[i] And every —] This verse and the eleven first verses of chap. viii, the whole story of the woman taken in the act of adultery, are wholly omitted in many ancient copies. St. Chrysostom leaves it out, so doth Nonnus and Theophylact, and the Syriac interpreter, and Euthymius saith that none of the ancients have taken notice of it in their expositions of the Gospel. Maldonate, who strives for it, to make good the Trent canon, doth yet confess, that of all the manuscript Greek copies none have it but only one with Leontius's comment, and that in that also it is adashed out with a pen, and omitted by the commentator; that it is not in the most ancient copy of the Vatican; that none of the twenty-three authors in the Catena mention it. And in the end of the third book of Eusebius Eccl. Hist. we have these words, speaking of Papias, Ἐκτεθειται δὲ καὶ ἄλλην ἱστορίαν περὶ γυναικὸς ἐπὶ πολλαῖς ἁμαρτίας διαβληθείσης ἐπὶ τοῦ Κυρίου, ἦν τὸ καθ' Ἑβραίους εὐαγγέλιον περιέχει, "He hath related another story of a woman accused to Christ of many sins, which the Gospel according to the Hebrews contains," implying it not to be in any of the four Gospels. Other later [f] indeed] One principal notion of ἀληθῆς hath been formerly explained (see note [a] Luke xvi.) to signify truly valuable, or durable, or truly valuable, because it is durable; and so here, ἀληθῆς or ἀληθῶς βρῶσις, true meat, or truly meat, is explained to be the bread of life, ver. 48, that on which he that feeds shall live for ever; so the βρῶσις μίγουσα εἰς αἶδρα, food that endures for ever, ver. 27, and opposite to manna, on which they that feed die, ver. 49. And this, 1. as the word ἀληθῶς, truly, noteth some special eminency, wherein any attribute belongs to the subject; and when it is applied to resemblances, it then signifies that which is spoken of to be more eminently that by which it is resembled than that itself is; as, I am the true vine, that is, a vine by bearing grapes, (which yield wine, which makes glad the heart of man,) is not near so able and proper to refresh a thirsty person as I am, as my commands and promises are. So St. John, of Christ, ch. i. 9, that he is the true light, that is, the most excellent. So Heb. viii. 2, heaven is the true tabernacle, that of which the tabernacle was but a dark and poor resemblance, and so this is called ἀληθινὸς ἄρτος, true bread, ver. 32, and truly meat here, that is, more nutritive, and strengthening, and comforting than meat and bread is. Secondly, in respect of the particular matter to which it is here applied, viz. βρῶσις, food, that which feeds one for an hour, or a day, (and enlargeth his life but so long,) being not truly food, not worthy to be so called, at least not so in comparison with that which keeps him alive, so as life is adequately opposite to death, that is, for ever. And so with us the word false signifies fading, transitory, that which will fail us, when it were most of advantage for us to receive benefit by it. [a] such should be stoned] That all that are guilty of adultery should be stoned, we find not in the law of Moses, but that they should die the death, which phrase, say the Talmudists, generally signifies strangling. This punishment of stoning belongs particularly to those that are taken in the fact, as here the woman was, ver. 4. So saith Philo of such, πάντες θανάτων μυρίων ἐνόμισαν, "All men have counted them worthy of many deaths," and so of stoning, which was a high degree of severity; and so Solon in one of his laws, Ἐάν τις μοιχὸν λάβῃ ὅτι ἂν βούληται, χρῆσθαι, "If any man take an adulterer in the fact, he may use him how he please;" and in the twelve tables, Mæchum in adulterio deprehensum impune necato; "He that takes him may kill him lawfully and securely." Then Jesus, soon after the delivering those words, ch. vii. 38, and in pursuance of the same matter, said to them all publicly, I am come to enlighten the hearts of all men; he that will leave his former course, and follow me, I will give him that illumination which shall bring him to piety and bliss. a testimony is not to be heeded or credited, is no valid testimony, or to be received by us. Jesus answered, My testifying of myself doth not invalidate my testimony, my coming from heaven on an embassy to you, on another's, not mine own errand, (and that testified by the Spirit to John Baptist, and by John Baptist to you, if ye would believe, but, however, to myself undoubtedly known,) gives a validity to my testimony, and joins God the Father himself in the testimony with me. And as the Holy Ghost hath testified that I am sent by God, so my ascension to heaven, (which will sufficiently prove my mission,) being known to me beforehand, though not to you, and being discoverable by the event to you also, especially when so many eyewitnesses shall have testified it to you, it will follow that my testimony of myself, though a single one, will be authentic and valid, though, perhaps, as the one is not already, so the other also will not be heeded by you. Ye that know not my divine original, ver. 14, judge of me only according to my human extraction, and, in proportion to that, pass sentence of me; I am unwilling to say or judge the worst of you, otherwise I could say worse of you. And if I should do so, my judgment were valid according to law, because this is the judgment also and testimony of my Father, who, by his Spirit and miracles, and the voice from heaven, requiring all to believe on me, must needs judge them as pertinacious unbelievers who stand out against all this. And it is known in all laws, particularly in that of yours, Deut. xvii. 6, that the testimony of two men is to be received as valid, in any cause whatsoever. And I and my Father are those two; for as I now witness of myself, (which is not against law or reason for me to do, for it is not mine own cause, but concerns others to whom I am sent, and not myself, but only as a witness and declarer,) so my Father also, by voice from heaven, descent of his Spirit, a witness of myself, elul &paprupsir. They say therefore unto him, Is not Joseph your father? have you any other? Jesus replied, You will not receive any knowledge concerning me or my Father. Your acknowledging of me is the only way to bring you to the knowledge of my Father. These things Jesus said in that part of the temple where the chest stood into which the offerings were put, where he publicly taught the people, and that without any man offering to lay hands on him, God so disposing of it for a season; for his hour— 'I shall depart from hence, and then you shall seek me unprofitably, and by contemning (or as it is interpreted, ver. 24, not believing) me now, bring judgments upon yourselves, as they that take no warning by the preaching of the prophet, Ezek. ii. 9; and then it will be too late to wish for this time again, for I shall be gone far out of reach of your coming to me. The Jews, not understanding to what his speech drove, said one to another, What! will he kill himself? &c. You and I are from very contrary distant originals; your affections, like yourselves, are of an earthly temper and original, and therefore can fancy such black interpretations of my speeches as if I would kill myself, when my meaning is, that I shall ascend to heaven, whence I came: and if ye believe not that I am the Messias, ye shall lose the benefit that I came to bring you, and die without any remedy in your sins. I have told you all this while, He that is sent from the Father, the Messias; and if you ask me never so often, I can tell you no otherwise. [b] from the beginning] The phrase τὴν ἀρχὴν may here be adverbially taken; so it is often in other authors: Hippocrates, in the beginning of his book περὶ ἄρχ. ἰητρ. Τὴν ἀρχὴν οὐκ ἂν εὑρέθη τέχνη ἰητρική, αὖτ' ἂν ἐζητήθη, and so ἀρχὴν in Herodotus in Thalia, cited by Budæus. But for the sense or notation of the phrase here, Melanchon, Ep. p. 511, seems to have made a good conjecture, that it signifies prorsus, a note of affirmation, even so, or altogether, absolutely. For so the Chaldee, when they would express any thing to be simply lawful or unlawful, they use the word לְבַחֲלָה, that is, τὴν ἀρχὴν literally, from הַחַל, incepit, and so it will signify no more than ὑπαξαπλῶς, omnino, &c. So in Alexander Aphrodisæus, περὶ εἰμαρμ. speaking of that honour and piety, which is the end of making the statue or image of any, οὐδ' ἂν τὴν ἀρχὴν, saith he, ὁ ἀνδριάς ἐγένετο ἄνευ τοιαύτης αἰτίας, "a statue had not at all been made without that cause." And after speaking of chance, ἄλλο δὲ ὁ τὴν ἀρχὴν μηδὲ ἠλπίζετο, "but somewhat that was utterly unexpected." And again, speaking of the duties of man, "Without them," saith he, "the life of man is not a life," καὶ οὐδὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀνθρώπων ἔτι, "nor indeed at all the life of men any longer;" and many the like in that one book. But the other interpretation also, τὴν ἀρχὴν, at the first, may well enough be borne, and hath the example of the Septuagint, Gen. xiii. 4, and xliii. 18 and 20, and of Nemesius, πε. φυσ. ἀνθρ. Τὴν ἀρχὴν καρτερήσαντες περὶ τὸ τέλος L. de Joseph. Cap. 30. HAMMOND ANNOTT. Y I could by many evidences charge and aggravate your infidelity: but I will use no other but the testimony of my Father, which is alone sufficient to convince you, and, having my commission from him, I speak nothing but what that commission extends to. I am, lyé ciμ. the very same which I tell you. HAMMOND, VOL. I. D d This speech of his they understood not: not yet conceiving, that by him that sent him he meant the Father. After the Romans' crucifying of me, which I now foretell you, and that by your instance and urging them to it, there will be those evidences yielded you of my being truly what now you will not believe me to be, (viz. my resurrection, ascension, &c.,) that you shall have no excuse to deny it, then shall ye be convinced (either to the working your repentance or your destruction) that I am the Messias, and came from God, and do nothing but according to my commission from him. And as I had at my coming commission from him, so is he perpetually present with me in all I do, to advance and promote all the designs of my coming; that is, to prosper all I set about; for I do nothing but by his appointment and commission. constantly practise my commands, you are truly and really my followers and disciples. [c] please him] The word ἀριστὸν signifies in common use the decree or appointment of any court, or judge, or prince, (coming from ἀρίσκω just as δόγμα, the ordinary word for an ordinance, doth from δοκίω, agreeable to the form of ἔδοξεν ἡμῖν, Acts xv. 25.) so the principum placita among the Romans, the arrests of the parliament of Paris, &c. among the French, and the common pleas in England, (that is, communia placita, or ἀριστὰ,) a phrase to express a court of judicature among us, the word pleas denoting judgments in one court, as the king's bench a tribunal in another. So here ἀριστὰ αὐτῷ may possibly be God's laws, decrees, determinations, which he, as the Judge or Prince of all, of his good pleasure, determines to be done; and because commissions are issued out of courts, and are a kind of decree of those courts, that such a man should have such a power, therefore ἀριστὰ may be extended to those. So Acts vi. 2, οὐκ ἀριστὸν ἐστι, it is not thought fit, or appointed, or determined, &c.; and ἤρσεν ὁ λόγος, ver. 5., the thing was resolved on, and agreed on by all, the multitude there having to do in the choice of the men, as follows, and the apostles consecrating and imposing hands on them, ver. 6. So Acts vii. 3, when Herod saw ὅτι ἀριστὸν ἐστι τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, I suppose the meaning is, that the Jews had expressed their judgment, passed their votes in it, that is, either the sanhedrim of the Jews, or possibly the people of the Jews, for so since the power of capital punishments was taken from the Jews, and was now in the Romans' hands, the proceeding was after the Roman fashion, which was, ut injussu populi nihil fiat, "that nothing should be done without the command of the people." Thus it was before in the case of Christ, Matt. xxvii. 