Introductory remarks:
"Jesus declines the advise of His brethren, to go openly to Jerusalem, and show Himself to the world; but at His own time goes quietly up, and about the midst of the Feast stands forth in the Temple teaching" (David Brown).
The Unbelief of Jesus' Brothers
Verse 1, "After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for He would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill Him."
LGT "And after these things Jesus walked around in Galilee: for He did not desire to be walking around in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill Him."
"After these things Jesus walked in Galilee."
'After these things', is a very common phrase used by John, as you have probably noticed; it means after the events of chapter six, in this case. These events of chapter seven begin the last six months of His life. The term 'walked in Galilee' is an imperfect tense, 'periepatei', meaning that He continued walking about.
"For He would not walk in Jewry,"
The Greek word for 'Jewry' is 'Ioudaiai', which is 'Judeans', or the land of the Judeans, which is Judea. The next phrase explains why He would not go back to Judea.
"Because the Jews sought to kill Him."
The Father had a perfect timetable for the Lord, and this included avoiding the Jews of Judea; the Jews [the religious establishment in Judea - Bruce] were not going to be able to take the Lord and kill Him until it was His time. McGee says that the storm is gathering, and that the storm of controversy has been raging ever since, around the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. No one in the history of the world has caused as much controversy.
Verse 2, "Now the Jews' feast of tabernacles was at hand."
LGT "Now was near the feast of the Jews, the tabernacle."
The life of Jesus Christ will end the same as it had begun, at a feast.
"But now the Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. The pilgrims would probably arrive in Jerusalem before the opening day of the festival. For, besides the needful preparations - which would require time, especially on this feast, when booths had to constructed in which to live during the festive week - it was (as we remember) the common practice to offer sacrifices as might have previously become due at any of the great Feasts to which the people might go up. Remembering that five months had elapsed since the last great Feast (that of Weeks), many such sacrifices must have been due. Accordingly, the ordinary festive companies of pilgrims, which would travel slowly, must have started from Galilee some time before the beginning of the Feast. These circumstances fully explain the details of the narrative. They also afford another most painful illustration of the loneliness of Christ in His work. His disciples had failed to understand, they misapprehended His teaching. In the near prospect of His Death they either displayed gross ignorance, or else disputed about their future rank. And His own 'brethren' did not believe in Him. The whole course of late events, especially the unmet challenge of the Scribes for 'a sign from heaven,' had deeply shaken them. What was the purpose of 'works,' if done in the privacy of the circle of Christ's Apostles, in a house, a remote district, or even before an ignorant multitude? If, claiming to be the Messiah, He wished to be openly known as such, He must use other means. If He really did these things, let Him manifest Himself before the world - in Jerusalem, the capital of their world, and before those who could test the reality of His works. Let Him come forward, at one of Israel's great Feasts, in the Temple, and especially at this Feast, which pointed to the Messianic ingathering of all nations. Let Him now go up with them in the festive company into Judea, that so His disciples - not the Galileans only, but all - might have the opportunity of 'gazing' on His works" (The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah -page 563 - Alfred Edersheim).
Verse 3, "His brethren therefore said unto Him, Depart hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples also may see the works that Thou doest."
LGT "His brothers therefore said to Him, Depart from here and go up into Judea, in order that your disciples might behold the works which you are doing."
These brothers were the half brothers of Jesus. They did not believe that He was the promised Messiah, and urged Him to depart into Judea where they believe He would have to show proof. McGee says, "These brethren are not His disciples but are His half-brothers. Their names are given to us in Matthew 13:55: James, Joses, Simon, and Judas. His half-brother, James, is the one who wrote the Epistle of James; His half-brother, Judas, probably wrote the Epistle of Jude. That was much later, of course, and at this point His brothers do not believe in Him. They are giving Him advice that He can't use at all."
Verse 4, "For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If Thou do these things, shew Thyself to the world."
LGT "For no one does anything in secret and is seeking himself to be openly known. If You are doing these things, manifest yourself to the world."
His half-brothers were telling Jesus to show His great works to the whole world, and not hide them in the obscurity of a few followers. This sounds a little bit like the advice Satan gave Jesus in the 'Wilderness Temptations.'
"It seemed incredible to the brothers that any one who believed Himself to be the Messiah should deliberately avoid publicity. No one who aims at being a public figure will remain in the obscurity of a regional backwater, as Jesus (to the brothers' way of thinking) had now done for a year. He had performed wonderful works in Galilee, but why not repeat them in Jerusalem, at the heart of the Jewish world? When they said, 'show yourself to the world', they meant 'to everyone'. Everyone who mattered in Israel, at home or abroad, was likely to be found in Jerusalem during the great harvest-home celebration. But John, after his fashion, probably sees a deeper meaning in the brothers' language. By going to Jerusalem, Jesus will indeed show Himself to 'the world' in the widest sense; Jerusalem is the place where He must be 'lifted up' so that all without distinction may be drawn to Him (John 2:14; 12:32)" [The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce].
Verse 5, "For neither did His brethren believe in Him."
LGT "For not even His brothers were believing on Him." (Robertson's translation)
The words 'not believing' are in the imperfect tense making reference to the continuous act of their disbelief. This is the verse referred to earlier in the comments on verse three that His brothers had not yet believed in Christ. Robertson says, "A sad picture of the persistent refusal of the brothers of Jesus to believe in His Messianic assumptions, after the two rejections in Capernaum (Luke 4:16-31; Mark 6:1-6), and also after the blasphemous accusation of being in league with Beelzebub when the mother and brothers came to take Jesus home (Mark 3:31-35). The brothers here are sarcastic". Bruce adds, "This is the impression that we get from the Synoptic Gospels also. Those who went to restrain Him at Capernaum because people thought He was out of His senses, according to Mark 3:21, were His relatives ('His family' NEB). And it appears that, when His mother and brothers called for Him around the time (Mark 3:31), they did so because they failed to understand the nature and motives of the work in which He was engaged. It is not until after His resurrection that His brothers are found among His followers (Acts 1:14), and this is no doubt due to His having appeared in resurrection to James (I Cor. 15:7). At this stage, however, His brothers did not believe in Him because He failed so utterly to live up to their preconception of the kind of person the Messiah would be and the kind of things He would do."
