
 those very words around which everything had clustered 
 that the Lord had communicated to them that evening : 
 " I leave the world and go unto the Father." The 
 mystery of this departure still hangs over them, waiting 
 for its fuller explanation and understanding in the great 
 events of His death and resurrection. They do not like 
 to touch this point. Or did they possibly imagine this 
 leaving the world and going to the Father as a sort of 
 triumphant exodus and entrance, in utter ignorance of 
 the impending terrors of that very night in which He was 
 betrayed? (Grau). 
 
 The Lord's answer to the last remarks of the disciples 
 unmistakably shows, that He had not much confidence 
 in their faith at that stage. The revised version, with 
 many prominent commentators, takes the words apn 
 TztareuzTs (ver. 32) as a question. In this case it would be 
 the expression of a doubt concerning the sincerity or at 
 least the stability of their faith; possibly even with a 
 touch of irony in it. We prefer to take the words as a 
 positive statement : " Now ye believe." But even in 
 this case we find here a criticism of the faith they had so 
 boldly professed. Now there is something like faith, 
 with all its inspiration and enthusiasm. But it will not 
 prove very strong and enduring. That very night they 
 shall be scattered, every man to his own, leaving Him 
 alone ! 
 
 But, while He found Himself constrained to shake 
 their confidence at that point and to prepare them for a 
 
238 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvi. 32, 33. 
 
 most painful experience of want of faith, He ends with 
 sweet and tender words of consolation and of peace. 
 Though left by the disciples, He is not alone. The 
 Father is with Him. This He says not only for His own 
 strengthening and encouragement under the trials of that 
 night; but also and chiefly for the sake of His disciples. 
 However difificult it may be for them to realize it, that 
 the outcast and condemned Jesus of Nazareth has the 
 Father with Him, on His side, — it is the one light in the 
 darkness of that night, for Christ and His disciples. 
 
 And now, once more, as a parting word, the Lord 
 sums up everything that His disciples need, in that 
 precious " Peace," which He is going to secure for them, 
 and of which He meant to assure them through every 
 word He spoke that evening. He knows and admits 
 that in the ivorld they have tribulation. By this He does 
 not mean the common sorrows and afiflictions to which 
 all mortals are subject in this life. He refers to those 
 special tribulations which are inflicted by the world on 
 the disciples, because they are Christ's and not of the 
 world. Thus the tribulation itself proves their hetero- 
 geneity as over against the world, and is in reality a com- 
 forting and assuring feature in the experience of the 
 disciples. And more than that ! They have every reason 
 to take courage and " be of good cheer." For their Lord 
 has overcome the world. Thus He anticipates the great 
 Tzriharai (it is finished) of Calvary, and with the word of 
 victory on His lips He goes forth into battle ! 
 
 Christ's victory appropriated by faith becomes our 
 own victory, as John himself interprets and applies this 
 passage : " This is the victory that hath overcome the 
 world, even our faith" (i John v. 4). Whatever we 
 may yet have to suffer and to struggle, is not a real 
 battle any more, but simply our share in the spoils and 
 in the glory of His victory (Luther). 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 VI. The High Priest's Prayer. 
 
 I. Introductory RcDiarks. 
 
 In taking up the exposition of this chapter, containing 
 the " High Priest's Prayer," we hear the words, spoken 
 by theTord from the burning bush to Moses, resounding 
 in our hearts : " The place whereon thou standest is holy 
 ground." It is the "Holiest of Holies" even in this 
 Gospel of St. John, on which we here enter. Our greatest 
 theologians have always looked up to this chapter with 
 special reverence, and almost with a kind of awe, that 
 made them despair of their ability to do justice to 
 this passage, in their attempts to interpret it. Even 
 Luther shrank from it with the confession : " I am afraid 
 I shall not be able to bring out the true character and 
 power of this prayer ; it is so deep, so rich and compre- 
 hensive, that no man can possibly fathom and exhaust it. 
 — It is the prayer, in which the Son poured out the very 
 depths of His heart before His God and Father." 
 Melanchthon delivered his last lecture to his students in 
 Wittenberg, on this chapter (April 2, 1560), saying: 
 " There have never been heard, in heaven or on earth, 
 more exalted, holy, wholesome and pathetic words than 
 these." Spener, who had never in his life had the cour- 
 age to preach on this chapter, had it read three times in 
 his dying hours. John Gerhard said, that "this wonder- 
 
 239 
 
240 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. i. 
 
 ful and peculiar prayer exceeded all human understand- 
 ing." And yet Bengel is right when he characterizes it 
 in these brief and pithy words: " Verbis facillimum, sen- 
 sibus profundissimum — (quite easy in its words, most 
 profound in its meaning)." 
 
 One thing must never be forgotten in reading this 
 chapter or in trying to interpret it : It is, from beginning to 
 end, a prayer and not an address, like the preceding dis- 
 courses to the disciples. The opening words of the 
 chapter clearly characterize its contents as a prayer : 
 " Jesus, lifting up His eyes, said : Father, etc." It is the 
 Lord's Prayer in an emphatic sense, while what we are 
 accustomed to call by that name is in reality the disciples' 
 prayer, the prayer of those who are, through Christ, the 
 children of their heavenly Father and brethren in their 
 relation to each other. Christ's prayerful communion 
 with the Father, which we know to have been a regular 
 occurrence every day and many a night, was, as a rule, 
 without witnesses, and has not therefore been recorded 
 in words which men could hear and preserve. But in 
 this particular case the disciples were privileged to hear 
 the very words He prayed, and to treasure them in their 
 memory for all time to come, for their own and the 
 Church's comfort and edification. But, we insist, it is 
 not a discourse for the instruction, admonition and 
 encouragement of the hearers, but a true and genuine 
 prayer, an appeal addressed by the Son to the Father, 
 with certain clearly defined petitions, with a strong pur- 
 pose to obtain from the Father ^everything He asked for. 
 
 While John Gerhard calls it "the prayer before the 
 agony" (sujjf^ ttpoo-yoivwi) its commonly accepted title is 
 "the sacerdotal prayer " or " the High Priest's prayer," 
 which is used by Luther already (not first by Chytraeus, 
 as is sometimes stated). In what sense then is it called 
 
XVII. I.] CHAPTER XVIT. 241 
 
 " the High Priest's prayer"? Jesus, " the Apostle and 
 High Priest of our confession " (Hebrews iii. i), is ready 
 to enter, " not into a holy place, made with hands, — but 
 into heaven itself, now to appear before the face of God 
 for us " (Hebrews ix. 24). He gives an account of His 
 apostleship to the Father (rationem reddit Christus coram 
 patre. John Gerhard). And on the ground of His well 
 discharged apostolic function He brings His claims and 
 appeals before the Father, and declares Himself ready to 
 enter upon the highest function of His sacerdotal ofifice, 
 the offering of the atoning sacrifice for the sin of the 
 world. He is now coming to the Father as the High 
 Priest (accessu sacerdotali. Bengel on verse ii). And 
 this is the prayer of initiation. It is therefore not exactly 
 on the same level with the prayers with which Christ in 
 His present state of glory, at the right hand of the 
 Father, makes intercession for His people. It has a 
 unique place in the history of our Lord, just as the 
 sacrifice itself has, which He was then ready to ofTer. 
 " By one offering He hath perfected forever them that 
 are sanctified" (Hebrews x. 14. Also verse 12). 
 
 However reluctant we may feel to submit the wonder- 
 ful organism of this prayer to the attempt of human 
 logic and dialectics to map out a full and detailed dispo- 
 sition of this chapter, we see no reason to reject the 
 commonly accepted division into three parts: first :^ 
 Christ's prayer for Himself (vers. 1-5); secondly : Christ's 
 prayer for His disciples, as there assembled before Him 
 (vers. 6-19) ; thirdly : Christ's prayer for those, who, 
 through their word, will be brought to believe in Him 
 
 ' This first part is extended by some commentators so as to include 
 verses 6-8 ; beginning the second part with the ninth verse ; the interces- 
 sion in behalf of the disciples being marked by the words : " I pray for 
 them." See Weizsascker, Das Neue Testament, 1S88. 
 16 
 
242 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. i. 
 
 (vers. 20-24). The two remaining verses of the chapter 
 form the conclusion of the prayer. 
 
 In taking up its exposition in detail, we are mindful of 
 Luther's advice, always to consider " who the Man is that 
 offers this prayer; who He is to whom the prayer is 
 offered ; how great the things are which are asked for." 
 
 2. The High Priest Praying for Himself (xvii. 1-5). 
 
 1-5. These things spake Jesus; and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he 
 said, Father, the hour is come ; glorify thy Son, that the Son may glorify 
 thee : even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, that whatsoever 
 thou hast given him, to them he should give eternal life. And this is life 
 eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou 
 didst send, even Jesus Christ. I glorified thee on the earth, having accom- 
 plished the work which thou hast given 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. 
 
 Thus far the Lord had kept His eyes fixed upon His 
 disciples whom He had been addressing. Now He lifts 
 them up to heaven, addressing the Father, whose name 
 runs like a golden thread through the whole prayer. (It 
 is mentioned six times, verses i, 5, 1 1, 21, 24, 25, twice 
 with the adjectives : holy and righteous.) The hour, to 
 which He refers in the opening sentence of His prayer, 
 is the hour of glorification. It is the hour in which 
 Christ's whole earthly life culminates, including both His 
 deepest humiliation and His glorious exaltation.^ He 
 knows what this hour will bring to Him, and He thus 
 formally and solemnly offers Himself for all this ; He 
 goes even so far as to ask for it directly with this petition : 
 Father, glorify Thy Son. But this glorification of the 
 Son is only an instrumentality. The great final aim and 
 
 1 See John xiii. i. Jesus knew that His hour was come that he should 
 depart out of this world unto the Father. 
 
XVII. 1-3-] CHAPTER XVII. 243 
 
 end is the glory of the Father Himself, the recognition 
 of His glory, the honoring of His name (John xii. 28) 
 among men, the full realization of that " Gloria in Ex- 
 celsis Deo " with which the incarnation of the Son was 
 heralded on Bethlehem's field. If it is a divine work of 
 the Father to glorify the Son, it is likewise a divine work 
 of the Son to glorify tlic Father. 
 
 The claim of this comprehensive petition, " Glorify 
 Thy Son," is based upon the fulfilment of the task 
 allotted to Him. He renders His account before the 
 Father, and in doing so. He, first of all, remembers the 
 charge He had received : Authority over all flesh — to 
 give them eternal life. Both a power and a commission 
 are implied in the term authority (J.^(iu6ia) as in John 
 X. 18, the power and the commandment to lay down 
 His life and to take it again are combined {t^auSia and 
 ivrokyf). It is the Incarnate Son of God to whom 
 such power and authority over all flesh are given. The 
 Logos must become flesh, to have a saving power over all 
 flesh. For this term " all flesh " represents an ocean of 
 human misery and wretchedness. "All flesh is grass and 
 all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field. 
 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, because the Spirit 
 of the Lord bloweth upon it : surely the people is grass " 
 (Isaiah xl. 6 f.) ; a " corruptible seed " as Peter calls it 
 (i Pet. i. 23). To give eternal life to this perishing 
 flesh, is the task committed to the Son, with the corre- 
 sponding power ; a power not to bring death and destruc- 
 tion, but life and salvation to all that come unto Him, 
 being given unto Him by the Father. 
 
 This life eternal the Son declares to be " that they 
 should know Thee the only true God and Him whom 
 Thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." It is natural that 
 a statement like this has frequently been treated as if it 
 
244 ' ^^^ GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. 3. 
 
 were a piece of information, intended for the disciples, 
 instructing them as to the way by whicli to reach eternal 
 life. But we insist on preserving the character of a 
 prayer, addressed to the Father, also in this sentence. It 
 is a solemn declaration of the Son to the Father, con- 
 cerning the manner in which He discharged His duty of 
 giving eternal life to all flesh. Here is His conception of 
 eternal life. Men can receive it only with the full light 
 of revelation concerning the one true God and Him whom 
 He did send, even Jesus Christ. " In Him was life and 
 the life was the light of men. That was the true light, 
 which lighteth every man that cometh into the world " 
 (John I : 4, 9).^ We find then in the statement of this 
 third verse an account of His stewardship, rendered by 
 the Son to the Father. So much concerning the true 
 conception of the form of this statement. And now a 
 few remarks on its contents. Here we observe first of 
 all, that this definition of " eternal life " brings this 
 precious gift olearly and distinctly into this present time. 
 Eternal life is here not represented as a distant good, to 
 be hoped for as a future inheritance in another life, it is 
 described as a present possession and enjoyment, within 
 the reach of man in this world. 
 
 But how can "eternal life " be identical with a certain 
 kiwivlcdge, however great and precious the truths maybe, 
 that are made known to men? The scriptural term "to 
 know," especially as used in this connection by the 
 Saviour, is by no means a purely intellectual grasping of 
 certain abstract, impersonal truths, it is not a knowledge 
 of books, of arithmetical tables, of facts and dates, of 
 creeds and doctrines. It is to know a person or persons, 
 as a friend knows the friend, a child the mother, a hus- 
 
 ^ '■ The prayer of the High Priest is the real source of the Prologue of St. 
 John's Gospel" (F. L. Stkinmkykr). 
 
XVII. 3-] CHAPTER XVII. 245 
 
 band his wife. It is a personal relation ; an affectionate 
 knowledge, which is most fruitful and effective {iiossc 
 cum affect u ct effect 11), And in this case this knowledge 
 is absolutely dependent on the fact, that the one true 
 God makes Himself known to man through Him, whom 
 He did send, even Jesus Christ. It is thus that men 
 come to know the Father. " The only-begotten Son 
 which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared 
 Him " (John i. 18). To receive His testimony, to ac- 
 cept God's love as revealed in Christ (John iii. 16), to 
 be thus re-united with the Father through the Son, to be 
 restored to a personal relation of union and communion 
 with Him, this is to know the only true God and HiiPx 
 whom He sent, even Jesus Christ, and this, indeed, is 
 eternal life. To have lost this union, this personal and 
 intimate acquaintance, knowledge and communion with 
 God, was and is death, everlasting death, because it im- 
 plies separation from God, the source of all life. 
 
 Everlasting life then is bound up with the absolute 
 revelation of the one true God through Jesus Christ His 
 Son, over against all false religions, religionisms and phil- 
 osophies, whether Jewish, Pagan or modern " Christian." 
 The charge made by Socinians and others that this text 
 claims divinity only for God the Fatheras " the only true 
 God " and that it denies it to Him, whom the Father 
 sent, has well been met by Luther already, when He 
 says : " Christ binds Himself up with that same one divine 
 being, power and majesty, because He wants to be known, 
 together with the Father, as the one that gives everlast- 
 ing life." Certainly, in speaking of Himself as the one 
 who was sent by the Father, the Lord does not place Him- 
 self on the same level with other Apostles and prophets, 
 like Moses, Elijah, St. Paul. It would be impossible in 
 this sentence to substitute one of these names, or any 
 
246 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. 3-5. 
 
 other name of man for that of Jesus Christ. For He is 
 not simply an " agent," a messenger and Apostle of that 
 saving knowledge, which is life eternal ; He is Himself 
 the " object " of that knowledge, the same as the Father 
 Himself (Godet), In this connection the full name 
 " Jesus Christ " is used with special emphasis by the Lord. 
 He often spoke of Himself in the third person, as the 
 " Son of Man " or " the Son." " Christ " He uses twice 
 (Mark ix. 41 and Matt, xxiii. 10). " Jesus " He never uses 
 alone. And here for once " Jesus Christ," the full name 
 in which His humility and His majesty are both combined ; 
 that precious name, which, being preached by His servants 
 and confessed by His church, is henceforth the name in 
 which God's saving revelation to this world is compre- 
 hended, namely, that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, 
 and that believing, men might have life in this name. 
 (See also i John v. 20, that we may know Him that is 
 true ; and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son 
 Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.) 
 
 The Son will glorify the Father, when, in His state 
 of exaltation. He will send down the Spirit to gather men 
 into the everlasting Kingdom of God. But the Son 
 has already glorified the Father in His prophetic and 
 apostolic work on earth. He has accomplished His work. 
 In spite of the frequent pain and sorrow caused by the 
 indifference and hostility of men (see John v. 40), His 
 heart is cheered in looking over the little band of believers 
 who did take everlasting life from Him, and who will soon 
 carry His life-message all over the world. And now, hav- 
 ing finished this task, the God-man asks that He may sit 
 at the right hand of the Father, with the same divine 
 majesty, glory and power, which He had from everlasting 
 with the everlasting Father, above the world, before the 
 world, its time and space. 
 
XVII. 5-8] CHAPTER XVII. 247 
 
 This '* glorify Me " is the sum and substance of the 
 High Priest's prayer for Himself. Now we turn to His 
 prayer for the disciples gathered around Him. 
 
 3. TJie High Priest Praying for the Disciples (xvii. 6-19). 
 
 6-19. I manifested thy name unto the men whom thou gavest me out of 
 the world : thine they were, and thou gavest them to me ; and they have kept 
 thy word. Now they l<now that all things whatsoever thou hast given me 
 are from thee : for the words which thou gavest me I have given unto 
 them ; and they received t/ient, and knew of a truth that I came forth from 
 thee, and they believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them : I pray 
 not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me ; for they are 
 thine : and all things that are mine are thine, and thine are mine : and I 
 am glorified in them. And I am no more in the world, and these are in the 
 world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name which 
 thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are. While I was 
 with them, I kept them in thy name which thou hast given me : and I 
 guarded them, and not one of them perished, but the son of perdition ; 
 that the scripture might be fulfilled. But now I come to thee ; and these 
 things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in them- 
 selves. I have given them thy word ; and the world 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 from the world, but that thou shouldest keep 
 them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not oif 
 the world. Sanctify them in the truth : thy word is truth. As thou didst 
 send me into the world, even so sent I them into the world. And for their 
 sakes I sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in 
 truth. 
 
 The direct prayer of the High Priest for His disciples 
 begins only at ver. g, " I pray for them." The preced- 
 ing vers. 6-8 introdifce the subject, presenting the dis- 
 ciples themselves to the Father, telling what had been 
 done for them thus far, what stage of their spiritual de- 
 velopment they had now reached through the work of 
 the Son during those past three years. On this basis, 
 then, the petition is offered in behalf of the disciples, that 
 they should be kept in the Father's name, kept from evil, 
 sanctified in the truth. 
 
248 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN: [xvii. 6. 
 
 Whatsoever Christ did on earth was done to manifest 
 the Father s name. Eternal, Hfe is to know the Father. 
 But to know the Father we must have His name mani- 
 fested to us. It is a significant fact that in the language 
 of the New Testament the word " to know " (^cv,6(7-/m^ 
 and the word " name " (owv/«) have one common root. 
 The name of the Father naturally suggests the revelation 
 of the Father, it is His nature and being as known and 
 revealed in this world. This manifestation of the Father- 
 Name through Jesus Christ must, however, be correctly 
 understood. It is quite true that this name reveals God 
 as love. (See John iii. 16 and i John iii. i.) It is " that 
 true name by which we are to know God, that is, see His 
 very heart, will and work " (Luther). But it is not, in 
 the first place, " God as our Father " that is referred to 
 by this manifestation of His name. It is God as the 
 Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave His only-be- 
 gotten Son for the life of the world. 
 
 The disciples to wdiom this Father-Name was first mani- 
 fested by Christ are described as " the men whom Thou 
 gavest Me out of the world," not by an absolute, eternal 
 decree of predestination, but by the means described in 
 the following statements. " Thine they zvere,'' not simply 
 in that universal sense in which all creatures are His who 
 made them. It includes all those preliminary educational 
 steps, by which these men were, under the Father's special 
 care, brought out of the world and led to the Son. In the 
 case of the disciples this implies their Old Testament 
 covenant relation as honest Israelites, looking, like Simeon, 
 for the consolation of Israel (Luke ii, 25). With a 
 number of them this culminated in their connection with 
 John the Baptist, whom they joined as disciples and as 
 candidates for the Kingdom of heaven which he an- 
 nounced. Christ's testimony " they have kept Thy zvord" 
 
XVII. 6-9-] CHAPTER XVII. 249 
 
 therefore points to the Old Testament word of the 
 Father as distinct from the New Testament words which 
 Jesus Himself gave unto them in His personal teaching. 
 This reference to the Father's word is particularly sig- 
 nificant in this connection, as it "promptly puts an end 
 to any anxiety and dispute concerning the secret council 
 and decree of God by which some men are troubled and 
 tormented " (LUTHER). How these men, after all that 
 the Old Testament dispensation and the preventing grace 
 of God had done for them, were individually drawn to 
 Christ, is beautifully illustrated in the narrative John 
 
 i- 35-51- 
 
 From their preparatory department, so to speak, in the 
 knowledge of the Father, they have then been advanced 
 to the full New Testament knowledge through the testi- 
 mony of the Son : " Noiv they knoiv^ etc. They recog- 
 nized in Christ the One whom the Father sent and 
 endowed for His great Mission. His words \\\&y received, 
 and knew and believed that the Father did send the Son. 
 These three stages, then, receiving, knowing, believing, 
 are inseparably connected in this whole development of 
 saving knowledge. See Peter's testimony: " We have 
 believed and know that Thou art the Holy One of God " 
 (John vi. 69). 
 
 With the ninth verse the prayer itself begins which the 
 High Priest offers for His disciples. It opens with an 
 emphatic '£^7'«>, / pray for them, I the God-man, who have 
 given them the Father's words and have brought them to 
 their present state of faith. He prays for them ; but what 
 He asks from the Father for them is not introduced until 
 the eleventh verse. At present the Lord prepares the way 
 for His particular petition. It is based upon the fact that 
 the disciples stand in sharp antithesis to the world and 
 inclose intimate union with Himself. He prays " ;/^/ 
 
250 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. 9-11. 
 
 for the ^vorld" which persists in its hostile attitude to- 
 wards Him. Of course there is no decree of reprobation 
 to be found in these words. Though some predestinarians 
 strain them even so as to contain the declaration, that, as 
 He will not even pray for the world, much less will He 
 die for the world ! We know that on other occasions the 
 Lord did indeed pray for the world. (See Luke xxiii. 34 
 on the cross.) And charged His disciples also to pray for 
 the hostile world (Matt. v. 44). But here He confines 
 Himself to those whom the Father has given Him and 
 who. are the Father's own at the same time, in whom He 
 is glorified. He is the Saviour of all men, but especially 
 of them that believe (i Tim. iv. 10). And of those He 
 now says with special emphasis to the Father : " they are 
 Thine.'' This is more than the previous statement: 
 " Thine they were " (ver. 6). Now they are really, fully 
 and eternally His, as those given by the Father to the 
 Son and brought through the Son to the Father. From 
 the persons, the disciples, that are the Father's and the 
 Son's, the Lord rises to a wider and more comprehensive 
 outlook : " All things that are Mine are Thine, and 
 Thine are Mine." If He only said the first part of this 
 sentence, " all things that are Mine are Thine," it would 
 not, says Luther, be such a remarkable and wonderful 
 thing. For every one must say in a certain sense that 
 whatever we have is God's. But this is truly great and 
 marvellous that He reverses it, saying : " Thine are 
 Mine." This no creature can say before God, 
 
 In the eleventh verse the Lord -at last utters the peti- 
 tion in behalf of the disciples : " Holy Father, keep them 
 in Thy name." This prayer is offered by Him who is go- 
 ing to leave the disciples in a world of sin, conflict and 
 temptation. Out of this world they had been given to 
 Him. And now He is anxious to see them preserved 
 
XVII. II, 12.] CHAPTER XVII. 251 
 
 from falling back into this world and kept intact through 
 the mercy and care of the Father. The Lord, in these 
 words, clearly anticipates His departure. He knew what 
 it was to be in this world. And the next hours were to 
 give Him a full taste of the sorrow and shame which the 
 world was determined to heap upon Him. But He is 
 coming to the Father. This is the one thought that is 
 now uppermost in His mind. It lifts Him up above the 
 world. " I am no more in the world ; but these are in 
 the world." They need the Father's sheltering care and 
 protection. For them He prays: "■Holy Father, keep 
 themy It is only in this one passage of the New Testa- 
 ment that God is addressed by this name. The term 
 " Holy " which is so frequent in the Old Testament, is 
 comparatively rarely found as an attribute of God in the 
 New Testament, which, however, has a great deal to say 
 of God's people, as the " Saints " {ayioi). It designates 
 not only the sinless purity and majesty of God, but also 
 the idea that the pure and holy God is determined to 
 purify the sinner, to bridge over the gulf that separates 
 Him from the sinful world, and to save the sinner. It 
 combines His self-assertion and His condescension. (See 
 Luke i. 49, 50 and the frequent connection in the Old 
 Testament, of this attribute of God with His grace and 
 mercy ; Isaiah Ivii. 15, 16 ; xli. 14, and other passages.) 
 