22, where Pilate asks the multitude, What shall we do with Jesus? and they all said, Let him be crucified: this was their ἀριστὸν there, and, ver. 24, it seems the judge could not resist this vote of theirs, and the whole matter is laid on this sentence of theirs, Pilate disclaiming, and washing his hands from having any thing to do in it. And so in that of James: the Jews, it seems, had given their votes, (ἀριστὸν Ἰουδαίοις,) and Herod seeing how forward they were in it, (for so Eusebius expresses it, πρὸς ἡδονὴν γεγονὸς τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, they not only consented but joyed in it,) to gratify them further, he proceeded to apprehend Peter also, and of him it is added, (agreeably to what hath been now said,) that Herod meant after the passover to bring him forth to the people, that is, to ask their sentence, or ἀριστὸν, or pleasure, concerning him; and accordingly, if they so voted, to put him to death; and therefore, ver. 11, when he recounteth his deliverance, he calls it not only a rescue from the hand of Herod, but from the people of the Jews, and their expectation. And those truths which I shall reveal to you, shall bestow upon you a most valuable freedom. Then the other Jews there present (not the believers, ver. 31, but those that were more bloodily disposed, ver. 37,) replied, saying, We are heirs to the promises made to Abraham, and never yet subdued to be slaves to any; and, besides, we are exercised in the study of the law; and of all such we have a proverb, that such a man is a servant to no man: what can the meaning of those words be, That the truth shall make us free? Jesus answered them, I assure you you are mistaken in that opinion of yourselves, in thinking yourselves to be freemen; your being born of Abraham's seed will not prove it; for living and going on in gross courses of sin, ye are to know, that there are no such slaves as they that live indulgent in sin. 35, 36. And being such, you are far from having any right to be continued in God's family, which belongs only to sons. In the common account of the world, a servant is so far from being a son, and so from having any right to the inheritance of the family, that he is at the mercy of the son when he comes to the father's estate, to cast him quite out of the family, and, unless the son make him free, he cannot be free ye shall have lift up, "Oræ vœōnere. appointed. am, and, vœō vla, nal. which he hath And as long as you are engaged in any such sinful course, (as by your designing my death it seems you are,) it is not your being Abraham's children that will make you, or demonstrate you freemen. I do after the example of my Father, and you of yours in proportion. in his obedience and virtues be like him, as children resemble their natural parents in their nature and feature. But you are most contrary to that: Abraham was an hospitable person, and obeyed God in all his commands, would have been very far from designing the death of any the meanest prophet, for no other crime but that of bringing God's truth unto him; and yet this do ye. Ye have another father, not willingly owned by you, and him you are like in your actions. Hereupon they reply, None have dubious parents, but they that are unlawfully begotten; we are not such, we are none of those to whom the style of children of whoredoms is given, Hos. ii. 4, but owned and acknowledged by God as his only children. Jesus answers, Your hating of me is a certain argument that God is not your Father, for I am sent immediately from him; I came from heaven, and what I do is by commission from God, not on mine own motion, or any business or errand of mine, or as false prophets without mission. If God were your Father, whose commands you received and obeyed as children, you would know my language, being, indeed, the very language of that Father. But the reason is clear: the thing that makes you not believe in me is not want of means of conviction that my doctrine comes from God, but because my doctrine is not agreeable to your humour; you cannot abide to hear it, you have not affections capable of it. The practices which the devil offers to you, or hath practised before you, you like much better than those which I commend to you; he was from the It is neither the inevidence of my doctrine nor the weakness of your understandings that keeps you from believing me, and embracing my doctrine; the only thing that makes you reject me is my speaking the truth, that heavenly, pure, perfect rule of practice, which, it seems, is not for your turn, is vehemently resisted by your passions and prejudices. I am sure you have no fault or imposture to lay to my charge, nothing to produce or prove against me; and the tree will be known by the fruits, and yet you will not believe truth when I speak it. If you had true piety in you, then certainly my doctrine, being from God, would be acceptable to you, and you would embrace it. Have any of the sanhedrim, or the more famous learned men, believed on him? To this the Jews had no other reply, but to fall into reproachful language against him, calling him Samaritan (a word of reproach) and madman. See note [b] ch. vii. 20. [d] Samaritan] This title of Samaritan here is by way of reproach affixed on Christ, not that they thought him so, but because this was an odious name among the Jews; so as idolaters, Lev. xxv. 47, are called Aramai, or Syrians, because the Syrians were anciently But this rout, which have never studied the law, are apt to run into all giddiness, and follow any false teacher. That I do no vicious extravagant thing appears by my seeking no honour to myself, not coming in my own name, but referring all my embassy to the honour of God, and you do all that your malice can invent to defame me. Nicodemus, one of the sanhedrim, he that was afraid to come to Jesus in the daytime, but came in the night, ch. iii. 1, said unto them, And this let me tell you, although I do not seek after my own glory, yet my Father doth tenderly observe whether I am honoured or dishonoured, and passes sentence on men severely for it; see Deut. xviii. 19; otherwise, as it is no glory of mine I look after, so your reproaches would not touch me. This is too hasty a prejudice against him; in all reason you ought to hear what he can say for himself, and what any can witness against him. Our law proceeds not against any before we have examined him and taken cognizance of his matter. 'Art thou, who art one of the sanhedrim, a follower or favourer of this Galilean? Examine all times, you shall never find that Galilee hath brought forth a prophet: see ch. i. 46. As it is, I cannot be so unkind to you as thus to leave you in this contempt so dangerous to you, whereas, on the other side, your receiving of the message which I bring you were the way to bring you to eternal life, and rescue you from eternal torments. Part mad, see note [b] ch. vii. 20. And they dissolved the assembly, or court, and departed. ### CHAP. VIII. JESUS went unto the mount of Olives. Abraham and the prophets were not freed from dying, and what manner of power dost thou assume to thyself, to bestow privileges which God never gave to them whom he so much favoured? Jesus replied, I shall say nothing of myself: the power which I have, I have from him whom certainly you acknowledge to be greater than Abraham, own him as your God, he hath testified sufficiently of me by voice from heaven, &c. This Father of mine, whom you call your God, you know very imperfectly; you know not what kind of worship and obedience it is that he requires, but place it in external legal performances: I come to tell you his will more perfectly; and to this end have my message from him, and so cannot but know it distinctly; and if in compliance with you, or to avoid your reproaches, I should say otherwise than what I have hitherto said, or confess that I came not from him, or knew him not, I should be like you, a downright liar: this I will not be guilty of, but do again profess, that I am sent with perfect knowledge of his will, and do exactly observe it. And because you talk so much of Abraham, I shall now say of him, that he, having received the promise of the Messias, Gen. xi. 35, did thereupon vehemently, and with great pleasure and excellency of mind, desire to look nearer into it, to see my coming into the world; and a revelation of it was made unto him, and in it of the state of the gospel; and he was heartily joyed at it. To this the Jews objected that he was not fifty years old, and therefore how could he say that Abraham lived since his birth, that Christ could see Abraham, or be seen by him? Jesus answered that objection of theirs, You are much mistaken in reckoning my age; for, first, I have a being from all eternity, and so before Abraham was born, and, therefore, as young as you take me to be in respect of my age here, I may well have seen and known Abraham. But then, secondly, in respect of my present appearance here on earth, though that be but a little above thirty years' duration, yet long before Abraham's time it was decreed by my Father, and in kindness to Abraham revealed to him while he lived, in which respect it is true that he knew me also. They therefore, conceiving this speech of his to be blasphemous, after the manner of zealots, were ready to stone him presently: but Jesus— And some of his followers asked him, saying, Sir, was it any sin of his own, when his soul was in another body, or was it some sin of his parents at the time of his conception, which caused this blindness in him? ⁸ Neither his own nor his parents' sins were the cause of this blindness of his, but God's secret wisdom, who meant by this means to shew forth in me his miraculous power among you. 4, 5. And having received such power from him, I ought, while I am here, to exercise it, and shew the world that I am sent to enlighten it, by this emblem of curing him that is born blind. ⁶ which by the name of it may put you in mind of the Messias, (who is styled, The Sent,) by whom the cure is wrought. He went his way— ⁷ had oft seen him before, and so knew that he had been blind, now seeing this cure wrought, some of them asked if this were not that blind man which was wont to sit and beg at such a place? ¹ dirt with the spittle, and spread the dirt upon the eyes of the blind, πηλὸν—καὶ ἐπίχριστὸν πηλὸν ἐπὶ τοὺς— [a] this man or his parents] The Jew that asked this question seems to have been of the Pythagoreans' opinion, (or, as they call it, de sapientibus Mechar,) who believed the transmigration of souls from body to body, called μεταγγισμός, the removal from vessel to vessel, and so supposes by his question that the soul of this man, having formerly offended, is now thus punished by being put into a blind body. That this was the conceit of those ancient philosophers, that according to the degrees of proficiency either in virtue or sin, souls were put into more honourable or less honourable bodies; upon demerit removed from the body of a male to a female, then from a perfect to an imperfect man, and after upon demerit again into a beast; may be seen in Alcinous, δόγμ. Πλατων, and the rest of the Pythagorean writers, which with other the like opinions certainly enough were infused before this time into some of the Jews, and so these disciples here might have imbibed this, and not so early or speedily have laid it aside, but might think it possible, and so ask a question about it. The other part of the question concerning the parents' sin seems to refer to some particular sin in the act of generation, which might have some influence on the child begotten, and make it imperfect in this or some other kind. This is by learned Jews affirmed of that conjugal sin which is forbidden by the law, Lev. xx. 18, and Ezek. xviii. 6, which, they say, may reasonably hinder, on the woman's part, a just or complete conception. Of Christ's answer to this question, which followeth, see Masius on Jos. i. 6. p. 115. What opinion of him hath this work of power and mercy to thee wrought in thee? He said, He is a prophet. The consequent of this dispute was, that the Jews at length would not believe the plain matter of fact, that the man that now saw had ever been blind, till the testimony of the parents made that clear. And asked them these three questions: 1. whether this were their son? 2. whether they will affirm upon their knowledge that he was born blind? 