Verse 6, "Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is always ready."
LGT "Therefore Jesus saying to them, My appointed time is not yet come, but your time is always ready."
"My time is not yet come:"
At Cana when He turned the water to wine He told His mother, Mine 'hour' is not yet come. Here He says My 'appointed time' is not yet come. That time appointed is when He will go to Jerusalem and 'show Himself to the world.' McGee adds: "Notice the little word 'yet' in 'My time is not yet come.' Jesus did not say that He would not go down to the feast, but He was not going down with them publicly to win public favor by something spectacular, or whatever they wanted Him to do. He would go at His Father's appointed time and in His Father's way."
"But your time is always ready."
The Lord lived in constant antagonism with the world, but his brothers were free at any time to associate freely with the world. Bruce says, 'Those who, like His brothers, did not believe in Him did not experience the world's hostility. How could they? They belonged to the world.' Jesus' entry into the world exposed the world's evils, and no one wants to see that they are evil. This is one reason the world at large is so hostile today to any mention of the Lord Jesus Christ; the world does not believe in Him, so all they can do is resist Him with defying words of insults and blasphemies.
Verse 7, "The world cannot hate you; but Me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil."
LGT "The world is not able to be hating you, but Me it is hating, because I am witnessing concerning it that the works of it are evil."
"The world cannot hate you:"
Vincent calls this 'cannot' an inherent (inborn) impossibility. The reason he calls it impossible is that the brothers belong to the world at this time, and the world does not hate its own. The brothers do not testify against the world, so they all get along just fine. Calvin says, "For peace with the world can only be purchased by a wicked consent to vices and to every kind of wickedness."
"But Me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil."
Here Jesus adds 'But Me it hates.' Now we know why the world hates Jesus Christ, it is because He is the Light of the world. Remember the world loves darkness rather than light because its deeds are evil continually. The world likes to cover its love of darkness by human acts of kindness; which we know are acts of the flesh to distract from a real hatred of divine good. Human works are just that, human good, and none amount to a hill of beans, in God's sight. Jesus came into the world and as John writes, "The light shone, and is still shining, and the darkness comprehended it not." Did you know that vermin come out at night, and scurry back to their holes like a roach when exposed to the light? The light exposes every form of sin, and the world loves sin. It doesn't matter what the Christian community speaks out against, some Supreme Court Justice will rule in favor of the world, and rule whatever God's Word says is evil as equitable and reasonable. The Word of God is the Light of the world today, and anyone who adheres to the precepts of this Word, they will meet with opposition from every corner of the world.
"When Christ says that the world hates Him on this account, He means that the Gospel cannot be faithfully preached without summoning the whole world, as guilty, to the judgment-seat of God, that flesh and blood may thus be crushed and reduced to nothing, according to the saying, When the Spirit shall come, He will reprove the world of sin, (John 16:8). We learn from it also, that so great is the pride natural to men, that they flatter and applaud themselves in their vices; for they would not kindle into rage, when they are reproved, were it not that they are blinded by excessive love of themselves, and on that account flatter themselves in their sins. Even among the vices of men, the chief and most dangerous is pride and arrogance" (John Calvin's Commentary on The Gospel of John).
Verse 8, "Go ye unto the feast: I go not up yet unto the feast; for My time is not yet full come."
LGT "You all go up unto the feast: I am not going unto this feast, because My time has not yet been fulfilled."
"Go ye unto the feast:"
Robertson says, "Take your own advice (verse 3) and go up to the feast, but I am not going yet." There was no reason that His half brothers couldn't go at any time, for there was no opposition for them, they were part and parcel of the world.
"I go not up yet unto the feast; for My time is not yet full come."
The Greek word for 'full come' is a perfect passive indicative, 'peplerotai' meaning 'fulfilled.' Jesus is not saying He will not go to the feast, He is saying 'not yet.' So we see from this statement that He is not contradicting verse 10, where we see He does go. The Lord says it is not time, because I am on the Father's timetable, I do not make a move outside of it. The Lord does not move at the urging of His brothers; He is only moved by the will and perfect plan of the Father.
Verse 9, "When He had said these words unto them, He abode still in Galilee."
LGT "And having said these things to them He remained in Galilee."
There is no word 'still' in the Greek text. The word emeinen is a constant aorist meaning He remained for several days (Robertson). It wasn't 'wishy-washy' of the Lord not to go at this time; "He was just very resolute [steadfast] to go at the exact time appointed by His Father, not one step ahead, and not to lag behind" (Bruce).
Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles
A brief description of the Feast of Tabernacles in order to have a reference of the importance the Jews placed on these sacred feast:
"Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, 'On the fifteenth of this seventh month is the Feast of Booths [Tabernacles] for seven days to the Lord" (Leviticus 23:34).
"You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, so that your generation may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the Land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God" (Leviticus 23:42,43).
"Also you shall observe the Feast of the Harvest of the first fruits of your labors from what you sow in the field; also the Feast of ingathering at the end of the year when you gather in the fruit of your labors from the field. Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord" (Exodus 23:16,17)
"You shall celebrate the Feast of Booths [Tabernacles] seven days after you have gathered in from your threshing floor and your wine vat: and you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter and female servants and the Levite and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your towns. Seven days you shall celebrate a feast to the Lord your God in the place, which the Lord chooses, because the Lord your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you shall be altogether joyful. Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which the Lord your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God which He has given you" (Deuteronomy 16:13-17). [The above is a brief summary from chapter fourteen of 'The Temple Its Ministry and Service - Alfred Edersheim]
Verse 10, "But when His brethren were gone up, then went He also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret."
