John 12:20

The Desire of the Gentiles and the Voice from Heaven

20. Greeks The same word is translated -Gentiles" John 7:35, where see note. Care must be taken to distinguish in the N.T. between Hellenesor -Greeks," i.e. born Gentiles, who may or may not have become either Jewish proselytes or Christian converts, and Hellenistaeor -Grecians," as our Bible renders the word, i.e. Jews who spoke Greek and not Aramaic. Neither word occurs in the Synoptists. Hellenesare mentioned here, John 7:35, and frequently in the Acts and in S. Paul's Epistles. Hellenistaeare mentioned only in the Acts 6:1; Acts 9:29: in Acts 11:20 the right reading is probably Hellenes.

that came up to worship Better, that were wont to go up to worship. This shews that they were -proselytes of the gate," like the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:27): see on Matthew 23:15. In this incident we have an indication of the salvation rejected by the Jews passing to the Gentiles: the scene of it was probably the Court of the Gentiles; it is peculiar to S. John.