3. whether they know how this cure was wrought, or by whom? For two of the questions we answer distinctly, We know &c. he is of age and understanding to answer that third question, and certainly is the fittest to give you an account for that matter which himself is so nearly concerned in. he should be ignominiously used, and put out of the court. [b] put out of the synagogue] That συναγωγαί, the synagogues of the Jews, signify all manner of assemblies, hath been said, note [d] Matt. vi. Agreeably the ἀποσυναγωγία, removing or turning out of the synagogues, is the separating any offender from such assemblies, setting a mark of reproach upon him, that he might not be familiarly conversed with by any, which is ἀφορίζειν, Luke vi. 22, the nidui, so known among the Jews. This was always done with circumstances of contumely, and so hath ὀνειδίζειν added to it, contumelious usage, Luke vi. 22; and so, ver. 35 of this chapter, their casting the man out of the synagogue signifies that ceremony of reproach, the officers of the court taking him that was condemned and thrusting him out of the assembly. What thus belonged to excluding him out of the assembly, though it belonged to civil commerce, yet certainly excluded him out of the sacred assembly also; for the lowest degree of excommunication among the Jews being to the separating for the space of four paces, this must needs belong to all kind of assemblies, sacred as well as civil. And therefore St Chrysostom here affirms, ἐξ-βαλον αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ ἱεροῦ, "they cast him out of the temple," Hom. 59; and Nonnus, — ἀπήλασαν ἑκτοθι νηοῦ, and of the disciples in Christ's name, Ὑμέας ἐξελάσουσι θεοκλήτοιο μελάθρου, γ 2 To avoid which danger it was that his parents waved the answering of this question, and put it off to their son; for this was a thing of such a nature, that the affirming Jesus to have done it was in effect the affirming him to be the Messias. Then a second time they sent for and examined the man that had this miraculous cure wrought on him, attempting to draw him from that opinion of Christ which he seemed to have, by bidding him ascribe the praise of his cure wholly to God, and not to look on Christ with any veneration, telling him, that if he did it on the day and in the manner forementioned, it was thereby evident, that he was one that broke the sabbath, and so not from God, but an impostor, (see ver. 16, and 2 Thess. ii. 3,) who consequently had no such virtue or piety as could contribute any thing to this matter. an impostor. I have told you, and you did not heed it; or else, It being resolved on among all men, that an impostor or false teacher is not enabled by God to work such miracles as these, (or if he were, God must be thought to assist him in his impostures,) but only pious and faithful servants of God, that came to do his will, not their own. It is above all human power to open the eyes of one that was born blind. If he were not sent and empowered by God, he could never do such things as these. ° Thy being born blind is a mark and character of some extraordinary ill in thee, which makes thee very unfit to teach doctors and rabbis in matters of this moment. And they cast him out of the court (see note [b]) with disgrace. ⁴ Some copies omit oix, not, saith Rob. Stephanus. But he that thus approves himself to be employed and sent by the owner or master of the sheep, he comes on purpose to feed and preserve his sheep, and is to have power over them. To him all they who are to guard the door, and keep out thieves, are by the master of the sheep commanded to give admission, and to that purpose have a token to discern him by: the Messias is so described in the prophets, and the doctrine truly divine so far revealed there, that by accordance with that, all the true watchmen of the church acknowledge him, and all truly pious men obey and follow him; and he, on the other side, looks on these as the peculiar flock that he is to take charge of, and hath a particular care of every such pious man, and as the shepherd careth for his sheep, makes all necessary provision for them. [a] his own sheep] What the πρόβατα, sheep, here signify in this parable, hath been largely set down, (note [d] ch. vi.) viz. the obedient servants of God considered before and without the revelation of Christ unto them, who being so qualified are most ready to embrace the precepts of the Christian perfection, when they are offered to them: these also is Christ ready to receive, or any that, having been engaged in sin, come with penitence and resolution of mind to be such; and consequently, when these come to Christ, they are styled here, and looked on by him, as ἴδια πρόβατα, that is, either peculiar sheep, those that by God's prævenient graces are thus fitted, beyond all others, to come to Christ, or else, as the 12th verse imports, (where the shepherd is set opposite to the hireling, whose own the sheep are not,) his own sheep, those to whom Christ hath a peculiar title beyond all others, who are therefore said to be given by God to Christ as his possession; see note [d] ch. vi. Now of these thus owned or acknowledged by Christ, it is here said that he doth καλεῖν κατ' ὄνομα, call them by name. That refers to the custom of shepherds, that are so conversant among their sheep, that they know them severally, (see ver. 14 and 27, I know them,) and have a several name for every of them, by which they distinguish and call them, and each of them knows, and answers by obediential coming or following, to that call. So ver. 3, they hear his voice, and know it, ver. 4; and he is known of them, ver. 14. Thus among us huntsmen do with their hounds, and ploughmen with their cattle; and it seems in Jewry, where the feeding of cattle was the great trade, and where other customs obtained than those that are among us, the shepherd did thus with his sheep. For want of their art and usage of going before, and leading, and calling their sheep after them, which is known in the scripture to have been among them, psalm xxiii. 2, 3, and And when he thus brings forth his sheep (see brings out. An impostor or false Christ, that teacheth doctrines contrary to piety, they will not follow, but fly from him as from a wolf, having such certain tokens, by which to know the true doctrine of God, the true shepherd's voice, that they can tell how to avoid all others that come to seduce them by this very mark, because it is a strange voice, quite contrary to that piety and probity which they have been taught by God. All others that have come of late, pretending to be vindicators of the Jews from the Roman yoke, (such as Theudas, Judas Gaulonites, &c.,) have been impostors, which no pious person would heed, as neither coming with commission from God, nor bringing divine doctrine with them, but doctrines of rebellion and bloodiness, and the like. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door that all pious men must pass through, and whosoever doth so, he shall be (as in a fenced inclosure) in a safe, a rich, a plentiful condition, and wheresoever he turns shall find pasture. Thus contrary am I to those that come without commission, ver. 1. All those impostors come to get advantage to themselves, to deceive and ruin you. Nay, so far am I from the thief that comes to kill the flock, that like the good shepherd (which keeps his own sheep, is not hired to keep another's, see note [a]) who ventures when there is occasion (pawns, engages) his life for his sheep, rather than they shall come to hurt, grapples with wild beasts that come to destroy his flock, so do I. 12, 13. This is far from the manner of impostors, nay, it is peculiar to the good shepherd, whose flock is (not intrusted by another to his keeping, and he paid for that service, but) his own goods, and himself makes it his calling to look to them. He that keeps another man's sheep, and is paid for his labour, will never venture his life to preserve them, prefers his life before the advantage of his service, and thereupon, whenever a wolf comes that will endanger his life if he defends his sheep, he runs away, and to save his life destitutes them; and this upon this very score, because he is not the owner, but only a servant hired to keep the fold. Whereas he whose own they are will hazard his life, rather than leave his flock (his whole estate, as it was oft among the Jews) to be torn and worried by the devourer. 14, 15. Just such a shepherd am I, who, as I resemble the shepherd in other things, knowing my sheep particularly, and being known by them, (see ver. 3,) (in the same manner as my Father knoweth me, and I him, my Father owning and giving me perfect knowledge of his will, and I obeying and following my Father in all things); so also I venture my life for my sheep, and will most willingly suffer death, in regard to the benefits that will come to my sheep, my disciples, (all that receive and obey my voice,) by that means. But for you Jews, let me tell you, my flock is not all within this pale of Judæa; I have others that will believe and obey me, receive the faith, beside and beyond the Jewish nation; and the care and rule of those I must undertake, and they will follow my call more obediently than the Jews own and obey me; and all believers, both of Jews and Gentiles. This careful discharge of the office intrusted and committed to me by my Father, is that to which it is but proportionable that my Father should love and value and reward me; and therefore it is, that as I venture my life for my flock, so when I shall have lost my life, by the care and power of my Father, I shall be able to rise again, and the lower I suffer here, the higher shall I be exalted, Phil. ii. 9. It is not in the power of man to take my life away from me, if I did not thus voluntarily of my own accord lay it down; I can give myself up to be crucified, and then can rise to life again. And thus to do my Father hath appointed me; this is a prime part of my commission. He is mad (see note [b] ch. vii); why do you give any heed to what he saith? These are neither the words nor actions of a madman. Can the devil himself, or consequently his being mad, or possessed with the devil, help him to do the things that he doth? to cure one that was born blind? And it was the time of the feast of dedication, a feast ordained by the Jews, 1 Mac. iv. 59, and And according to the custom of that season he walked now in Solomon's porch under covert, as in the summer they used to walk in the open air in the courts without any roof over them. By this means the people being all in a narrower compass, or lesser room, they came about him close, and said unto him, How long dost thou by obscure expressions continue our doubts whether thou art the Messias or no? If thou art, tell us perspicuously: see note [a] ch. vii. Jesus said, I have told you in words significant enough, if ye would believe, and the miracles that I have done (in my Father's name, whom I affirm to have sent me) through his power, and by authority * hold our soul in suspense? ψυχὴν ἡμῶν αἴραις; And I make that provision for them intimated ver. 10, and my care over them shall be such, that while they keep close to me, no devourer shall ever be able to annoy them or pluck them from me. Certainly my Father is stronger than any that can oppose himself against them, and his special work it is, that all the true sheep of his fold, all truly pious persons, should come to me, and that infinite power of his is engaged for it, that none such shall by any violence be taken from him, deprived of that life which here I promise to give them. And seeing my Father and I are one, it follows that I shall defend them also, and that none shall be able to pluck them out of my hand, ver. 28. Upon this again the Jews attempted to stone him. And Jesus said, Many miracles of mercy to you, miraculous cures, &c., have I wrought, as testimonies of my mission from my Father, and never a destructive one, none that you have been the worse for: for which of these my saving miracles do you destroy me? The Jews said, It is not for any of thy miracles (which are not denied to be all such, and acts of mercy in thee) for which we think thee worthy of death, but because thou hast spoken blasphemy, that is, because thou, who art but a man, makest thyself God by that speech of thine, ver. 30, (see Rom. xvi. 25,) where, though thou calledst God thy Father, yet thou affirmedst that he and thou were one. Jesus answered, These words in the psalmist you cannot but remember, Psalm lxxxii. 