LGT "But when His brothers had gone up unto the Feast, then He also went up not openly but [as] in secret."
This verse is in opposition to verse four where His brothers urged Him to go openly. "The secrecy of His journey to Jerusalem is regarding His pilgrimage only and not to His ministry when he gets there" (Robertson). McGee says, that "Jesus probably traveled the back-roads until He got to Jerusalem, and then entered Jerusalem through the back Sheep-gate. Jesus probably always entered through the Sheep-gate, until His Triumphal Entry when He offered Himself to the world." He was probably accompanied by His disciples, but it is not expressly mentioned, for the twelve were the ones chosen to minister unto Christ during His stay. He bids farewell to Galilee, never to see it again.
Verse 11, "Then the Jews sought Him at the feast and said, Where is He?"
LGT "Therefore the Jews were seeking Him in the feat and they said, Where is that man?"
"Then the Jews sought Him at the feast,"
It is better translated 'therefore' instead of 'then', because He did not leave immediately with the Galileans.
The Jews spoken of here are the religious rulers, for Jesus was required to come to the feast; His brothers probably told the rulers that Jesus refused to come. "In Jerusalem the Sanhedrin ran the show, that is, they held Jewish executive power subject to the overruling power of the Roman governor" (Bruce).
The word 'sought' is an imperfect tense meaning 'they kept on seeking Him' (Vincent).
"Where is He?"
Literally, 'Where is that One' ekeinos of whom we have heard, and whom we once saw (Vincent). The Jews were saying just let us know where He is and maybe this time we will be able to arrest Him.
Verse 12, "And there was much murmuring among the people concerning Him: for some said, He is a good man: others said Nay: but He deceiveth the people."
"LGT "And there was much murmuring concerning Him among the multitudes: some said that He is good, [and] others said, Not so, but He leads the multitudes astray."
"And there was much murmuring among the people concerning Him."
The Greek word for 'murmuring' is gogguzo' meaning 'secret displeasure' or 'querulous [grouchy] discontent.' Among the people is lit. 'Among the multitudes' or 'crowds.' "These different groups were visitors from Galilee and elsewhere and were divided in their opinion of Jesus as the Galileans had already become (6:66)" (Robertson).
"For some said, He is a good Man: others said Nay;"
There were some among the multitude that supported Jesus, even though they were the minority, and would not be able to sway the negative faction, led by the Jewish leaders, for they answered the good crowd with a resounding negative 'Not so! Calvin writes "This passage shows likewise that in a great multitude, even when the whole body is in a state of confusion, there are always some who think aright; but those few persons, whose minds are well regulated, are swallowed up by the multitude of those whose understandings are bewildered."
"The pilgrims from all parts of the country - perhaps, they from abroad also - had expected Him there, for everyone would now speak of Him - 'not openly', in Jerusalem, for they feared of their rulers. It was hardly safe to speak of Him without reserve. But they sought Him, and inquired after Him - and they did speak of Him, though there was only a murmuring - a low, confused discussion of the pro and con, in this great controversy among the 'multitudes', or festive bands from various parts. Some said: He is a good man, while others declared that He only led astray the common, ignorant populace" (The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah - Alfred Edersheim).
"But He deceiveth the people."
The Greek word for 'deceived' is planai meaning to go astray. So it would read lit. 'He is leading the people astray.' "In the end the Jewish leaders will call Jesus 'That deceiver' (Matt. 27:63)" (Robertson).
Verse 13, "Howbeit no man spake openly of Him for fear of the Jews."
LGT "No one certainly publicly was speaking concerning Him because of the fear of the Jews."
As has already been noted, all the people feared the ruling Jews, because they had the government in their back-pockets. No one was willing to speak openly for or against Jesus, for as Calvin points out, the ruling Jews were not opposed to hear evil spoken of Christ, but what they really wanted was to bury Christ's name completely.
Verse 14, "Now about the midst of the Feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught."
LGT "But [the] feast being already midway, Jesus went up into the temple and began to teach."
The leaders of the Jews had asked (verse 11) where is He? Here He is in the temple beginning to teach, that's where. Bruce says, "But He went up quietly, arriving in the city half-way through the festival week, and the people who had been discussing Him suddenly realized that He was there among them, teaching in the outer court of the temple (where a number of rabbis had their 'teaching pitches' [tents]). Edersheim notes: "According to the Talmud Babha K. 113a, regular festive lectures commenced in the Academies thirty days before each of the great Feasts. Those who attended them were called Beney Rigla, in distinction to the Beney Khalla, who attended the regular Sabbath lectures."
Verse 15, "And the Jews marveled, saying, How knoweth this Man letters, having never learned."
LGT "Therefore the Jews were wondering saying, How is this Man knowing letters not having learned."
"And the Jews marveled,"
The word 'marveled' is ethaumazon an imperfect tense meaning 'the Jews were wondering.' Now what exactly caught their eye and caused them to wonder?
"How knoweth this Man letters, having never learned."
The lord had not attended any of their Seminaries, or as far as these Jews knew, had He ever gone to any school. Robertson, quoting Wescott, writes, "The marvel was that Jesus showed Himself familiar with the literary methods of the time, which were supposed to be confined to the scholars of the popular teachers." The phrase 'having never learned' is me memathekos a perfect active participle; our English word 'mathematics' meaning 'to learn' is derived from this word. Robertson adds: "It is not the wisdom of Jesus that disconcerted the Jewish leaders, but His learning (Marcus Dods). And yet Jesus had not attended either of the rabbinical theological schools in Jerusalem (Hillel, Shammai). He was not a rabbi in the technical sense, only a carpenter, and yet He surpassed the professional rabbis in the use of their own methods of debate. It is sometimes true today that unschooled men in various walks of life forge ahead of men of lesser gifts with school training. See the puzzle of the Sanhedrin concerning Peter and John (Acts 4:13). This is not an argument against education, but it takes more than education to make a real man. Probably this sneer at Jesus came from some of the teachers in the Jerusalem seminaries. "Christ was in the eyes of the Jews a merely self-taught enthusiast' (Wescott)".