 The Holy Father, who preserves and sanctifies His 
 people, is asked to keep them " m His name, that they 
 may be oner Being kept in the Father's name, the dis- 
 ciples are in the unity of one knowledge, faith and con- 
 fession, in one word and sacrament, in one Lord Christ, 
 and therefore they are kept together, so as to be one in 
 Him. Hitherto the Lord Himself, in His personal 
 bodily presence with the disciples, was their keeper and 
 guardian, watching over them, admonishing and warning 
 
252 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. 11-16. 
 
 them, praying for them, that their faith fail not (Luke 
 xxii. 32), This work He now commits to the Father. 
 His petition simply amounts to this: " Do Thou hence- 
 forth, what I myself have been doing hitherto," another 
 striking proof of the union between the Father and the 
 Son. The Son's work of keeping and guarding His own 
 has been perfectly successful, with only one apparent ex- 
 ception, " the son of perdition " whose memory follows 
 the Lord even into this prayer. But it is part of the ac- 
 count He gives to the Father of His stewardship, that 
 He must refer to that lost one. He owes it to Himself 
 to testify, in that solemn hour, that as far as He was con- 
 cerned, nothing was left undone. Judas Iscariot received 
 the same pastoral care as the other disciples. No reproach 
 rests on his Master. But he refused to accept and keep 
 His words, as the others accepted and kept them. There 
 is one consolation for the Lord in this sad case, and that 
 is tJie fulfilment of Scripture even in the fate of the 
 traitor. But it is not Christ's fault, nor the Scripture's, 
 nor the Father's, that Judas is lost. Looking upon it- in 
 this light, even this terrible reminiscence cannot now in- 
 terfere with the serene, heavenly joy of the Lord and of 
 His disciples. 
 
 The first petition which the Lord offered for the dis- 
 ciples is intensified (in ver. 15) in this form : I pray that 
 Thou shouldst keep them from the evil. The reference 
 to the traitor suggests the great danger to which the dis- 
 ciples are exposed as long as they are in this world, which 
 hates them and persecutes them,. Their relation to the 
 world has become totally changed since they accepted 
 the word which the Lord has given them. Through this 
 acceptance of His word they are placed in a position of 
 antagonism to the world, even as Christ Himself is "not 
 of the world." For their personal feeling it might seem 
 
XVII. 1 5-1 9-] CHAPTER XVII. 253 
 
 to be the most desirable thing that, together with their 
 Lord, they might be taken out of this world and be at 
 rest forever. But this cannot be. And the Lord can- 
 not pray for this. He has a great work for them to do 
 in this world, and even for their own personal develop- 
 ment and sanctification it is good and necessary for them 
 to remain and fight the good fight of faith. But they do 
 need the power and protection of the Father to keep 
 them from evil in this wicked world. ^ 
 
 Thus far the Lord asked for His disciples that the 
 Father should keep them in His name and should keep 
 them from evil. Now He offers the positive petition : 
 " Sanctify them in the truth," basing it upon the great 
 fact of His atoning passion and death : "for their sakes 
 I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanc- 
 tified in truth." These verses (17-19) represent the very 
 centre and heart of the whole prayer. Both the personal 
 and the ofificial consecration of the disciples, as God's 
 children, ambassadors of Christ, is included in this sanc- 
 tification. The powerful means by which this is to be 
 effected is the word. Over against the world with its 
 darkness and satanic lies, the disciples have the word of 
 light and truth, which Christ has given them. It is the 
 whole saving truth of God, the only power that will 
 prevail against the prince of this world. But here again 
 let us not forget to take even such a sentence (" Thy 
 word is truth ") as a true prayer, both in its form and 
 spirit. The Son, at the close of His personal prophetical 
 
 1 The question is, whether (k tou -ovi/pov (as in the seventh petition of the 
 Lord's Prayer, Matthew vl. 13) is to be taken as masculine, the evil one, or 
 as neuter, the evil. The former view is held by Bengel, Wesley, Luthardt, 
 Weiss, Keil, Westcott, Dwight, Weizsascker, and the Revised Version ; 
 the latter by Stier, Lange, Alford, Godet and Luther's Version. Apart 
 from deeper reasons against the masculine Tvnvr/p6r in this context, the pre- 
 positio tK seems to us clearly to decide the case in favor of the neuter. 
 
254 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvir. 17-20. 
 
 work on earth, says to the Father, in this solemn hour 
 and in the hearing of His disciples : " Thy word is 
 truth ! " He confesses and dt^clares with praise and 
 thanksgiving to the Father, what His word has been even 
 to Him in His experience as a teacher and prophet among 
 the people. And His Apostles, whom He sends out into 
 the world, will make the same experience of the truth of 
 the word, and of its sanctifying, conquering power over 
 against all the opposing forces of the world around them 
 and in them. But the one, true foundation of the sanc- 
 tification of Christ's people is the fact that He has sanc- 
 tified Himself for them. He sacrificed Himself for us in 
 the consecration of His whole life, culminating in His 
 passion and death (Philippians ii. 8, becoming obedient 
 even unto death, yea, the death of the cross). Thus 
 through the sacrifice of Christ the guilt of sin is wiped 
 out, its power broken, the gift of the Holy Spirit, the 
 sanctifier, secured. " By one offering He hath perfected 
 forever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews x. 14). 
 
 4. TJie High Priest Praying for all Believers (xvii. 20-24). 
 
 20-24. Neither for these only do I pray, but for them also that believe 
 on me through their word ; that they may all be one ; even as thou, 
 Father, ai't in me and I in thee, that they also may be in us : that the world 
 may believe that thou didst send me. And the glory which thou hast 
 given me I have given unto them ; that they may be one, even as we are 
 one ; I in them, and thou in me, that they may be perfected into one ; that 
 the world may know that thou didst send me, and lovedst them, even as 
 thou lovedst me. feather, that which thou Kast given me, I will that, where 
 I am, they also may be with me ; that they may behold my glory, which thou 
 hast given me : for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. 
 
 The view of the praying High Priest expands. From 
 the little band around Him He looks out over the whole 
 world, and forward over all the centuries of its history. 
 
XVII. 20, 21.] CHAPTER XVH. 255 
 
 He praj's for all believers of all times and nations, who 
 through the Apostolic word, as written and preached by 
 the disciples, believe ^ on Christ. It is, in so far, again a 
 prayer for the disciples, as it asks and insures the Father's 
 blessing upon their testimony and the success of their 
 Apostolic ministry. As the history of the Church 
 progresses, those that believe on Christ through the word 
 of the Apostles will differ in nationality, language, culture, 
 sex and age. But the Lord prays that, in spite of these 
 natural and outward differences, they shall all be one. 
 Believing through the word of the Apostles, they are by 
 such faith united with Christ, and in Christ with the Father. 
 But that same faith binds them together in the unity of the 
 Church, an organic unity with Christ as its head, though 
 possibly connected with different outward organizations. 
 Such unity is a real oneness of life, resulting from the 
 fact that all true believers have their share in God's 
 life. It is more than unity in doctrine and confession, 
 though it can only be a unity in the truth, in one faith, 
 one Lord, one Baptism.^ " What Christ prayed for in 
 this place. He obtained," says John Gerhard, ''Since 
 then the Apostles are one in unity of faith ; that is, since 
 there is the most perfect harmony of Apostolic doctrine, 
 as set forth in their writings, let us hold fast by the 
 Apostolic doctrine as the foundation of true and 
 sound unity in the Church, for by this will true unity 
 flourish among us too." And Luther says : " We are 
 made one thing with Christ and through Him with the 
 Father also ; so that just as little as Christ can be 
 
 ^ Present, not Future, as the received reading has it. 
 
 2 To blame those who are zealous for the truth as the basis of Christian 
 union is directly in conflict with this whole prayer of the Lord, which recog- 
 nizes no otherinstrumentality for the sanctification, unification, and glorifica- 
 tion of God's people than the truth of God's word. 
 
256 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvii. 21-23. 
 
 separated from the Father, just so little is it possible that 
 the Christian Church and each individual member thereof 
 can be divided from Him, and therefore that all is attached 
 and bound together, the one to the other." ^ 
 
 This union of believing Christians under one Lord, in 
 one Spirit, is to be a testimony before the world, that it 
 may believe and (ver, 23) that it may /^w^tf that the Father 
 did send the Son. This, after all, will always be the de- 
 sire of the Lord concerning the world, that it should 
 believe and be saved. (See John iii. 17 ; i. 7.) And 
 with this ideal aim and desire the Church is to carry her 
 testimony into the world. Though the historical reality 
 in the attitude of the world towards Christ and His 
 Gospel will never go beyond the fact : " believed on in 
 the world" (i Tim. iii. 16). 
 
 The unification of the believers appears, in verses 
 22 and 23, as a feature of the glory which they receive 
 from Christ. The glory — I have given unto them, that 
 they may be one. Christ means not only the salvation of 
 individual believers here and there, but the bringing 
 together into an organic union of a whole assembly of 
 believers. All the many different members in which His 
 grace has been manifested, represent the full glory of 
 Christ's Body only in their union, for which the Lord here 
 prays. 
 
 Through all the humility and lowliness with which our 
 Apostle and High Priest Jesus Christ, in the first part of 
 this prayer, gave an account of His stewardship. His 
 
 ^ " To refer this sublime intercessory prayer, as do Romanists and others, 
 to mere external unification, is not only to externalize everything, but to 
 represent the all-prevailing intercession of the God-man in a light not much 
 higher than the petitions of ordinary men. When He prayed that they 
 all might be one He obtained what He asked." George Smeaton, D.D., a 
 prominent theologian of the Free Church of Scotland, in a pamphlet on 
 Scriptural Union, Edinburgh, 1871. 
 
XVII. 24, 25.] CHAPTER XVII. 257 
 
 divnne majesty has been shining forth more and more 
 clearly. But the revelation of His heavenly majesty 
 reaches its climax in the 24th verse, when the Son comes 
 before the Father with that firm and positive claim : 
 " Father, I ivill that, ivhcrc I aj)i, tlicy also may be ivith J/r." 
 How different this " I will " from the language used shortly 
 afterwards in the agon)' of Gethsemane : " Not what I 
 will, but what Thou wilt." The turning point in the 
 High Priest's prayer from His lowliness to this bold and 
 majestic self-assertion is to be found in the 19th verse ; 
 " For their sakes I sanctify Myself." On this complete 
 self-sacrifice, culminating in His obedience unto death, 
 rests His claim : " Father, I will." (See also Philippians 
 ii. 6-9, the connection between the humiliation of 
 Christ vers. 6-8, and His exaltation ver. 9.) What He 
 demands as being due Him from the Father on account 
 of His sacrifice is, that His own " may behold His glory," 
 which the Father hath given Him. This alone is the 
 true conception of the perfect glory and bliss of His 
 people in the future world, to behold Christ's glory. 
 Nothing else would satisfy them fully even there. 
 
 5. Conclusion of the High Priest's Prayer (xvii. 25, 26). 
 
 25-26. O righteous Father, the world knew thee not, but I knew thee; 
 and these knew that thou didst send me ; and I made known unto them 
 thy name, and will make it known ; that the love wherewith thou lovedst 
 me may be in them, and I in them. 
 
 The prayer concludes with another sharp antithesis 
 between the world on one side, and the Lord with His 
 loved ones on the other, and with an appeal to the 
 righteousness of the Father who will, no doubt, do what 
 is right and just, by the world and the disciples. The 
 title " righteous Father " which is only used at this place 
 17 
 
258 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvil. 25, 26. 
 
 combines the two prominent attributes of God, on which 
 the whole work of redemption is based : His love and His 
 justice. But it is the latter on which the emphasis 
 rests in this connection. The righteousness of the Father 
 is not known by the world. It will be the principal work 
 of the Paraclete to convict the world in respect of sin 
 and of righteousness and of judgment (John xvi. 8). 
 Least of all does the world realize the righteousness of 
 God as revealed in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 showing God as being " just and the justifier of him that 
 hath faith in Jesus " (Romans iii. 26). But the Son 
 knoweth the Righteous Father. He knows how the 
 Father's righteousness will have to deal with Him, who 
 was made sin for us, how He will be " smitten of God and 
 afflicted;" how "the Lord" will "lay on Him the 
 iniquity of us all " (Isaiah liii. 4, 6). The bitter cup 
 of Gethsemane and the bloody cross of Calvary tell the 
 tale of that righteousness, which the Son had to taste. 
 And " if they do these things in the green tree, what 
 shall be done in the dry ?" (Luke xxiii. 31). 
 
 But there is a great deal of consolation for the disciples 
 in this appeal to the righteous Father. The claim put 
 forth in ver. 24, " Father, I will," etc., is sure to find re- 
 cognition. The Father cannot, in justice, withhold any of 
 those great and glorious things which the Son here asked 
 for His believers. They know Him as the Son of God 
 and the Saviour of the world. They know the Father's 
 name and will steadily grow in such blessed knowledge. 
 They will be perfectly safe in the Father's love and in the 
 love of their Saviour. They may rest " assured that 
 such petitions are acceptable to the heavenly Father and 
 are heard by Him. Amen, Amen, Yea, Yea, it shall be 
 so " (Small Catechism). 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 The Triumph of Faith Continued in the History 
 OF the Passion and Resurrection of the Lord. 
 
 It is evident that the fourth Gospel does not intend to 
 give anything Hkc a complete account of the Lord's Pas- 
 sion. Even a hasty comparison merely of the outward 
 extent of the narrative of John, with the accounts of 
 Matthew, Mark and Luke, must at once convince us of 
 this. The two passion-chapters in John have only 82 
 verses over against 141 in Matthew; 119 in Mark; 
 127 in Luke, making in all 387 verses in the synop- 
 tical account of Christ's Passion. There is undoubtedly 
 the design in the record of the fourth Gospel, to sup- 
 plement in some important points the narrative of the 
 Synoptists which are supposed to be known to the 
 readers. But there is yet another idea pervading the 
 passion-account of the Gospel of St. John. It is the 
 fundamental idea, the real theme of the whole Gospel : 
 The glory of the incarnate Word, and on the one side the 
 faith that receives Him, on the other the unbelief that 
 rejects Him. This glory, lighting up with its heavenly 
 rays the darkness and humiliation of the passion and 
 the cross ; and manifesting itself particularly in that per- 
 fect freedom, with which the Lord gives Himself up to 
 suffering and death ; that faith of His own, recovering 
 itself from the severe shock of those trying hours and 
 
 coming out triumphantly, with the full assurance that 
 
 259 
 
26o THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. i. 
 
 this Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the Christ, the Son of 
 God, and that believing in His name they have everlast- 
 ing life ; and lastly, the unbelief of Israel, reaching its 
 climax in the open surrender of every Messianic hope : 
 We have no king but Caesar ! 
 
 1. The Capture of Jesus (xviii. i-ii). 
 I. Arrival of the Band (xviii. 1-3). 
 
 1-3. When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disci- 
 ples over the brook Kidron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, 
 himself and his disciples. Now Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the 
 place : for Jesus oft-times resorted thither with his disciples. Judas then, 
 having received the band of soldiers and officers from the chief priests and 
 the Pharisees, cometh thither with lanterns and torches and weapons. 
 
 From the lofty heights of the last discourses of the 
 Lord (xiv.-xvi.), from the heavenly peace pervading 
 His prayer as the High Priest (xvii.), the fourth 
 Gospel takes us with one step into the actual beginning 
 of the sufferings of Christ. OmJtting the agony in the 
 Garden, its passion-history opens with the account of the 
 capture of the Lord in that same garden of Gethsemane, 
 so clearly described in the first verse, one of the three 
 gardens, so prominent in the Scripture, Eden, where sin 
 entered into the world, Gethsemane, where it was fought 
 and overcome, Joseph's garden, where it was buried in the 
 tomb. To Gethsemane the Lord led forth His disciples 
 over the brook Kidron, not the brook of Cedars (as the 
 marginal note in the R. V. suggests), but the dark, the 
 black brooklet, which served as a sort of drainage for the 
 City of Jerusalem, carrying off its impurities down to 
 the Dead Sea. It was the same Kidron which David 
 crossed when he fled from rebellious Jerusalem, and his 
 ungrateful son Absalom, and the treachery of Ahitho- 
 
xviii. 1-4] CHAPTER XVI 11. 261 
 
 phel's counsel ; the same brook Kidron into which, at the 
 time of Hezekiah's reformation, " all uncleanness that they 
 found in the temple of the Lord " had been carried. To 
 the garden on the left (or eastern) bank of the brook 
 Kidron, at the foot of the Mount Olivet, Judas, the be- 
 trayer, led the band of soldiers, that is, the Roman cohort, 
 dispatched for this purpose by the Governor, and the 
 officers of the chief priests and the Pharisees. There is 
 an unmistakable touch of irony in the description of this 
 powerful force arriving with lanterns and torches and 
 weapons, to catch the " Light of the World," to make 
 Him a prisoner, who said : " No one taketh My life from 
 Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it 
 down and I have power to take it again." 
 
 2. Jesus Meeting the Band (xviii. 4-9). 
 
 4-9- Jesus therefore, knowing all the things that were coming upon him, 
 went forth, and saith unto them, Whom seek ye ? They answered him, 
 Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, 
 which betrayed him, was standing with them. When therefore he said unto 
 them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground. Again there- 
 fore he asked them, Whom seek ye > And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. 
 Jesus answered, I told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these 
 go their way : that the word might be fulfilled which he spake, Of those 
 whom thou hast given me I lost not one. 
 
 The manner in which the Lord meets His captors 
 demonstrates most forcibly that freedom of His action 
 which is so .strongly emphasized in the Gospel of John. 
 Jesus, knoiviug all the things that were coming upon 
 Him, went forth— "and saith unto them, Whom seek ye ?" 
 It was the first word of Jesus, recorded in the fourth 
 Gospel, addressed to those inquiring disciples : What 
 seek ye ? Here it is one of His last words, addressed to 
 His enemies: Whom seek ye? He is the one central 
 
262 ' THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 4-6. 
 
 figure of the world's history, sought by friend and foe. 
 All the misery, distress and" helplessness of this forlorn 
 and benighted world seek Him as the only helper and 
 physician : " Of whom' may we seek for succor but of 
 Thee, O Lord ? " And all the enmity against God and 
 His word and salvation seeks Him as its central object of 
 attack, with the fixed determination : " We will not that 
 this man reign over us " (Lukexix. 14). But at the same 
 time God's righteous judgment, in dealing finally with 
 the sin of the world, seeks Him. As the voice of the 
 Lord God once after the fall called unto Adam, hidden 
 under the trees of the garden, " Where art thou ? " so it 
 calls now in this great hour of reckoning for the second 
 Adam, seeking Him, who was made sin for us. 
 
 " I a7n He ; " this is the Lord's own answer to that great 
 central question : " Whom seek ye ? " More than once 
 before the Lord had made this declaration. But never 
 was it spoken with more emphasis and majesty than here 
 at the moment when the Lord gave Himself up unto 
 passion and death. "/ ajii He,'' He says to divine 
 justice ; the sin, the guilt, all on Me ; take Me, strike Me 
 and let these go their way ! / am He, He says to the 
 life-and-light-seeking world, your wisdom, and righteous- 
 ness, and sanctification and redemption, the way, and the 
 truth, and the life ! / aju He, He says also to the en- 
 mity and hatred of the world : I am Jesus whom ye per- 
 secute ; it will be hard for you to kick against the goads ; 
 ye shall yet see Him whom ye have pierced, " the Son of 
 Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on 
 the clouds of heaven." And was not the effect of this 
 " I am He " at this point a clear foreshadowing of the 
 hour of the Lord's final revelation, when before the throne 
 of His majesty all his enemies shall be made His foot- 
 stool? 
 
xvili. 10, II.] CHAPTER XVIII. 263 
 
 3. Peter Striking zvith the Szuord {x.\\\\. 10, 11). 
 
 lo-ii. Simon Peter therefore having a sword drew it, and struck the 
 high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. Now the servant's name 
 was Malchus. Jesus therefore said unto Peter, Put up the sword into the 
 sheath : the cup which the Father hath given me, shall I not drinii it ? 
 
 Whatever there was to be, at that point, of a demon- 
 stration of the Lord's power, whatever of battle and of 
 victory, had all been revealed and been brought to bear 
 upon the enemies of Christ as they were lying prostrate 
 at His feet. Truly there was no need of displaying any 
 physical force and carnal zeal on the part of the disciples. 
 So far from aiding the cause of their Master they could 
 only hurt it by resorting to violence. We do not believe 
 that Peter rushed upon the prostrate enemy to enjoy a 
 cheap and easy victory, by striking with the sword those 
 whom the word of His majesty had felled to the ground. 
 It was, when the Master Himself had invited them to 
 come forward and take Him and let His disciples go, 
 when those in the front rank of the enemies having risen 
 to their feet, first laid their hands upon Jesus, then Peter's 
 blood was up, he threw himself upon them, striking down 
 the first he met. Thus he intended to make good his 
 word, and to demonstrate his devotion to the Master be- 
 yond the possibility of a doubt. But with this carnal 
 zeal he did all in his power to rob his Master's kingdom 
 of its true glory, and to make it impossible for the Lord 
 to maintain that position before the Governor: "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 " (xviii. 36). Moreover, Peter by this 
 rash act of his burdened himself with an evil conscience, 
 which, in the hour of his severe trial, will throw him help- 
 
264 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 10, 11. 
 
 less into the clutches of the enemy. He stands hence- 
 forth under the fear of that sentence of the Master Him- 
 self : "All they that take the sword shall perish with the 
 sword." Striking Peter is denying Peter, There is a deep 
 inward connection between the two events. The very 
 fact of his striking with the sword at that hour was a 
 denial of the true, spiritual nature of the Kingdom of 
 Christ. 
 
 There are a few touches in this account of the scene in 
 the Garden, peculiar to the fourth Gospel and strongly 
 marking its character as one of historical exactness and 
 minuteness. The Synoptical account, representing the 
 earliest tradition of these events in the church, does not 
 mention Peter's name, but only speaks of one of " them 
 that were with Him." But the Gospel of John for the 
 first time names the disciple, Simon Peter; inserting the 
 old name of the carnal man, who once more asserted him- 
 self in this act. Again the name of the High Priest's 
 servant, Malchus, is here mentioned for the first time. 
 
 n. Jesus before the High Priest (xviii. 12-27). 
 I. Jesus Taken to Annas (xviii. 12-14). 
 
 12-14. So the band and the chief captain, and the officers of the Jews, 
 seized Jesus and bound him, and led him to Annas first ; for he was father 
 in law to Caiaphas. which was high priest that year. Now Caiaphas was 
 he which gave counsel to the Jews, that it was expedient that one man 
 should die for the people. 
 
 2. First Denial of Peter {-KvVn. 15-18). 
 
 15-18. And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so (/A/ another disciple. 
 Now that disciple was known unto the high priest, and entered in with 
 Jesus into the court of the high priest ; but Peter was standing at the door 
 without. So the other disciple, which was known unto the high priest, 
 went out and spake unto her that kept the door, and brought in Peter. 
 
XVIII. 12, 13.] CHAPTER XVIII. 265 
 
 The maid therefore that kept the door saith unto Peter, Art thou also one 
 of this man's disciples ? He saith, I am not. Now the servants and the 
 officers were standing there, having made a fire of coals ; for it was cold ; 
 and they were warming themselves : and Peter also was with them, stand- 
 ing and warming himself. 
 
 3. Hearing of Jesus before Annas (xviii. 19-24). 
 
 19-24. The high priest therefore asked Jesus of his disciples, and of his 
 teaching. Jesus answered him, I have spoken openly to the world ; I ever 
 taught in synagogues, and in the temple, where all the Jews come together; 
 and in secret spake I nothing. Why askest thou me } ask them that have 
 heard me, what I spake unto them : behold these know the things which I 
 said. And when he had said this, one of the officers standing by struck 
 Jesus with his hand, saying : Answerest thou the high priest so.'' Jesus 
 answered him, If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil : but if well, 
 why smitest thou me ? Annas therefore sent him bound unto Caiaphas the 
 high priest. 
 
 4. Second and Third Denial of Peter (xviii. 25-27). 
 
 25-27. Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They 
 said therefore unto him, Art thou also one of his disciples .■' He denied, 
 and said, I am not. One of the servants of the high priest, being a kins- 
 man of him whose ear Peter cut off, saith. Did not I see thee in the garden 
 with him ? Peter therefore denied again : and straightway the cock crew. 
 