6, I have said, Ye are gods, and that book is canonical scripture with you. If therefore they who are there spoken of by God, that is, rulers or judges ordinarily so called, who received their commission from men, not from God immediately, (only persons to whom the execution of God's law was intrusted among men,) be by God [b] unto whom the word of God came] The coming of the word of the Lord to any man signifies among the Hebrews frequently in the Old Testament, God's sending a man, designing him, appointing him to any office; and so it is constantly used in the writings of the prophets, who begin their prophecies solemnly in this form; The word of the Lord came unto me, saying; which is but their shewing or vouching their commission; and so when, Rom. x. 17, it is said ἀκοή, that is, preaching of the word, (not their hearing, but their being heard, as in Plato in Phædro, Ἐπιθυμῶ ποτίμῳ λόγῳ ἄλμορὰν ἀκοὴν ἀποκλύσασθαι, "I desire to temper the brackish hearing with sweet or potable speech," where ἀκοή, hearing, is used for the word or speech which is heard,) is διὰ ῥήματος Θεοῦ, by the word of God, the meaning of it is, that no man must preach, except he be sent, ver. 15, where the word of God signifies not the word which they preach, but the commission from which they are authorized to preach to others. And so for the office of judge, &c. it is as proper, the word of the Lord signifying a commission from God mediately or immediately for any such; which when it comes to any man for the execution of power over others, it is the instating of him in that office of power; and the same will be said of the sacerdotal also. But the truth is, the phrase here is not those to whom the word of the Lord came, upon which supposition this interpretation is built, but πρὸς οὓς ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐγένετο, to whom the word of God was, or was spoken, and that may thus be interpreted. David, psalm lxxxii. 1, hath these words: God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. How long will ye judge unjustly? &c. In that place the judges or rulers of the sanhedrim are called gods by the psalmist, in the person of God; and again, ver. 6, I have said, Ye are gods; and ye are all children of the Most High. Christ, referring here to this, saith, Is it not written in your law, I have said, Ye are gods? from whence he concludeth, *ἐκείνους εἶπε Θεοῦς, If he called them gods, to whom the word of God was, that is, to whom, or of or concerning whom God spake in that place of the Law, that is, in the Book of Psalms, (comprehended sometimes under the word Law, see ch. xii. 34, as the whole Old Testament is called the Law and the Prophets, though elsewhere there is a third mention of the division of those books, the ἀγιόγραφα, the Book of Psalms contained under that branch,) if he called those gods, and sons of God, who were but ordinary judges of those times, chosen by men, and by imposition of hands of the sanhedrim advanced to that office, after the common manner of all, nothing peculiar, or extraordinary, or of immediate mission from heaven in all this.) Jesus said unto them, It were well for you, if it could be truly pronounced of you, that you are blind: if your sin were of impotence or inability to see, it would be more pardonable, but now by your acknowledging yourselves not to be blind, and so that all that you do, you do knowingly and deliberately, your sins receive a very great aggravation. ### CHAP. X. VERILY, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. NOW a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. These two women being disciples of Christ, known to him, and knowing his kindness to Lazarus, sent unto him,— ¹² was, when he first baptized, ἦν τὸ πρῶτον βαπτίζαν. And Martha and Mary being in great sadness, and so keeping themselves up in a close retirement, many of the Jews came to the house to those that were near them, to get access, to bewail the loss, and to rescue them from this great sadness. ' enable thee to do it. ' I will raise thy brother again to life: see ver. 40. ' glad for you (that you may believe) that I was not there, but, χαίρω δι' ὑμᾶς (ἵνα πιστεύ- σητε) ὅτι οὐκ ἥμην ἐκεῖν ἀλλ'. ' to those that were about Martha and Mary, πρὸς τὰς περὶ Μάρθαν καὶ Μαρίαν. HAMMOND, VOL. I. E C And he that is now alive, and so not capable of such a present miracle, shall, if he receiveth and obeyeth my doctrine, though he dies after the manner of other men, rise again unto life immortal: the latter of these thou sayest thou believest, (ver. 24,) but dost thou believe the former also? Messias, known by the title of "He that cometh," (see note [a] Matt. xi.) the Son of God, who consequently hast power of life and death, and so canst raise him how and when thou pleasest. continued in that place— he have died, or, be dead, who doth say. shall not die for ever, or who doth say his for alura. cometh, &do you ever. Or, thinking, supposing: for the Syriac and some copies read before us. tomb, or monument, unspeak. [a] was troubled] Ταράττεσθαι is to be troubled with any passion, but in this Gospel peculiarly with grief; so ch. xii. 27. Now is my soul troubled, τετάρακται, in respect of death approaching; so ch. xiii. 21. Jesus having said this, ἐταράχθη τῷ πνεύματι, was troubled in spirit, to think of his being delivered up by Judas. So in his exhortation to the disciples, when he tells them of his death, ch. xiv. 1, μὴ τυρασσίαθω, &c. Let not your heart be troubled; and ver. 27, it is set distinct from fear, the other passion, Let not your heart be troubled nor cowardly, so here it is joined with groaning in spirit, as expressions of inward grief, as the tears that follow, ver. 35, are outward evidences of it. As for the form of speech in the Greek, ἐτάραξεν ἰαντὸν, he troubled himself, that is but an idiom of the Hebrews, who oît use the reciprocal voice hithpael for a passive. And although he had resolved to raise him from the dead, ver. 23, and though at other times when he meant to do so he had suppressed the mourners' tears, Luke viii. 52, and Luke vii. 13, yet now he indulgeth so much to the justice of their sorrow, as himself to weep with them. ° this is the fourth day since his death, and so according to experience of dead bodies, which after a revolution of the humours (which is completed in seventy-two hours) tend naturally to putrefaction, he must needs be putrefied, and so stink before this time. ° a glorious miracle wrought on him, by raising him to life again? vv. 23 and 25. ° fastened his eyes on heaven, and said— "wailing, and the Jews that were assembled to her wailing, he groaned in spirit, and troubled himself, κλαίουσαν, καὶ τοὺς συνελθόντας αὐτῇ 'Ιουδαίους κλαίοντας. " he already smells, ἤδη δῇς. " In some copies, as also in the Syriac and old Latin and Nonnus, these words, οὐ ἦν ὁ τεθνηκὼς κείμενος, are left out. E C 2 Is it reasonable for you to affirm of him whom God immediately and in an extraordinary manner hath first consecrated, then sent into the world, then by the descent of the Spirit and voice from heaven testified his mission to so eminent (and with so peculiar) an office, that of the Messiah of the world, that he is guilty of blasphemy, for affirming himself to be the Son of God? If I performed not those works among you, which might testify me to come from God, you might with some reason doubt of me. But if I do, then, though you believe nothing that I say, yet your faith is due to those works of God my Father, wrought by me, by which it is evident that the Father acts in me, and I in him, wholly by his power, and so that he and I are one, which was the speech you charged as blasphemous in me. On this speech again they attempt to lay hands on him, not now to stone him presently, by the law of zealots, as a blasphemer, as ver. 31, but to bring him before the sanhedrim, and charge some other crime against him. But he went out, and escaped their violence at that time also. And in that place, being the place where John had baptized and testified of Christ, they that had heard John, comparing what they remembered from him with what they had by experience seen in Christ, by this means were inclined, many of them, to believe in him. [b] the Romans shall come] The Jews in council, seeing the miracles which Jesus did, this especially of raising Lazarus, did much fear that professing himself to be the Messias, he would soon attempt to make himself king, and by the admiration which he had gotten among the people, be quickly assisted to it, if he were not timely hindered. If this were done, the consequent seemed visible to them, that the Romans, to whom they were subject, must look upon this as a rebellion, and be by that temptation provoked to come with an army, and destroy them utterly. That this was their fear is evident by their many groundless objections made afterwards against him, that he forbade to give tribute to Cæsar, that he made himself a king, and so opposed himself against Cæsar; not that they desired the continuance of Cæsar's power over them, but that their fear of a yet further conquest from the Romans made them unwilling to provoke them; and this the rather, because of a tradition among them, that a little before the end of the world there should come one to destroy them, called אֲרַכִּילִים (which is by an easy change, Romulus.) This seems to be but the depravation of some prophecy from God, which foretold the coming of the Romans in the last days, meaning the days of Messias, to destroy them, and demonstrates their expecting and believing that the Romans were the people from whence the change of their religion, and overrunning their nation, should come. And therefore, when they see the doctrine of Christ thrive so well, gather so many proselytes, and that the miracles which he did were so great as might well set him up for a king, or Messias, (which they through their unbelief would not acknowledge him to be truly,) it follows, that they presently apprehend the Romans coming in (the אֲרַכִּילִים now mentioned) to destroy their religion, signified by the word place, and carry them out of their country, (that is, destroy their nation,) or else wholly to change their laws, rule them as conquered people. But in this, poor men, they were sadly mistaken, the prophecy of the Romans coming in to This he spake in words that were a direct prophecy of what God had now designed should come to pass; not that he meant it in that sense, or thought at all of prophesying, but being in place of authority among the Jews at that time, he was a fit person for God to make use of as his minister, to foretell the purpose of God, that Christ should die for the Jews; And not for the Jews only, but that he might call all the Gentiles into the same fold, the same church, all the servants of God, all that would receive the faith all the world over. From that time they entered into a consultation, which they gave not over till they had contrived it to have him put to death. Hereupon Jesus did not publicly (see note [a] ch. vii.) do any thing among the people of Judæa. that they might be cleansed from legal impurity, from which till they were cleansed they could not celebrate the passover, and that all that were under any vow of Nazaritism might timely perform it, see note on Acts xxi. 23. This being that feast unto which every one was to come to Jerusalem, and no excuse being sufficient for not coming but that of invincible necessity, what can be conceived the reason why he cometh not up? Now on the evening, or first part of the paschal day, (see note [c] Mark xiv.,) many hours before the time of dressing and eating the lamb, which was the paschal feast, Christ knowing that he should not live till then, and consequently that what he had to say or do to his disciples before his departure would most NOW before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should [a] depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved Then Mary, the sister of Lazarus, not Mary Magdalene, (see note on Luke vii. 6,) took a pound of the richest nard, a very costly ointment, (see note [a] Mark xiv.) and anointed the feet of Jesus— a who was the person that soon after this agreed to deliver him into the hands and power of the Jews, b because he, having the office of receiving all that was brought or presented to Christ, and being a covetous person, who purloined much to his own uses, conceived himself to be a loser by what was thus bestowed on Christ. c she hath performed this as a fit ceremony to solemnize my approaching death, after which, men use to be embalmed with perfumes and spices, &c. And therefore this was a very seasonable charity in her: ye will have opportunities enough to shew your charity to the poor; but this was the last opportunity she could have had of expressing it to me, who am suddenly to be gone from you. And seeing that Lazarus was apprehended by the sanhedrim to be so dangerous a means to bring men to believe on Christ, upon consultation it was thought fit to put Lazarus to death. ¶ many Jews forsook the Judaical way of opposition against Christ, upon seeing that miracle of his in raising Lazarus. Took palm branches (see note [a] Matt. xxi.) and solemnized his entrance into the city with the ceremonies of a king's inauguration, acknowledging him to be the Messias, (see note [a] Matt. xi.,) and using the words of Ps. cxviii. 