Verse 16, "Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but Him that sent Me."
LGT "Therefore Jesus answered them and said, My teaching is not Mine but the One who sent Me."
To believe in Christ and His message is to believe in God the father. This verse not only proves to Me the deity of Christ, but also the Trinity of the Godhead, that is, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Robertson notes: "Jesus' teaching is not self-oriented nor is it the product of the OT schools (the Talmud in contrast to the NT). The bold claim is here made that His teaching is superior in character and source to that of the rabbis (their Talmud). The OT prophets would say 'Thus says the Lord' when they gave out God's message. Bruce notes the difference in what Christ says and what the OT prophets would say: "As the works which He did were those which the Father had given Him to do (John 5:36), so the words which He spoke were those which the Father had given Him to speak (cf. John 3:34). Yet whereas the prophets said 'Thus says the Lord', Jesus, exercising the authority given to Him by the Father, said 'I say to you' - 'Indeed and in truth I tell you'. The form of words in which He makes a distinction between 'Me' and 'Him who sent Me' is found in the Synoptic Gospels (cf. Mark 9:37 with its parallels Matt. 10:40; Luke 9:48), but it is more frequent in this Gospel."
Verse 17, "If any man will do His will, He shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God or whether I speak of Myself."
LGT "If any one desires His purpose to be practicing, He will know concerning the teaching whether it is out of God [sourced out of God] or I from Myself am speaking."
"If any man will do His will,"
"If any one 'will' lit. thelei 'desires' to 'do', lit. poiein 'practice', His will lit. thelema 'purpose'. So this phrase means 'If any one wishes to know God's purpose for them.' Vincent puts it this way: "If any ones moral purpose is in sympathy or consideration with the divine will." This is another way of saying 'we must view everything from the divine perspective.
"He shall know of the doctrine,"
If any one wishes to know God's purpose in anything He can find it in the Word of God. If any one wants to know the truth, God by His Holy Spirit will for certain teach that one. The Greek word for doctrine is tes didaches meaning 'the teaching' of Christ. The article used with teaching separates them from the teachings of men, religious or otherwise.
"Whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself."
For those critics that believe Christ is making up these things concerning Himself, He makes the promise that any one can know the truth if he purposes by the Word of God to know it. These people did not want to know the truth, and they will not come to know the truth. The difference between Christ's teaching (doctrine) and the teaching of other men is that Christ's teaching 'is sourced out of God.' When Christ says 'whether I am speaking from Myself'' He is not speaking of the content of the message, for it would always be true if Christ were speaking, for Christ cannot lie; what He is saying is that His motives are also pure, as His message is pure. There is a principle He is setting forth, simply that He is God's Messenger, with God's Message, and He is seeking not His own glory, but the glory of His Father who sent Him. If He were seeking His own glory He would have plenty of followers.
Verse 18, "He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but He that seeketh His glory that sent Him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him."
LGT "The one speaking from himself is seeking his own glory: but the One seeking the glory of the One who sent Him He is true and unrighteousness in Him is not."
"He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory:"
Here Jesus is setting forth the principle that anyone who is speaking from his own reservoir of knowledge is seeking glory for himself. Robertson notes: "This kind of teacher is self-taught, pushes his own ideas, presses his own claims for position and glory, 'blows his own horn' as we say. Jesus is the other type of teacher, seeks the glory of the One who sent Him, whose herald and ambassador He is."
"But He that seeketh His glory that sent Him,"
Jesus' entire ministry was to get people to look to God and glorify Him whose commission Jesus was fulfilling. Jesus never did seek glory for Himself, and even at the end of His suffering on the cross He looked up and said, 'Father, into Thy hands I commend My Spirit.'
"The same is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him."
Jesus is saying this in opposition to the statement of the self-seeking one who promotes himself. Jesus has the Father's glory in His mind at all times. Jesus is always speaking the truth and there is no unrighteous motive in Him. McGee says, "Unfortunately, men are often more interested in a man who is seeking his own glory. If Jesus Christ had been trying to found some new cult, these men would have listened. But Jesus was not glorifying Himself; rather, He was giving all the glory to the Father and so 'Â…the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned' (I Cor. 2:14). Therefore, some people read the Bible and get nothing out of it."
Verse 19, "Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you keepeth the Law? Why go ye about to kill Me?"
LGT "Has not Moses given you the Law? And not one of you is keeping the Law. Why are you seeking to kill Me?"
"Did not Moses give you the Law, and yet none of you keepeth the Law?"
These Jews are such hypocrites. They continually claim the Law of Moses as their religious sanctimonious defense, and yet as Christ points out, 'none of you are keeping the Law.'
"Why go ye about to kill Me?"
Christ continues, 'Why are you seeking to kill Me?', don't you know the Law of Moses says, 'Thou shall not kill?' The last time Jesus was in Jerusalem these Jews tried to get Christ arrested for 'breaking the Sabbath.' Jesus used Moses as a testimony against them then and He is using Moses as a testimony against them now, showing that they are the ones who are breaking the Law, not Him (Bruce). The entire purpose of the Law is to 'Bring the lost soul to Christ' (Gal. 3:24); now they are face to face with Christ and they are seeking to kill Him; this is not the way it is supposed to work. Moses' ministry throughout pointed the way to Christ, and now that He has come, these Jewish leaders wanted to rid themselves of Him, by killing Him.
Verse 20, "The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill Thee?"
LGT "The multitude answered, You are having a demon: Who is seeking to kill You?"
