1 John 3:16

16. For τιθέναι ([635][636]) read θεῖναι ([637][638][639][640]).

[635] 9th century. All three Epistles.
[636] 9th century. All three Epistles.
[637] 4th century. Discovered by Tischendorf in 1859 at the monastery of S. Catherine on Mount Sinai, and now at Petersburg. All three Epistles.
[638] 5th century. Brought by Cyril Lucar, Patriarch of Constantinople, from Alexandria, and afterwards presented by him to Charles I. in 1628. In the British Museum. All three Epistles.
[639] 4th century. Brought to Rome about 1460. It is entered in the earliest catalogue of the Vatican Library, 1475. All three Epistles.
[640] 5th century. A palimpsest: the original writing has been partially rubbed out and the works of Ephraem the Syrian have been written over it. In the National Library at Paris. Part of the First and Third Epistles; 1 John 1:1 to 1 John 4:2; 3 John 1:3-14. Of the whole N.T. the only Books entirely missing are 2 John and 2 Thessalonians.

16. ἐν τούτῳ ἐγνώκαμεν τ. ἀγ. The A.V. here collects the errors of previous Versions. Tyndale and Cranmer have ‘perceave we.’ Wiclif, Purvey, and the Rhemish insert ‘of God’ from the Vulgate without any support from Gk. MSS. The Genevan is right on both points; ‘Hereby have we perceaved love.’ Better, as R.V., Hereby know we love. Why not ‘Herein’? In the concrete example of Christ’s vicarious death we have obtained the knowledge of what love is. Christ is the archetype of self-sacrificing love, as Cain is of brother-sacrificing hate. Love and hate are known by their works. The article has its full force; τὴν�, love in its very essence: comp. 1 John 4:10. The Vulgate here, as in 1 John 4:16, inserts Dei after caritas: Western interpolation.

ὄτι … ἔθηκεν. For ἐν τούτῳ followed by ὅτι see on 1 John 2:3. Τιθέναι may mean ‘to pay down’ in the way of ransom or propitiation, or simply ‘to lay aside.’ Classical usage sanctions the former interpretation: Demosthenes uses the verb of paying interest, tribute, taxes. And this is supported by ‘for us’ (ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν), i.e. ‘on our behalf.’ But ‘I lay down My life that I may take it again’ (John 10:17-18), and ‘layeth aside His garments’ (John 13:4; comp. John 13:12), are in favour of the latter: they are quite against the rendering ‘He pledged His life.’ The phrase τιθέναι τὴν ψυχὴν αὑτοῦ is peculiar to S. John (John 10:11; John 10:15; John 10:17; John 13:37-38; John 15:13). In Greek the pronoun (ἐκεῖνος as in 1 John 2:6 and 1 John 3:7) marks more plainly than in English who laid down His life: but S. John’s readers had no need to be told. Ἐκεῖνος and ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν are in emphatic juxtaposition: ‘He for us His life laid down.’

καὶ ἡμεῖς ὀφείλομεν. The ἡμεῖς is emphatic: this on our side is a Christian’s duty; he ‘ought himself also to walk even as He walked’ (1 John 2:6). The argument seems to shew that though ‘the brethren’ specially means believers, yet heathen are not to be excluded. Christ laid down His life not for Christians only, ‘but also for the whole world’ (1 John 2:2). Christians must imitate Him in this: their love must be (1) practical, (2) absolutely self-sacrificing, (3) all-embracing. ‘God commendeth His own love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us’ (Romans 5:8). Tertullian quotes this dictum of the Apostle in urging the duty of martyrdom: “If he teaches that we must die for the brethren, how much more for the Lord” (Scorp. xii.). Comp. Proverbs 24:11. See on 1 John 4:18. Ὀφείλειν occurs four times in these Epistles (1 John 2:6; 1 John 4:11; 3 John 1:8), twice in the Gospel (John 13:14; John 19:7), and not at all in Revelation. In the Gospel and Revelation we commonly have δεῖ. Bengel on 1 Corinthians 11:10 thus distinguishes the two: “ὀφείλει notat obligationem, δεῖ necessitatem; illud morale est, hoc quasi physicum; ut in vernaculâ, wir sollen und müssen.”