 There is again an unmistakable touch of irony in this 
 account of the actual capture of Christ, the fulness and 
 circumstantiality with which all the parties are enumerated 
 who, having recovered their courage after their ignomin- 
 ious prostration, now rush upon the Lord, to make sut"e 
 of this dangerous man : " the band, and the chief captain, 
 and the officers of the Jews," — Jews and Gentiles united 
 in the very first act of physical violence to Christ — seized 
 Jesus and bound Him and led Him to Annas first, who 
 was not only the father-in-law of Caiaphas, but also, as it 
 is generally supposed, his predecessor in the office. This 
 hearing before Annas, who lived in a separate wing of the 
 
266 THE GOSFEL CF ST. JO/JA\ [xviii. 19-21. 
 
 High Priest's palace, is again one of the distinctive features 
 of the fourth Gospel, the Synoptists giving only the 
 official inquest before Caiaphas. But the " disciple that 
 was known to the High Priest," that is undoubtedly John, 
 had the best opportunity to know about this. And that 
 he was not ignorant of the hearing before Caiaphas ap- 
 pears clearly from the statement (ver. 13), "they led Him 
 to Annas first," and again from the 24th verse, "Annas 
 sent Him bound unto Caiaphas the High Priest." 
 
 This preliminary hearing before Annas and a few mem- 
 bers of the Sanhedrim was not of an official character. 
 No sentence was passed there, because there was no 
 authority to pass it. The purport of this meeting seems 
 to have been to elicit some statement from the Lord by 
 which He would commit Himself, and which might be 
 used against Him in the official inquiry that followed. 
 Thus they meant to make good use of the time which was 
 needed to call a regular meeting of the Sanhedrim. 
 
 The insidious questions of Annas as to His disciples, that 
 is, the formation of a party of adherents, and as to His 
 doctrine, that is, the heresy with which He is charged, in- 
 dicate clearly the two lines on which the prosecution hoped 
 to make out a case against Christ. Before the Roman 
 magistrate He was to be denounced as the head of a 
 dangerous party, which at any time might create a politi- 
 cal disturbance. Before the Sanhedrim the charge was 
 to be His heretical teaching, His blasphemy. The 
 counter-question of the Lord : " Why askest thou Me ? " 
 and the whole tenor of His response prove that He did 
 not recognize any rightful authority of this court of in- 
 vestigation. His dignified answer simply appeals to the 
 publicity of His ministry, and calls in all the Jews as 
 witnesses of what He did and taught. At the same time 
 it strongly reminds those who were at home in Old Tes- 
 
xvxii. 20-23.] CHAPTER XVIII. ' 267 
 
 tament Scripture of that word put in the mouth of the 
 Messiah by Isaiah the prophet : " I have not spoken in 
 secret from the beginning, from the time that it was, 
 there am I, and now the Lord God and His Spirit hath 
 sent Me" (Is. xlviii. 16). 
 
 The rebuke administered to Annas in these words of 
 the Lord is felt keenly by the whole company, and one of 
 the officers, anxious to help his master out of the em- 
 barrassing situation, rudely strikes the Lord in the face 
 (either with the hand or with a rod) a significant indica- 
 tion of the course which this whole process of inquiry is 
 bound to take ; instead of argument and testimony, bodily 
 violence, to silence the mouth of this witness. But the 
 hour for His final silence had not yet come. He still 
 speaks to show this offender his wrong : " If I have spoken 
 evil, bear witness of the evil ; but if well, why smitest thou 
 Me ? " The question has sometimes been asked by those 
 who are always ready to criticise the Lord, whether His 
 action in this case was in accord with His own teaching 
 in the Sermon on the Mount : " Resist not him that is 
 evil ; but whosoever smiteth thee on thy right cheek, 
 turn to him the other also." But did Christ really refuse 
 to be smitten on the other cheek also ? Did He not 
 willingly, humbly and patiently offer His whole body to 
 every stroke and torture which His cruel enemies chose 
 to inflict upon Him ? But whilst His hand did not strike 
 back. His mouth could not and did not keep silent at the 
 outrage which was committed. In all meekness, and yet 
 most pointedly and directly. He testifies against it, to 
 convince the sinner of the error of his ways and thus, if 
 it were possible, to enlighten his mind and change his 
 heart. 
 
 In the order of the three different denials of Peter the 
 fourth Gospel again exhibits the exactness of its chrono- 
 
268 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 15-18. 
 
 logical arrangement, as compared to the Synoptists. 
 Even Renan admits that everything is told more fully 
 and explained more satisfactorily in the account given by 
 St. John. 
 
 We learn here, what none of the Synoptists told us, 
 that through the good services of another disciple, undoubt- 
 edly John himself, " who was known unto the High 
 Priest," Peter found admission into the court of the 
 palace. Both had followed the Lord at the same time to 
 the same place ; and yet no harm came of it to John, 
 while to Peter is threatened the very loss of his soul. It 
 is the old adage : Two men may do the same thing and 
 yet it is not the same. John had not the same prohibitory 
 command from the Lord, and therefore had a clear con- 
 science in following Him. He went along as a matter of 
 course, as the beloved disciple, never thinking of himself 
 and his personal safety. Peter, as we are told in the 
 Gospel of St. Luke, followed " afar off." He was at a 
 distance from the Lord internally, as well as outwardly. 
 He was disregarding His express commandment by his 
 very act of following Him. He did it with a divided, 
 uncertain, and consequently with an uneasy heart. He 
 still loved his Lord, but at the same time he was looking 
 out for himself. After the repeated promises he had 
 made, he thought he owed it to himself, to his own repu- 
 tation for manliness and truthfulness, that he must go with 
 Him. He had undertaken too much, as he did on an- 
 other occasion, when, leaving the boat in which the others 
 were safe, he ventured to the Lord on the water. Un- 
 consciously he was already under the curse of that funda- 
 mental law of God's kingdom : " Whatever is not of 
 faith, is sin." 
 
 Again, Peter stood with the servants and officers at the 
 fire and warmed himself. Nowhere do we read of John 
 
XVIII. 25-27.] CHAPTER XVIIL 269 
 
 a.s being in this company ; but Peter was there accepting 
 their hospitaHty in the cold night and trying to preserve his 
 incognito by appearing as cool and indifferent as possible. 
 Think of the sneering and slandering, the calumnies and 
 blasphemies against his Lord to which Peter listened in 
 the company around that fire ! And he never opened his 
 mouth. The confessor, otherwise so quick and ready 
 with his speech, keeps silent in the midst of his Master's 
 reviling enemies. Had not Peter denied the Lord al- 
 ready before he uttered one of those terrible words ? 
 
 And now the denial itself. Never did a greater fall 
 come from a more trifling occasion. It was the simple 
 question addressed to Peter, first by the maid that kept 
 the door, and afterwards by other servants and officers : 
 " Art thou also like John, who was there in the palace, in 
 perfect safety and unconcern — one of this man's dis- 
 ciples ? " It was a splendid occasion for brave, heroic 
 Peter to do what he had done so nobly before this, to 
 confess his Lord and Master as the Son of the living God, 
 and himself as His devoted and believing disciple. True, 
 it is one thing to answer such a question in the presence 
 of the Lord, surrounded by believing and loving dis- 
 ciples, and another to answer it in the face of a Christ- 
 hating, sneering world. And so Peter denied it and said: 
 I am not ! He thus first denied himself, before he even 
 denied his Lord, and having thrown away himself, the 
 former bold confessor, it was only a little way to deny the 
 Lord directly, " I know not this man of whom ye speak." 
 This form of direct denial of Christ Himself is not given 
 in John's account, which presents Peter's fall in the mild- 
 est form, whilst the Gospel of St. Mark, written most 
 likely under Peter's personal influence, narrates the fall 
 in the most aggravated manner. 
 
 Was there ever a greater triumph of Satan against the 
 
270 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 25-27. 
 
 Lord and His Kingdom than this fall of Peter? There 
 in the hall before Annas, stood Jesus appealing, in answer 
 to the questions about His disciples and His doctrine, to 
 those " that heard Him " : " Ask them, behold they know 
 what I have said." And here is the answer of the fore- 
 most of them " that heard Him " and who ought to know 
 the Master and what He said unto them. His answer 
 is: "lam not one of His disciples. I know not this 
 man." In striking Peter, Satan most severely struck 
 the Lord Himself. Had He not said once in answer to 
 Peter's confession of faith : " Thou art Peter, and upon 
 this rock I will build My Church and the gates of hell 
 shall not prevail against it ? " Not prevail ? echoes the 
 derisive laughter of triumphant hell. Where is your 
 Peter now, where his confession, the rock upon which 
 the Church is to be built? Where is that Church itself? 
 Peter the head and chief confessor overthrown by the 
 casual remark of a damsel ! What kind of a church, what 
 sort of a kingdom, to be built of such material as this? 
 The Lord's divinity denied by the very man who had 
 first confessed it, and thus the very foundation of the 
 Church destroyed, — this is what Satan meant with his 
 victorious assault upon Peter. 
 
 HL Jesus Before the Governor Pilate 
 (xviii. 28-xix. 16). 
 
 I. First Charge of the Jezvs (xviii. 28-32). 
 
 28-32. They lead Jesus therefore from Caiaphas into the palace: and 
 it was early ; and they themselves entered not into the palace, that they 
 might not be defiled, but might eat the passover. Pilate therefore went 
 out unto them, and saith, What accusation bring ye against this man ? 
 they answered and said unto him, If this man were not an evil-doer, we 
 should not have delivered him up unto thee. Pilate therefore said unto 
 them. Take him yourselves, and judge him according to your law. The 
 
XVIII. 28-32.] CHAPTER XVIII. 271 
 
 Jews said unto him, it is not lawful for us to put any man to death : that 
 the word of Jesus might be fulfilled, which he spake, signifying by what 
 manner of death he should die. 
 
 The struggle between the Jews and the Roman Gov- 
 ernor, by which the former seek to obtain from the latter 
 the sentence of death against Jesus, is most fully and 
 graphically described in the fourth Gospel, which is, par- 
 ticularly in this scene, an indispensable supplement to 
 the Synoptists. We distinguish four different attempts 
 on the part of the Jews to make the Governor a tool for 
 the execution of their designs : there is first the general, 
 tumultuary demand that the evil-doer, delivered up to 
 the Governor, should be put to death (28-32). The next 
 attempt is the political charge, that He made Himself 
 King of the Jews (ver. 33--xix.6); the third istheaccusa- 
 tion of blasphemy, that " He made Himself the Son of 
 God " (xix. 7-12). The fourth and last attempt to which 
 the Governor succumbs is the threat : " Thou art not 
 Caesar's friend " (xix. 13-16). 
 
 Pilate held the office of Governor of Judaea about the 
 same length of time as Caiaphas that of the High Priest 
 (26-36 A. D.). Heusually resided in Caesarea. At festival 
 seasons he came up to Jerusalem, and there made a 
 dazzling display of Roman splendor. His character 
 has been judged quite differently by different writers. 
 Some call him haughty, stubborn, self-willed. Others 
 speak of him as a good and efficient officer. Serious 
 charges being brought against him before Vitellius, the 
 governor of Syria, he is said to have taken his own life in 
 exile under Caesar Caligula. 
 
 The Jews approach him first with the peremptory 
 demand that he should consent to become their execu- 
 tioner. Their Sanhedrim having decreed that " He is 
 worthy of death," Pilate is expected to carry out the 
 
272 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 28-33. 
 
 sentence, even as the church-tribunals of inquisition in 
 the middle ages, having passed their sentence upon the 
 heretic, delivered him up to the sword of the secular 
 power, washing their hands in innocence with the hypo- 
 critical assurance : " Ecclesia non sitit sanguinem." But 
 in this case the Governor sees through their scheme, and 
 politely returns their prisoner with the sarcastic remark ; 
 "Take Him yourselves and judge Him according to your 
 law." It was a painful humiliation for them to be forced 
 to admit : "It is not lawful for us to put any man to 
 death.-' With this loss of the right to inflict the penalty 
 of death, the Jews had actually lost their sovereignty as 
 a nation ; and it was as bitter for them to concede this 
 before the Roman Governor, as it had been bitter to be 
 told by the Lord only a few days before this : " Render 
 unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's." 
 
 2. Jesus the King (xviii. 33-38^). 
 
 33-38''. Pilate therefore entered again into the palace, and called Jesus, 
 and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews ? Jesus answered, 
 Sayest thou this of thyself, or did others tell it thee concerning me ? 
 Pilate answered. Am I a Jew .' Thine own nation and the chief priests de- 
 livered thee unto me: what hast thou done? Jesus answered. My king- 
 dom 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 now is 
 my kingdom not from hence. Pilate therefore said unto him. Art thou a 
 king then ? Jesus answered. Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end 
 have I been born, and to this end am I come into the world, that I should 
 bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my 
 voice. Pilate saith unto hiin. What is truth ? 
 
 The next point of attack on the part of the Jews is 
 indicated in this Gospel in the question of Pilate (ver. 33), 
 "Art Thou the King of the Jews?" But in order to 
 make this fully clear and intelligible, John must here be 
 supplemented by Luke, who shows how Pilate was led to 
 
XVIII. 33, 34-1 CHAPTER XVIII. 273 
 
 ask this question (Luke xxiii. 2). The Jews had brought 
 the definite charge : " We found this man perverting our 
 nation and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, and say- 
 ing that He Himself is Christ, a King." And this is fol- 
 lowed in the Gospel of St. Luke by the same question, 
 which we have here in John : " Art Thou the king of 
 the Jews?" This title could have a double meaning in 
 the history of those days. As understood by the Roman 
 it naturally implied the idea of rebellion against Caesar, 
 it was a " king " in the political sense of the word. As 
 understood by the believing Israelite the title had a 
 spiritual meaning, designating the Messiah, the Lord of 
 God's kingdom, of righteousness, peace and joy in the 
 Holy Spirit, " the righteous Branch of David who shall 
 execute judgment and justice in the earth "(Jerem. xxiii. 5), 
 the " Prince of Peace, of whose government there shall 
 be no end upon the throne of David " (Isaiah ix. 6, 7), 
 from whom the Roman Emperor had as little to fear as 
 Herod from the babe in Bethlehem. The Lord, therefore, 
 was not ready without further explanation to answer the 
 question as to His kingship either in the affirmative or 
 in the negative. (See the question of the Jews, x. 24.) 
 He therefore answered : " Sayest thou this of thyself, or 
 did others tell it thee concerning Me ? " — is the term " king 
 of the Jews " used in the Roman, that is, the political 
 sense, or in the Israelitic, that is, the theocratic sense ? 
 
 But there is another more important feature in this 
 counter-question of the Lord. It reveals the kindly per- 
 sonal and pastoral interest which Christ takes in Pilate. 
 On this memorable occasion when the Saviour of the 
 world is for the first time brought into direct contact 
 with the representative of Rome, He offers Himself even 
 to this proud Roman Governor as the one great physician 
 of the soul. He means to deal with him pastorally, as 
 
274 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xviii. 34. 
 
 He dealt with Nicodemus and with the Samaritan 
 woman. For this reason the tables are promptly turned, 
 and when Pilate had called Jesus into the palace and 
 was alone with Him, the accused at once questions the 
 judge and inquires into his moral standing and character. 
 The Lord, who " knew what was in man," lays His finger 
 upon the weak point in Pilate's character. " Sayest thou 
 this of thyself, or did others tell it thee concerning Me?" 
 Here was the dangerous rock on which he was ship- 
 wrecked, and here was the danger-signal and warning of 
 the Lord in His very first word addressed to Pilate. 
 With all his haughtiness and conceit, with all his con- 
 sciousness of the power and authority of his office, the 
 Governor was in danger of being influenced by what 
 " others tell him concerning Christ." He lacked in 
 moral courage and determination to maintain what he 
 said in this case " of himself." Wherever, throughout 
 this mock-trial, Pilate really spoke his own mind, it was 
 invariably the declaration of Christ's innocence ; and 
 when, in spite of this his better conviction, he ultimately 
 delivered up Christ to be crucified, he yielded to what 
 " others told " him to do. For this reason the Lord 
 means to detach him from those outside influences. If 
 He could only have him alone, to speak to him eye to 
 eye, undisturbed by the insidious tales of the chief priests 
 and Pharisees, Pilate would not be altogether inaccessible. 
 But it is a characteristic feature of those moral weak- 
 lings who are least able to form and maintain a judgment 
 of their own, and most dependent on outside influence, 
 that they are always over-anxious to preserve the appear- 
 ance of absolute freedom and independence in their deci- 
 sions. While in reality they are the helpless reed shaken 
 by the wind, the wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the 
 storm, they pretend to be the rock, standing immovable 
 
xviii. 35-37] CHAPTER XVIII. 275 
 
 amidst the foaming surf. Thus the proud Roman will 
 not submit to this pastoral dealing on the part of his 
 prisoner. He resents it with the cold and haughty : 
 " Am I a Jew?" and with the formal and official ques- 
 tion of the judge to the criminal : " What hast Thou 
 done ? " And now the Lord " before Pontius Pilate wit- 
 nessed the good confession" (i Tim. vi. 13), affirming 
 that He is king indeed, and describing the true character 
 of His kingdom : *' 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," — thus 
 clearly maintaining the unpolitical and even anti-Jewish 
 character of His kingdom. Pilate therefore said unto 
 Him : Art Thou a king then ? Jesus answered : Thou 
 sayest it : I am a king. To this end I have been born 
 — as the Son of Mary — and to this end am I come into 
 the world — as the Son of God — that I should bear witness 
 unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth 
 My voice. 
 
 There He stands, the King of truth, in a perishing world 
 of lies and vanities, declaring, out of the bosom of the 
 Father, the everlasting and saving truth of God. Before 
 Hirn, they have been seeking it, " if haply they might feel 
 after Him ;" and now that He has come, "the way, the 
 truth and the life," they criticise and reject Him! And 
 yet : " Every one that is of the truth heareth His voice." 
 Wherever there is an honest yearning in a human heart 
 for God's truth it is bound to come to Christ, to hear 
 His voice. 
 
 What an appeal to Pilate, to his conscience, to the 
 human soul in him ! Was there no spark of truth left in 
 Him to be kindled by these words of Jesus? Was it not 
 truth that Pilate spoke, once and twice, and six times : 
 I find no guilt in Him ? And being conscious of this and 
 
276 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xvni. yj, 38. 
 
 witnessing it publicly, should it have been so difficult for 
 him to " hear His voice " ? But men must first listen to 
 the truth from above and submit to it, before they can 
 speak it and possess it. Thus their persons, their life, their 
 walk and talk, their words and deeds, become purified, 
 renewed through the sanctifying power of that truth. 
 They become " truth " themselves. 
 
 Pilate, however, turns away from the King of truth, 
 before him, with the question : " What is truth ? " The 
 representative of ancient paganism, with all its culture and 
 philosophy, acknowledges the complete loss and utter de- 
 spair of truth ; he thus declares the total bankruptcy of 
 the ancient world. It is a remarkable fact that the three 
 Roman governors, whom we know somewhat more fully 
 from the New Testament, Pilate, Felix and Festus, all 
 meet the testimony of the truth with the same careless- 
 ness and indifference of the worldly skeptic, shrugging 
 their shoulders in pity and contempt for such enthusiasts 
 and martyrs of truth as Jesus of Nazareth and Paul of 
 Tarsus.^ 
 
 3. Jesus and Barabbas (xviii. 38-40). 
 
 38-40. And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and 
 saith unto them, I find no crime in him. 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? They cried out therefore again, saying, Not 
 this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber. 
 
 Being convinced of the innocence of Jesus and yet 
 lacking the courage to act up to this conviction and to 
 
 1 There is a great deal of this Pilate-spirit in modern men, who, while 
 they are constitutionally afraid of the full blaze of the truth, make so much 
 of their everlasting inquiry and search after truth. Cf. Lessing's word, so 
 frequently quoted and praised: "If the Almighty, holding in His right 
 hand truth itself, and in His left search after truth, gave me the choice be- 
 
xviii. 3S-40.] CHAPTER XVIII. 277 
 
 give a decision in favor of the prisoner, Pilate tries a 
 number of methods to shift the responsibihty upon 
 others, in order to get rid of Jesus and of the Jews with- 
 out deciding between them. His first attempt in this 
 line is the sending of Christ to Herod, as recorded in St. 
 Luke (xxiii. 6-12). The second is briefly referred to by 
 John but more fully told by the Synoptists. It is the 
 proposition that the people, according to their custom, 
 probably in memory of their delivery from bondage in 
 Egypt, should have the release of the prisoner for whom 
 they asked. He had no doubt that after the enthusiastic 
 reception of Jesus on His recent entrance into Jerusalem 
 He would be the choice of the multitude, all the more so, 
 as he knew, that the chief priests and rulers had delivered 
 Him for envy. But in vain. The same men who had 
 delivered Him up, persuaded the multitude that they 
 should ask for Barabbas. They cried out therefore 
 saying: Not this man, but Barabbas ! 
 
 tween the two, I would humbly take the left saying : ' Give me the search ; 
 full truth is for Thee alone ! ' " The late Dr. Duncan of Edinburgh said 
 once of this statement: "It contains the essence of all devilry. It may 
 amount to the willingness to be eternally without God. It is delight in the 
 mere activity of the faculties that is chosen, the search that is fearless and free, 
 unimpeded and irrestricted, forever to pursue an endless chase, to prove all 
 things, but hold fast nothing. It is the maxim of eternal revolt and inde- 
 pendence." See CoUoquia peripatetica, 5th ed., pp. 35, 36. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 4. Scourging and Mocking of the King of the Jews 
 (xix. 1-3). 
 
 1-3. Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged him. And the sol- 
 diers plaited a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and arrayed him in 
 a purple garment ; and they came unto him, and said, Hail, King of the 
 Jews! and they struck him with their hands. 
 
 5. Behold the Man (xix. 4-6). 
 
 4-6. And Pilate went out again, and saith unto them. Behold, I bring 
 him out to you, that ye may know that I find no crime in him. Jesus there- 
 rore came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple garment. And 
 Pilate saith unto them. Behold, the man ! When therefore the chief priests 
 and the officers saw him, they cried out, saying. Crucify him, crucify hiiri. 
 Pilate saith unto them. Take him yourselves, and crucify him : for I find no 
 crime in him. 
 
 Another attempt of Pilate to rescue Christ from the 
 hands of His cruel enemies ! " He took Jesus and 
 scourged Him " and afterwards presented to them the 
 bleeding Jesus, wearing the crown of thorns and the 
 purple garment, with the words : " Behold the man." 
 The scourging as a rule preceded crucifixion. It was in 
 itself a punishment so severe, that in some cases it ended 
 in death and made crucifixion superfluous. Here Pilate 
 inflicts it as a measure of compromise. He expects them 
 to be satisfied with this cruel punishment, which in his 
 own opinion inflicted far more upon the prisoner than 
 He deserved. There is in fact a twofold attempt on the 
 part of the Governor in this scene. Their merciless de- 
 278 
 
XIX. 1-6.] CHAPTER XIX. 279 
 
 sire for the punishment and blood of Jesus, is to be met 
 by the cruel scourging. The remaining feeling of hu- 
 manity and compassion, if there be such a thing left in 
 their hearts, is to be touched by the presentation of the 
 bleeding victim of their persecution, for whom even the 
 heartless Roman pleads mercy : " Behold the man ! " 
 What a contradiction and inconsistency in this double 
 act, first scourging the innocent as if He were guilty ; 
 and then pleading for the scourged one as if He were 
 innocent ! First gratifying the bloodthirsty beast with 
 a taste of the blood that was craved, and then appealing 
 to a human soul in the beast that had tasted blood ! A 
 Roman governor who had gone so far had really given 
 himself away completely. Henceforth he will be an easy 
 prey to the cruel determination of the enemies of Christ 
 whom nothing short of death can satisfy. 
 
 For a moment, however, Pilate seems as determined 
 not to submit to their dictation as they were to obtain 
 the penalty for Jesus. Highly provoked and indignant 
 over the failure of his last attempt, the Governor meets 
 their inexorable " Crucify Him " with the stern irony : 
 "Take Him yourselves and crucify Him ; for I find no 
 crime in Him ; " — if there is any meaning in this last 
 clause it must be : "I cannot and will not do it." 
 
 6. Jesus the Son of God (xix. 7-1 1). 
 
 7-1 1. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and by that law he ought 
 to die, because he made himself the Son of God. When Pilate therefore 
 heard this saying, he was the more afraid ; and he entered into the palace 
 again, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou ? But Jesus gave him no 
 answer. Pilate therefore saith unto him, Speakest thou not unto me ? 
 knowest thou not that I have power to release thee, and have power to 
 crucify thee? Jesus answered him, Thou wouldest have no power against 
 me, except it were given thee from above : therefore he tliat delivered me 
 unto thee hath greater sin. 
 
28o THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 7-10. 
 