The multitude reacted to Christ by calling Him crazy, 'You are demon possessed.' This multitude was obviously that faction that was opposed to Him. They are accusing Jesus of being delusional; they asked Him, where would you get such an idea that we are about to kill you; are you paranoid? The fact is that Jesus knew more about this crowd than they knew about themselves. Jesus knew what their plans were, and He knew that He was the main subject of their devious plans, for soon, within months, they would crucify Him. This crowd is different from those Jewish leaders Christ addressed in verse 19; this crowd is responding to what they were hearing Christ speaking in the outer court of the temple to the Jewish leaders; they were beginning to be aroused into frenzy. Calvin says, "Again, the multitude reproach Christ with simplicity; for the common people were not acquainted with the intentions of the priests. Those foolish men, therefore, ascribe it to madness, when Christ complains that they are endeavoring to put Him to death."
Verse 21,"Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye marvel."
LGT "Jesus answered and said to them, One work I have done you are all amazed?"
Jesus is here referring to His healing the impotent man at the pool of Bethesda (5:1ff.). Robertson comments: "He had wrought other miracles before (2:23; 4:45), but this one [healing the impotent man] on the Sabbath caused the rulers to try to kill Jesus (5:18). Some wondered then, others had murder in their hearts. This crowd here is ignorant." This ignorant crowd even after being rebuked by the Lord is still in a rage over what had happened at the pool. The amazement of the crowd over the healing of the impotent man was genuine, however, they had mixed emotions over it having been done on the Sabbath, breaking Moses' Law, as they supposed; then Jesus explained that what He had done was extremely appropriate for the Sabbath (Bruce).
Verse 22, "Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man."
LGT "Because of this Moses has given you circumcision - not because it is out of Moses, but out of the fathers - and on [the] Sabbath you circumcise a man."
This verse may be connected with the last meaning that circumcision was given long before Moses; for it was given to Abraham, that every male child at the age of eight was to be circumcised; if his eighth day fell on the Sabbath, so be it, he was still to be circumcised, and therefore they were Sabbath breakers. McGee notes: "Circumcision is a rite which goes back to Abraham and is older than the Mosaic Law. He is showing them their own inconsistency in their practice. In trying to keep the Law, they broke the Law. If a child was eight days old on the Sabbath day, they would break the Sabbath Law and circumcise the child, They have no reply to this!"
Calvin notes on this verse: "And although Christ accommodates the instance of circumcision to the present subject, yet He immediately makes use of a correction, when He says, that Moses was not the first minister of circumcision. But it was enough for His purpose, that Moses, who so rigidly demanded the keeping of the Sabbath, commanded that infants should be circumcised on the eight day, even though it should fall on the day of rest."
Verse 23, "If a man on the Sabbath Day receive circumcision, that the Law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at Me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the Sabbath Day?"
LGT "If a man receives circumcision on (the) Sabbath in order that the Law of Moses is not broken, you are incensed with Me because I made a man entirely sound on (the) Sabbath."
"If a man on the Sabbath Day receive circumcision, that the Law of Moses is not broken;"
As noted above the Jews were so rigid when it came to the law of circumcision that if a male child reached the age of eight days on the Sabbath, the Sabbath rule would have to be ignored so they could circumcise the Child; in their eyes then, no law has been transgressed, because of the importance of circumcision.
"Are ye angry at Me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the Sabbath Day?"
The Greek words for 'every whit whole' are holon hugie meaning the 'entire man,' not just one of his members, but the entire man was healed. Christ's rightly asks the question, 'If you set aside the Sabbath keeping, in order to complete another ritual, how can you be so angry with Me for healing an impotent man completely?' Bruce adds: "Jesus argues that if the Sabbath Law may rightly be suspended for the removal of a small piece of tissue from one part of the body, it cannot be wrong to heal a man's whole body on the Sabbath Day. This type of argument, in fact, was used by some rabbis to justify medical treatment in a case of urgency on the Sabbath, but Jesus uses it to justify an act of healing whether urgent or not."
Verse 24, "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."
LGT "Stop judging according to sight, but the righteous judgment you should judge."
Jesus is saying that they should not be judging 'superficially', that is, by appearance only. If they were judging righteously, they would have penetrated beyond the mere human understanding meaning of the Law, and they would have gone into the depths and would have seen the divine purpose of the Law. Calvin points out 'that these Jews hatred for Christ is what makes them superficial.' Their hatred for the Man, made them judge incorrectly; for they knew it was lawful to circumcise on the Sabbath, and they very well knew it was lawful for Christ to heal on the Sabbath.
Is This the Christ?
Verse 25, "Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this He, whom they seek to kill?"
LGT "Therefore said some of the Jerusalemites, Is not this [the] One whom they are seeking to kill?"
The crowd from Jerusalem was not as familiar with Jesus as the Galilean crowd. The inhabitants of Jerusalem knew how the hatred burned among the Jewish leaders for this Jesus, and they were seeking to kill Him. There was a definite division among this crowd as to who Christ was, and what His purpose was.
Verse 26, "But, lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?"
LGT "But behold boldly He is speaking and they are saying nothing to Him. The rulers do not know do they truly that this One is the Christ?"
"But, lo, He speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto Him."
This is quite confusing to most of the crowd how that these Jerusalemites were seeking to kill Jesus, and yet here He is speaking in public and the ones plotting to kill Him are saying and doing nothing.
"Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?"
John uses the interrogative particle 'mepote' that is lit. 'They do not know, do they'? (Vincent). The inquisitive crowd is saying in effect, if they knew, they would obviously do something about it. The fact that everyone in the crowd is ignorant of is that they are all unaware of God's timetable, and that not one hair on Christ's head would be harmed, until He says so. Of course they were really not interested in the truth Christ was preaching, they were already blinded with jealous rage.
Verse 27, "Howbeit we know this man whence He is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence He is.
LGT "But this One we know where [He] is: but when Christ may come no one will know where [He] is."
"Howbeit we know this man whence He is:"
The Galilean crowd was well aware of Jesus and His ancestry, but they were not aware that he was born in Bethlehem. They were saying this man couldn't possibly be who He says He is, because all our facts don't fit. Calvin writes: "So long as the rulers were opposed to Christ, their unbelief would of itself have kept back the multitude; but when that obstacle has been removed, they contrive a new reason for themselves, that they may not come to the faith."
