Chaps. 5 11. The Work among mixed multitudes, chiefly Jews The Work now becomes a conflict between Christ and "the Jews;" for as Christ reveals Himself more fully, the opposition between Him and the ruling party becomes more intense; and the fuller revelation which excites the hatred of His opponen... [ Continue Reading ]
The Sign at the Pool of Bethesda 1. _After this_ Better, _After_ THESE THINGS, a more indefinite sequence. _a feast of the Jews_ This is the reading of highest authority, although some important MSS. read - _the_feast of the Jews," probably because from very early times this feast was believed to b... [ Continue Reading ]
John 2:13 TO JOHN 11:57. The Work We here enter on the second portion of the first main division of the Gospel, thus subdivided: The Work (1) among _Jews_, (2) among _Samaritans_, (3) among _Galileans_, (4) among _mixed multitudes_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_there is at Jerusalem_ This is no evidence whatever that the Gospel was written before the destruction of Jerusalem. The pool would still exist, even if the building was destroyed; and such a building, as being of the nature of a hospital, would be likely to be spared. Even if all were destroyed th... [ Continue Reading ]
_lay a great multitude_ Better, WERE LYING A MULTITUDE. _blind, halt, withered_ These are the special kinds of -impotent folk." _waiting for the moving of the water_ These words and the whole of John 5:4 are almost certainly an interpolation, though a very ancient one. They are omitted by the best... [ Continue Reading ]
_which had an infirmity_, &c. Literally, _who had passed thirty-eight years in his infirmity_. Not that he was 38 years old; evidently he was more; but he had had this malady 38 years.... [ Continue Reading ]
_knew_ Or, PERCEIVED, perhaps supernaturally (see on John 16:19), but He might learn it from the bystanders: the fact was very likely notorious. _Wilt thou?_ Or, more strongly, DOST THOU WILL? Note that the man does not ask first. Here and in the case of the man born blind (9), as also of Malchus" e... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have no man_ He is not only sick but friendless. _is troubled_ No doubt this took place at irregular intervals, else there would be no need to wait and watch for it. _to put me into the pool_ Literally, IN ORDER TO (John 4:47) THROW _me into the pool_; perhaps implying that the gush of water di... [ Continue Reading ]
_Rise, take up thy bed_ As in the case of the paralytic (Mark 2:9), Christ makes no enquiry as to the man's faith. Christ knew that he had faith; and the man's attempting to rise and carry his bed after 38 years of impotency was an open confession of faith. His bed would probably be only a mat or ru... [ Continue Reading ]
The Sequel of the Sign 10. _The Jews_ The hostile party, as usual: probably members of the Sanhedrin (see on John 1:19). They ignore the cure and notice only what can be attacked. They had the letter of the law very strongly on their side. Comp. Exodus 23:12; Exodus 31:14; Exodus 35:2-3; Numbers 15... [ Continue Reading ]
_He that made me whole_ The man's defiance of them in the first flush of his recovered health is very natural. He means, -if He could cure me of a sickness of 38 years He had authority to tell me to take up my bed." They will not mention the cure; he flings it in their face. There is a higher law th... [ Continue Reading ]
_What man is that which_ Better, WHO IS THE MAN THAT, -man" being contemptuous, almost = -fellow." Once more they ignore the miracle, and attack the command. They ask not, -Who cured thee, and therefore must have Divine authority?" but, -Who told thee to break the Sabbath, and therefore could not ha... [ Continue Reading ]
_had conveyed himself away_ Better, WITHDREW. Originally the word signified -to stoop out of the way of," -to bend down as if to avoid a blow." Here only in N.T. The word might also mean, - _swam_out of," which would be a graphic expression for making one's way through a crowd. _a multitude being i... [ Continue Reading ]
_Afterward_ Literally, _after_ THESE THINGS, as in John 5:1. Probably the same day; we may suppose that one of his first acts after his cure would be to offer his thanks in the Temple. On John 5:13 Augustine writes, -It is difficult in a crowd to see Christ; a certain solitude is necessary for our m... [ Continue Reading ]
_told the Jews_ Not in malice against Jesus, nor in any hope of converting His opponents. Neither of these is probable, nor is there the least evidence of either. Rather, he continues his defiance of them (John 5:11). He had given as his authority for breaking the Sabbath -He that made me whole." Ha... [ Continue Reading ]
_And therefore_ Better, _And on this account_, or, _and_ FOR THIS CAUSE (John 12:18; John 12:27). It is not St John's favourite particle -therefore." but a preposition and pronoun. Comp. John 5:18. _and sought to slay him_ These words are not genuine here, but have been inserted from John 5:18. The... [ Continue Reading ]
The Discourse on the Son as the Source of Life 17. _answered them_ This was how He met their constant persecution. The discourse which follows (see introductory note to chap. 3) may be thus analysed. (S. p. 106.) It has two main divisions I. _The prerogatives of the Son of God_(John 5:17-30). II. _T... [ Continue Reading ]