29, and styling him King of Israel. At the same time also the disciples of Jesus fetching a young ass, and bringing it to him according to his appointment, he rode on it into Jerusalem; and so that other prophecy of scripture, Zech. ix. 9, was fulfilled in him also, Now, O Jerusalem, there is matter of rejoicing to thee; for he that is now thy King cometh in an equipage, not of pomp and state, but of humility, as one that is likely to be author of all good to thee. These things at first his disciples understood not to be a completion of any such prophecy, till the coming of the Holy Ghost upon them after Christ's ascension; then they considered and remembered that that was now done unto him which had been so long ago so plainly prophesied of him. At this time before the people's hosannas those of the multitude that had been present at that mighty work of his in raising Lazarus from the dead, freely made acknowledgment of it in Jerusalem. And that caused the people's coming out to ¶ Blessed in the name of the Lord be he that cometh, the King of Israel: Εὐλογημῖνος ὁ ἰρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι Κυρίου, ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. [a] Grceks] The Grecians here are supposed to be proselytes of the gates, who yet were not permitted among the Jews to celebrate the feast with them, but only either to behold their solemnities, or holy festivities and πανηγύριες, or, as it is here peculiarly said, ἵνα προσκυνήσωσιν ἐν τῇ ἑορτῇ, that they might worship at that time of public worship, which in atrio Gentilium, "in the court of the Gentiles," they were permitted to do, as appears by the eunuch, Acts viii. 27, ὃ ἐληλύθει προσκυνήσωσιν ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, who came to worship at Jerusalem, where that temple was, which is styled the house of prayer to all people; so the pious men, that is, proselytes, Acts ii. 5, which came up to Jerusalem at the feast of Pentecost. No; this shall be my prayer, that my Father will so dispose of me, that I may do whatsoever it is that may most tend to the glorifying of his name in me. Upon his saying those words, there came a clap of thunder, and with it a voice from heaven audible, in these words, I have &c. [b] a voice] The voice here was an articulate sound in the midst of thunder. Φωνὴ and Βροντὴ, voice and thunder, are all one among these writers, the Hebrew קולות, voices ordinarily signifying thunder. Thus bath col., "the daughter of voice," (the only way of oracle or revelation of God's will among the Jews after the Babylonish captivity,) is among them the will of God revealed in thunder from heaven, Exod. xix. 16. 19. Hence it is that in this place, ver. 29, the bystanders say, It thunders, and others that an angel spake, both together saying the truth, that there was a thunder joined with a voice from heaven, which is the daughter of thunder. This is the meaning of Βρονταὶ καὶ φωναὶ, thunders and voices, Rev. iv. 5. and viii. 5; so Matt. iii. 17, Φωνὴ λέγουσα, a voice saying, is the thunder uttering such a voice; and so ch. xvii. 5, Luke ix. 35. And by this will be explained a seeming difference in the Acts, in the story of Saul's conversion, of hearing and not hearing the voice, which shall be referred to that place, note [b] Acts ix. And of the multitude there present, some took notice of the thunder with which that voice came, others of the voice itself. 30, 31. Upon this Jesus said to them, This voice from heaven came not to answer or satisfy me, but to convince you, and bring you to the faith, or assure you that my death shall tend to the glory of God, and bringing down of sin and Satan, ch. xvi. 11. And I, being crucified, (see note [h] Matt. i.) will by that means bring a great part of the whole world to believe on me, Gentiles as well as Jews. (This speech Christ meant as an intimation not only that he should be put to death, but also what kind of death this should be, viz., crucifixion, which is an elevation, or lifting up to the cross, and an holding out the hands, as if it were to invite all to him, promising an hospitable reception. See note To this discourse about his death the people made an objection, that their doctors had taught them out of scripture, Psalm cx, (so the word law signifies; see note [b] ch. x.), and perhaps Isaiah xl. 8, that the Messias shall endure for ever, and never die; and, therefore, if it were true what he said, that the Son of man must be put to death, they could not guess what he meant by the Son of man, sure not the Messias. To this he answered, I am not likely to stay long amongst you here on earth; make use of me, the light of the world, while I am with you, or else you are likely to be left in the dark, in a blind unhappy condition for ever; and do not, upon your traditions, the Christ, ὁ Χριστός. * surprise, καταλάβη. I shall continue with you but a while; and therefore be sure ye make haste to learn sufficient for your whole lives to come, to get your directions complete, that you may live like Christians. When Jesus had said this, he went away, and concealed himself from them (at Bethany probably) for a while. All this did not effectually work on them; but though he had done all these miracles in their sight, yet they did not believe on him. And thereby the prophecy of Esaias, ch. liii. 1, was fulfilled, which was to this purpose, How few are there that have been by all Christ's miracles convinced that he is the Messias! 39, 40. That other prophecy also had not been fulfilled, had they not thus disbelieved him, wherein the just judgment of God forsaking, and bringing the punishment of blindness upon them, was pronounced by that prophet against the stubborn obdurate Jews, who by this means are likely never to be converted or pardoned. [c] could not believe] The οὐκ ἠδύνατο here may be rendered, by analogy with the same phrase used ch. v. 19, so as to signify, not any impotence in them, but that, as it is said ver. 39, they believed not. So doth the Hebrew phrase signify, Gen. xix. 22; and so saith Isidorus Pelusiota of that, John v. 19, expounding τὸ δύναται by ἐνδέχεται, he cannot, that is, he doth not. So the phrase is used Mark vi. 5, Luke xvi. 2; and so the context here imports, being no more than this, that this unbelief of theirs was foretold by the prophets, which indeed was an argument to prove what the effect would be, through their own contumacious wills, but no way a cause of their unbelief, or that which laid an impossibility of believing on them. These things were spoken by that prophet in setting down a vision of his, when Christ's being on the earth was revealed to him, see note [b] ch. i. Yet for all this, many of the rulers of the people, the members of the sanhedrim, did believe him to be the Messias, such was Nicodemus, ch. iii. 1, &c. But the sect of the Pharisees was of such authority and power in the sanhedrim, and they were so violently bent against him, and all that received him, that as Nicodemus, ch. vii. 50, and xix. 19, durst not come to him by daytime, so the rest durst not make any public acknowledgment of their believing on him, for fear they should be reproachfully censured (see note [b] ch. ix.), and, being rulers, be turned out of their dignities in the consistory. For they valued their reputation with men, (especially their places in the sanhedrim,) their reputation with the Pharisees, that they were good patriots, constant to their old way, more than the testimony of, or reputation with, God himself: see ch. v. 41. The believing on me is nothing else but the believing on my Father, whose commission I have, and whose doctrine I teach. And he that seeth my miracles, in them seeth my Father's power, the works of miracles which I do being wrought by my Father. I am sent by my Father to enlighten the world, to lead them that will receive my doctrine into all that is necessary for them to know for the ordering of their lives, so as will be acceptable to God my Father. They that hear my preaching and reject it, I do not mean to accuse them to my Father, to make any complaint against them; it was not the design of my coming, to accuse any man, and so to bring any judgment on any; it is more agreeable to my design to rescue all out of their sins, and punishment due to them for sin. [d] I judge him not] The word κρίνειν, judging, here seemeth to be taken in the sense of accusing, as a plaintiff or witness accuseth, and not of condemning, which is the office of a judge. For first, it is here, ver. 41, spoken of the word or gospel of Christ, which had been preached unto them, and not of Christ himself in that place; 2dly, That which will accuse and condemn such an one is, that what I teach and he despiseth, is the thing that my Father sent me to preach, and that on purpose to bring them to eternal bliss that receive and obey it; and the despising of that which was meant for his so great good, and came backed with authority and commission from God the Father, is an accusation which will be heavily charged on him at the day of judgment. c every word or part of doctrine taught by me, is by express commission of him. And of this I am sure, that obedience to his precepts, as they are now preached by me, is the only way to bring men to eternal life: whatsoever— [a] depart] This word μεταβῆ, pass, refers to the passover mentioned in the beginning of the verse, to signify that that legal passover, or, the occasion of it, God's passing over the house of Israel, and the Israelites passing or going out of Egypt, did note the passing of Christ out of this world (where he was a servant) into the land of liberty, that is, heaven. See note [b] Luke ix. When he was at supper, or, in supper time, (see ver. 12,) (Judas having taken up that diabolical resolution of delivering up Christ to the Jews); [b] washed] The Hebrews had their λούσεις and their βαπτισμούς, or νίψεις, the former, washing of the whole body, which they call טבילה, the other two, of the hands or feet, of one part alone, either by immersion, or pouring on of water, which they call קדוש, sanctifying. So in Joma, c. 3. §. 3, חמש טבילות ועשרה קדושין טובל כהן גדול, "the high priest on the day of expiation washes five washings, and ten sanctifications," that is, "washes his whole body five times, at every changing of his vestments once, and his hands and feet ten times," that is, "at every washing of his whole body twice." The former were used by the priest (after the building of the temple) before the entering into the temple, ("no man," saith Joma, c. 3. §. 