"But when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence He is."
From their knowledge of prophecy these Galileans were convinced that the Messiah would come secretly, maybe just drop out of the sky, who knows? What they were convinced of was that this Jesus was from Nazareth, and could not possibly be their promised Messiah.
"But the suggestion that He could be the Messiah, and especially that the authorities has been convinced that He was the Messiah, is immediately scouted. In the discussion, which follows, three popularly held criteria of Messiah-ship are mentioned. The first of these is mentioned in verse 27, and Jesus did not appear to conform to it. It was widely believed that the Messiah, after coming into the world, would remain hidden in some unsuspected place until the divinely appointed time for His public manifestation came. But (said they) this man has not remained hidden until now; every one knows where He comes from. This is an instance of 'Johannine irony (sarcasm). They were thinking of Jesus' Galilean home; to them He was 'Jesus of Nazareth'. But John has in mind a profounder answer to the question whence Jesus came - an answer which comes to expression in Jesus' next words" (The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce).
Verse 28, "Then cried Jesus in the temple as He taught, saying, Ye both know Me, and ye know whence I am; and I am not come of Myself, but He that sent Me is true, whom ye know not."
LGT "Therefore Jesus cried out in the temple while teaching also saying, You both know Me and know where I am; and that I have not come from Myself, but the One who sent Me is truth, Whom you do not know."
While Jesus is teaching he interrupts Himself and answers His disputants, with a loud clear voice.
"Ye both know Me, and whence I am;"
Jesus is using terse irony here by saying, in effect, 'You know everything, but you know nothing.' Their minds are set on killing Christ, and no amount of knowledge will deter them. There were two rebellious factions in the crowd, those from Galilee, and those from Jerusalem; Jesus says to them, you both know My earthly origin and background, but you really don't know Me.
"And I am not come of Myself, but He that sent Me is true, Whom ye know not."
The truth of the matter is, I am here because I was sent here by My Father in Heaven; this One is true, and you don't know the truth. Jesus is saying to these Jewish leaders that all their claims to know God is false, for if they knew what the prophets had taught about Him they would have recognized Him as their Messiah. Jesus says that His Father that sent Him is true, and everything that he says is true, and all the words that His Father gave Him to say are true, but they won't believe any part of His words, all they want to do is kill Christ.
Verse 29, "But I know Him: for I am from Him, and He hath sent Me."
LGT "I know Him, because I am from Him and that One sent Me."
Jesus is making the same claim He has used throughout His earthly ministry, 'I know Him;' 'No man knows the Father except the Son.' Jesus explains to the crowd in the temple that the reason that he knows the Father personally is that He was with Him in eternity past, and that the Father sent Him on this mission. Robertson notes, "The Greek word for 'sent' is aposteilen a first aorist active indicative of apestello', the very verb used of Jesus when He sent forth the twelve apostles (Matt. 10:5) and used again by Jesus of Himself in John 17:3. He is the Father's Apostle to men."
Verse 30, "Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come."
LGT "therefore they began seeking to apprehend Him, and no one cast upon Him with the hand, because not yet had come His hour."
"Then they sought to take Him:"
John takes great pains to point out that every time Jesus makes a statement about His deity, the Jerusalemites tried to seize Him, in order that they might rid the land of this so-called Son of God. The more detailed account of their attempt to arrest Jesus will come in verse 32,45.
"But no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come."
This fact that they could not lay their hands on Jesus because His hour had not yet come, which is the hour appointed by the Father, is even more conclusive to believers that He is the Son of God, than the miracles He performed. This entire passage is proof of His deity.
Verse 31, "And many of the people believed on Him, and said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these which this man hath done?"
LGT "And out of the crowd many believed on Him and said, The Christ when He comes will He not do more signs than [those] which he has been doing?"
"And many of the people believed on Him,"
Not all the people in the crowd were out to kill Christ, because John says some of the people believed. Calvin says that the term 'believed' is improperly used here, based on his assumption that they were only impressed with the signs Jesus performed. I tend to agree with Robertson who says that some of the pilgrims that came for the Feast of Tabernacles came to actually believe this was the promised One; they had witnessed the miracles, but they also were listening to what He was saying, and I think the ones who were listening were the ones who believed. It is just as it is today whenever the Word of God is taught, some believe and some reject; we are not able to discern the results immediately.
"And said, When Christ cometh, will He do more miracles than these which this man hath done?"
Some of the people were saying, would the promised One do more miracles than Jesus has done? In other words, how many miracles does it take to prove that this One is the Christ?
"If the prophets of old gave proof that they were God's messengers by the signs which they performed, it was natural to believe that the Messiah would be accredited by even greater signs, which would provide conclusive evidence of His office and mission. But would the signs, which the Messiah might be expected to perform, be greater than those, which Jesus was actually performing before their eyes? Such considerations moved many of His hearers to believe in Him; these might include Galilean pilgrims who had witnessed the feeding of the multitude six months previously, as well as natives of Jerusalem who remembered the healing of the cripple at the pool of Bethesda" (The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce).
Officers Sent to Arrest Jesus
"Verse 32, "The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning Him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him."
LGT "The Pharisees heard [some] of the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers in order to arrest Him."
"The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning Him;"
The Pharisees were very hostile toward Jesus, and in the next phrase the chief priests, being the Sadducees, also hated Christ, they wanted to bring Him before the Sanhedrin Council, in order to charge Him. The people were murmuring quietly to themselves that this must be the Messiah, if He can do these things (verse 31); this was enough, when the ruling Jews of Jerusalem heard these things the people were murmuring, to charge Him.
"So ended the first teaching of that day in the Temple. And as the people dispersed, the leaders of the Pharisees - who, no doubt aware of the presence of Christ in the Temple, yet unwilling to be in the number of His hearers, had watched the effect of His Teaching - overheard the low, furtive (secretive), half-spoken remarks ('the murmuring') of the people about Him. Presently they conferred with the heads of the priesthood and the chief Temple officials. Although there was neither meeting, nor decree of the Sanhedrin about it, nor, indeed could be, orders were given to the Temple-guard on the first possible occasion to seize Him" (The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah - Alfred Edersheim).