 The Jewish rulers, being aware that they are checked 
 and repulsed at this point, try an approach from another 
 side. Much against their own wish, — because it implied 
 the sacrifice of a great principle on their part, — they find 
 tliemselves compelled at last to bring the religious charge 
 of blasphemy also before the Governor, to whose domain 
 it certainly did not belong. "We have a law and by that 
 law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son 
 of God." This law, they claim, has never been interfered 
 with by the Romans. They have it still and they insist 
 on its being respected. It demands the death of the 
 blasphemer who makes Himself equal with God ! The 
 light-hearted skeptic, on hearing this, is seized with su- 
 perstitious dread of having before him one of the gods 
 (as Paul and Barnabas were taken for Jupiter and Mer- 
 curius in Lystra, Acts xiv. 11 ff.). He withdraws from 
 the multitude, enters the palace again and saith unto 
 Jesus : " Whence art Thou ? " But Jesus gave him no 
 answer. Was it because by telling the Governor the 
 truth on this point He would have made it impossible 
 for him to pass the sentence of death ? or was it simply 
 because Pilate by this time had heard enough of Him ? 
 But the silence of the Lord again irritates the Governor. 
 He feels deeply offended and bursts out in savage indig- 
 nation : " Speakest Thou not unto me? Knowest Thou 
 not that I have power to release Thee and have power 
 to crucify Thee ? " This is no doubt the worst thing 
 Pilate ever said, the saddest exhibition of the low stand- 
 ard to which the much and deservedly praised Roman 
 jurisdiction could be degraded, in the hands of an un- 
 scrupulous, despotic governor. But I am inclined to say, 
 Pilate was not quite as bad as this word of his. If he 
 had been satisfied from the beginning of having such 
 power, in that absolutely arbitrary sense of the w^ord, he 
 
XIX. u.] CHAPTER XIX. 281 
 
 would never have troubled himself so much about taking 
 a stand against the Jews, as he had done up to this point. 
 The answer of the Lord is full of majesty and gentle- 
 ness at the same time. Over against the " power " 
 claimed by Pilate, He points to the higher One who gave 
 it to him from above. And then the wonderful kindness 
 and gentleness, the touch of hearty sympathy with poor 
 Pilate in the words: "He that delivered Me unto thee 
 hath greater sin." The Lord gives him to understand 
 that He appreciates the difficulty and embarrassment of 
 his position, and that He knows where to locate the moral 
 responsibility in this case with perfect impartiality. He 
 tells him, what Pilate has been telling himself, that there 
 is sin, great sin in this whole process. He cannot and 
 does not exonerate Pilate. But He knows also that 
 Pilate is not the original instigator of this thing. It has 
 been thrust upon him against his own will and desire, and 
 all his efforts to get rid of the case have been in vain. 
 The greater sin is with those that delivered Jesus to him, 
 Caiaphas, the High Priest of that year, and the rulers of 
 Israel in general, including the " one of the twelve who 
 betrayed Him." 
 
 7. CcBsars Friendship. The Governor Yields (xix. 12-16). 
 
 12-16. Upon this Pilate sought to release him : but the Jews cried out, 
 saying, If thou release this man, thou art not Caesar's friend : every one 
 that niaketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. When Pilate therefore 
 heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment- 
 seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. Now it 
 was the Preparation of the passover : it was about the sixth hour. And he 
 saith unto the Jews, Behold, your King! They therefore cried out, Away 
 with /^?>«, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I 
 crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but 
 Caesar. Then therefore he delivered him unto them to be crucified. 
 
 This third charge then of the Jews, introducing their 
 
282 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 12-15. 
 
 law against blasphemy is another failure. It only had 
 the effect that " Pilate sought to release Him " (ver. 12). 
 Consequently their last mine is sprung which shatters to 
 pieces the Governor's defense bringing him to uncondi- 
 tional surrender. " If thou release this man, thou art 
 not Caesar's friend : every one that maketh himself a 
 king, speaketh against Caesar." They intimate that they 
 will denounce him to the Emperor as one who spared a 
 dangerous rebel, a king of the Jews. And Pilate knew 
 well enough, that such a threat was indeed a serious 
 matter with a ruler like Tiberius, of whom the historians 
 (particularly Suetonius) say that the laws concerning 
 offences against the majesty of Caesar were executed by 
 him in the most cruel and unsparing manner. Even the 
 good conscience of a spotless character would have 
 offered poor chances of escaping the consequence of 
 such denunciations. And such a character was not that 
 of Pilate. He therefore yielded, and delivered Him unto 
 them to be crucified. But in doing this against his own 
 conscience he will at least have the satisfaction of re- 
 venging himself on these contemptible Jews, after his 
 own mind. Sitting on the judgment seat, ready to pass 
 the final sentence, the Roman Governor taunts the raging 
 Jews with the cruel sneer: "Behold your king! Shall I 
 crucify your king?" The fearful effect of these words 
 upon the Jews reveals the crisis which had now been 
 reached in the history of that nation, the divine nemesis 
 upon God's chosen people, who in surrendering their 
 Messiah to the Gentiles actually dishonored and de- 
 stroyed their own glory and life as a nation. All 
 through this process, in spite of their conceit and arro- 
 gance , they had most ignominiously lowered themselves 
 before the Roman. The only Jew for whom he showed 
 a particle of respect was the prisoner in bonds, Jesus of 
 
XIX. 15] CHAPTER XIX. 283 
 
 Nazareth. For the rest of them he had nothing but con- 
 tempt, which grew all the more bitter as he allowed him- 
 self to be dragged down to the level of this murderous 
 crowd. But now he has his revenge. " Here is what 
 you want. The cross for your King ! Ye shall have it ! 
 Let the King of the Jews be crucified ! " 
 
 " We have no king but Caesar ! " — this is the desperate, 
 furious answer of the Jews. It is the public and formal 
 renunciation, made on the feast of the Passover, made 
 before the judgment seat of the Roman governor, of all 
 their Messianic hopes and expectations. What a judgment 
 upon those people who were haunted night and day by 
 the one thought and desire, how to put an end to Roman 
 rule and Caesar's reign, with the help of a Messiah after 
 their own heart, that they must now be brought to this 
 formal, public declaration : " We have no king but 
 Caesar." Of a truth they had no king but Caesar. The 
 king of Israel, " who had visited and brought redemption 
 for His people, and had raised up a horn of salvation for 
 them in the house of His servant David " (Luke i. 68, 
 69), Him they rejected, saying : " We will not have this 
 man reign over us " (Luke xix. 14). They have chosen 
 Caesar. And Caesar shall be all that is left to them, 
 Caesar's sword, Caesar's legions, Caesar's eagles, which are 
 hovering over them ready to devour the carcass of what 
 had once been God's chosen and beloved people. 
 
 IV. The Execution (xix. 17-42). 
 I. The Crucifixion (xix. 17-18). 
 
 17-18. They took Jesus therefore: and he went out, bearing the cross 
 for himself, unto the place called The place of a skull, which is called in 
 Hebrew Golgotha : where they crucified him, and with him two others, on 
 either side one, and Jesus in the midst. 
 
284 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 17, 18. 
 
 Thus we have reached the scene on Calvary and here 
 particularly the principle is to be observed, which we 
 found in John's presentation of the Passion-history in 
 general, viz. that only a few, but most significant and 
 characteristic features are given. " He went out,"^ — " that 
 He might sanctify the people through His own blood. 
 He suffered without the gate. (Let us therefore go forth 
 unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach." 
 Heb. xiii. 12.) The bearing of the cross by Jesus Him- 
 self is also one of the features peculiar to John, while the 
 Synoptists tell us that when they reached the outskirts of 
 the city the cross was laid on Simon of Cyrene, to carry 
 it after Jesus. It was customary to lead those condemned 
 to crucifixion through the most populous streets and 
 places ; the criminal in chains preceded by a herald who 
 called out the charge of which he had been found guilty ; 
 frequently a tablet was tied round the neck of the con- 
 demned man, containing the statement of his guilt. 
 Crucifixion itself was the most ignominious, and at the 
 same time the most painful and cruel death penalty that 
 could be inflicted. It was an exceedingly slow process of 
 torture, resulting in death at the earliest in about twelve 
 hours and sometimes not before the third day. 
 
 2. TJie Inscription on the Cross (xix. 19-22). 
 
 19-22. And Pilate wrote a title also, and put it on the cross. And there 
 was written, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. This title 
 therefore read many of the Jews : for the place where Jesus was crucified 
 was nigh to the city : and it was written in Hebrew, and in Latin, and in 
 Greek. The chief priests of the Jews therefore said to Pilate, Write not, 
 The King of the Jews ; but, that he said, I am King of the Jews. Pilate 
 answered, W^hat I have written I have written. 
 
 All the Synoptists have a brief statement concerning 
 the title which Pilate wrote and put on the cross : " Jesus 
 
XIX. 19-22.] CHAPTER XIX. 285 
 
 of Nazareth, the King of the Jews," but the fourth Gospel 
 gives the fullest account of the circumstances connected 
 with this inscription, setting forth its full significance both 
 for the Lord and His enemies. It is evident that this 
 was an afterthought, occurring to Pilate in his burning 
 desire to have his revenge on those men. to whom he had 
 yielded against his conscience. And truly a greater 
 insult could not be offered to them and the people repre- 
 sented by them, than to fix over the head of tliat man of 
 sorrows, the helpless, naked, bleeding outcast, this title : 
 " The King of the Jews." On the day of their highest 
 festival, in the midst of the vast assembly gathered in 
 Jerusalem on that occasion, the defamation of the Jews 
 was thus publicly proclaimed in the three principal 
 languages of the ancient civilized world ! No wonder the 
 chief priests of the Jews keenly felt the sting of that 
 inscription. But it was the title which they themselves 
 had fastened upon Jesus ; and to give it over to the 
 shame of the cross together with its bearer was simply to 
 publish, ratify and seal their own declaration : " We have 
 no king but Caesar." What was most offensive to them 
 was the objective historical form of that inscription, which 
 fixed and proclaimed it for all time as a historical fact, 
 that Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews, was nailed 
 to the cross ! If it could only be presented as a statement 
 and imagination of His own, that " He said I am king of 
 the Jews," a claim and pretension which did not deserve 
 to be credited. They proposed this change to the 
 Governor, confidently expecting that he would make no 
 difficulty in yielding this little point, having yielded 
 everything they wanted. But this time the shaking reed 
 is found to be an immovable rock. " What I have written 
 I have written." If it had not been his spite against the 
 Jews, it was the Roman law itself, which forbade him to 
 
286 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 22. 
 
 alter one jot or tittle of the formal and official sentence 
 thus published. Rome has spoken. Rome has written. 
 And God has spoken and God has written through this 
 Governor. This writing shall abide. All the scribes and 
 doctors of Israel shall not alter this scripture, which 
 enrols Pilate with Moses and all the rest, as one of the 
 writers of God's revelation, even as Caiaphas has been 
 enrolled with Isaiah and the others as one of the prophets. 
 Roman hands, by order of Caesar Augustus, for the first 
 time entered that blessed name of Jesus into the lists of 
 the empire. Roman hands wrote and affixed over the 
 head of the dying Jesus the name which is above every 
 name, the one name under heaven given among 
 men wherein we must be saved. This title, John signi- 
 ficantly says, was read by many Jews, and it was written 
 in Hebrew and in Latin and in Greek. Being written it 
 was read. The writing being finished the reading begins. 
 But the question is : " How readest thou ? " (Luke x. 26). 
 " Understandest thou what thou readest ? " (Acts viii. 30). 
 Being written in Hebrew and in Greek and in Latin, its 
 reading was not confined to the Jews, but it could be read 
 and understood by the Gentiles as well, who happened to 
 be in Jerusalem. 
 
 It was written in Hebrew, thus far the language of 
 revealed religion ; of the patriarchs, priests and kings, 
 who had, centuries ago, been looking for this king ; in 
 the language of the Psalms and services which sang of 
 Him, and prophesied and typified Him in the Old Testa- 
 ment. 
 
 It was written in Greek, the language of wisdom and 
 learning, of highest culture and art in the ancient world, 
 the language of the first translation of the Old Testament, 
 the Septuagint. 
 
 It was written in Latin, the language of the ruling 
 
XIX. 22-24.] CHAPTER XIX. 287 
 
 nation, of the great organizers and administrators, of order 
 and discipline, whose spirit was inherited by the Mediaeval 
 Church, which, in raising the stupendous structure of the 
 Roman Hierarchy, was the most powerful instrumentality 
 in bringing the Gentiles to the obedience of faith. 
 
 Here then is the first polyglot on the name of the cru- 
 cified Jesus, a commentary to His word, which we read 
 in the 12th chapter, " And I when I am lifted up from the 
 earth will draw all men unto Myself ; " an anticipation of 
 Pentecost, when Jews and proselytes and strangers heard 
 the disciples " speaking in their own tongues the mighty 
 works of God" (Acts ii. 1 1). The three tongues there are 
 a prophecy of the three hundred, in which the name of 
 Jesus is read and proclaimed at the present time. 
 
 3. Dividing His Garments {^\x.. 23,24). 
 
 23-24. The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified Jesus, took his 
 garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part ; and also the coat : 
 now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said 
 therefore one to another, 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 garments among them, 
 And upon my vesture did they cast lots. 
 These things therefore the soldiers did. 
 
 This feature of the Passion-history is only very briefly 
 referred to by the Synoptists, who place it before their 
 account of the inscription. But in John the narrative is 
 much fuller, showing the hand of the Apostle who was 
 present at the scene as an eyewitness. At the same 
 time he points out the significance of this fact as a direct 
 and literal fulfilment of the 22d Psalm. The Synoptists 
 have no reference to this ; not even Matthew, who is 
 richest in references to Old Testament prophecies fulfilled 
 in Christ. (See the Revised Version, Matt, xxvii. 35, 
 
288 TJIE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 25, 26. 
 
 which sunply omits the reference to the Psahn as a later 
 insertion from John.) 
 
 4. Last Will of Mary s Son (xix. 25-27). 
 
 25-27. But there were standing by the cross of Jesus his mother, and 
 his mother's sister, Mary the luife of Clopas, 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 saith he 
 to the disciple, Behold thy mother ! And from that hour the disciple took 
 her unto his own home. 
 
 Of the seven words on the cross the Gospel of John 
 records three : The third, to Mary and John : " Woman, 
 behold thy Son! and behold Thy mother!" the fifth: 
 " I thirst," and the sixth : " It is finished." Matthew 
 and Mark have the fourth only : " My God, My God ! 
 why hast Thou forsaken Me? " St. Luke gives the first 
 two and the seventh : " Father, forgive them for they 
 know not what they do." " Verily I say unto thee to- 
 day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise," and " Father, 
 into Thy hands I commend My spirit." 
 
 Standing by the cross, faithful to the last, fearless even 
 in the midst of that sneering and reviling crowd, we find 
 the women. When Peter and James and Philip and 
 Andrew, and Thomas and Nathanael and all the rest had 
 fled, the women stood, and stood by the cross ! And 
 with them one solitary apostle of all the twelve, the be- 
 loved disciple. It is not necessary to refute the vagaries 
 of Romish commentators who- try very hard to prove 
 from Mary's presence under the cross, and from the words 
 addressed to her by the dying Saviour, that she was a 
 kind of assistant of the Lord in the work of redemption, 
 laboring with Him for the salvation of mankind. The 
 very first word, the title or address given to her in this 
 
XIX. 26, 27.] CHAPTER XIX. 289 
 
 testament of her Son, overthrows all such theories. It 
 is the same word " woman," with which He addressed 
 her at the marriage table in Cana, assigning to her her 
 proper position in her relation to Himself. Here under 
 the cross she is in an emphatic sense nothing but the 
 " woman," the frail, helpless woman that needs the strong 
 supporting arm of a faithful and devoted son. And this 
 the Lord provides for her in committing her to the care 
 of His beloved John. Having made intercession even 
 for His enemies in the first word on the cross as the High 
 Priest and having opened the gate of Paradise to the dy- 
 ing thief in the second, as the King and Lord forever. 
 He now makes His last will and testament for Mary His 
 mother. But what can He possibly leave to her? There 
 He hangs on the cross, stripped of everything, even His 
 garments divided among His executioners, nothing left 
 to Him that He could leave to Mary. And yet there is 
 a rich capital, honestly earned by Him in His life of love, 
 and wonderfully increasing in those very hours of His 
 severest trial and passion, it is the love of those whom 
 He calls His own. It was both His gift and His com- 
 mand that they .should love one another even as He had 
 loved them unto death. Blessed John to whom the dy- 
 ing Lord gave such an evidence of His undying affection 
 for His beloved disciple, that He committed to his charge 
 His nearest and dearest on earth. Blessed Mary, who 
 inherited such a rich legacy in the tender love and care 
 of the disciple thus honored by the Lord ! 
 
 5. Death of Jesus (xix. 28-30). 
 
 28-30. After this Jesus, knowing that all things are now finished, that 
 
 the scripture might be accomplished, saith, I thirst. There was set there a 
 
 vessel full of vinegar: so they put a sponge full of the vinegar upon hyssop, 
 
 and brought it to his mouth. When Jesus therefore had received the 
 
 19 
 
290 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 28-30. 
 
 vinegar, he said, It is finished : and he bowed his head, and gave up his 
 spirit. 
 
 The bodily sufferings of the incarnate Word culminate 
 in the burning thirst which compels Him for the last time 
 to humble Himself before His enemies and murderers, 
 and to ask from them a moistening of His parched lips. 
 But even this feature of the Lord's passion appears in 
 the light of an exact fulfilment of scripture prophecy. 
 The twenty-second Psalm, which the Lord has used to 
 give expression to the deepest agony of His soul, also 
 described the bodily suffering of the crucified Saviour : 
 " My strength is dried up like a potsherd ; and my tongue 
 cleaveth to my jaws " (Ps. xxii. 15 ; cf. also Ps. Ixix. 21, in 
 my thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink). There is no 
 doubt that no other part of the O. T, Scripture was so 
 much in the mind of Christ during those terrible hours 
 when He was suspended on the cross, as the twenty-sec- 
 ond Psalm. In remembrance of this Scripture and in full 
 assurance that every particle of it was to be fulfilled and 
 that this fulfillment was now reaching its climax, He 
 said: "I thirst." And this burning thirst of His body at 
 the same time typified the craving of His soul to see 
 His work finished, to bring salvation to a perishing world. 
 As it had been His meat all through this life to do the 
 will of Him that sent Him and to accomplish His work 
 (John iv. 34), so He was now longing to be refreshed ac- 
 cording to the word of Isaiah : " He shall see the travail 
 of His soul and shall be satisfied " (liii. 11). 
 
 His burning lips being moistened by the vinegar on the 
 sponge, He received strength to utter with " a loud voice " 
 (as Mark distinctly says, xv. 37) the great word of victory : 
 " It is finished." All the preceding words had their 
 special address to which they were directed. This one is 
 without such an address and yet its meaning and direc- 
 
XIX. 30.] CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 291 
 
 tion are easy to understand. It is the word of consumma- 
 tion and victory in the fullest and absolute sense. It is 
 His achievement, His victory, and yet He does not say : 
 " I have finished it," as He had a right to say, but, as the 
 humblest performer of the greatest work for time and 
 eternity, He simply and modestly says : " It is finished " 
 — the passion, the action, the whole obedience of His life 
 even unto death, the scripture, with its prophecies, its 
 types, its law, its covenants, the will of the Father, the 
 redemption of mankind, all is finished. No one can add 
 to this, no one can detract from this. Christ has fin- 
 ished it and Christ alone ! And Christ announces and 
 proclaims it to the world. Having poured out His soul 
 unto death He is entitled to be the first herald and 
 preacher of the victory of the cross, declaring " His 
 righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that He 
 hath done it " (Ps. xxii. 31). Again, He says it to the 
 Father: " It is finished, what Thou hast given Me to do. 
 I glorified Thee on the earth, having accomplished the 
 work which Thou hast given Me to do " (John xvii. 4). 
 Again : He proclaims His victory to hell and all the 
 powersof Satan : It is finished : Death where is thy sting? 
 Hell, where is thy victory ? Here is the stronger one that 
 overcame the strong man fully armed and guarding his 
 court. He taketh from him his whole armor wherein he 
 trusted and divideth his spoils. The battle is over, the 
 victory secured. It is finished ! And lastly, this loud 
 voice of the dying Saviour goes up into the heavens and 
 makes them resound with the Alleluias of those that 
 rejoice over one sinner that repented. It fills them w ith 
 that song of praise which shall not cease to all eternity : 
 " Worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain, to receive the 
 power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and 
 glory, and blessing." 
 
292 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 
 
 6. Piercing His Side (xix. 31-37). 
 
 31-37. The Jews therefore, because it was the Preparation, that the 
 bodies should not remain on the cross upon the sabbath (for the day of that 
 sabbath was a high day), asked of Pilate that their legs might be 
 broken, and that they might be taken away. The soldiers therefore came, 
 and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with 
 him : but when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they 
 brake not his legs : howbeit one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his 
 side, and straightway there came out blood and water. And he that hath 
 seen hath borne witness, and his witness is true : and he knoweth that he 
 saith true, that ye also may believe. For these things came to pass, that 
 the scripture might be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. And 
 again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced. 
 
 In the midst of the deepest humiliation of the Lord 
 the Gospel of St. John continues to point out certain 
 features indicating His Messianic dignity. The day of 
 the Lord's death was " The Preparation," that is, the day 
 before Sabbath, and in this case the day before the great 
 Passover Sabbath. The Jews therefore were anxious 
 that the bodies of the crucified men should not be left 
 hanging on the cross. This was the custom of the 
 Romans, who left the bodies of crucified criminals as a 
 prey for wild beasts. But the Jewish law (Deut. 
 xxi. 22, f.) ordered that the bodies of men, executed by 
 hanging, should not remain all night upon the tree, but 
 should be buried that day, that the land might not be 
 defiled. This provision of the Mosaic law may properly 
 be applied to those also who died on the cross, " the 
 accursed tree," though crucifixion was not the usual form 
 of capital punishment among the Jews. This then was 
 one demand, with which the Jews appeared before Pilate, 
 " that those bodies might be taken away" before the be- 
 ginning of the great Sabbath Day. But they could not 
 be taken away, unless there was ofificial evidence of actual 
 
XIX. 3^-37-] CHAPTER XIX. 293 
 
 death. To obtain this, they also demanded " that their 
 legs might be broken." This was also a Roman form of 
 punishment, not always connected with crucifixion, and 
 even not always resulting in immediate death. The 
 piercing with the spear would have secured that end 
 more promptly, and with much less torture to the dying 
 criminal. But it seems the Jews were not yet satisfied 
 with the sufferings which their victim had endured on 
 the cross. They asked for this crurifragium (breaking of 
 the legs) as the last bitter cup for Jesus, in addition to all 
 the torments heaped upon Him on that day. But here 
 they were met with a divine " Thus far and no further." 
 Their demand was not fulfilled as far as Christ's person 
 was concerned. "When the soldiers came to Jesus and 
 saw that He was dead already, they brake not His 
 legs ; " but one of them pierced His side with a spear. 
 By this unexpected turn, for which there was no order 
 given by any human commander, in a most remarkable 
 manner two prophecies concerning the Messiah, the 
 Lamb of God, find their fulfilment at the same time \ 
 the one, referring to the Passover-Lamb (Exodus xii. 46), 
 " A bone of him shall not be broken ; " the other, spoken 
 by the prophet Zechariah (xii. 10), " They shall look on 
 Him whom they pierced." Though the spear was thrust 
 by the hand of a Gentile, it was in reality Israel that re- 
 jected, murdered and pierced the divine Messiah. But, 
 says the prophet, the day shall come, when they will 
 " look on Him whom they pierced," meaning, not the 
 day of judgment, to which Revelation i. 7 refers, but 
 the day of grace when Jerusalem shall turn to Him with 
 true repentance and anxious supplications, as on Pente- 
 cost when three thousand Israelites recognized their 
 Saviour and Redeemer in the pierced Christ. 
 
 The result of the spear thrust in the Saviour's side is 
 
294 ^^^ GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 34. 
 
 fully described by John : " Straightway there came out 
 blood ami zvatcrJ' Some commentators find in this flow 
 from the side of Jesus the natural result of the breaking of 
 the pericardium. But the majority of theologians ever 
 since the patristic period hold that there was, in this 
 flow of blood and water, something not in the line of the 
 common laws of nature, but of a miraculous, supernatural 
 character. " Christ's body," says Luther, " is flesh and 
 blood even as our own body, and dies ; but His flesh and 
 blood being without sin. He dies in such a manner, that 
 even in His death there is an indication of life. For 
 while our blood in death becomes cold and ceases to 
 flow, in Christ's body it remains in a fluid condition." 
 This view is essentially adopted by such modern com- 
 mentators as Godet, Grau and others. Certain it is that 
 the eyewitness John marks this detail as one of special 
 importance and significance for the Church. Even if we 
 hesitate to find a direct connection between this passage 
 and I John v. 6 (This is He that came by water and 
 blood, even Jesus Christ ; not with water only, but with 
 the water and the blood), ^ there can be no doubt that 
 the blood and water from the side of Jesus have a rich 
 symbolic meaning for His Church. " Christ's blood is 
 the treasure of our redemption, the ransom and satisfac- 
 tion for our sins " (i John i. 7) (Luther), Here we 
 find the daily washing and cleansing from all our iniqui- 
 ties, in the forgiveness of our sins. And these blessings 
 are conveyed and sealed to us through the means of 
 grace, Baptism, the Word of the Gospel, and the Sacra- 
 ment of the body and blood of Christ. 
 
