John 13:19

Now I tell you before it come, &c.— "The hint in the preceding verse merits yourparticular notice; for I have given it you before I am betrayed, to convince you that it was foreknown by me in my prescience; and to prevent your calling my mission in question on that account." See Psalms 41:9. One way of knowing whether the interpretation of a prophesy be true, is to learn the time when that interpretation was made. For if it particularly and expressly declared the event that was supposed to be imported in the prophesy, before the event happened, or could possibly be foreseen by human sagacity, thetruth of the interpretation is justified by the event. One and the same Spirit must be thought to inspire the prophet and the interpreter.His skill, where he applies other prophesies to present circumstances which they suit, may be trusted to;—and this is the very state of many of Christ's interpretations. He pointed out several prophesies to his disciples, and even to the Jews. He told them, "thus the prophet writes, and thus itshall be fulfilled;" and it was fulfilled accordingly; though the fulfilling of most of them depended on the free choice of others, with whom he could not combine, unless he could be the author of sin. His end in all this was, to convince them of the truth of his interpretations; for otherwise he might foretel the same events, without regard or reference to their prophesies. But now, as he said to his disciples on the occasion before us, I tell you before it come to pass, &c. Christ had just told them, Ye are clean, but not all:—I speak not of you all;—but that the scripture may be fulfilled, &c. The text he cites is in Psalms 14:7 which he applies to Judas, as a prediction of his treachery. "And this," says he, "I take notice of beforehand, as the sense of that scripture, that, when you see it happen, you may believe that I am the Messiah,againstwhomthePsalmistprophesiedsuchfalsenessshouldbecommitted." Whether this psalm was spoken of Judas in a literal or typical sense, it matters not; Christ interprets it of Judas; and the event corresponding with his interpretation, is a vindication of it. While as yet no outward token of Judas's villany did appear, even then he warned his disciples that the scripture would be fulfilled concerning the apostacy of this son of perdition.