3, "enters into the court of the temple to minister, though he be clean," that is, though he be not under any legal pollution, "until he have washed all over,") and so also by the proselytes at their initiation. (See note [a] Matt. iii.) The latter was of every day's use; and to those our Saviour seems here to refer; and by the ὁ λελουμένος, he means him that hath been totally washed, that is, that hath been initiated and entered into Christ, hath undertaken his discipleship, and so renounced sincerely all the profaneness of his former life; and he that had done so is said to be καθαρὸς ὅλος, in the words following, whole clean, and he hath no need to be so washed again, that is, all over. For that ceremony of initiation was never repeated, say the Jewish writers. All that is needful to him is the βαπτισμοί, or νίψεις, the immersion, or pouring of water, and so rinsing of the hands and feet, the daily ministry of the word and grace of Christ, (thereby signified,) to cleanse and wash off and purify (more For what I have now done is on purpose to shew you how you ought to behave yourselves in that authority in the church wherein ye shall succeed me. e nor you my apostles, that I mean to settle governors of the church, greater than I, from whom you have your commission, and by whom you are constituted. And woe be to you, if you do not practise after this example. But I expect not this obedience from you all; I know I have chose twelve apostles, and the scripture is fulfilled of one of them, that though he be so near to me, as to be entertained daily at my table with me, yet he will do me all the mischief he can. This I tell you now (see note [k] Matt. xxiii.) by way of prediction, that when my suffering comes, and may be apt to make you waver in your belief of me, your knowing that I foretold you it, may assure you that I know things to come, and the secret purposes of men's hearts before they shew themselves in act, and from thence conclude that I am the searcher of all hearts, and withal that I am the Messias, to whom those prophecies belong. e own garments, and was lain down, ἡμέτια αὐτοῦ, ἐνακεφέν. ἀπόστολος μελῶν. † the apostle greater, As for the offices of duty, and task, and humility, which I assign you, ver. 14, and now exemplify them to you in myself, you shall not want the comfort and reward of them; for you shall be considered by me (and so shall the reception and entertainment that men shall give to you) as I myself am by my Father. At this time, as he spake these words, Jesus was much troubled, not only in apprehension of the approaching danger, but especially he was grieved to think of it, that any disciple of his should be so wicked and so unhappy, and told them openly and plainly that one of the twelve should be hired and undertake to deliver him up to the Jews to be put to death by them. 'much perplexed to think that one of them should be guilty of such a villainy, and not being able to guess who it should be. And John, to whom Christ was very kind, the writer of this Gospel, was placed next to him at the supper. 'lying next to him, with his head in Jesus' bosom, ver. 23, saith unto him— He it is to whom I shall give the next piece of bread which I shall take out of the dish or platter, and having given him that mark to know him by, he presently puts his hand into the dish, and takes out a piece of bread, and gives it to Judas Iscariot. [c] a sop] What ψωμίον signifies is clear by Hesychius, ψωμίον (ψωθίον is a false print) τὸ ὑποκάτω τοῦ ἄρτον, the lower side of the bread, and ψωμία (not ψωθία again) τὰ τοῦ ἄρτον ἀποθραύσματα, broken pieces of the loaf, crusts of bread. Such was it that was wont to be given about to each of the guests in the postcænium (the breaking of bread after supper) among the Jews, to signify that charity that should be among them; and so the cup of grace, or charity also, μετὰ τὸ δεῖπνῆσαι, after supper, saith St. Luke, ch. xxii. 20. And such was this here that Christ on purpose did to express his love to his disciples now at parting with them, ver. 1, and to engage them to the like among one another. That this was the postcænium there can be no doubt, if γενομένον δείπνον, ver. 2, be rendered supper being ended, for then there could be nothing after that but the postcænium. But although γενομένον being the aorist, med. importeth no more but it being come, or when supper was come, in supper time, yet it is apparent that after this he rose from supper to wash their feet, and accordingly it is said expressly, ver. 12, ἀναπεσὼν πάλιν, lying down again, which signifies that he was before lain down to meat. And therefore in reason this washing their feet, coming between the supper and the postcænium, that which here follows the washing and his second lying down, is the postcænium, wherein, as it is evident by the other evangelists, he instituted the Lord's supper. See Matt. xxvi. 26, where it is the last thing that is done but the singing of the hymn before their going to the mount of Olives, ver. 30, and so Mark xiv. 28; and Luke saith expressly, ch. xxii. 20, that he took the cup after supper; which being supposed and the mention being here express of Christ's giving the ψωμίον, or crust, to Judas, as it is necessarily consequent that Judas was present at the institution of the sacrament, and not only at the first part of the supper which that concluded, so it is not probable that the crust now mentioned to be given him should be dipped or moistened in the juice of the herbs, as it might be thought, if it had been at the former part of the supper. For the custom of giving about bread in the postcænium was surely to give a crust of dry bread, broken off from the loaf, or a loaf cut in a dish to that purpose, to give every one a piece; and the cup of wine following it, there was no use or occasion of moistening it; and besides, the first course and the dishes of that service were in all reason taken away to give place to this concluding course, as we know it is wherever the custom of the grace-cup is still retained; and if so, there was then no moist thing on the table but the wine to dip or wet it in, and that being in a cup, or pot, and not in a dish, (which is mentioned in Matthew and Mark at his pointing at the traditor,) there is no pretence of believing that the bread was dipped in that. Upon these grounds it seems not unreasonable to interpose a conjecture, that the word βάψας, or ἐμβάψας, may here be mistaken, and misapplied to ψωμίον, the piece of bread, which from thence is usually rendered a sop, supposing it to be βαττόμενον, dipped in wet, and so moistened,) when it may signify no more than his putting or dipping his hand into the dish. For the putting one's hand into any hollow vessel, which is made hollow that it may contain liquids in it, may fitly be thus ex- And upon his receiving that piece of bread, (together with Christ's telling him distinctly of it, and of the horribleness of the sin and danger, Mark xiv. 21,) and his not yet relenting, the devil entered into him more forcibly than before, ver. 2, and Luke xxii. 3, hurrying him to a speedy execution of his designs, (see the paraphrase on Luke xxii. 3, 4,) which Jesus knowing, said to him accordingly, What thou doest, do quickly; intimating that he was now hastening to do it. This speech they that were at meat with him understood not, unless perhaps John, to whom he had given the token, ver. 26. 'lying in Jesus' bosom, ἀνακείμενον ἕν. 'at the breast of Jesus, ἐκὶ τὸ στήθος. 'having dipped, I shall deliver the piece, or crust of bread. And having dipped, he gave the crust, ἢ ἐγὼ βάψατ τὸ ψωμίον ἐπιδώσω. καὶ ἐμβάψατ τὸ ψωμίον, βίβωσιν. 'crust, ψωμίον. My beloved friends, whom I look on as children suddenly to be deprived of their parent, I am now within a very little time to part from you. And being now to take my last leave, I give you this special new command, that from the manner and degree of my love to you expressed in venturing, nay, losing my life for you, ye also learn and practise the same degree of loving one another, that is, that all Christians abound one toward another in all charity, and venture their lives for the good of others, especially for the propagating the gospel, doing good to the souls of other men. This is the badge by which I desire you should be known from all other men of other professions and religions, your living together in the strictest bands of love. Peter not yet knowing what he meant, ver. 33, asketh him whither he meant to go, that they should not be able to follow him. Jesus answers him, that though he could not yet, he should ere long follow him, that the very death which Christ should now suffer should be his lot hereafter. ¹ venture, hazard my life for thy sake. ¹² purse, γλωσσόκομον. ¹³ crust, φωμίον. [a] love] The notion of loving God in scripture, but especially in the New Testament, seems most fitly to be taken from one most eminent act and expression of love amongst all men, viz. that of doing those things which are esteemed most grateful and acceptable to the beloved, either as tending most to his good, or any other way most desirable to him. For this indeed is the one expression of loving one another, all other being effects of love to ourselves. But because God wants no contributions of ours to the advancing of his good or (indeed) of his glory, and our only way of doing grateful things to him is our performing what he commands, therefore it is consequent that our obedience to the will or commands of God in the highest and most perfect manner is styled the loving of him; being indeed the prime, if not only way of demonstrating our love to him. So here, If ye love me, keep my commandments; if ye are so affected to me as to desire to gratify me, obedience to all my precepts is the way of doing it. So ver. 21, He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me, &c., and I will love him, and (as the most grateful thing to him, that can be done from one lover to another) I will shew myself to him. So ver. 23, If any man love me, he will keep my word, and my Father shall love him, and we will (as the most grateful obliging thing again) come to him, and make our abode with him; and so ver. 24, and 1 John ii. 5, He that keeps my word, in him is the love of God made perfect; and ch. v. 3, This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And so saith Christ, Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you. From whence it is, that as in some places compared together love is equivalent or parallel to keeping the commandments of God, as Exod. xx. 5, Deut. v. 9, and Gal. v. 6, compared with 1 Cor. vii. 19, (and disobedience to enmity, Rom. viii. 7, James iv. 4,) so the whole condition available to our acceptance with God, and salvation, is oft expressed by this style of love. And because those duties that are to be performed to God immediately are most acceptable and grateful to him, but especially that of confessing him, and, in despite of dangers and death itself, keeping close to him, therefore that is many times expressed by loving of Christ, 1 Cor. viii. 3, and xvi. 22, Ephes. vi. 24, James i. 12, Revel. ii. 4. Another notion there is of the love [b] Comforter] The word Paraclete in the Greek comes from a word of a large, and so ambiguous signification; and consequently may be rendered advocate, exhorter, or comforter; and every one of these do fitly accord to the offices of the Holy Ghost among the apostles, (on whom he was to descend,) and ever since, in the church, and therefore ought not to be so rendered by any one of these, as to exclude the others, but to be left in the latitude of the signification which belongs to the Greek word: yet the truth is, one notion there is of the word which seems to be especially referred to, both here, when he is called Paraclete, and chap. xvi. 8, as shall there appear, and that is the first notion, that of an advocate or interlocutor, an advocate of the Christian's cause with God, Rom. viii. 26, and so also with men, teaching the apostles what they shall say, when they are brought before kings, &c. Matt. x. 20, and an advocate, or actor of Christ's cause against the world of unbelievers and crucifers, John xv. 26, and efficaciously convincing the adversaries, John xvi. 8, and this is the notion of the word retained among the Talmudists, who continue the Greek word without the termination, and set it in opposition to בְּשִׁבְחָה, אֶרְשָׁה, an accuser. And proportionably to what is here said of παράκλητος, must, I suppose, be resolved of παράκλησις τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος, Acts ix. 31, not that it be restrained to note comfort particularly, but be taken in the latitude, for the whole work of the