 The manner in which this whole scene is described and 
 
 ^ Bugge finds here a reference to the beginning and the end of Christ's 
 mediatorial office : His baptism in the river Jordan, and His death on the 
 cross. 
 
vix. 35-38.] CHAPTER XIX. 295 
 
 the assurance of the writer that " his witness is true : and 
 he knoweth that he saith true, that ye also may beheve," 
 has ahvays and justly been considered as one of the 
 strongest evidences of the Johannean origin of this 
 Gospel, in spite of the attempts of modern critics to 
 prove, at this very point, a distinction between the writer 
 of the Gospel, and the eyewitness under the cross, the 
 Apostle John. 
 
 7. TJic Burial of Christ (xix. 38-42). 
 
 38-42. And after these things Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of 
 Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked of Pilate that he might take 
 away the body of Jesus : and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, 
 and took away his body. And there came also Nicodemus, he who at the 
 first came to him by night, bringing a mi.xture of myrrh and aloes, about a 
 hundred pound zueight. So they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in 
 linen cloths with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. Now in 
 the place where he was crucified there was a garden ; and in the garden a 
 new tomb wherein was never man yet laid. There then because of the Jews' 
 Preparation (for the tomb was nigh at hand) they laid Jesus. 
 
 The burial of the Lord as described in this section is, 
 as Calvin calls it, a fitting prelude to His glorious resur- 
 rection on Easter morning. The Jewish custom of 
 throwing the bodies of executed criminals into a common 
 ditch had to give way to the more humane Roman 
 practice, which had been particularly favored by Caesar 
 Augustus, of returning such bodies to their friends and 
 families, whenever application was made for them.^ All 
 the four Evangelists introduce Joseph of Arimathc-ea in 
 connection with the burial of the Lord. While John only 
 speaks of him as a secret disciple of Christ, the others 
 give additional details as to his character, social standing, 
 
 1 Tiberius, it is true, had been acting contrary to this ; but in the provinces 
 the milder practice prevailed even during the reign of that cruel emperor. 
 
296 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xix. 3S, 39. 
 
 wealth, etc. He was a rich man (Matthew), a councillor 
 
 of honorable estate (Mark), a good man and a righteous 
 
 who was looking for the kingdom of God, and who, as a 
 
 member of the Sanhedrim, had not consented to their 
 
 counsel and deed (Luke). His home had been in 
 
 Arimatha^a, the Ramah, or Ramathaim-Zophim, on 
 
 Mount Ephraim, in the tribe of Benjamin, known in the 
 
 Old Testament as the city of Samuel. He had moved 
 
 to Jerusalem not many years before these events, and had 
 
 there secured the garden with the burial-place for his 
 
 family, which had not yet been used. Joseph had not 
 
 been present on Calvary during the agony and death of 
 
 the Lord. He appeared on the scene when all was over. 
 
 And now, he had the boldness, as Mark says, to go to 
 
 Pilate and ask for the body, thus professing himself 
 
 openly as a friend and disciple of Jesus. There was 
 
 hardly any risk in this step as far as his relation to the 
 
 Roman Governor was concerned. But it required great 
 
 courage to do this, at that time, in the face of the 
 
 Pharisees and the Sanhedrim, of which he was a member. 
 
 His fear of the Jews, which had thus far kept him from 
 
 a public confession of Christ, was well grounded. For 
 
 "they had agreed that if any man should confess Him to 
 
 be Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue " 
 
 (John ix. 22). And so he had been one of the " many 
 
 rulers " who " believed on Him, but, because of the 
 
 Pharisees they did not confess it, lest they should be 
 
 put out of the synagogue " (John xii. 42). But now, the 
 
 Saviour's dying love has wrought this miracle in him, and 
 
 made him the first to cast away all human considerations 
 
 and to come forward as a bold, devout confessor, when 
 
 Peter and Thomas and the rest had fled and forsaken 
 
 their Lord. Nor is his case the only one. He is at 
 
 once joined by Nicodemus, also a councillor, also, here- 
 
XIX. 39-42-] CHAPTER XIX. 297 
 
 tofore, a secret disciple of Jesus, who at the first came to 
 Him by night. Where the first have become last, the 
 last now become first. In the most scrupulous way 
 these two men make provision for the burial of the Lord, 
 buying linen and myrrh and aloes, and wrapping the 
 body up in those spices according to the Jewish custom 
 of burying. This is emphatically said in distinction from 
 the Egyptian custom, which, with its radical treatment, 
 reduced the body to a mummy. At the manger of the 
 new-born king of the Jews the Magi from the East 
 appeared with their treasures of gold, frankincense and 
 myrrh, to provide for the journey to Egypt. Here the 
 two Sanhedrists appear with their homage before the 
 dead king of the Jews, to contribute from their wealth 
 to His last journey to that silent tomb in Joseph's 
 garden. 
 
 Thus ends the passion of the Lord with the dawn of 
 glory upon it. The Easter-Sun is ready to rise over the 
 tomb which could not hold its captive. 
 
CHAPTER XX, 
 
 V. The Resurrection of Jesus (Ch. xx.). 
 
 I. Peter and Jolin at the Tomb (xx. i-io). 
 
 i-io. Now on the first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, 
 while it was yet dark, unto the tomb, and seeth the stone taken away from 
 the tomb. She runneth therefore, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the 
 other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken 
 away the Lord out of the tomb, and we know not where they have laid 
 him. Peter therefore went forth, and the other disciple, and they went 
 toward the tomb. And they ran both together : and the other disciple out- 
 ran Peter, and came first to the tomb. And stooping and looking in, he 
 seeth the linen cloths lying ; yet entered he not in. Simon Peter therefore 
 also cometh, following him, and entered into the tomb ; and he beholdeth 
 the linen cloths lying, and the napkin, that was upon his head, not lying 
 with the linen cloths, but rolled up in a place by itself. Then entered in 
 therefore the other disciple also, which came first to the tomb, and he saw, 
 and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise 
 again from the dead. So the disciples went away again unto their own 
 home. 
 
 Concerning the history of the resurrection itself and its 
 first announcement through the angel and the tomb, the 
 Gospel of St. John has nothing to say. It is evident 
 that the Evangelist is familiar with the record of this 
 fundamental fact of Christianity as found in the Synop- 
 tists. The points with which John supplements their 
 narrative show how utterly unconcerned he is about seem- 
 ing difficulties or disagreements in consequence of his 
 statements. The principal object with him is in perfect 
 keeping with his whole Gospel. The faith of the disci- 
 29S 
 
XX. I, 2.] CHAPTER XX. 299 
 
 pics in their glorified and risen Lord is to be shown. 
 And the prominent figures represented in this argument 
 are Mary Magdalene, Peter, John and Thomas. Mary- 
 Magdalene was Mary of Magdala^ on the west coast of 
 the Lake of Galilee, near Tiberias (Matt. xv. 39). She 
 is spoken of as the woman from whom seven devils had 
 gone out (Luke viii. 2 ; Mark. xvi. 9). Mary Magdalene 
 had gone to the sepulchre early in the mcjrning in com- 
 pany with the other women ; each Evangelist mentioning 
 those by name that were to him the most prominent. 
 But the testimony of all the four Gospels agrees in mak- 
 ing her the main figure. There is no real conflict in the 
 different statements as to the time of their going to the 
 sepulchre. John says " while it was yet dark," Luke, " at 
 early dawn," Mark, " They came to the tomb when the 
 sun w^as risen." Considering the distance they had to 
 go, the time needed for their meeting each other, and 
 the fact that the transition from night to daylight is 
 very quick in that latitude, we can readily understand 
 how Mary Magdalene could have left her house " while 
 it was yet dark " and reached the sepulchre just at sun- 
 rise. At the sight of " the stone taken away from the 
 tomb " Mary Magdalene is completely bewildered. She 
 turns and runs, without waiting for consultation with the 
 other women, to tell the chief disciples of this awful dis- 
 covery. Her words to Peter and John leave no doubt 
 as to the thought that w^as, at the moment, uppermost in 
 
 1 In the Western Church, chiefly through the influence of Gregory the 
 Great, she was, without any historical evidence, identified with the great 
 sinner (Luke vii. 37-50), and this idea has ever since been inseparably con- 
 nected with her name, the " Magdalene." Sometimes even Mary of 
 Bethany was found in that same person, and thus three distinct women of 
 New Testament history were thrown together into one ; quite contrary to 
 the usual practice of Roman legends, to multiply, rather than to diminish, 
 the number of their Saints and their precious relics. 
 
300 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN: [xx. 2-5. 
 
 her mind. " TJiey have taken away the Lord out of the 
 tomb." She mentions no name. But we know whom 
 she means. The Jews, the Rulers and Pharisees, in their 
 unrelenting enmity against the Lord, have desecrated 
 even the quiet resting-place of the beloved Master. They 
 have broken into it, of course to take away His body 
 and cast it off, in dishonor and shame, somewhere with- 
 out burial ! " And tve know not where they have laid 
 Him." With these words she clearly shows that she 
 was not alone when that discovery was made. Others 
 were with her, — the very women whose names are given 
 by the Synoptists ; and speaking of herself and those 
 companions she says : " We know not." 
 
 Though " the disciple whom Jesus loved " is mentioned 
 in the second place, we are inclined to think that it was 
 to his house she went, and there she found Peter with 
 John. A good place for fallen Peter, to be with John, 
 the beloved disciple, and with Mary, the mother of the 
 Lord, whom John had taken into his house. And a 
 good testimony for John, that he did not shut out Peter 
 in the sorrow of his broken and contrite heart, but re- 
 ceived him kindly and offered him the sympathy and 
 good counsel of a true friend and brother. 
 
 The effect of the astounding message which Mary 
 Magdalene carried to these apostles was instantaneous. 
 Without the slightest delay they start for the sepulchre. 
 They run both together, though John, the younger, with 
 the easier conscience, outruns Peter, who, in addition to 
 his years, is burdened with a heavy load of sin and guilt. 
 But while John is the first to reach the tomb, he hesi- 
 tates to enter in. He is filled with awe and perplexity 
 at the thought of strange and conflicting possibilities. 
 Should His enemies really have carried their hatred so far 
 as to violate the sacredness of His tomb,, as Mary 
 
XX. 6-8.] CHAPTER XX. 301 
 
 thought? Or is there another possibihty ? — a heavenly- 
 interference? Meanwhile Peter also arrives. He is the 
 practical man, of resolute action. Without losing time in 
 reflection or discussion with John, he at once enters into 
 the tomb. He surveys the condition of things in detail : 
 There, the linen cloths lying, and the napkin, that was 
 upon His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but rolled 
 up in a place by itself. He calls out this report to John. 
 There is, then, no evidence of violence, or spoliation ; 
 everything as orderly and undisturbed as if one had 
 quietly risen from his slumber and had laid off these 
 cloths which were no longer needed.^ Thereupon 
 John also enters in " and he saw and believed. " 
 What did he believe? That "they had taken away 
 Christ's body " as Mary Magdalene had reported ? This 
 is the view held by some of our greatest commen- 
 tators, like Luther, Gerhard, Bengel and others. But 
 we cannot in this case agree with them. " Z/V believed" 
 is entirely too strong and too comprehensive a term to 
 confine its meaning to the acceptance of that statement 
 of Mary. John was the first to believe the great fact of 
 Christ's resurrection, on the evidence of what " lie saw!' 
 First he saw and then he believed. And in writing this 
 short, comprehensive statement, John well remembered, 
 what Jesus said to Thomas in His criticism of the faith 
 of that disciple : " Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast 
 believed : blessed are they that have not seen and yet 
 have believed " (John xx. 29). He has therefore no 
 reason whatever to be particularly elated over this first 
 faith of his. He is, indeed, honest and humble enough 
 to add another word of criticism concerning his own and 
 
 ^ Bengel thinks that this proper adjustment of the linen and napkin in 
 the tomb was owing to the ministrations of the angels who, even then, 
 were present in the tomb, though unseen by Peter and John. 
 
302 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 9, 10. 
 
 Peter's position at that time. " As yet they knew not 
 the scripture ; that He must rise again from the dead." 
 There was still, even in John's case, a lack of understand- 
 ing the scripture. And whatever there was of faith, it 
 was not that plain, direct scripture-faith, taking the word 
 and holding on to it. It was a faith that still needed the 
 assistance of sight, instead of planting itself fairly and 
 squarely upon the revealed word of God. 
 
 But what of Peter's condition of mind at that point ? 
 The statement, " He saw and he believed," is so clearly 
 confined to John, that we cannot possibly include Peter 
 in it. In Luke (xxiv. 12) we read : " He departed to his 
 home zvondcring at what had come to pass." And pos- 
 sibly before he reached home the Lord Himself appeared 
 to him and assured him of the great fact which crowned 
 the work of redemption and sealed to Peter the forgive- 
 ness of his great sin. John also went to his " own home." 
 Even for him the news of that morning was overwhelm- 
 ing. He needed some time of quiet meditation and self- 
 collection, to realize in its full extent what had happened. 
 And he might rest assured that the living Lord would 
 not be long in demonstrating to His own disciples that 
 He was risen indeed. 
 
 4. Mary Magdalene {yL-x.. 11-18). 
 
 II-18. But Mary was standing without at the tomb weeping: so, as she 
 wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb ; and she belioldeth two angels 
 in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of 
 Jesus had lain. And they say 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. When she had thus said, she turned herself 
 back, and beholdeth 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 hast 
 borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him 
 
XX. 11-13-] CHAPTER XX. 303 
 
 away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turnetli herself, and saith unto 
 him in Hebrew, Rabboni ; which is to say. Master. Jesus saith to her, 
 Touch me not ; for I am not yet ascended unto the Father : but go unto my 
 brethren, and say to them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and 
 my God and your God. Mary Magdalene cometh and telleth the disciples, 
 I have seen the Lord ; and Iktm that he had said these things unto her. 
 
 Having informed the two disciples, Peter and John, of 
 the condition of the tomb as found by the women, Mary 
 Magdalene herself returned to the sepulchre in Joseph's 
 garden, alone, not in company with the two Apostles, who 
 were too quick for her. She probably arrived at the tomb 
 after John and Peter had left it. Certainly she was there 
 alone, after the disciples had gone home, staying there, 
 as Bengel says, " majori perseverantia " (with greater per- 
 severance). Her .state of mind is that of one completely 
 overwhelmed with grief, and quite inaccessible to any 
 other thought than that of her bereavement. Having 
 first lost the living Christ in the tomb which shut Him in, 
 she is now made doubly wretched by the empty sepulchre, 
 having lost even the dead Christ out of the sepulchre. 
 Even the heavenly apparition of the two angels, like the 
 cherubim at the ark of the covenant, one at the head and 
 one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain, makes 
 no impression whatever on her. There is no sign of 
 astonishment, or of terror, as in the case of the other 
 women (Mark xvi. 5). She is so wrapt up in her 
 sorrow that she becomes indifferent to everything. The 
 question addressed to her by those heavenly guardians is 
 not so much an expression of sympathy, but rather a 
 gentle rebuke to her, like the words, spoken by the angels 
 to the women : " Why seek ye the living among the 
 dead ? " (Luke xxiv. 5). There is in reality no cause for 
 weeping at this empty tomb. Indeed, if she had found 
 the dead body in the sepulchre, then she might have had 
 good reason for her tears. In answer to the question of 
 
304 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 13-15. 
 
 the angels she repeats, in a sort of mechanical way the 
 same dreary statement, which she had, before, carried to 
 the disciples : " They have taken away my Lord, and I 
 know not where they have laid Him," — with the char- 
 acteristic little change, however, that it is now : " I know 
 not " (instead of " we know not "), because she is now 
 alone with the angels. In her despondency she expects 
 no consolation from any comforter and, without waiting 
 for an answer, turns her back to the angels, when she 
 sees another figure facing her outside the tomb. This 
 time it is Christ Himself whom she does not, at first, 
 recognize ; her eyes veiled with tears, her heart with 
 despair and unbelief, she is looking, not for a living 
 Christ, but for a corpse. Moreover there must have been 
 something strange, uncommon, not heretofore known to 
 the disciples, in the manner and appearance of the risen 
 Lord. He is the same and yet not the same, like a king, 
 who has, for a number of years, done menial service in a 
 foreign land, and is now ready to take full possession of 
 his kingdom (Tholuck). 
 
 The question of the angels is repeated by the Lord : 
 " Woman, why weepest thou ? " with the addition of that 
 tender and sympathetic " Whom seekest thou ? " in- 
 dicating a knowledge of her personal longing for a dear 
 lost one. There is a rich and striking significance in these 
 very first words from the lips of the risen Saviour : 
 " Woman, why weepest thou ? " Not only that the 
 weeping one, the one most weary and heavy laden, is 
 first and specially remembered by the risen Lord,^ who 
 is anxious to bring His peace to those that need it most. 
 But it is ivonian, to whom the joy and triumph of resur- 
 rection is first appropriated. It is her sex that is thus 
 
 1 Cf. the message of the angel to the women : " Tell his disciples and 
 Peter," 
 
XX. 15, 1 6.] CHAPTER XX. 305 
 
 considered and honored by the Lord. As woman, being 
 first beguiled, had fallen into transgression, and had her 
 fullest share in the misery and degradation resulting from 
 sin and death, she is first to be cheered and comforted by 
 the victory of the Saviour over sin and death. Mary 
 Magdalene, supposing Him to be the gardener, saith unto 
 Him, " Sir, if thou hast borne Him hence, tell me where 
 thou hast laid Him, and I will take Him away." No name 
 — there is only one of whom she thinks and whom she 
 seeks, and she speaks of Him as if every one must know 
 without a question whom she means. There is confusion 
 in every word of hers, and deepest love and devotion 
 in every word. The sympathy of the stranger, " tiie 
 gardener," has touched her heart and she confides her 
 trouble to him. We discover a certain progress in a posi- 
 tive and hopeful direction, in the new theory which she 
 now advances concerning the disappearance of her Lord's 
 body. Possibly this removal is not an act of enemies, 
 but done by friendly hands, for some good purpose.^ 
 But after all what Lord is that whom Mary serves, if any 
 one can " take Him away" by guile or might? Or, 
 whither will she, frail woman, carry Him to keep Him 
 in a place of safety, if this rock-sealed tomb in the 
 garden of His friend was no sufficient protection? 
 
 But now her Lord ends all this perplexity with one 
 word : " Mary." How truly human this word of recogni- 
 tion with its gentle rebuke and its infinite tenderness! 
 The " gardener " reveals himself as the good shepherd 
 who had said of His sheep (John x. 4, 27, 28). "They 
 hear and know His voice, they follow Him and no one 
 shall snatch them out of His hand." With the old 
 familiar " Rabboni " she throws herself down at Jesus' 
 
 1 Christ Himself has borne His body out of the grave and takes it up to 
 the throne in heaven. (Augustine.) 
 
 20 
 
3o6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 17. 
 
 feet, to clasp them and hold Him, as if she were afraid 
 that any one might snatch Him out of her hand ! When 
 the other women met the Lord for the first time after 
 His resurrection, "They came and took hold of His feet 
 and worshipped Him " (Matt, xxviii. 9). When the terri- 
 fied and affrighted disciples supposed that they beheld a 
 spirit, at the first appearance of the Lord, He said to 
 them : " See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself : 
 handle Me and see ; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, 
 as ye behold Me having " (Luke xxiv. 37-40). When 
 doubting Thomas first met the risen Lord, Jesus said 
 unto him : " Reach hither thy finger and see My hands ; 
 and reach hither thy hand and put it into My side : and 
 be not faithless but believing." But when Mary Magda- 
 lene threw herself down before her Lord in the joy of 
 her impulsive and affectionate heart, the Lord promptly 
 checked that overflow of sentiment with His command : 
 " Touch Me not." All the others needed encouragement 
 to come nearer and to realize that their Lord was risen 
 indeed. And with all the encouragement they received, 
 they still were conscious of the majesty of their glorified 
 Saviour. The women "worshipped" Him. Thomas 
 said unto I^im : " My Lord and my God ! " But Mary's 
 " Rabboni " was of a different character. However 
 respectful this title may have been in bygone days, it 
 fails to do justice to the risen Lord who must be recog- 
 nized in His divine majesty. The former familiar inter- 
 course based upon His visible presence, must yield to 
 another relation. But to Mqry Magdalene the concrete 
 reality of that visible, bodily presence of Christ is so 
 much even at that moment, that she is bent on re- 
 taining this and holding on to it, in utter ignorance of 
 the great change that has taken place through the resur- 
 rection of the Lord. 
 
XX. 17] CHAPTER XX. 307 
 
 " Touch Me not," saith the Lord, " for I am not yet as- 
 cended unto the Father." The reference to the ascension 
 as the closing and cuhninating scene of this glorification 
 on earth is clear enough in this connection, liut there is 
 a difficulty in the combination of that command with the 
 statement " not yet ascended," and this statement given 
 as the reason for that command ("w-w jdp (iya^i^-qxa>j. Is 
 it that the Lord means to comfort and to quiet Mary 
 Magdalene with the assurance that she need not fear to 
 lose His visible, bodily presence as yet, inasmuch as He 
 is to stay yet for a little while before He will ascend to 
 the Father? But the emphasis in this utterance of the 
 Lord seems to us to be not on His staying yet for a 
 while, but on the announcement of His approaching 
 ascension. Mary Magdalene needs no assurance concern- 
 ing the reality of Christ's resurrection. But she does 
 need a reminder of His ascension in the near future. 
 And this is the message she is to carry to the disciples : 
 The risen Lord is not going to stay with us in this visible 
 and tangible bodily presence, but He will soon ascend to 
 the Father, thus consummating His glorification. This 
 short period of the forty days between resurrection and 
 ascension must therefore serve the purpose of weaning the 
 disciples from that kind of intercourse with their Master 
 (Rabbi) which they had hitherto enjoyed, and preparing 
 them for the truly spiritual, and yet at the same time 
 most realistic, manner of grasping, holding and enjoying 
 their Lord and God through His Spirit, His Word and 
 Sacraments, by which even the real presence of His body 
 and blood is secured to them. 
 
 The careful distinction made in the words of the Lord 
 between " My Father and YOUR Fat/wr, My God and 
 YOUR God,'' is quite significant. Though it is His life- 
 work to reveal the Father to us and to bring the way- 
 
3o3 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 17. 
 
 ward children back to the Father, to enjoy the Father's 
 love, in the Father's house, though He goes so far as to 
 call the disciples His " brethren," He never includes Him- 
 self with us, in speaking of God or to God as " Our 
 Father." Whenever He refers to "the Father" in a 
 personal way it is always with the claim of standing in a 
 peculiar and unique relation to the Father. As the first 
 word of Jesus in the temple (Luke ii. 49) expressed His 
 determination of clinging to "the Father" in a peculiar 
 sense, over against the claims of a purely human affection 
 (of Mary and Joseph), so does this emphatic reference to 
 " the Father " in one of the very last utterances of the 
 God-man on earth. Ever since Cyrillus, Ambrose and 
 Augustine, the significance of these words of Christ has 
 been marked and commented on by the fathers.^ " My 
 father," they say, " by nature, yours by grace ; My God 
 under whom I also am as a man ; your God, whom I re- 
 conciled to you as the mediator between you and Him." 
 There is special tenderness in the name " brethren " 
 given to the disciples by their risen Lord. All through 
 the shame and torture of His passion, the Lord stands 
 before His captors and judges as a true king, whom they 
 shall see sitting at the right hand of power, and coming 
 on the clouds of heaven (Matt. xxvi. 64; John xviii. 6). 
 But now, in the glory of His resurrection, He calls His 
 disciples " brethren." He is not ashamed to call them 
 brethren (Hebrews ii. 1 1), though by their desertion and 
 denial they had cut themselves loose from Him. He 
 brings them back and binds them to Himself again by 
 that precious name, thus being in reality " the firstborn 
 among many brethren " (Romans viii. 29). 
 
 ' Not! ait Patrem nostrum ; aliter ergo meum, aliter vestrum : natura 
 meuin, gratia vestrum ; Deum Meum, sub quo et Ego sum homo ; Deum 
 vestrum, inter quos et ipsum mediator sum. (Augustine.) 
 