The Prerogatives and Powers of the Son of God 17, 18. _Defence of healing on the Sabbath based on the relation of the Son to the Father_. _My Father worketh hitherto_, &c. Or, _My Father_ IS WORKING EVEN UNTIL NOW; I AM WORKING ALSO. From the Creation up to this moment God has been ceaselessly work... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore_ Better, FOR THIS CAUSE. See on John 5:16; John 6:65; John 7:21-22; John 8:47; John 9:23; John 10:17; John 12:39; John 13:11; John 15:19; John 16:15. t [ Continue Reading ]
_can do nothing of himself_ It is impossible for Him to act with individual self-assertion independent of God, because He is the Son: Their Will and working are one. The Jews accuse Him of blasphemy; and blasphemy implies opposition to God: but He and the Father are most intimately united. _but wha... [ Continue Reading ]
_Intimacy of the Son with the Father further enforced_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_For the Father loveth the Son_ Moral necessity for the Son's doing what the Father does. The Father's love for the Son compels Him to make known all His works to Him; the Son's relation to the Father compels Him to do what the Father does. The Son continues on earth what He had seen in heaven befor... [ Continue Reading ]
_raiseth up the dead_ This is one of the -greater works" which the Father sheweth the Son, and which the Son imitates, the raising up those who are spiritually dead. Not all of them: the Son imparts life only to -whom He will:" and He wills not to impart it to those who will not believe. The -whom H... [ Continue Reading ]
The Father imparts to the Son the power of raising the spiritually dead. It is very important to notice that -raising the dead" in this section is _figurative_; raising from moral and spiritual death: whereas the resurrection (John 5:28) is _literal_; the rising of dead bodies from the graves. It is... [ Continue Reading ]
_The intimacy of the Son with the Father proved by the twofold power committed to the Son_(a) _of communicating spiritual life_, (b) _of causing the bodily resurrection of the dead_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_For the Father judgeth no man_ Rather, _For_ NOT EVEN DOTH THE FATHER (to Whom judgment belongs) JUDGE ANY _man_. The Son therefore has both powers, to make alive whom He will, and to judge: but the second is only the corollary of first. Those whom He does not will to make alive are by that very fa... [ Continue Reading ]
_honoureth not the Father_ Because he refuses to honour the Father's representative. _which hath sent_ Better, _which_ SENT. See on John 20:21.... [ Continue Reading ]
_He that heareth_ We see from this that -whom He will" (John 5:21) implies no arbitrary selection. It is each individual who decides for himself whether he will hear and believe. _believeth on him that sent me_ Omit -on;" there is no preposition in the Greek. _hath everlasting life_ Or, _hath_ ETE... [ Continue Reading ]
Repetition of John 5:24 in a more definite form, with a cheering addition: John 5:24 says that whoever hears and believes God has eternal life; John 5:25 states that already some are in this happy case. _The hour is coming_ Better, THERE COMETH AN HOUR: comp. John 4:21; John 4:23. _and now is_ Thes... [ Continue Reading ]
_so hath he given to the Son_ Better, _so_ GAVE HE ALSO _to the Son_. Comp. -the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father" (John 6:57). The Father is the absolutely living One, the Fount of all Life. The Messiah, however, imparts life to all who believe; which He could not do unless He h... [ Continue Reading ]
_Hath given him authority to execute judgment also_ Better, GAVE _Him authority to execute judgment_, when He sent Him into the world. -Also" is not genuine. See on John 1:12, and comp. John 10:18. _because he is the Son of man_ Rather, _because He is_ A SON OF MAN; i.e. not because He is the Messia... [ Continue Reading ]
_Marvel not_ Comp. John 3:7. Marvel not that the Son can grant spiritual life to them that believe, and separate from them those who will not believe. There cometh an hour when He shall cause a general resurrection of men's bodies, and a final separation of good from bad, a final judgment. He does n... [ Continue Reading ]
The intimacy between the Father and the Son further proved by the power committed to the Son of causing the bodily resurrection of the dead.... [ Continue Reading ]
_done evil_ Or, PRACTISED WORTHLESS THINGS. See on John 3:20. _unto the resurrection of damnation_ Better, _unto the resurrection of_ JUDGMENT. It is the same Greek word as is used in John 5:22_; John 5:27_. These words are the strongest proof that spiritual resurrection cannot be meant. Spiritual r... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Son's qualification for these high powers is the perfect harmony between His will and that of the Father_. _I can of mine own self_ Change to the first person. He identifies Himself with the Son. It is because He is the Son that He cannot act independently: it is impossible for Him to will to... [ Continue Reading ]
_my witness is not true_ Nothing is to be understood; the words are to be taken quite literally: -If I bear any witness other than that which My Father bears, that witness of Mine is not true." In John 8:14 we have an apparent contradiction to this, but it is only the other side of the same truth: -... [ Continue Reading ]