ministry, to which the apostles were set apart and consecrated, and enabled by the Holy Ghost's coming down upon them; and so indeed the word is generally used in the Acts, to denote the preaching of the word, speaking to the people, as the apostles did in the synagogues, or elsewhere, to tell them their duty of all kinds. So Acts xi. 23, παρεκάλεε πάντας, the sum of his speech or sermon to them all was, that they should cleave unto the Lord. So Acts xiv. 2, παρακαλούντες ἐμμείνειν τῇ πίστει, preaching to, or interceding with them, to abide in the faith, and xv. 32, διὰ λόγου πολλοῦ παρεκάλεσαν, and λόγῳ πολλῷ, c. 22, with much speech they exhorted, or taught, or preached to the brethren. So ch. xvi. 4c, παρεκάλεσαν αὐτοὺς, they preached to, or exhorted them. So λόγος παρακλήσεως, Acts xiii. 15, a word of exhortation, according to their custom of saying something seasonably to the people at their public assemblies, after their reading of the law, &c. So Acts xv. 31, the whole message of the synod at Jerusalem, and their decision of the controversy, is called παράκλησις, exhortation. Ye are my little children, ch. xiii. 33, and therefore when I leave you I will have more care of you than to leave you destitute, I will hasten to come unto you, as to so many young children deprived of their parents, though I am slain, and so depart from you, yet I will rise again, and give you the comfort of seeing me after my resurrection, see ver. 18. After a little space I shall be taken from this earth, where now I move, and so taken, that the impenitent unbelieving Jews shall never see more of my miracles, which have hitherto been so uneffectual among them, never see me again, (so as to take comfort or reap benefit by seeing me) but it is not my death itself that shall separate me from you, I shall rise from death, and appear to you after my resurrection, and from thence ascend to heaven, there to live eternally; and as that shall be matter of great rejoicing to you, (see note on 1 Thess. iii. 6,) like the joy of one that hath a friend returned to life again, or like the woman's joy after child-birth, ch. xvi. 21, 22, a wonderful reviving after your sorrow for my departure, so shall it be attended with all vital advantages to you, justification, Rom. v. 10, and eternal life hereafter. And when I shall after my death thus appear unto you, and make good what I now promise, then shall ye be convinced, (more perfectly than yet ye have been,) first, that I have taught nothing but what is the will of my Father; second, that by your keeping close to that faith which I have taught you, my power and commission, which I have received from my Father, shall be communicated to you, Luke xxii. 28. [c] and I in you] The word κᾶγω, in this writer especially, hath oft a peculiar elegancy in it, and is not fully understood but by adding the word so in the rendering of it; so also I; and then it hath an influence on the former part of the period, and makes that the first part of a similitude or comparison, as it is itself the ἀνταπόδοσις, or second. Thus it is oft in other places, see chap. vi. 56. ἐν ἐμοὶ μένει, κᾶγω ἐν αὐτῷ, as he remaineth in me, so also I in him. So καὶ αὐτὸς I John iv. 15. ὁ Θεὸς ἐν αὐτῷ μένει, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐν τῷ Θεῷ, as God abides in him, so he also in God; and again ver. 16, and here in this verse, where two parts (not three) of conviction seem to be set down, as the effects of Christ's resurrection, &c.: 1. They shall know that Christ is in his Father; that is, that he came truly with commission from him, and hath kept close to And this I say to all obedient servants of mine, whosoever they are, not only to you apostles; every faithful lover of me, ver. 15, shall be loved of my Father, and from me receive that evidence of my love, I will effectually make myself known to him after my resurrection, either by appearing to him myself, or by the testimony of those to whom I will appear. Upon this Judas, one of his disciples, still looking after a present shewing himself as a temporal Messias, asked him (see ch. vii. 4.) what was the reason that he would not manifest himself to the world as well as to them? Jesus answered, The reason is, because the world doth not practise my precepts, which they that do, by that express their love to me, and have this reward from my Father, that he loves them again; and he and I reveal ourselves to such, and delight to dwell with such. But this is not competible to the world, who neither love nor obey me, nor consequently my Father, whose word it is, and not mine own, which I preach unto you. expound to you all the obscurities of my speeches as far as is useful to your office, (see note [i] 1 Cor. xiii.) and put you in mind of all which I have now said to you, how they are fulfilled, and what they meant: see Acts xi. 16. I take my leave of you, and do it again heartily and affectionately; and that in a special peculiar way from that by which the world uses to do it: they in civility, when they salute you, or take their leave of you, use the like forms, Peace be to you, &c., but either do it formally and heartlessly, or else are not able to do any more than wish it; but I who cordially love, and am able to express my love, will effectually give it to you. Be not either troubled with grief (see note [a] ch. xi.) that I must be taken from you, nor fear what shall befall yourselves. I told you, ver. 19, that I am to go away, and after a few days return to you again, (see note [c] Acts xv.) and then return to my Father, from whom I came. If ye were kind to me, ye would have looked upon it with joy, as on a means of dignifying me, for he that sent is, as such, greater than I who am sent by him: and so my returning to my Father must needs be the advancing me to an higher condition than that which now I am in. I have not told you all this to afflict you, but to arm you for the expectation of it, by foretelling it, and withal that your seeing my prediction fulfilled may convince you that all which I have said to you is true, and so make you believe on me. what is the matter, τί γέγονεν. I abide with you, παρ' ὑμῖν μίνων. you, ὑμῖν. 10 observe my word, τὸν λόγον μου τηρήσει. 12 Paraclete, the Holy, παράκλητος, τὸ Πν. 13 unto it, give I it to you, δίδωσιν, ἐγὼ δίδωμι ὑμῖν. F f 2 And as he was going on the way, he said to those that were near him, John, &c., I am the true (see note [f] ch. vi.) generous fruit-bearing vine, Jer. ii. 21, my blood as the blood of the grape shall rejoice the heart of God and man, Judg. ix. 13; and my Father, who hath thus planted me in this world here below, hath the whole ordering of all that belongs to me, and every branch, every believer, every member of my mystical body. Every barren member of my body (every unprofitable disciple or Christian) he proceeds to excision of, every one that is fruitful he diligently pruneth, and useth all other probable means to render it more fruitful. You are already sanctified by the operation of my doctrine and spirit upon you, though you may need farther pruning in order to that greater degree of fruitfulness, ver. 2. Do ye therefore take care, by your obedience and constancy, that I may be so fastened in your hearts, that I may never be out of them, or be provoked to withdraw myself from you, for this presence of mine is absolutely necessary to you to make you fruitful; as a branch cut off from the vine withers presently, is far from bringing forth any fruit, so he that falls off, or is by my Father's just judgment on And certainly I have long dealt with you as friends, far above the condition of servants, who use not to know their master's intentions or counsels or purposes, but only to do his commands, but I have received you as friends and confidents into my bosom, to make known all my Father's will unto you. And this I have done toward you by way of prevention, out of free undeserved kindness to you, and of my own accord, put you in this blessed course, enabled you to fructify and bring forth abundance of fruit to the honour and praise of God; appointed you to go abroad into all the world, and bring in an harvest of converts to heaven, which is a real and a durable fruit, and that which shall be advantageous to you also; devolve on you the benefit of having all your prayers heard by God, all your wants supplied by him, which you shall present to him in my name. All this concerning my love to you I inculcate and repeat on purpose, as an obligation to you, that (as the most eminent way of return which I expect from you to all this) you live in charity one toward another. And if ye find by experience that impious and hypocritical worldlings do, instead of believing, resist and persecute you, there is no reason that this should give you any discouragement; you are to expect that, and arm yourselves against it by this consideration, that such as these persecuted me before you, and so as I began in love to you, so I have had the first taste of the enmity and hatred of the wicked men of this world. These men's opposing and hating you will be a comfortable symptom to you, that you are a peculiar people of mine, dignified above and separated from the rest of men. And that you are likely to meet with such entertainment need not be strange to you, when you remember how oft I have foretold you of it, that you could not in reason expect any better treating than I have met with before you; if they have persecuted me, in all probability they will persecute you also, and, on the other side, you have no more reason to expect of the world that it should receive your preaching, than that it should receive mine. All this have I said to fortify you, that you should not be deterred from my service by the hazards which attend it. My discourse to you hitherto may have had some darkness in it, which I designed on purpose, but the Holy Ghost shall set all before you plainly, (see note [a] ch. vii.) according as it is my Father's pleasure to have things ordered in the church, see ver. 13. 26, 27. And one benefit that by my ascension and the descent of the Spirit shall come to you is, that you shall not need my offering up your prayers for [b] without a cause] The Greek δωρεὰν which properly signifies gratis, without any hire, freely, without intuition of wages, and is so taken Matt. x. 8, Rom. iii. 24, 2 Cor. xi. 7, Rev. xxi. 6, xxii. 17, is here, and Gal. ii. 21, taken for without a cause, whether impellent (as here, They hated me without any motive, or impulsive, to hatred on my part offered to them) or final, as in the Galat. Then did Christ die in vain, or to no purpose. The reason of these various acceptions of the word, beyond its native extent, is to be fetched from the like use of the Hebrew חָנֵּב, which signifies both these; and proportionably the Greek, though naturally it do not extend to these, is, according to the custom of these writers, used in the same largeness as the Hebrew is. They shall remove you from their assemblies, (see note [b] ch. ix.) and when they have done so, within a while, they shall think it not only lawful, ⁶ hath done, they should have no sin, πεποίηκεν, ἁμαρτίαν οὐκ the word written in their law might be fulfilled, they have, ἀλλ' ἵνα ⁸ Paraclete shall come, ἔλθῃ ὁ παράκλητος. ¹ scandalized. And the ground of their doing so is the great impiety of their hearts, (see note [d] ch. vi.) their not liking either the old commands of my Father, or those which I now bring from him. ᵃ Till this time that I am ready to depart from you, I did not think fit to say this to you, because, whilst I was here, all the malice of men bent itself wholly against me, letting you alone. 