CHRIST'S HIGH-PRIESTLY PRAYER 1-26. Christ's Great Intercession for Himself, for the Apostles, and for the World. This prayer is often, and suitably called Christ's 'High-priestly prayer,' because in it He solemnly consecrates Himself to be priest and victim in the approaching sacrifice. The veil i... [ Continue Reading ]
THE HOUR] viz. of My glorification through death. GLORIFY THY SON] Christ asks the Father to glorify Him by accepting the sacrifice of His death, and by raising Him from the dead. When this is done, the Son will glorify the Father by converting the world.... [ Continue Reading ]
POWER] RV 'authority.' At the Incarnation the Father gave the Son authority to die for the sins of the whole world, and to proclaim the Father's gracious offer of salvation to all mankind. AS MANY AS THOU HAST GIVEN HIM] RV 'whatsoever thou hast given him.' Those whom the Father 'gives' to Christ, a... [ Continue Reading ]
ETERNAL LIFE consists in a knowledge of God, and of Jesus as the Messiah sent from God, i.e. as a preëxistent, divine being. 'Knowledge' here is not intellectual knowledge, but knowledge based on the religious experience of the devout Christian soul.... [ Continue Reading ]
Our Lord's sinlessness and moral perfection are implied.... [ Continue Reading ]
The memory of Jesus extends beyond His birth, and beyond the creation of the world, back to eternity, when He was 'in the form of God,' and 'equal to God' (Philippians 2:6); cp. John 17:24. WITH THINE OWN SELF] i.e. at Thy side.... [ Continue Reading ]
THY NAME] i.e. Thy nature. THE MEN] i.e. the Apostles. KEPT THY WORD] an expression especially characteristic of St. John's Gospel, 1st Ep., and Rev. (John 8:51; John 14:23; 1 John 2:5, etc.).... [ Continue Reading ]
I PRAY NOT FOR THE WORLD] rather, 'I am not now praying for the world.' Jesus prays for the world in John 17:20, especially in John 17:21, and enjoins others to do so, Matthew 5:44, etc. That Christ prays for the world is proved by the entire nature of His work, the object of which is the salvation... [ Continue Reading ]
ALL MINE, etc.] RV 'all things that are mine are thine, and thine are mine.' All the attributes which belong to the Son belong to the Father; and all the attributes which belong to the Father (omniscience, omnipotence, etc.) belong to the Son.... [ Continue Reading ]
KEEP THROUGH THINE OWN NAME] RV 'keep them in thy name which thou hast given me,' i.e. keep them in a state of grace defended by that almighty power, which, by Thy gift, I share with Thee. God's 'name' here is practically His divine nature and omnipotence. ONE] How close must be that union and fello... [ Continue Reading ]
THE SON OF PERDITION] i.e. him who is destined to perdition, viz. Judas Iscariot. In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 the expression is used of Antichrist. The phrase is a Hebraism: cp. Matthew 23:15,; 'a son of Gehenna.' THE SCRIPTURE] in accordance with John 13:18, is Psalms 41:9.... [ Continue Reading ]
MY JOY] i.e. the joy which I derive from loving communion with the Father, as in John 15:11 : see 1 John 1:4.... [ Continue Reading ]
THY WORD] i.e. Thy whole revelation of Thyself as disclosed in My life. HATH HATED THEM] i.e. will hate them, the past tense expressing the certainty of the hatred, already so clearly foretold, John 16:2.... [ Continue Reading ]
I PRAY NOT, etc.] Because, if the Apostles were taken out of the world, they would not be able to convert it. FROM THE EVIL] more correctly rendered by the RV, 'from the evil one.' St. John habitually conceives of evil as personal: see 1 John 3:10; 1 John 3:12; 1 John 5:18; 1 John 5:19.... [ Continue Reading ]
SANCTIFY THEM (RM 'consecrate them') THROUGH THY TRUTH (RV 'in the truth')] Consecrate them to their apostolic office, endowing them also with divine illumination and wisdom for their work: cp. Exodus 28:41. Our Lord also was 'consecrated' for His work when He entered the world: see John 10:36.... [ Continue Reading ]
'As Thou didst not send Me into the world without first consecrating Me (see John 10:36), so now I consecrate My Apostles before sending them forth.'... [ Continue Reading ]
'Now once more I consecrate Myself, not this time as a mere teacher, but as priest and victim in the approaching sacrifice. The blood of the new covenant, which My death will initiate and ratify, will consecrate My Apostles to their office and work.' For 'sanctify' in the sense of offering a victim... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE] A leading passage on the unity of the Church. The centre of unity is not on earth but in heaven. Christians are 'one,' because they are spiritually united to the Father and the Son, whose divine life and blessed union they share through the faith that gives eternal life (Jo... [ Continue Reading ]
THE GLORY] i.e. according to the context, mainly the glory of unity and love.... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT THE WORLD MAY KNOW] The whole world will be converted when the Church of Christ presents the spectacle of perfect love and visible unity. Divisions hinder the work of Christ, unity advances it.... [ Continue Reading ]
THY NAME] i.e. Thy nature.... [ Continue Reading ]