The unbelief of the Jews 31 35. _These claims rest not on My testimony alone, nor on that of John, but on that of the Father_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_There is another_ Not the Baptist, as seems clear from John 5:34; but the Father, comp. John 7:28; John 8:26. It has been already remarked how much there is in this Gospel about -witness," -bearing witness," and the like: see on John 1:7.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness_ Better, _Ye_ HAVE SENT _unto John, and he_ HATH BORNE _witness_. -What ye have heard from him is true; but I do not accept it, for I need not the testimony of man. I mention it for your sakes, not My own. If ye believe John ye will believe Me and be saved." -... [ Continue Reading ]
_He was a burning and a shining light_ A grievous mistranslation, ignoring the Greek article twice over, and also the meaning of the words; and thus obscuring the marked difference between the Baptist and the Messiah: better, _he was_ THE LAMP WHICH IS KINDLED AND (SO) SHINETH. Christ is the Light;... [ Continue Reading ]
_The Father's testimony is evident_, (a) _in the works assigned to Me_, (b) _in the revelation which ye do not receive_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have greater witness than that of John_ Better, _I have_ THE WITNESS WHICH IS GREATER THAN JOHN; or, THE WITNESS WHICH I HAVE IS GREATER THAN JOHN, viz. the works which as the Messiah I have been commissioned to do. Among these works would be raising the spiritually dead to life, judging unbeliev... [ Continue Reading ]
The connexion of thought in the next few verses is very difficult to catch, and cannot be affirmed with certainty. This is often the case in S. John's writings. A number of simple sentences follow one another with an even flow; but it is by no means easy to see how each leads on to the next. Here th... [ Continue Reading ]
_And ye have not his word_ -And hence it is that ye have no inner appropriation of the word" seeing that ye have never received it either by hearing or vision. -His word" is not a fresh testimony different from the -voice" and -shape:" all refer to the same thing, the testimony of Scripture to the M... [ Continue Reading ]
_Search the Scriptures_ It will never be settled beyond dispute whether the verb here is _imperative_or _indicative_. As far as the Greek shews it may be either, -search," or -ye search," and both make sense. The question is, which makes the best sense, and this the context must decide. The context... [ Continue Reading ]
_ye will not come to me_ Not the future of -to come," but the present of -to will:" _ye_ ARE NOT WILLING TO _come to Me_. This is at the root of their failure to read Scripture aright, their hearts are estranged. They have no _will_to find the truth, and without that no intellectual searching will a... [ Continue Reading ]
_I receive not honour_ It is nothing to Me; I have no need of it, and refuse it: comp. John 5:34. GLORY would perhaps be better than -honour" both here and in John 5:44, and than -praise" in John 9:24 and John 12:43; see notes there. Christ is anticipating an objection, and at the same time shewing... [ Continue Reading ]
_Not that I seek glory from men; had I done so, you would have received Me. Your worldliness prevents you from receiving One whose motives are not worldly_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_But I know you_ Once more Christ appears as the searcher of hearts; comp. John 1:47; John 1:50; John 2:24-25; John 4:17-18; John 4:48; John 5:14. _in you_ Or, _in_ YOURSELVES, _in your hearts_. -Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart" (Deuteronomy 7:5) was written on their broad phylac... [ Continue Reading ]
_and ye receive me not_ The tragic tone as in John 5:39, -I come with the highest credentials, as My Father's representative (comp. John 8:42), and ye reject Me." _come in his own name_ As a false Messiah or as Antichrist. Sixty-four pretended Messiahs have been counted. Comp. Matthew 24:24.... [ Continue Reading ]
_How can ye believe_ The emphasis is on -ye." How is it possible, for _you_, who care only for the glory that man bestows, to believe on One who rejects such glory. This is the climax of Christ's accusation. They have reduced themselves to such a condition that they _cannot_believe. They must change... [ Continue Reading ]
_Do not think_ As you might be disposed to do after hearing these reproaches. _that I will accuse you_ If this refers to the day of judgment (and the future tense seems to point to that), there are two reasons why Christ will not act as accuser (1) because it would be needless; there is another acc... [ Continue Reading ]
_Do not appeal to Moses; his writings condemn you_. Thus the whole basis of their confidence is cut away. Moses on whom they trust as a defender is their accuser.... [ Continue Reading ]
_had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me_ Better, IF _ye believed Moses, ye_ WOULD BELIEVE _Me:_the verbs are imperfects, not aorists. See on John 8:19 (where we have a similar mistranslation), 42, John 9:41; John 15:19; John 18:36. Contrast the construction in John 4:10; John 11:21; John 1... [ Continue Reading ]
_if ye believe not_ The emphatic words are -his" and -My." Most readers erroneously emphasize -writings" and -words." The comparison is between Moses and Christ. It was a simple matter of fact that Moses had written and Christ had not: the contrast between writings and words is no part of the argume... [ Continue Reading ]