XX. 19-] CHAPTER XX. 309 
 
 3. First Appearance before the Disciples (xx. 19-23). 
 
 19-23. When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the 
 week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of 
 the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace 
 be unto you. And when he had said this, he shewed unto them his hands 
 and his side. The disciples therefore were glad, when they saw the Lord. 
 Jesus therefore said to them again. Peace be unto you : as the 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 forgive, they are forgiven unto them ; whose soever sins ye retain, they 
 are retained. 
 
 The sun of that first Easter-Day had gone down 
 already. It was evening, and, no doubt, late in the eve- 
 ning, not far from midnight ; for the two, returning from 
 Emmaus (Luke xxiv. 33-35), could not have reached 
 Jerusalem before a very late hour. The little band of 
 disciples were assembled, probably in the same upper 
 room, where the Lord had addressed to them His part- 
 ing discourses. The Easter-light is still struggling against 
 the darkness of doubt and unbelief in their hearts. 
 From early morning, as the day went on, one message 
 after the other had reached them, announcing the resur- 
 rection, but " they believed not, their words appeared in 
 their sight as idle talk " (Luke xxiv. ii). Their lack of 
 faith is shown by their " fear of the Jews." What had 
 the disciples of a risen Christ to fear from the Jews ? 
 And, if their Lord was not risen, what protection would 
 the closed doors afford against those enemies who had 
 just succeeded in nailing Christ to the cross and sealing 
 Him up in the tomb? But with the characteristic incon- 
 sistency of unbelief " the doors were shut — for fear of 
 the Jews." And yet, with all their lack of faith, the 
 disciples were gathered together that evening, in the 
 name of their Lord, and they were to experience the 
 
3IO THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 19. 
 
 blessed promise that " there is He in the midst of them " 
 (Matt, xviii. 20). 
 
 '' Jesus came a)id stood in tJie midst!' We can readily 
 dismiss all attempts to explain Christ's entrance in a 
 natural way. The exact process of His entering was not 
 seen or closely observed by the disciples. All at once 
 He stood among them. As His glorified body had left 
 the tomb before the stone was rolled away, so He enters 
 this room while the doors are shut. This proves, as 
 Luther says, "that after His resurrection, in His king- 
 dom on earth, He is not bound to time and space, but 
 must be believed in and known as One who rules in om- 
 nipresent might, and is both willing and able to be with 
 us whenever and wherever we need it, notwithstanding 
 the world and all its power." 
 
 Having thus suddenly appeared among the disciples, 
 the Lord greets them with the words : " Peace be unto 
 youT It had been one of His last words on the evening 
 before His passion : " Peace I leave unto you ; My peace 
 I give unto you " (John xiv. 27), it is the first word at 
 their meeting again. As stated before, it is the custom- 
 ary Old Testament salutation, which these words con- 
 tain. But even in the mouth of a devout Israelite of old 
 it was more than an every-day salutation, it was a devout 
 prayer, a benediction, when he said : " Peace be unto 
 you," Out of the fullness of the Covenant-God he 
 wished for him whom he thus saluted, all the blessings, 
 the full salvation of His kingdom. But here, in the mouth 
 of the risen Saviour, this word far surpasses any salutation 
 ever used among His people. The whole victory of the 
 crucified and risen Lord is contained in this word. The 
 great work of reconciling the world unto God (2 Cor. 
 V. 18, 19) is accomplished. This reconciliation is applied 
 to and conveyed to the disciples personally. The word, 
 
XX. 20, 21.] CHAPTER XX. 31 1 
 
 " Peace be unto you," is to them their own personal 
 absolution and justification, the individual appropriation 
 of Christ's whole salvation. 
 
 And now " He showed unto them His Jiands and His 
 side.'' Luke even adds: His feet. This was done not 
 simply to convince them of the reality of His bodily 
 presence, the identity of His person, the indisputable 
 fact of the resurrection itself; but to prove the direct 
 connection between His wounds and the peace which He 
 brought from the sepulchre. He has been in battle, and 
 the peace He brings has been dearly bought by His own 
 life-blood. " He was wounded for our transgressions, 
 He was bruised for our iniquities ; the chastisement of 
 our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are 
 healed " (Isaiah liii. 5). These very wounds were the 
 means to accomplish our atonement. And the living, 
 glorified Christ will always bear the marks of that battle. 
 He will always be known, and even seen in eternity, as 
 the Crucified One. We can fully understand how the 
 heart of the Evangelist warms at the remembrance of 
 that scene, how the disciples were glad when they saw 
 the Lord, when His promise was so literally fulfilled : 
 " I will see you again and your heart shall rejoice." 
 
 Having thus assured them of their personal forgiveness 
 and salvation, the Lord repeats the words: "Peace be 
 unto yon ^' with reference to the ministry of reconciliation 
 which is committed to them. Being themselves children 
 of peace, they are to be henceforth messengers of peace. 
 As the Lord gave this peace into the hearts of His 
 disciples, so they are to carry it into the hearts of men, by 
 preaching forgiveness in the name of the crucified and 
 risen Jesus of Nazareth. (See Isaiah Hi. 7 ; Romans x. 
 15. How beautiful are the feet of them that bring glad 
 tidings of good things.) In a wider sense it is the work 
 
312 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 21, 22. 
 
 of every Christian to spread throughout the world the 
 news and the poiver of the resurrection of Christ. 
 Christians as such are to be " the Hght of the world " 
 (Matt. V. 14). But in a special sense this charge is com- 
 mitted to the Apostles and the ministers of the word. 
 The institution of the ministry of the Gospel is the direct 
 fruit of the resurrection of Christ. ''As the Father hath 
 scut j\Ic, even so send I yon.'' The authority to send forth 
 special commissioners or apostles is the same with the 
 Son as it is with the Father. And the character of their 
 commission is the same as that of Christ's, namely, to 
 bear witness unto the truth. They must be willing to be 
 sent, even as Christ had been sent by the Father. Their 
 duty as apostles must be discharged in the same spirit, 
 and under the same experiences, as Christ Himself went 
 through in discharging His ofifice as the great apostle of 
 our heavenly calling; through the cross to the crown, 
 through shame to glory. Thus they are to build up a 
 spiritual kingdom, using no carnal weapons to uphold 
 and to spread it, but simply preaching the Gospel of 
 Jesus Christ, and thus helping to deliver men from sin 
 and death. 
 
 When the Messiah Himself was " sent to preach good 
 tidings to the meek " (Isaiah Ixi. i), " the Spirit of the 
 Lord God was upon Him ; the Lord had anointed Him." 
 This same Spirit must be upon the disciples, if they are 
 to be sent even as Christ was sent by the Father. He 
 therefore " breathed on tJicni and saith unto tJievi : Receive 
 ye the Holy Ghost.'" Another -and most emphatic sign of 
 life from the living Christ. He had before pointed them 
 to His hands and side and feet, to His flesh and bone, 
 and now they feel even the breath of His mouth, the 
 very life of His soul, gently touching their cheeks. This 
 "still small voice" of the breath of the Lord will be 
 
XX. 22, 23-] CHAPTER XX. 313 
 
 swelled, on the day of Pentecost, to the " rushing of the 
 mighty wind which filled all the house where the disciples 
 were sitting " (Acts ii. 2).^ They now receive a sign and 
 pledge, a foretaste of the full gift of the Spirit that awaits 
 them on the day of Pentecost.^ 
 
 In the power of this Spirit of Christ the disciples are 
 to discharge their office in the ministry of the word in a 
 twofold direction : " Whose soever sins ye forgive they are 
 forgiven ujito them ; whose soever sins ye retain they are 
 retained'' Their ministry is to be valid in both direc- 
 tions as to forgiveness of sins and retention of sins. On 
 whom then is this power here conferred ? Is it on a 
 special class or order of men, the clergy, as Rome and 
 all Romanizers teach ? But when this power was con- 
 veyed by the Lord, the apostles were not all present ; 
 nor were those present on this occasion all apostles. 
 John clearly distinguishes between the twelve (ver. 24) 
 and the disciples (ver. 19). And Luke tells us distinctly 
 that others were gathered with the disciples (Luke xxiv. 
 33) on that evening. Luther therefore is right in saying : 
 " This power is given to all Christians. Whosoever hath the 
 Holy Spirit to him this power is given, that is, to him who 
 is a Christian. But who is a Christian ? he that believeth. 
 He that believeth hath the Holy Spirit. Every Christian 
 therefore has the power, claimed by Pope and Bishops, 
 of forgiving or retaining sins. Well, then, some might 
 say, we can pronounce absolution, baptize, preach, ad- 
 minister communion? No, indeed. St. Paul says: ' Let 
 
 1 One of the many features which prove that the gospel of John is at the 
 same time the most realistic and the most spiritual of all. 
 
 2 John Gerhard distinguishes between three different kinds of receiving 
 the Spirit : First, for their own personal sanclification, the disciples had 
 received the Spirit already; second, for their ministerial office they receive 
 it at this point; third, for the miraculous gifts with which they are to be 
 endowed, they shall receive it on the day of Pentecost. 
 
314 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. ■ [xx. 23. 
 
 all things be done decently and in order ' (i Cor. xiv. 
 40). We all have this power, but let no one presume to 
 exercise it publicly, except he be called and chosen for 
 this office by the congregration. But in private we may 
 use this power. If, for instance, my brother comes to 
 me, saying : * Dear Brother, I am vexed in my conscience, 
 give me a word of absolution,' I am free to do this and 
 tell him the Gospel, how that he should take hold of 
 Christ's work, believing that the righteousness of Christ 
 is truly his own ; and that his own sins are truly Christ's. 
 This is, indeed, the greatest service I may do to my 
 fellowman." 
 
 This power is, of course not to be limited to the actual 
 word of absolution, in the stricter sense of that term. It 
 includes the whole ministry of the Gospel, in the preach- 
 ing and teaching of the word and the administration of 
 the sacraments. Ecclesiastical jurisdiction with excom- 
 munication comes in under this word only as a last and 
 extreme measure, in the case of those' who wantonly and 
 stubbornly resist the word and means of grace. 
 
 4. Second Appearance before the Disciples, incliidiyig 
 Thomas (xx. 24-29). 
 
 24-29. 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 put my hand into his side, I will not believe. 
 
 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with 
 them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and 
 said. Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, 
 and see my hands ; and reach hither thy hand, and put it into my side ; and 
 be not faithless, but believing. Thomas answered and said unto him. My 
 Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him. Because thou hast seen me, thou 
 hast believed : blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. 
 
XX. 24-] CHAPTER XX. 315 
 
 Thomas or Didymus* (that is, " Twin " ) was not with 
 the disciples when Jesus came on the day of His resurrec- 
 tion. The Evangelist seems to indicate that this absence 
 was not purely accidental, as some think, on account of 
 the greater distance of his home (Bengel), or because 
 he had some very urgent business that detained him 
 (Grotius). From what we know of the character of 
 Thomas we must come to the conclusion that his absence 
 was quite significant. We remember his words (John xi. 
 16) when the Lord announced His purpose after the 
 death of Lazarus of Bethany, " to go unto him." " Let 
 us also go," said Thomas, "that we may die with Him." 
 Now the very worst had come to pass. Though Laz- 
 arus was alive again, Christ Himself had died, died on 
 the cross, His hands and feet pierced by nails. His side 
 riven by the spear. That dreadful picture, with all its 
 details, haunts his mind. With his deep affection for the 
 Lord and his naturally gloomy and melancholy disposi- 
 tion, he had fully tasted the very dregs of that bitter 
 cup, that after the smiting of the Shepherd, they should 
 be scattered every man to his own and should leave Him 
 alone (Matt, xxvi .31 ; John xvi. 32). A terrible feel- 
 ing of isolation and loneliness has come over him. He 
 cannot believe the rumors of Christ's resurrection. His 
 death is the all-absorbing reality for him. And with the 
 death of Christ everything is lost to him. His withdrawal 
 from the company of the Apostles is an acknowledgment 
 of his utter despair and hopelessness. 
 
 But the disciples do not leave him alone. They re- 
 member the commission with which the Lord had en- 
 trusted them on the day of His resurrection. They are to 
 be the messengers of peace to all weary and downcast 
 hearts. And here is one of their own number who needs 
 this message of peace first and most of all. They therefore 
 
3i6 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 25. 
 
 hasten to him with the news : " We have seen the Lord.'' 
 In fact, they could say, and undoubtedly did say, much 
 more than that. They had not only seen the Lord, they 
 had touched His hands and His side, had felt His breath 
 on their cheeks, they had heard His message of peace, 
 they had received His great commission, to go forth as 
 messengers of peace into an unbelieving world. All this 
 they told Thomas. But their testimony makes no im- 
 pression on him. " Whatever may have happened to 
 Christ, now it is all over with Him. My companions are 
 great fools to be thus impressed by the talk of these 
 women and the visions they have seen." In these words 
 Luther forcibly describes his state of mind. He meets 
 the statements of the disciples with the most outspoken 
 and determined incredulity. It is impossible that they 
 have seen anything, or that their observation has been 
 correct. He will accept the testimony of his own ten 
 fingers rather than that of the ten Apostles (VALERIUS 
 Herberger). While we must give Thomas credit for his 
 unreserved openness and honesty, and look upon this as a 
 hopeful feature in his attitude, showing the hidden wish 
 of his innermost heart, that he might see and believe, we 
 cannot defend him. His case is " as bad as Peter's 
 denial " (Luther). He knew the Apostles and their char- 
 acter for veracity. He saw the great change that had 
 come over them since that Easter evening when they had 
 seen the Lord. And yet he positively refuses to accept 
 their testimony, given with the full assurance of their 
 Easter-faith and Easter-joy. Yet he presumes to pre- 
 scribe to the Lord Himself the exact conditions under 
 which He must meet him, to cure him of his unbelief. 
 Surely this was a bitter and trying experience for the 
 Apostles themselves, and rather discouraging for the 
 great work of their life, to be witnesses of the Crucified 
 
XX. 25, 26.J CHAPTER XX. 317 
 
 and Risen One. What prospect had their testimony 
 before a hostile world if one of the twelve treated them 
 in this manner? And yet, the depression and humilia- 
 tion for the disciples' hearts caused by this attitude of 
 Thomas was wholesome and well deserved. When they 
 themselves had been called upon to receive the first news 
 of the Lord's resurrection with believing hearts, they had 
 treated those women-messengers somewhat after the same 
 manner. Their words had " appeared in their sight as 
 idle talk of unbelief and they disbelieved them." Having 
 been delivered from this state of unbelief by the personal 
 appearance of the Lord Himself, they were in a position 
 to realize the difficulties of Thomas, and to have compas- 
 sion for him, who thus far shut himself out from the 
 Easter blessing they had received. 
 
 During the week between Easter and the following 
 Sunday there were no new apparitions of the Lord. But 
 one great point is gained by the disciples in their dealings 
 with Thomas, that he at last consents to meet once more 
 with them.^ Thus he has entered upon the road to that 
 blessing : " Where two or three are gathered together in 
 My name there am I in the midst of them " (Matt, xviii. 
 20) ; instead of " forsaking the assembling of ourselves 
 together" (Heb. x. 25). 
 
 The fact that at this second meeting the doors were 
 also shut must not be explained, as the week before, from 
 " fear of the Jews." For these words are now significantly 
 omitted. It may have been done by the disciples simply 
 to be undisturbed in their meeting. Or had they prayed, 
 
 1 We doubt whether this meeting was arranged by the disciples to com- 
 memorate the octave of Easter Day, as Luthardt holds. The Church had 
 hardly reached that point already in her appreciation of that day. We 
 rather think that the re-appearance of the Lord on the same day, a week 
 afterwards, had a direct influence toward making that day henceforth 
 " the day of the Lord.'' 
 
3l8 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 26, 27. 
 
 and did they hope, for a re-appearance of Christ, for 
 Thomas's sake, under exactly the same conditions as the 
 week before? At any rate, the Lord honors the assembly 
 of His believing disciples by showing Himself to Thomas 
 for the first time in their midst, and not in a private, 
 separate appearance, as He had done in Peter's case. He 
 corroborates their testimony in every single detail by ap- 
 pearing exactly in the same manner, as they had experi- 
 enced and reported it to Thomas ; thus bringing resistless 
 conviction to the doubting disciple from the very first 
 moment. For it was altogether for Thomas's sake that 
 the Lord appeared this time. The salutation " Peace be 
 unto you " was chiefly for his unbelieving, restless heart. 
 The forgiveness and salvation of the Crucified and Risen 
 Christ was thereby directly offered and imparted to him. 
 Moreover there is the overwhelming evidence of Christ's 
 omnipresence and omniscience in the fullness and exact- 
 ness with which He takes up all the conditions presented 
 by Thomas, in his conversation with the disciples, but 
 never reported to Christ. Surely Christ's treatment of 
 Thomas is most gentle, kind and loving, and at the same 
 time most efificient, turning the skeptic into the most vig- 
 orous confessor, and thus establishing and strengthening 
 the faith of future believers. For Gregory the Great 
 truly says : " The unbelief of Thomas has been of more 
 use to us, to help our faith, than even the faith of the 
 believing disciples." And yet, the heavenly physician 
 did not refrain from using the sharp knife also in the 
 treatment of His skeptical disciple. Look at that ex- 
 quisite irony in His invitation to Thomas, to see with his 
 finger ! " Reach hither thy finger and see My hands." 
 And then that solemn warning : " Be )wt faithless but believ- 
 ing,'' or in the strict language of the original : " Do not 
 become faithless, but believing." Thomas still, with all 
 
XX. 27, 28.] CHAPTER XX. 319 
 
 the doubt and uncertainty of his mind, had a certain faith 
 in Christ, to whom he was sincerely attached. But now 
 his difficulties concerning the fact of the resurrection 
 threatened to affect his very faith in Christ Himself. 
 Thus far, his unbelief had been only partial, concerning 
 one single fact in the life of Christ ; but, of course, this 
 very fact which he doubts is of fundamental importance 
 for the person and work of Christ. Therefore the direct 
 command and solemn warning of the Lord, which proves 
 that He holds Thomas responsible for his unbelief. 
 
 John does not indicate by a single word that Thomas 
 made use of the permission given him by the Lord and 
 actually touched His hands and His side. We do not 
 believe that he did so, though many of the Fathers from 
 Ambrose to Gregory the Great, and even Calvin and 
 Bengel, have entertained this view. Thomas is completely 
 overwhelmed by the appearance of the Lord, by His 
 majesty as well as His tender kindness. He could not 
 have handled Him in the manner in which he had intended 
 to do. The Lord had commanded him to lay aside his 
 doubts and to become a believer. The Lord immediately 
 afterward testified : " Thou hast believed." The con- 
 fession " My Lord and my God " was a confession of 
 faith. Thomas had reached a point where he could cheer- 
 fully throw aside all his conditions. He does not need to 
 touch or to handle, he simply believes. And what he 
 now holds and believes he expresses in this short and 
 comprehensive confession : " My Lord and viy God'' 
 " This," says Luther, " is the power of the resurrection 
 of Christ, that Thomas, formerly more stubborn in un- 
 belief than all the rest, is suddenly changed into a differ- 
 ent man, who now fully confesses, not only that he be- 
 lieves the fact of Christ's resurrection, but that Christ is 
 his Lord, true God and Man. Thus Thomas is turned 
 
320 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 28, 29. 
 
 from an unbelieving, obstinate and ignorant pupil into an 
 excellent theologian and doctor who has the correct and 
 proper knowledge of Christ's person and office." What- 
 ever Christ had spoken before concerning His divine dig- 
 nity, now rises up before Thomas in heavenly clearness 
 and majesty. He recognizes Him as truly Lord and God 
 from heaven. And this Lord and God has said to him 
 personally : " Peace be unto Thee." He is therefore not 
 against him, but for him. And Thomas boldly grasps 
 Him as his Saviour : " My Lord and my God," appropri- 
 ating unto himself all that is Christ's and thus believing 
 unto salvation. 
 
 " Because thou hast seen Me tJiou hast believed,'' says the 
 Lord to Thomas. It is of the greatest importance that 
 the Lord thus distinctly recognizes the utterance of 
 Thomas as a confession of faith, and his present state of 
 mind as that of a believer. But the words also imply a 
 gentle rebuke to Thomas on account of the manner by 
 which he came to his faith. Seeing, of course, was to a 
 certain degree indispensable to establish the faith of the 
 Church. There must have been eyewitnesses to the great 
 facts on which our salvation depends. And their testi- 
 mony is to the present day the means of producing and 
 preserving faith. But Thomas had discredited the testi- 
 mony of just such eyewitnesses, and had insisted on his 
 own personal seeing against the fundamental law of God's 
 kingdom that " belief cometh of hearing, and by the word 
 of Christ " (Rom. x. 17). The Lord, therefore, strongly 
 emphasizes this great principle of the New Testament, 
 which is henceforth to rule supremely: " Blessed are they 
 that have not seen and yet believed For faith in its very 
 nature and essence is the assurance of things hoped for, 
 the proving of things not seen (Heb. xi. i). And 
 " wc walk by faith and not by sight " (2 Cor. v. 7). 
 
XX. 29-31] CHAPTER XX. 
 
 321 
 
 The object of such blessed faith in this context, when the 
 word " beHeve " is used absolutely without modification, 
 cannot be anything but the Christ, in whom Thomas had 
 thus learned to believe, the incarnate Word, the crucified 
 and risen Saviour. 
 
 We have thus been led by the hand of the Evangelist 
 to a point where, in the confession of Thomas, the whole 
 Gospel itself seems to have reached its culmination. 
 Throughout the various scenes in which St. John has 
 shown us the incarnate Logos, between the unbelieving 
 world that rejects Him and the believers that receive 
 Him, there is none that represents a more glorious 
 triumph of the God-man, none that contains such a full 
 recognition and such unreserved homage to Him, as this 
 crowning confession from the mouth of skeptical Thomas : 
 My Lord and my God, With this the Gospel-narrative 
 properly ends. 
 
 5. Conclusion (xx. 30, 31). 
 
 30-31. Many other signs therefore did Jesus in the presence of the dis- 
 ciples, which are not written in this book : but these are written, that ye 
 may beUeve that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that beheving ye 
 may have life in his name. 
 
 The Evangelist has reached the end of his narrative, and 
 
 as he is ready to lay down his pen he looks back over the 
 
 whole life of Christ and the many signs " He did in the 
 
 presence of His disciples." This reference is by no means 
 
 to be confined to the events narrated in the last chapter, 
 
 as if the " other signs " meant additional apparitions of 
 
 the risen Lord before His disciples. St. John refers to 
 
 such other miracles as have been recorded by the Synop- 
 
 tists. Out of their great number only a few have been 
 
 told by John. And those have been selected and written 
 
 for a twofold purpose of proving to the readers that 
 21 
 
322 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xx. 31. 
 
 Jesus is the Christ the Son of God, and of communicating 
 to them eternal life through faith in His name. This 
 Gospel itself, as written by John, is a monument of the 
 Holy Spirit's work of glorifying Christ. In all the deeds 
 and discourses of the Lord which it contains, it shows 
 that He is indeed the only-begotten Son of the Father, 
 full of grace and truth. The very existence and the whole 
 character of this fourth Gospel verifies the promise of 
 Christ, that the Paraclete should guide the disciples into 
 all truth (xvi. 13). Its comprehensive testimony of the 
 God-man is thus recorded that men may believe. The last 
 word of Christ, up to this point, and the last word of the 
 Evangelist speak oi faith. Why do we believe? not be- 
 cause we have seen the Lord with the eyes of our body, 
 as Thomas and the disciples did, but because we have 
 their written record concerning the person and work of 
 Christ, they themselves and the Holy Spirit with them 
 bearing witness of Him. And what do we believe? Not, 
 in the first place, a certain set of doctrines, theories, rules 
 and principles, but the great central fact of the person of 
 the God-man ; viz., that Jesus is the Christ, the divinely 
 sent Messiah, who did His work as God's anointed 
 prophet, high priest and king ; and that He is the Son of 
 the Father, very God of very God, but God incarnate, in 
 whose humanity we find the living God, our Saviour. And 
 what is to be the result and outcome of our believing? 
 " that believing we may have life in His name." A real 
 faith brings us into life-union with Him ; and such per- 
 sonal contact and union with Him guarantees true and real 
 life, spiritual life in this world, eternal life in a glorified 
 body in the world to come, as Paul also sums up the 
 whole Gospel in the brief statement, that the righteous 
 shall //Vr by faith. 
 
 This Epilogue, or final summing up of John's Gospel 
 
XX. 31] CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Z^-l 
 
 record, leads our thoughts back to the Prologue and the 
 first chapter. There already it was said: " As many as 
 received Him, to them gave He the right to become 
 children of God (a new divine life I), even to them that 
 believe on His name" (i. 12). There already we hear 
 Andrew's joyful confession : " We have found the 
 Messiah (which is interpreted the Christy (i, 41). And 
 soon afterwards Nathanael adds to this : " Thou art tlu- 
 Son of God'" (i. 49). It is Jesus, the Christ, the Son of 
 God, whom Thomas in the fulness of his faith confesses 
 as " My Lord and my God." 
 