5, 6. But now as you come to be uppermost in this employment of revealing my Father's will, the opposition will light on you. This departure of mine fills you with sadness, and you are so intent upon the sad thought of it, that you do not ask one question about the end of my journey, or about the benefit that may rebound to you by it, and shall certainly do so. For let me tell you, the Holy Ghost is not to come till after my departing, and his coming shall be of more advantage to you than my staying would be. 8—11. And when he comes, he will plead my cause against the world, and lay against it all the three sorts of actions that are amongst the Jews usual in their courts, 1st, he shall charge it with the crime of not believing in me, by the gift of tongues, &c., evidencing, that I, that am to be preached by that means, am indeed the true Messias, and so likewise by the fulfilling those predictions which now I give you; 2dly, he shall vindicate and justify my mission and innocence, by my ascension to heaven, taking me away out of the reach of human malice, and rewarding my patience with his consolations; 3dly, he shall urge and work revenge upon Satan and his instruments who crucified me, and retaliate destruction back upon them. ⁸ offer God an oblation, or worship, λατρείαν προσφέρειν τῇ Θεῷ. ⁴ But I spake not these things to you from, ταῦτα δὲ ὑμῖν ἐξ ἀρχῆς οὐκ εἶπον. ⁶ And he, when he comes, shall convince the world concerning sin, and concerning righteousness, and concerning judgment. [a] Comforter] What is meant by the word Paraclete here attributed to the Holy Ghost, hath been mentioned, note on ch. xiv. 16, and will more fully be discernible by this place. For of the Paraclete, taken in the notion of an advocate, or actor, this is the office, to convince the κατήγορος or accuser, or as it is Tit. i. 9. ἐλέγχειν ἀντιλέγοντας, to justify the cause against all gainsayers, to convince them, or to convince others, that they have complained or acted unjustly. So that all that here follows must in any reason so be interpreted as shall agree with the customs of pleading causes among the Jews. Now there were three sorts of causes or actions among the Jews; 1. public judgments, περὶ ἁμαρτίας, לחשא, that is, concerning criminal matters, and those consisted in the condemnation and punishing of offenders against God, false prophets, &c.; 2dly, in the defending of the just or upright against all oppression, or invasion, or false testimony, and that is called לְצִדְקָה, concerning justice, or equity, or righteousness, περὶ δικαιουσύνης; Beside all that I have yet said, I have many things concerning the Christian law to reveal to you, which being so distant from the law of the Jews, wherein ye have been brought up, and for which you are so zealous, ye cannot yet receive or be patient of them. (See Orig. cont. Cels. l. 2.) But when the Holy Ghost comes, whose title it is to be the Spirit of truth, he shall instruct you what is to be done, teach you the full of my Father's will for the laying aside of the ceremonial external law of the Jews, freeing all Christians from that yoke, &c. For it shall be no private doctrine of his own which he shall reveal to you, but either that which I have already taught, but you have either not observed or forgotten, or that which you have not yet but afterwards to do, (how you are to behave yourselves in the business of the Jews and Gentiles, when the Jews finally reject the gospel, &c.,) and which I have not yet revealed to you, as being not yet seasonable. What he doth shall tend to the illustrating of me, for he, being sent from my Father by me, shall in all things accord with me, and thereby appear to have his message from me, and to declare nothing to you but what he hath from me. And when I say this, I mean not so to appropriate to myself as to exclude my Father, but because all things are common to me and my Father, and because all my will depends on the Father, and because it is my work wholly to attend the will of my Father, therefore, whatsoever of this nature he shall reveal to you, I call that mine, and the revealing of this, his taking of mine and declaring to you. Within a while I shall for a time be taken from you, then again within a little while after that I shall be with you again before my ascension, for it is not possible for me to be held by death, I must arise and go to my Father. b See vv. 23 and 30. [a] kept] The joining of εἰ ἐτήρησαν here with εἰ ἐδίωξαν makes it seem a little probable that τηρεῖν should be here taken in an ill sense, for an insidious observing or treacherous watching of Christ's words, as τηρεῖν and παρατηρεῖν are sometimes used (see Luke xx. 26.) and so also the Hebrew שָׁמֶר (psalm lvi. 7, they observe, that is, watch my steps, when they lay wait for my soul,) and Job vii. 20. נָצַר, when God is said to be the observer of men. But the use of this phrase τηρεῖν λόγους in the New Testament, especially in the writings of St. John, ch. viii. 55, ch. xiv. 23, 24. ch. xvii. 6. 1 John ii. 5. Rev iii. 8 and 10. ch. xxii. 7, 9, and that with ἐντολὰς, commands, instead of λόγους, words, very often, (and particularly in this chapter, ver. 10, twice,) will be sufficient reason to reject this rendering, and to read it literally, If they have kept my word, they will also keep your word, that is, obey and observe it; making their not observing the word of Christ an argument that they will not observe the apostles' neither; or that by this experiment of their dealing with Christ they may learn what kind of dealing or entertainment is to be looked for from the world for the disciples of Christ, agreeable perfectly to what was before said of the world's persecuting them also. All the persecutions that shall fall on you, being upon the score of their not believing that God hath sent me. If I had not done what I have among them, they might have had the excuse of ignorance, but now they are utterly without excuse. I have done so much to evidence my being sent from God, that now the opposing me is a malicious resisting of my Father himself. [b] in that day] Ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ, in that day, here may possibly be mistaken, by assigning too restrained a sense to it. For if it be applied to that part only of the precedent verse, But I will see you By this is fulfilled that of the psalmist, Ps. xxxv. 19, they have opposed me when they had all reason to have received and loved me. 26, 27. But at the coming of the Holy Ghost, that pleader or advocate of my cause, (see note [b] ch. xiv.) whom I will send from the Father, that Spirit which proceedeth from the Father, and who by his coming will open men's eyes, and give them a right understanding of me, he shall maintain my cause against all opposers, by coming down on you shall give you assurance of my being sent from God, and by the gift of tongues shall enable you to convince all others, and shall constitute you witnesses of it to all, as being the fittest to do so by your having been eyewitnesses of all that I have done, having been with me at the first, and never departed from me since. * the time of my suffering is come, enable me to go thorough all that is now before me, ready to come upon me, and receive me up into thy glory, ver. 5, that in the strength of my resurrection, the gospel may be received and believed in over the whole world. According as thou hast given me power of sentencing all men, condemning or absolving them, which power is to be instated on me at my resurrection, that I may give eternal life to all, whom thou hast so given me, so inclined their hearts that they cordially and sincerely come unto me: see note [d] ch. vi. And all that is required to make men partakers of this eternal life, is, beside the knowledge of the Father, the only true God, (together with obedience to his commands formerly revealed by him,) the embracing Christ, and acknowledging his commission from the Father, (and him as the only true God also, 1 John v. 20,) and so receiving and observing all that is said and commanded by him. I have testified and proclaimed thy will here in this world, and so glorified thee here, and have done all which thou hast appointed me to do by way of office or ministry here. And do thou now, O Father, deal with me proportionably, assume this passible, mortal, human nature of mine, wherein I have served thee, unto a participation of that honour and dignity and glory, which, before I took this nature on me, I enjoyed with thee before the foundation of the world, even from all eternity, see Phil. ii. 6, 9. I have made known thy will to those peculiar disciples, ver. 18, whom thou wert pleased by thy grace to fit, and so to bring to me, to undertake my discipleship, and attend me in the nearest relation, who being servants of thine have received my word, and obeyed it as thine, (see note [d] ch. vi.,) and served me in the publishing of it. These have cordially acknowledged that all that message, ver. 4, on which I was sent was committed to me by thee. For that message by thee committed to me I have committed to them, and they have received it, as that which in my name they will communicate from thee to the world, being sufficiently assured that my coming and preaching was all by commission from thee. 9, 10. I now offer up a prayer peculiarly for them, which I know are most precious in thy sight, (praying for all believers, ver. 20, and at other times, though not now, for his very crucifiers,) and that prayer for that, which for others I cannot pray, a And this, because now I am likely to leave them to hazards and persecutions, and whilst I am a leaving the world they tarry in it: therefore, holy Father, I beseech thee, take them into thy tuition, and protect them in the discharge of their apostleship, which after my departure lies wholly on them; keep all my disciples by thy power, (and by that declaration of thy will, which thou hast afforded me by the gospel, thy power unto salvation of all believers,) from peril and defection, that they may live to teach and preach uniformly (all agreeing in the same) what I have taught them, in like manner as I have taught (without any alteration) what I had from thee. All this while of my continuing among them I have laboured, by revealing thy will to them, to confirm them, and also to preserve them from danger, and it hath succeeded well: of all those whose hearts were by thy preventing grace so prepared, as that they came to me and undertook my service, (see note But now that I am to depart from them, I beseech thee, and express this request of mine publicly, while I am here, that that courage which I exhort them to, and that cheerfulness, in passing through all hazards, may, by their knowing that I thus pray for them, be confirmed in them, and that the joy, which my presence among them now maintains and holds up in them, may be continued to them completely when I am gone, by remembering what I have now done for them. They will not be for the world to like or entertain any more than I have been. Be thou pleased therefore to set them apart, to fit them, and consecrate them for the preaching of thy truth, the gospel. (See ver. 19, and St. Chryssostome.) 18, 19. For to this office and undertaking they are sent by me, as I was by thee, (see ch. xx. 21,) therefore I intercede, and withal I offer myself up a sacrifice, for the consecrating of them, that they may do as I do, venture their lives in the preaching thy will, and by this offering of mine, as the ceremony of their consecration, be consecrated, or set apart for that function. 20, 21. And what I beg for them I beg also for all succeeding believers, which shall by them hereafter be brought to the faith, (and succeed them in the government of the church,) that they also may accord and continue uniformly in one faith and doctrine, that which I from thee have taught, and this by obeying our example, following the copy which we have set them, by agreeing one with the other in all things, that so this agreement of all (thee, and me, and them) may be a powerful means of convincing the world that I am sent by thee, which the divisions (and dissensions) of my disciples may bring into suspicion. As for my disciples, (to whom he returns again, the 20th and 21st verses being included in a parenthesis, see note [d] ch. vi.) to this end I have furnished them with the power of working miracles, (called the glory of God, ch. xi. 40, and the glorious things done by him, Luke xiii. 13,) that they may preach this doctrine. Do thou therefore sanctify them also, that as I have been able to do whatsoever works of power thou art able to work, so they may be able to do also, through the presence of our power working in them. I working in, and enabling them, as thou dost me, that they may be thus fitted and consecrated to their office, in being partakers of the same miraculous power, and through zeal to thy truth, confer all their