"And the Pharisees and the chief priest sent officers to take Him."
The chief priests (Gr. archireis) were the members of the most wealthy and powerful priestly families, from whose ranks the high priest was regularly selected. They were the dominate figures in the party of the Sadducees, the majority party in the Sanhedrin (Bruce). So the entire Sanhedrin was behind the plot to arrest and legally charge Christ with a crime. The chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest Christ. "The temple police were responsible for the maintenance of law and order within the temple precincts. They were a picked body of Levites, and their commander (the 'captain of the temple') was an official wielding high authority, next only to the high priest, and he too was usually drawn from one or another of the leading chief-priestly families" (The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ- E. Schurer).
Verse 33, "Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto Him that sent Me."
LGT "Therefore Jesus said, Yet a little time I am with you and I go to the One who sent Me."
Jesus answers for all to hear, 'yet a little time am I with you, and I go to the one who sent Me." We understand that he meant that soon He would be going to the cross, but we have an advantage because we are looking back at the finished work of Christ. I am sure that the crowd was puzzled that day at Jesus' words, but they would soon realize what He said was so true. The Lord said that he was about to return to His Father from Whom He had descended. The time is in the Father's hand and no one is able to alter the Father's timetable.
Verse 34, "Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come."
LGT "You will seek Me and you will not find [Me], and where I am you will not be able to be coming."
"Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me:"
In this first phrase the Lord uses the future tense with the word 'seek' Gr. heuresete in that they would be seeking Him, and not finding Him. This of course will be after He is crucified and returns by resurrection and ascension to His Father.
"And where I am, thither ye cannot come."
In this second phrase the Lord uses the present tense with 'where I am' (Gr. hopou eime ego) stating His eternal position in the Godhead. The Lord is saying He is the eternal 'I Am.; 'Before Abraham was, I Am.' Christ will soon be returning to His eternal spiritual home 'in absolute, eternal being and fellowship with the Father' (Vincent). This fellowship that Jesus is speaking of here is beyond the comprehension of these hostile Jews (Robertson).
Verse 35, "Then said the Jews among themselves, whither will He go, that we shall not find Him? Will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?"
LGT "Therefore the Jews said among themselves, How [is] this Man about to go that we will not find Him? Not unto the dispersion of the Greeks is He about to go and to be teaching the ones of the Greeks [is He]?"
"Then said the Jews among themselves, whither will He go, that we shall not find Him?"
The Jewish leaders of verse 32 get their heads together and begin their plot to kill the Lord. The KJV misses the contemptuous tone in the Jewish leaders response. Notice the phrase 'whither will He go?' in the LGT is 'How is this man about to go?' The literal Greek for 'He' is houtos meaning 'this man.' They refer to the Lord with very contemptible terms (Robertson). Even though our Lord made it very plain that He was about to return to His Father, these Jews were not about to believe He is who He says He is.
"Will He go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?"
A negative answer is expected by the way the Jews posed the question, 'Not unto the dispersion of the Greeks, is He?' What seemed impossible to these Jews, that Jesus would go to the 'dispersed Jews' among the Greeks becomes an actuality.
"Jesus' hearers, and more particularly their leaders ('the Jews') failed to grasp His meaning, and talked (rather scornfully) as if He contemplated leaving Judea for the lands of the dispersion north and west, where Jewish colonies were planted in a Greek environment. Was He planning a period of ministry among the Jews dispersed in those lands? Or was He conceivably thinking of a mission among the pagan Greeks themselves? In recording this remark, the Evangelist [John] probably anticipates deliberately the implied invitation conveyed to Jesus by the Greeks who attended the Passover celebrations in Jerusalem six months later (John 12:20 ff.). Little did the speakers [the Jewish leaders] know that, while Jesus was not to go in person among the Greeks, His followers would be numbered in tens of thousands in the Greek lands in a few years' time. We may certainly trace here a further instance of 'Johannine irony' (The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce).
Verse 36, "What manner of saying is this that He said, Ye shall seek Me, and shall not find Me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?"
LGT "What is this word which He said, you will seek Me and not find [Me], and where I am you all will not be able to be coming?"
The Jews were perplexed over what the Lord is saying; they were asking themselves, where would He hide? Of course we look back with our knowledge of the Word and we know that He is talking of returning to sit at the right hand of our heavenly Father.
Rivers of Living Water
Verse 37, "In the last day, that great day of the feasts, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink."
LGT "And in the last day of the great Feast Jesus was standing and cried out saying, If any one is thirsty let him come to me and drink."
"Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink."
The Festival had now ended and on this eighth day Jesus; shouts out this world saving invitation. For notes on this festival see verse two. Bruce has an excellent but brief description of this last day:
"The festival lasted eight days, and on the eighth day was 'a holy convocationÂ…a solemn assembly' (Lev. 23:36; cf. Num. 29:35 ff.; Neh. 8:18). When the people thanked God at the celebration of Tabernacles for all the fruits of the past year - vine and olive as well as barley and wheat - they did not forget His gift of rain, apart from which none of those crops would have grown. An association of this festival with adequate rainfall is implied in Zech. 14:16 f., and although the ceremony of water-pouring, well attested in connection with the Tabernacle for the two centuries preceding AD 70, is not mentioned in the OT (with the doubtful exception of I Sam. 7:6), it was probably of very considerable antiquity. This ceremony, which was intended to acknowledge God's goodness in sending rain and to ensure a plentiful supply for the following season, was enacted at dawn on the first seven days of the festival. A procession led by a priest went down to the pool of Siloam, where a golden pitcher was filled with water, and returned to the temple as the morning sacrifice was being offered. The water was then poured into a funnel at the west side of the altar, and the temple choir began to sing the Great Hallel (Psalm 113-118). It appears that the ceremony was not enacted on the eighth day, although a prayer for rain was recited then. If so, there is the more significance in John's statement that it was on the eighth day that Jesus made His proclamation. If no material water was poured then, spiritual and life-giving water was available to all who would receive it from Him. The offer of this water had gone forth centuries before in the words of the prophet, 'Ho. Every one who thirsts, come to the waters' (Isa. 55:1); but now it is repeated with a personal reference: 'If any one is thirsty, let him come to Me.' (The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce)
"If any man thirst, let him come to Me, and drink."