CHAPTER XXL 
 
 VI. Appendix. The Appearance of Christ at the 
 Lake of Galilee (xxi.). 
 
 I. The Draft of Fishes (xxi. i-8). 
 
 1-8. After these things Jesus manifested himself again to the disciples 
 at the sea of Tiberias ; and he manifested himself ow this wise. 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 unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him. We also come 
 with thee. They went forth, and entered into the boat ; and that night they 
 took nothing. But when day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach ; 
 howbeit the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus therefore saith unto 
 them, Children, have ye aught to eat ? They answered him, No. And he 
 saith unto them. Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and ye shall find. 
 They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multi- 
 tude of fishes. That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, 
 It is the Lord. So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt 
 his coat about him (for he was naked), and cast himself into the sea. But 
 the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from the 
 land, but about two hundred cubits off), dragging the net///// of fishes. 
 
 Inasmuch as the last two verses of the preceding 
 chapter are evidently the conclusion of the original 
 Gospel of St. John, this chapter, forming a kind of ap- 
 pendix, must have been added at a later period. But, as 
 it is found in all the earliest manuscripts and versions and 
 is known to the ancient fathers, it must have been added 
 very soon after the completion of the original Gospel 
 narrative, and before it was circulated among the 
 churches. It is " nearly contemporaneous " with the 
 preceding twenty chapters, as Renan says. And as the 
 whole spirit and language of this chapter is undoubtedly 
 324 
 
XXI. I.] CHAPTER XXL 325 
 
 Johannean, we sec no reason to think that another hand 
 had written these lines.^ 
 
 Of the ten apparitions of the Lord after His resurrec- 
 tion this is the seventh ; among the appearances before 
 an assembly of disciples it is the third, as John himself 
 distinctly states (xxi. 14). It was probably several weeks 
 after the meeting with Thomas, and most likely on an- 
 other Lord's Day, that the Lord manifested Himself to 
 the disciples in Galilee. There they had been directed 
 to expect Him by positive orders before and after His 
 resurrection (Matt. xxvi. 32 ; Mark xiv. 28 ; Matt, xxviii. 
 7-10 ; Mark xvi. 7). 
 
 At the Lake of Galilee, where, in bygone days, the 
 disciples had enjoyed the most blessed and delightful 
 communion with their Lord, we find seven of them " to- 
 gether,'' either in one house or in one town or village, 
 such as Capernaum or Bethsaida. The order in which 
 their names are recorded in this connection is quite signi- 
 ficant. Peter and Thomas are at the head of the list. 
 The restored denier and the believing skeptic, for- 
 ever the most striking illustrations of the power of 
 Christ's resurrection. After them follow Nathanael, the 
 
 1 Grotius was the first to introduce another theory concerning the author- 
 ship of this chapter, which in recent times was strongly supported by the 
 late Professor Grau of Koenigsberg. They find the occasion for the addi- 
 tion of this section in the traditional "saying among the brethren that that 
 disciple should not die " (xxi. 23). As the church in Ephesus had received 
 the explanation of the origin of that legend from the Apostle John himself, 
 and as " the saying " continued among the Christians even after his death, 
 the presbyters thought it best to add John's account in his own words to 
 his gospel. But even if this theory should be correct it would in reality only 
 explain the addition of two verses (22 and 23), without covering the rest of 
 this chapter. The majority of commentators therefore, including quite oi^- 
 posite types of theology, are decidedly in favor of thejohannean origin of 
 this chapter. (Richard Simon, Calovius, Wegscheider, Guericke, Credner, 
 Tholuck, Lange, Ebrard, Stier, Luthardt, Hengstenberg, Godet and others.) 
 
326 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 2, 3. 
 
 sons of Zebedee and two other of His disciples, possibly 
 Andrew and Philip. The place which in this list is as- 
 signed to the " sons of Zebedee," one of them the writer 
 of this Gospel, seems to us a very strong evidence that 
 John himself wrote this addition to his Gospel. Any 
 disciple of his, or presbyter of the Church at Ephesus, 
 would have given another place in this list to the last 
 survivor of the Apostles, the revered and beloved John. 
 After the last meeting with the Lord in Jerusalem, 
 after the solemn commission they received from Him 
 (xx. 21-23), ^""'^ ^I's hardly prepared for such a trivial every- 
 day proposition as that of Peter : " I go a fishing." And, 
 what is perhaps even more astonishing, they all with one 
 accord agree to his motion, and even John and Thomas 
 join the rest : " We also come with thee.'" This resolu- 
 tion, however, presents to us a significant feature of 
 truthfulness in the character and life of the Apostles. 
 Those plain, practical fishermen from the shores of the 
 Galilean Lake, whom the Lord had called to be His co- 
 workers in the building up of His kingdom, are no 
 dreamers, but active men whose very life it was to work. 
 With all the light and happiness which the resurrection 
 of Christ had brought them, they were now at a some- 
 what trying period of waiting and expectancy. The as- 
 cension of their Lord and the coming down of the prom- 
 ised Paraclete were the two great facts to which they 
 were looking forward, and which, after a meeting with 
 Christ in Galilee, might at any time become a reality. 
 And just at this time the sobej' proposition of Peter was 
 eminently happy and appropriate. Their hearts filled 
 with the great things they have seen and heard, and 
 looking forward to the greater things still in store for 
 them, they quietly settle down to the practical every-day 
 work of their former life. And they do this in common. 
 
XXI. 3-5] CHAPTER XXI. 327 
 
 It would have been a different thing if one alone had 
 taken up his former trade, separated from the others. 
 But there was a protection and a blessing in the very fact 
 of their associating for this fishing expedition. Though 
 the lake, and shore, and net and boat were the same as 
 of old, the men were new men. Their thoughts are with 
 their risen Lord, their conversation is of Him, while 
 their sinewy arms are wielding the oar and hauling the 
 net. Whenever He appears He finds them at work, even 
 though their heavenly call to become " fishers of men " 
 may seem, for a time, to be suspended. 
 
 At first, however, this fishing expedition seems to be a 
 failure. " TJiat night they took nothing : " a strong re- 
 minder of another night's experience, three years ago, on 
 that same lake of Galilee (Luke v. i-ii). This, as well as 
 the order of the Lord about casting the net, together 
 with other details, was particularly intended for Peter, 
 who was to be prepared for a full and formal re-instating 
 in his Apostolic office. At daybreak Jesus appears, 
 standing on the shore, but not recognized by the dis- 
 ciples. He opens a conversation in full accordance with 
 the situation in which He found them : " Children, have 
 ye aught to cat ? " referring to the fishes they might pos- 
 sibly have caught during the night. Their short, blunt 
 answer " No," betrays their disappointment after an un- 
 successful night's work, and perhaps even an unwilling- 
 ness to be disturbed, as they are busily occupied with 
 their work. It was, no doubt, a frequent occurrence 
 with the Galilean fishermen that some one at the shore, 
 waiting for the boat to come in, greeted them from afar 
 with the question, whether anything could be bought 
 from them " to eat," literally something to eat with the 
 bread, Tzixitrfpayiov, a relish, which, in the language of the 
 people around the Lake, meant nothing but fishes. 
 
328 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 6-8. 
 
 But the stranger who wants to buy fish where they 
 have none to sell, continues his conversation with the 
 advice : " Cast the net on the right side of the boat and 
 ye shall find." The prompt compliance with this sugges- 
 tion of the unknown stranger is most remarkable, espe- 
 cially as there is not a word said about it by any of the 
 Apostles. Was there a remembrance of the similar 
 order: " Put out into the deep and let down your nets 
 for a draught " (Luke v. 4), and a divination concerning 
 that person on the shore, in the hearts of the disciples ? 
 According to our text there is only one among them who 
 at this point already begins to realize the truth. When 
 the net was cast and they were not able to draw it for 
 the multitude of fishes, John said to Peter : " // is the 
 Lord." He is always nearest to the Lord in his thoughts 
 and meditations. He is first in contemplation, intuition, 
 recognition. Peter is foremost in action. And those 
 two stand side by side, closely united here, as in the 
 night of the Lord's passion, on the morning of His resur- 
 rection, and afterwards in the first demonstrations of the 
 life and activity of the Pentecost Church (Acts ii.-viii.). 
 Without waiting for the slow movement of the boat, 
 heavily dragging the overburdened net, Peter throws 
 himself into the water to swim to the shore, a distance of 
 a little over one hundred yards. But with all his zeal, 
 there was this time no inconsiderate haste in what Peter 
 did, nor did he forget the proper reverence towards his 
 Lord. " He girt his coat about him and thus he cast 
 himself into the sea." 
 
 2. The Feast Prepared for the Diseip/es (xxi. 9-14). 
 
 9-14. So when they got out upon the land, they see a fire of coals there, 
 and fish laid thereon, and bread. Jesus saith unto them. Bring of the fish 
 which ye have now taken. Simon Peter therefore went up, and drew the 
 
XXI. 9-12.] CHAPTER XXI. 329 
 
 net to land, full of great fishes, a hundred and fifty and three ; and for all 
 there were so many, the net was not rent. Jesus saith unto them, Come 
 and break your fast. And none of the disciples durst inquire of him, Who 
 art thou ? knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus cometh and taketh the 
 bread, and giveth them, and the fish likewise. This is now the third time 
 that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after that he was risen from the 
 dead. 
 
 Nothing is said in the narrative of the Evangehst con- 
 cerning what transpired between the Lord and Peter, 
 before the other Apostles reached the shore. There was 
 not much of an interval between his arrival and that of 
 the boat with the other disciples. Certainly Peter did 
 not assist the Lord in preparing and arranging that table, 
 to which they were invited. Nor is there any indication 
 of angels ministering unto the Lord in those preparations. 
 John simply tells us of everything being ready for them, 
 " a fire of coals there and fish laid thereon and bread,'' and 
 the impression, evidently intended by this statement, is 
 that of a miraculous provision made by the omnipotent 
 Lord Himself. And yet, with all that the Lord had 
 provided, the disciples are permitted and requested to 
 bring in also of the fish which they had now taken. 
 Their number, one hundred. and fifty-three, has been most 
 marvellously interpreted by the fathers in fanciful alle- 
 gories, which we will spare our readers. 
 
 It is remarkable how few words arc uttered during this 
 whole scene. The short invitation of the Lord : " Come 
 and break your fast," is all that is spoken. The disciples 
 were by this time fully convinced that it was the Lord 
 whom they here met so unexpectedly. But they would 
 have liked to receive an affirmation from Himself on 
 this point. They expected it, as the Lord had always 
 given it on former occasions. And yet they had not the 
 courage to solicit such an assurance of His identity. 
 They observed a reverent silence ; and only when the 
 
330 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 12, 13. 
 
 Lord in His accustomed manner acted as host they ven- 
 tured to partake of that mysterious meal. How impor- 
 tant this experience was to them and how sweet the re- 
 membrance, is shown in Acts x. 41, where Peter in his 
 address before CorneUus of Caesarea says : " We did eat 
 and drink with Him after He rose from the dead." 
 
 There can be no doubt that both the miraculous draught 
 of fishes, and this mysterious meal on the shore of the 
 Lake of Galilee, have a symbolical meaning for the 
 Church of Christ, and in particular for the work and ex- 
 perience of the Apostles and their successors in the 
 ministry of the word. The two events remind us of two 
 well-known miracles told in the Gospel history : The 
 miraculous draught of fishes preceding the call of Peter 
 and John to the Apostolic ofifice as fishers of men (Luke v. 
 1-2), and the miraculous feeding of the five thousand 
 which is told by all the four Evangelists. Thus here 
 also the draught of fishes foreshadows the work of the 
 Apostles, as fishers of men, with the assurance from their 
 Lord of abundant success for their labor and toil. The 
 mysterious meal, following the draught of fishes, symbol- 
 izes the spiritual and temporal support, the strengthening 
 and refreshing which the disciples may surely expect 
 from their glorified Lord, who is on shore, watching over 
 them and providing for them while they toil on the sea 
 of this world. 
 
 3. Peter and JoJin (xxi. 15-23). 
 (^z.) Peter {^^\. 15-19). 
 
 15-19. So when they had broken their fast, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, 
 Simon, so)i of John, lovest thou me more than these .'' He saith unto him, 
 Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my 
 lambs. He saith to him again a second time, Simon, so7i of John, lovest 
 thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord ; thou knowest that I love thee. 
 
XXI. 15-] CHAPTER XXI. 33 1 
 
 He saith unto him, Tend my slieep. He saitli unto )iini the third time, 
 Simon, j(?// of John, 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 girdedst 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. Now this he 
 spake, signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God. And 
 when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me. 
 
 After the meal the Lord had a special message yet for 
 Peter on account of his fall. There was not, by this 
 time, any doubt among the disciples, that, in spite of the 
 denial of Peter, his relation to the Lord, as well as to the 
 circle of the disciples, had been fully re-established. 
 They knew how sincerely penitent he was ever since 
 that terrible fall, when he had gone out and wept bitterly. 
 And knowing this penitent state of his mind and re- 
 membering their own weakness and instability, they had 
 never ceased to look upon him as one of their own 
 number. A significant evidence on this point is the 
 close association between Peter and John which we can 
 trace all through the history of those days (see John 
 XX. 2-10). The disciples, of course, knew of the special 
 reference to Peter in the first Easter-Message of the 
 angel at the tomb (Mark xvi. 7). Moreover the Lord 
 had appeared to him first of all the Apostles (Luke xxiv. 
 34; I Corinth, xv. 5), and we may well take it for granted 
 that at that private meeting Peter received his personal 
 absolution, the full assurance from the Lord Himself of 
 the pardon of his grievous sin. Even the gift of the 
 Spirit, when the Lord breathed upon them, and the com- 
 mission of the ministry of the Gospel, on the first even- 
 ing after the resurrection, included Peter as well as the 
 rest. So far then everything seemed to be in order, the 
 
332 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 15, 
 
 transgression blotted out and the fallen Apostle restored 
 to the grace of his Lord, the confidence of his brethren, 
 and even to the honor and responsibility of his ministerial 
 ofifice. 
 
 And yet, the offence of Peter had been of such a char- 
 acter, that a public and formal rehabilitation seemed to 
 be called for in his case. It was to take place before 
 witnesses, and in such a manner that it would at once be 
 understood as an offset to Peter's denial. And we have 
 no hesitation in saying that, however painful the scene 
 may have been to him, it was Peter's own desire to have 
 such an opportunity of submitting to a well-deserved 
 humiliation, and of making amends for the offence of his 
 denial, by a threefold confession of his love for his Lord. 
 Only in this way he would be enabled after his restora- 
 tion to "stablish his brethen," as the Lord had predicted 
 even before his fall. 
 
 In opening the conversation with Peter the Lord calls 
 him " Simon son of John''' (Joanes, Jonah, Matt. xvi. 17). 
 He goes back to Peter's original name, the name of the 
 natural man, as it appears in John i. 42 and as the Lord 
 used it with great emphasis when he warned Peter against 
 the danger of his denial (Luke xxii. 31, Simon, Simon, 
 behold Satan has asked to have you, etc.). For the fall 
 was really Simon's and not Peter's, and the illustrious 
 surname " Peter " (Cephas) had been forfeited by his 
 attitude during the passion of Christ, especially by his 
 denial. 
 
 If there was an element of discipline in this very 
 address, there is more of it in the comparison which the 
 question of the Lord introduces : " Lovest thou Me more 
 than these?'' This was unmistakably a sharp reminder 
 of Peter's presumption in the night of Christ's betrayal, 
 when he claimed to be more faithfully attached to the 
 
XXI. IS-] CHAPTER XXI. 333 
 
 Lord than all the rest, and ready to do and to suffer 
 more for Him than tiic other disciples: "If all shall be 
 offended in Thee I will never be offended (Matt. xxvi. 
 33 ; Mark xiv. 29). I will lay down my life for Thee " 
 (John xiii. 37).! Or was there even a gentle reference 
 to the fact that at that very moment Peter's affectionate 
 heart had pushed ahead of the others when he threw 
 himself into the sea; when Peter's love first reached the 
 Lord on the shore, while John's love had first recognized 
 Him from afar ? But in the fact that Peter's love to the 
 Lord is the one great theme of this examination, there was 
 certainly a great deal of encouragement and assurance 
 for the Apostle. And the language and spirit of Peter's 
 answer shows him in the most favorable light. It is full 
 of the gentleness and humility of a broken and contrite 
 heart. No translation is able to do full justice to it, be- 
 cause it cannot reproduce the change of words which 
 Peter makes in speaking of his love to Christ. In the 
 question of Christ : " Lovest thou Me more than these ? " 
 the Greek verb aya-a^ denotes the highest, most perfect 
 kind of love (diligere), implying a clear determination of 
 will and judgment, and belonging particularly to the 
 sphere of divine revelation. In his answer Peter sub- 
 stitutes the word <pOm^ which means the natural human 
 affection, with its strong feeling or sentiment, and is never 
 used in scripture language to designate man's love to 
 God.^ While the answer of Peter then claims only an 
 inferior kind of love, as compared to the one contained 
 in Christ's question, he nevertheless is confident of pos- 
 
 ^ An opportunity was thus offered to Peter to make amends not only to 
 the Lord whom he had grieved by his denial, but also to his fellow disciples 
 whom he had slighted and hurt by his overbearing conduct — in both direc- 
 tions a highly instructive " example of ecclesiastical discipline." (Grotius.) 
 
 2 In John xvi. 27, the Lord uses it, both of the Father's love for the dis- 
 ciples and their love for Him. 
 
334 THE GOSPEL OF ST. /OHiV. [xxi. 15-17. 
 
 sessing at least such love for his Lord. There is some- 
 thing very touching in this humble appeal to the Lord : 
 " Thou knoivcst that I love TJicc^ He hardly trusts 
 himself in this important matter. He has found out by 
 bitter experience that he does not know his own heart 
 sufficiently ; that he is apt to deceive himself even where 
 he means to be most sincere in his feelings and utter- 
 ances. But the Lord knows his heart. And with this 
 appeal to His knowledge he feels himself perfectly safe. 
 "Thou knowest, tliat I love Thee." There is, indeed, no 
 .uncertain sound in this. With all his diffidence in him- 
 self and his caution not to think of himself more highly 
 than he ought to think, there is a positive assurance on 
 the main point of the question : " Yea, Lord." 
 
 After this answer the Lord commits to Peter the care 
 of His flock. " Feed My lambs!'' First the " halieutics" 
 (catching the fish), then the " pastorate " (feeding the 
 flock). It is a testimonial of the confidence which the 
 Lord places in him. Without saying it in direct words, 
 He accepts the confession of Peter's love. For only to 
 a loving one will He commit His beloved lambs which 
 He has purchased with His own blood. They are His 
 own ; He Himself being the Chief-Shepherd, who needs 
 no vicars or substitutes to look after His flock, but faith- 
 ful, humble and loving servants. The little changes 
 made in the threefold commission of the Lord, either in 
 the verb or in the noun are all significant. " Feed My 
 lambs " He says the first time. " Tend My [little] 
 sheep " {jzpo^a-ui) the second tim-e ; " feed My sheep " the 
 third time ; {-po^o-a, as the Sinaitic and other manu- 
 scripts read). The change of verbs describes the different 
 functions of the pastoral office : ^^ feeding!' providing 
 healthy nourishment and thus sustaining life ; and 
 " tending!' -oumv^etv, ruling, watching over the flock, guid- 
 
XXI. 15, i6.] CHAPTER XXI. 335 
 
 ing and protecting it. The change of nouns indicates the 
 different classes or conditions of the members of the flock, 
 from the Httle ones who are beginners in the faith, to the 
 adult members of the organized congregation. It is evident 
 that what the Lord here means in describing Peter's 
 commission are the ordinary functions of the ministry 
 of the word. The very same words are used afterwards 
 by the Apostles themselves in charging the bishops or 
 presbyters of the Churches with the duties of their office. 
 Thus Paul says to the elders of the Church at Ephesus : 
 " Take heed unto yourselves and to all the flock, in the 
 which the Holy Ghost hath made you bishops, to feed the 
 Church of God, which Repurchased with His own blood " 
 (Acts XX. 28). And Peter himself exhorts the elders of 
 the Churches in Asia Minor as a fellow elder and a wit- 
 ness of the sufferings of Christ : " Tend the flock of God 
 which is among you " (i Peter v. 2). It is essentially the 
 same work which had been assigned to all the Apostles 
 on the evening of the Lord's resurrection (John xx. 19 ff.). 
 When the Lord asked for a second time: "Simon, son 
 of John, lovest thou Me?" He omitted the comparative 
 reference to the other disciples, which had been in His 
 first question ("more than these?"). This time the 
 question confines itself to Peter's love exclusively. There- 
 by the Lord seems to indicate His satisfaction with Peter's 
 answer on this point, his silence on the measure of his 
 love as compared with others. Peter has given up those 
 ambitious comparisons. He has enough to do with him- 
 self. But the great question itself: " Lovest thou me ? " 
 is repeated. It is always the fundamental question in 
 Christ's dealings with His people, and for the pastor in 
 particular it is the great theme of self-examination, show- 
 ing the one powerful and abiding motive for true faith- 
 fulness in the holy office. 
 
336 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 17-19. 
 
 But the Lord asks even a third time. " And Peter ivas 
 grieved because He said unto him the third time : Lovcst 
 Thou Me ? " This third question completed the direct 
 reminder of the three denials. This is a painful reminis- 
 cence for Peter, full of humiliation and godly sorrow. But 
 there is another feature in this question of Christ, which 
 was, no doubt, strongly felt by Peter, though it is entirely 
 lost to us in the translation of this passage. While in the 
 first two questions the Lord had used the higher word for 
 love {ayar.d<i) He now, in this third question, accepts the 
 word used in the two previous answers of Peter (^lAsf?), 
 which, as stated above, signifies a lower grade of love. 
 Does then the Lord question even this human affection on 
 Peter's part ? Does even this kind of love need careful 
 examination, deepening and maturing? We can under- 
 stand that this third question, in this particular form, was 
 really the deepest humiliation for Peter. His answer, 
 consequently, is more emphatic than before : " Lord, 
 Thou knowest all tilings^' — my whole life, my sinful heart, 
 my pride and imprudence, my repentance and conversion, 
 my love and devotion, all that Thou hast done for me, all 
 that has enabled me to make this confession, at this time — 
 " Thou knoivest that I love Thee'' 
 
 The solemn examination and the formal re-instatement 
 of the fallen disciple having thus been completed, the 
 Lord for a moment lifts the veil from the future course of 
 Peter's life, and shows him that suffering and a martyr's 
 death will be, with him also, the climax of his "glorifying 
 God." In order fully to appreciate the following verses 
 (18 and 19) in their close connection with the preceding 
 passage, we must remember the whole history of Peter's 
 fall, and go back to the very beginning of that sad ex- 
 perience. We find it at the point (John xiii. 36, 37) 
 when Peter had asked the Lord : " Whither goest Thou ? " 
 
XXI. 1 8, 19.] CHAPTER XXL 337 
 
 and Jesus answered : " Whither I go, thou canst not fol- 
 low Me now, but tJiou shalt follow afterzvards.'' Peter 
 was quite unwilling to submit to this decision and said 
 unto Him : " Lord, why cannot I follow Thee now ? I 
 will lay down my life for Thee." To this the Lord an- 
 swered with the revelation of his imminent denial. 
 
 Now that Peter is restored from his grievous fall the 
 Lord Himself takes up the broken thread again. After 
 all these experiences of the fall, the examination and res- 
 toration, Peter is now in a condition to follozu the Lord 
 to suffering and to a martyr's death. If his denial had 
 betrayed a tendency to escape from such hardships, and 
 even an unfitness, for the time, to undergo such trials, 
 this revelation of the Lord concerning the end of his life 
 may well be considered as an acknowledgment of his fitness 
 to seal his ministry of the Gospel with a martyr's death, 
 and an encouragement to persevere and to be faithful unto 
 death. It is a questionof subordinate importance whether, 
 in the details of this prophecy, the Lord intended to in- 
 dicate crucifixion as the mode of Peter's death. But cer- 
 tain it is that he predicts a time of suffering and a violent 
 death for him. Over against the independence and im- 
 pulsiveness of his younger days, the time is coming when 
 he will have to surrender to another will, and be led and 
 carried whither he would not. And perhaps we ought 
 not to limit the meaning of this prophecy to the actual 
 martyrdom of Peter, with its bodily sufferings. Hence- 
 forth it was the great lesson and test of his life to have 
 the old Simon with his natural Ego crucified in steady 
 self-denial. True pastors, such as Peter was called to be, 
 in order to lead, must themselves be led in humble sub- 
 mission to their Lord. And every Christian, as he ad- 
 vances in years, ought to grow in the likeness of his Lord 
 whom he is called to follow. But this will be possible 
 
338 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 19-21. 
 
 only under the same condition under which Peter is here 
 placed, viz. the yielding of our own will and the corre- 
 sponding readiness to say : " Thy will be done." 
 
 (/;.) Jolin (xxi. 20-23). 
 
 20-23. Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple wliom Jesus loved follow- 
 ing; which also leaned back on his breast at the supper, and said. Lord, 
 who is he that betrayeth thee ? Peter therefore 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. This saying there- 
 fore went forth among the brethren, that that disciple should not die : yet 
 Jesus said not unto him, that he should not die ; but. If I will that he tarry 
 till I come, what is that to thee ? 
 
 After the words of re-instatement and of prophecy ad- 
 dressed to Peter the Lord starts to go, and orders Peter 
 to follow Him. This command, then, besides its far- 
 reaching symbolical meaning, to which we referred in the 
 preceding section, must also be taken in a literal and 
 local sense. In obedience to it Peter goes after the Lord. 
 But he at once, " turning about," notices John, who also 
 follows them. There was no presumption in this on the 
 part of the beloved disciple. The close relations between 
 Peter and John, and more than that, the intimate relation 
 between the Lord and John, fully explain and justify the 
 action of John. This is meant by the significant reference 
 at this point to the well-known evidences of that intimacy 
 between Jesus and the beloved disciple " which also leaned 
 back on His breast at the supper, and said, Lord, who is 
 he that betrayeth Thee? " 
 
 On seeing John also following, Peter asks the Lord : 
 "And what shall this man do?"^ or, as the marginal note 
 of the Revised Version has it : " And this man, what ? " 
 
 1 This word referring to a "doing" on the part of John is particularly ill 
 chosen, both in the text of the Revised and of the Authorized Version. 
 
XXI. 20-22.] CHAPTER XXI. ^-^^ 
 
 What of him ? What is in store for him ? This question 
 of Peter seems quite natural, especially if we remember 
 the close friendship between these two apostles. Peter 
 had received from the Lord the revelation concerning the 
 end of his life, his sufferings and martyr's death. And in 
 his sympathy for John, and the anxiety about the future 
 of his friend, the question would readily suggest itself: 
 What is ordained for John ? What will be his fate ? John 
 himself has no undue desire to penetrate into the unknown 
 future, he is satisfied to rest in the Lord and to follow 
 *' the Lamb whithersoever He goeth " (Revelation xiv. 
 4). But while John is silent, Peter takes it upon himself 
 to ask the Lord in behalf of his friend, as formerly John 
 had put a question to the Lord in behalf of Peter (John 
 xiii. 24). From the character of Christ's answer we are 
 forced to think that, with all the kindly interest in the 
 future development of the life of John shown by Peter's 
 question, there must have been in it something which met 
 with the decided disapproval of the Lord. And this was 
 undoubtedly the undue curiosity of Peter, who concerned 
 himself about the affairs of his companion, and desired to 
 penetrate into the mystery of his future, at a time when 
 the Lord had given him such a solemn and important rev- 
 elation concerning his own life, in which he might have 
 found, just at that time, ample material for earnest, con- 
 centrated meditation. 
 
 The answer of the Lord, however, while in its pointed 
 shortness and in the direct words : " What is that to 
 thee ? " it is an unmistakable reproof for Peter, after all 
 gives some information on the very point about which 
 He had been asked : '■'■ If I ivill that he tarry till I conic.'" 
 A number of commentators do not find any positive 
 statement in this sentence. They take it in a purely 
 hypothetical sense, emphasizing the " if " so strongly, 
 
340 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 22. 
 
 that they conclude: it was by no means the real intention 
 of the Lord that John should tarry till He comes.^ But 
 we cannot accept this interpretation. There is, and we 
 believe it to be intentionally so, a certain mysteriousness 
 hanging over these words of Christ. But He does not 
 simply silence Peter. He makes a statement concerning 
 the future of John, and He makes it in close connection 
 with what He has just before revealed to Peter ; and, 
 moreover. He frames His words in such a way that we 
 are driven to find in them a contrast to the martyrdom 
 of Peter. The Lord, in whose hand are the lives of His 
 servants, says to Peter : Go, die, seal thy ministry with 
 a martyr's death ; and to John : Stay, tarry till I come. 
 If the death of Peter was the central thought of the 
 prophecy concerning his future, the prolonged life of 
 John is the centre of this communication concerning the 
 beloved disciple. There was no mistake in this starting 
 point of the traditional legend of the early church, how- 
 ever much it erred in drawing from it the inference : 
 " That that disciple should not die." But what is meant 
 by the words of Christ : " till I come ? " The true 
 meaning of the whole statement evidently depends on 
 the interpretation of that one word of the original "ipx^imi 
 (I come). Does the Lord here mean His coming to John 
 in an easy, natural death, over against the pains and 
 tortures of Peter's martyrdom?^ Or does His coming 
 signify His second advent at the end of the world, when 
 
 1 Thus Erasmus substitutes " velim " instead of " volo " — " if it should be 
 my will " instead of " if I will ; " losing entirely that remarkable dignity and 
 majesty with which the Lord here positively asserts His absolute power over 
 the life and death of His own. The latest commentary of Bugge also de- 
 fends this position of an unreal hypothesis. 
 
 2 This is the interpretation of Augustine, Grotius, Olshausen, Lange, 
 Grau, really amounting to the statement that John should tarry, that is» 
 should live until he should die a natural death. 
 
XXI. 23-] CHAPTER XXI. 341 
 
 He shall come to judge the quick and the dead ? ^ 
 Neither of these two interpretations is in harmony with 
 the context. But we find in Matt. xvi. 28 (and Mark ix. 
 i) a statement of the Lord which may give us some light 
 on the passage before us. There the Lord says that 
 " some of them that stand here shall in nowise taste of 
 death till they see the Son of Man coming in His King- 
 dom." This, as is generally admitted, refers to Christ's 
 coming in judgment over His people, in the destruction 
 of Jerusalem (in the year 70 A. D.). But more than this, 
 as Bengel and Stier particularly have set forth in very 
 forcible manner. The Lord came in a specific sense to 
 His beloved disciple when He gave him that Book of 
 Revelation, whose theme from beginning to end is : I 
 come, behold, I come ! John was reserved for the work 
 of writing the last and crowning revelation of the Script- 
 ures, and after finishing the Apocalypse he departed. 
 " For Peter the cross, for John the Apocalypse ! Behold 
 what a distinction for the beloved disciple ! " (Bengel : 
 Petro crux. Joanni apocalypsis. Vide, quanta dignatio 
 erga discipulum dilectum !). 
 
 4. Conchision. The Gospel Attested {^yi\. 24, 25). 
 
 24-25. This is the disciple which beareth witness of these things, and 
 wrote these things ; and we know that his witness 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 would not 
 contain the books that should be written. 
 
 Thus far this supplementary chapter (xxi. 1-23) has 
 pictured the future lifework of the Apostles, its labor and 
 
 1 This then would practically be the ancient tradition, which is distinctly 
 rejected by John himself. And yet, even a man like Lavaterissaid to have 
 actually believed this. 
 
342 THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. [xxi. 24, 25. 
 
 toil, its fruit and blessings, its joys and trials, culminating 
 in bloody martyrdom for the one and in quiet, silent 
 waiting for the coming of the Lord, for the other. With 
 this picture the author's work is finished. 
 
 What we have here in these last two verses, is written 
 by another hand than that of the author. The last verse 
 is omitted from the text of the Gospel by Tischendorf, 
 Gebhardt and others on the testimony of the Sinaitic 
 Codex, which, however on this point is not supported by 
 any other manuscript. But it was probably added, to- 
 gether with the 24th verse at the time of the publication 
 of the Gospel. 
 
 Three distinct statements are made in this addition : 
 I. That the disciple whom Jesus loved, that is John, is 
 the writer of this Gospel. 2. That his witness is, attested 
 as absolutely reliable. 3. That it is utterly impossible 
 that all the things which Jesus did, could ever be fully 
 written out. This testimony is given by a circle of men, 
 who were in a position to know about these things and 
 who speak with the assurance that their testimony will 
 have weight and authority with the church at large. 
 One of their number is singled out in the 25th verse in 
 that peculiar statement " I suppose " {olixat), which cer- 
 tainly could never have been John's mode of expressing 
 himself. 
 
 There can hardly be any doubt as to the circle from 
 which this final addition and attestation of the Gospel 
 comes. It is the church in Ephesus, where John spent 
 the latter part of his life, which through her elders gave 
 this testimony to the authenticity not only of this sup- 
 plementary chapter, but thereby also of the whole Gospel 
 of St. John. Into their hands the author had probably 
 first given his Gospel, together with the supplement xxi. 
 1-23. And it was probably during the lifetime of the 
 
XXI. 24, 25.] CHAPTER XXI. 343 
 
 Apostle that this testimony of the church in Ephesus 
 was added. 
 
 The legend that the disciple whom Jesus loved, the 
 disciple who witnessed and wrote these things, would 
 never die, is, as John himself declared, without historical 
 reality. But there is a beautiful significance in it for the 
 very Gospel which John wrote. It has been declared 
 dead again and again by the enemies of our Christian 
 faith. They have buried it and locked and sealed its 
 tomb. But the message goes forth again and again 
 among the brethren, that that Gospel should not die. 
 And this is not a saying but a fact, attested by impreg- 
 nable witness. It lives and shall live forever. 
 
SYNOPSIS OF THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. 
 
 FIRST PART —CHAPTERS I.— IV. 
 
 THE BEGINNING OF FAITH IxN THE INCARNATE WORD AS 
 THE ABSOLUTE REVELATION OF GOD. 
 
 L Opening Section ["The Prologue"] I. 1-18. 
 
 1. Begi7t7ting and Theme of the Gospel. 
 
 2. The Word ^'' Logos'''). 
 
 3. The Eternal and Creative Word (i. 1-3). 
 
 4. The Word of Salvation (i. 4-9). 
 
 5. The Word Rejected by the World {i. 10,11). 
 
 6. The Word Received by the Childre?i of God {^i. 12, 13). 
 
 7. The Word Incarnate {\. 14). 
 
 8. The Incarnate Word Divelling amo7ig Us (i. 14). 
 
 9. Receiving out of His Fulness (^\. 15-18). 
 
 II. The Testimony of John the Baptist (I. 19-34). 
 
 1. First Testimony before the fewish Delegation (i. 19-28). 
 
 2. Second Testimony of fohn the Baptist Addressed to his Disciples 
 
 (i. 29-34). 
 
 III. The First Disciples of the Lord (I. 35-51). 
 
 IV. The First Sign (II. i-ii). 
 
 V. The First Prophecy of the Lord Concerning His Death and 
 
 Resurrection (II. 12-25). 
 
 VI. The Conversation with Nicodemus (III. 1-21). 
 
 1. Character of Nicodemus and his Motives in Coming to fesus (iii. i, 2). 
 
 2. The Necessity of a New Birth (iii. 3). 
 
 3. The Nature and Means of the A^ew Birth (iii. 4-8). 
 
 4. The Heavenly Witness (iii. 9-13). 
 
 5. The Serpent in the Wilder7iess (iii. 14, 15). 
 
 345 
 
346 SYNOPS/S. 
 
 6. The Father's Love the Headspring of Salvation (iii. i6). 
 
 7. Salvation, 7iot Judgment, the Mission of the Son of God (iii. 17). 
 
 8. The Present Judgment Incurred by Unbelievers (iii. 18, 19). 
 
 9. The Climax aftd the Parting Word to Nicodemus (iii. 20, 21). 
 
 VII. Jesus in Jud^a and the Last Testimony of John the Baptist 
 
 (III. 22-36). 
 
 1. Jesus in Jitdaa (iii. 22-24). 
 
 2. The Occasion for the Last Testimony of the Baptist (iii. 25, 26). 
 
 3. The Last Testimony of the Baptist (iii. 27-36). 
 
 (a.) Christ and the Baptist (iii. 27-30). 
 (b) Christ and the World {ya. 2^-2,6). 
 
 VIII. Samaritan Faith (IV. 1-42). 
 
 1. Historical Introduction (iv. 1-6). 
 
 2. The Conversation with the Samaritan Woman (iv. 7-26). 
 
 (a.) The Living Water (iv. 7-15). 
 (b.) The Prophet (iv. 16-26). 
 
 3. The Conversation with the Disciples (iv. 27-38). 
 
 4. Believing Samaritans (iv. 39-42). 
 
 IX. Galilean Faith (IV. 43-54). 
 
 1. Historical Introduction (iv. 43-45)- 
 
 2. The Nobleman's Unbelief Rebuked (iv. 46-48). 
 
 3. The Nobleman's Faith Supported and Trained (iv. 49, 50). 
 
 4. The Nobleman's Faith Crowned with Experience (iv. 51-54). 
 
 5. The Noblematt's House Believi>tg (iv. 53). 
 
 SECOND PART —CHAPTERS V.— XII. 
 
 THE HOSTILITY OF UNBELIEF THAT REJECTS THE INCAR- 
 NATE WORD. 
 
 I. The Beginning of the Conflict in Jud^^a (V, 1-47). 
 
 1. 77^,? Healing of the Sick Ma?i at the Pool of Bethesda (v. 1-16). 
 
 2. The Lord's Discourse folloivitig this Miracle (v. 17-47). 
 
 {a.) The Personal Relatio7i between the Father and the Son the 
 
 Expla7iation of the Latter' s Work (v. 17-30). 
 (b) The Testi?nony of the Father (v. 31-40). 
 (c.) Unbelief of the Jews Lamented and Explained (v. 41-47). 
 
SYNOPSIS. 347 
 
 II. The Crisis in Galilee (VI. 1-71). 
 
 (A.) T/ie Miraculous Feeding (Yl. 1-15). 
 
 (B.) IVic Meeting with His Disciples on the Water (VI. 
 16-21). 
 
 (C.) The Discoufses Following these Miracles in Capernaum 
 (VI. 22-59). 
 
 1. Historical Introduction (vi. 22-24). 
 
 2. The Jews Asking Questions (vi. 25-40). 
 
 3. The Jews Alurtnuriug (vi. 41-51). 
 
 4. The Jews Striving One with Another (vi. 52-59). 
 
 (D.) The Wavering Disciples and the Crisis (VI. 60-71). 
 
 1. The Wavering Disciples (vi. 60-65). 
 
 2. The Decision oj the Twelve (vi. 66-69). 
 
 3. The Devil among Them (vi. 70, 71). 
 
 III. The Conflict in Jerusalem again Taken up (VII. i — VIII. 59). 
 (A.) Historical Introductio?i (VII. 1-13). 
 
 (B.) Three Discourses during the Feast of Tabernacles {^IW. 
 14-36). 
 
 1. Christ's Authority for Taiching {\'\\. 14-24). 
 
 2. Whence is Christ? (y\\. 25-32). 
 
 3. His Approaching Departure (\\\. 33-36). 
 
 (C.) The Discourses on the Last Day of the Feast (VII. 37 — 
 VIII. 59). 
 
 1. Jesus the Fountain of Life (vii. 37-52.) 
 
 {a.) The Words of the Lord (vii. 37-39). 
 
 (b.) The Division in the Multitude (vii. 40-44). 
 
 (<r.) 77/1? Chief Priests and Pharisees (vii. 45-52). 
 
 2. Jesus the Light of the World (viii. 12-20). 
 
 3. The Lifting up of the Son of Man (viii. 21-30). 
 
 4. Last Words on and after the Feast of Tabernacles (viii. 
 
 31-59)- 
 (a.) Whose Servants are the Jews ? {\\v\. 31-36). 
 (b.) Whose Childreti are the Jcms ? (viii. 37-47). 
 {c.) The Eternal Majesty of Christ (viii. 48-59). 
 
348 SYNOPSIS. 
 
 IV. The Conflict WITH THE Unbelieving Jews Reaching its Climax 
 (IX. I— XII. 50). 
 (A.) T/ie Healing of the Mivi Born Blind (IX. 1-41). 
 
 1. The Fact itself {\\. i-\2). 
 
 2. Investigation by the Pharisees (ix. 13-34). 
 
 {a.) First Appearance of the Man before the Pharisees (ix. 
 
 13-17)- 
 (b.') Questioning his Parents (ix. 18-23). 
 (r.) Second Appearance and Expulsion of the Man Born 
 
 Blind (ix. 24-34). 
 
 3. Jesus the Saviour of the Blind and the Judge of the Seeing (ix. 
 
 35-41). 
 
 (B. ) The Discourses Following the Heali?ig of the Man Born 
 Blind (X. 1-42). 
 
 1. First Discourse (x. 1-21). 
 
 («.) Christ the Shepherd (x. 1-6). 
 
 (b^ Christ the Door (x. 7-10). 
 
 (f.) One Flock and one Shepherd (x. 11-18). 
 
 {d.) hnpression Made by these Words on the Jews (x, 19-21). 
 
 2. Second DiscoJirse 071 the Feast of the Dedication (x. 22-42). 
 
 (rt.) Historical Introduction (x. 22-24). 
 
 (b.^ First Section of the Discourse: I and the Father are One 
 
 (x. 25-31). 
 (c.) Second Part of the Discourse. Christ's Defence against 
 
 the Charge of Blasphefny (x. 32-39). 
 {d.) Christ's Retreat to Percea (x. 40-42). 
 
 (C.) The Raising of Lazarus. The Crisis in fudcea {Xl. i-^']). 
 
 1. Sickness and Death of Lazarus, and Message to Jesus (xi. 1-16). 
 
 2. The Miracle of the Raising of Lazart(s (xi. 17-44). 
 
 [a.) Arrival of Jesus and Conversation with Martha (xi. 
 
 17-27)- 
 (/;.) Meeting with Mary (xi. 28-37). 
 (c.) Jesus at the Tomb (xi. 38-44). 
 
 3. The Effect of the Miracle (xi. 45-57). 
 
 {a.) On those Present at the Tomb (xi. 45, 46). 
 
 (b.) On the Chief Priests (xi. 47, 53). 
 
 (<:.) The Lord's Retreat into Ephrcmn (xi. 54-57)- 
 
SYNOPSIS. 
 
 349 
 
 (D.) T/ie End of the Public Ministry of Christ (XII. 
 1-50)- 
 
 1. The Supper at Bethany (xii. 1-8). 
 
 2. Excitement among the Common People and Counsel of the Chief 
 
 Priests to Put Lazarus to Death (xii. 9-1 1). 
 
 3. Entrance into Jerusalem (xii. 12-19). 
 
 4. The Greeks Knocking at the Door of the Kingdotn (xii. 20-36). 
 
 (a.) The Historical Fact (xii. 20-22). 
 [b.) Significance of this Fact (xii. 23-36). 
 
 1. For the Lord Himself (xii. 23-30). 
 
 2. For the World (xii. 31-33). 
 
 3. For Israel (xii. 34-36). 
 
 5. Final Review of the Unbelief of the Jei-vs (xii. 37-43). 
 
 («.) Their Unbelief Prophesied by Isaiah (xii. 37-41). 
 (b.) Coiuardly Fear 0/ the Pharisees (xii. 42, 43). 
 
 6. Summing up of the Lord's Testimony (xii. 44-50). 
 
 THIRD PART.— CHAPTERS XIII.— XXI. 
 
 THE TRIUMPH OF FAITH— THE INCARNATE WORD GLORI- 
 FIED AMONG HIS OWN. 
 
 SECTION FIRST : THE PARTING DISCOURSES OF THE LORD 
 (XIII. I— XVIT. 26). 
 
 I. Historical Introduction (XIII. 1-30). 
 
 \. Jesus Washing the Disciples' Feet (xm. I-17). 
 2. Judas Iscariot Forced to Withdraw (x.m. 18-30). 
 
 II. First Parting Words Addressed to the Eleven (XIII. 31 — 
 
 XIV. 4). 
 
 1. The Son of Alan Glorified [x\\\. 31, 32). 
 
 2. The Imminent Departure (xiii. ^Z)' 
 
 3. The New Commandment (xiii. 34, 35). 
 
 4. Peter's Interruption Ans7vered by the Lord (xiii. 36-3S). 
 
 5. The Disciples Comforted Concerning the Lord's Departure (xiv 
 
 1-4). 
 
350 
 
 SYNOPSIS. 
 
 III. Further Interruptions of the Disciples Answered by the 
 
 Lord (XIV. 5-1 1). 
 
 1. Thomas (xiv. 5-7). 
 
 2. Philip (xiv, 8-11). 
 
 IV. The Parting Words Continued (XIV, 12-31). 
 
 1. The Disciples Doing the Works 0/ Jesus {xiv. 12-14). 
 
 2. Praying for Another Comforter (xiv. 15-17). 
 
 3. The Lord Coming with the Father (xiv. 18-21). 
 
 4. To Whom will He Manifest Himself? (xiv. 22-24). 
 
 5. The Teaching of the Holy Spirit (xiv. 25, 26). 
 
 6. The Peace of Jesus (xiv. 27). 
 
 7. The Believers' Joy in Christ's Departure (xiv. 28, 29). 
 
 8. Jesus and the Prince of the World (xiv. 30, 31). 
 
 V. New Parting Discourse (XV. i— XVI. 33). 
 
 1. The Vine ajtd the Branches (xv. 1-8). 
 
 2. Abiding 171 His Love by Keeping His Commandmefits (xv. 9-17), 
 
 3. The World's Hatred against the Disciples (xv, 18-25). 
 
 4. Jesus Sending the Spirit (xv. 26-xvi. 1 5). 
 
 5. Last Words to the Disciples (xvi. 16-33). 
 
 VI. The High Priest's Prayer (XVII. 1-26). 
 
 1. Introductory Remarks. 
 
 2. The High Priest Praying for Hitnself (xv\\. 1-5). 
 
 3. The High Priest Praying for the Disciples (xvii. 6-19). 
 
 4. The High Priest Praying for All Believers (xvii. 20-24). 
 
 5. Coticliision of the High Priest's Prayer (xvii. 25, 26). 
 
 SECTION SECOND: THE HISTORY OF THE PASSION AND 
 RESURRECTION OF THE LORD (XVIIL i— XXI. 25). 
 
 I. The Capture of Jesus (XVIII. i-ii). 
 
 1. Arrival of the Band (xwm. I-3). 
 
 2. Jesus Meeting the Band (xviii. 4-9). 
 
 3. Peter Striking with the Sword (xviii. 10, 11). 
 
 II. Jesus before the High Priest (XVIII. 12-27). 
 
 1. Jesus Taken to Annas (xviii. 12-14.) 
 
 2. First Denial of Peter (win. 15-18). 
 
 3. Hearing of Jesus before Annas {yM'iii. 19-24). 
 
 4. Second and Third Denial of Peter (xviii. 25-27). 
 
SYNOPSIS. 351 
 
 III. Jesus before the Governor Pilate (XVIII. 28— XIX. 16). 
 
 1. First Charge of the Jnvs (xviii. 28-32). 
 
 2. Jesus the King (xviii. 33-38 '), 
 
 3. Jesus and Barabbas (xviii. 38 ^-40). 
 
 4. Scourging and Mocking 0/ the A'ittg 0/ the Jews {\\x. I-3). 
 
 5. Behold the Man (xix. 4-6). 
 
 6. Jesus the Son of God (xix. 7-1 1). 
 
 7. Ccesar's Friendship. The Governor Yields (xix. 12-16). 
 
 IV. The Execution (XIX. 17-42). 
 
 1. The Crucifixion (xix. 17, 18). 
 
 2. The Inscription on the Cross (xix. 19-22). 
 
 3. Dividing His Garments (xix. 23, 24). 
 
 4. Last Will of Mary's Son (xix. 25-27). 
 
 5. Death of Jesus (xix. 28-30). 
 
 6. Piercing Nis Side {x\x. 31-37). 
 
 7. The Burial of Christ {x.\x, 38-42). 
 
 V. The Resurrection of Jesus (XX. 1-31). 
 
 1. Peter atid John at the Tomb (xx. i-io). 
 
 2. Mary Magdalene {\x. 11-18). 
 
 3. First Appearance before the Disciples (xx. 19-23). 
 
 4. Second Appearance before the Disciples, including Thomas (xx. 
 
 24-29). 
 
 5. Conclusion (xx. 30, 31). 
 
 VI. Appendix. The Appearance of Christ at the Lake of Galilee 
 
 (XXI. 1-25). 
 
 1. The Draft of Fishes (xx\. 1-8). 
 
 2. The Feast Prepared for the Disciples (xxi. 9-14). 
 
 3. Peter and John (xxi. 15-23). 
 
 (a.) Peter (xxi. 15-19). 
 {b.) Johti (xxi. 20-23). 
 
 4. Conclusion. The Gospel Attested (xxi. 24, 25). 
 
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