"On each of the seven preceding days water was drawn in a golden pitcher from the pool of Siloam (see map) and carried in procession to the Temple and offered by the priests as the singers chanted Isaiah 12:3, 'With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.' (Robertson).
Here we have a beautiful picture of the free will of man, and the divine election of God. Jesus says very clearly that God has elected that if man come to Christ, he will receive eternal life. It is certain that Jesus, as in the case of the woman at the well, is making reference to His being the water of life.
Verse 38, "He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of His belly shall flow rivers of living water."
LGT "The one who is believing on Me, just as the scripture said, Out of his belly [the inner life] will flow living water."
"He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said,"
Some of the OT scriptures that harmonize with this phrase of our Lord are: Isa. 55:1; 58:11; Zech. 13:1; 14:8; Ezek. 47:1; Joel 3:18.
"Out of His belly shall flow rivers of living water."
In the OT the word belly often refers to the innermost part of man (Vincent). In Proverbs 18:8 we read: "The words of a whisper are like dainty morsel, and they go down into the innermost parts of the body." "The Hebrew word for 'body' is beten: belly, the womb, the innermost part, the bottom of the heart: the belly-shaped protuberances on pillars. It comes from an unused Hebrew root meaning 'to be hallow.' It may be the bosom or emptiness of anything. The essential meaning is 'interior.' The phrases 'from the womb' and 'issue from the body' mean 'from birth' and 'children.' Sometimes beten is used to express the deepest recesses of an individual. It often describes the totality of a human being" (Lexical Aid to the OT - Key Word Study Bible - page 1714). This phrase 'shall flow rivers of living water' is the same as Jesus used when He gave the same message to the woman at the well in 4:10. It will become obvious that this verse is prophetic of the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit upon all believers and the giving of the Word. The next verse gives further explanation.
Verse 39, "(But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given: because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)"
LGT "But these things He said concerning the Spirit Whom they were about to receive the ones who were believing on Him: for not yet was the Spirit [given], because Jesus was not yet glorified."
"But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive:"
This of course is referring to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Some Jewish teachers taught that the 'pouring out of the water' ceremony was a type of the future coming of the Spirit (Bruce). I translate the relative pronoun 'which' used in the KJV to 'whom' because of the personal antecedent 'Spirit' to whom it refers.
"For the Holy Ghost was not yet given: because that Jesus was not yet glorified.'
The Holy Spirit is eternal just as the Father and Son are eternal. All throughout the OT the Holy Spirit manifested Himself to the saints at different times and in various ways; but here John adds this verse in order to keep this clear that the Holy Spirit will come to every believer in a new and wonderful way.
"No verb for 'given' in the Greek. The reference is not to the existence of the Spirit, but to the dispensation of the Spirit. John, writing at the close of the century, insets this comment [the entire verse 39] and interpretation of the language of Jesus as an allusion to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost" (Robertson). Jesus glorified His Father by His sinless life; and all the miracles He performed were for the same purpose of glorifying the Father. When Jesus says that the Father was glorified in the Son and the Son is glorified in the Father He is referring to an on-going glorification during His earthly ministry that would be consummated at His resurrection and ascension when He returned to His place at the right hand of the Father.
Division Among the People
Verse 40, "Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet."
LGT "[Some] out of the crowd therefore having heard the words of this One said, This One is truly the prophet."
Jesus had left an impression on the minds of some of the crowd so that they believed He was the One ['Prophet'] Moses had promised, "The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to Him" (Deut. 18:15). McGee said, "Some of the people believed and turned to Him. They drank and were satisfied."
Verse 41, "Others said, This is the Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee?"
LGT "Others said, This One is the Christ, but some said, What, did not Christ come out of Galilee?"
Many of the crowd admitted that Jesus was the Messiah because of their knowledge of the OT. Others asked the question 'did not this One, this Christ come out of Galilee? Expecting the answer, 'yes.' However, John the evangelist, as well as some of the more astute of the crowd, knew full well that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, as the prophet Micah predicted, and was the Son of David, that is, from David's kingly line, as the OT prophets said.
Verse 42, "Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"
LGT "Has not the scripture said that out of the seed of David and from Bethlehem the village where was David the Christ comes?"
These dissenters were just looking for an excuse to have Jesus arrested, for it would have been very easy for them to know that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and that He was of the kingly line of David; all they had to do is inquire. Jesus ministered in Galilee of Nazareth, but He was born in Bethlehem as foretold in Micah 5:2.
Verse 43, "So there was a division among the people because of Him."
LGT "A division therefore came to be among the crowd because of Him."
There was a clear split among the people there; some believed while others refused to believe. Jesus is the One who is offering them the water of Life and some drink, while the others refuse because they cannot receive Him until they believe Him. Its useless to try and convince someone that Christ is who He says He is, if they refuse to believe the Bible to be the Word of God. Until a person accepts Christ's words, they will never believe that He is the Savior. Bruce says this division becomes a recurring theme in John's Gospel (see 9:16; and 10:19).
Verse 44, "And some of them would have taken Him; but no man laid hands on Him."
LGT "And some of them were wishing to seize Him, but no one cast upon Him the hands."
It was an impossible task to take Him at this time for His hour had not yet come. Calvin points out in his commentary, "By these words the Evangelist [John] means, that they not only despised Christ, but that their wicked rejection of Him was accompanied by cruelty and eagerness to do Him injury; for superstition is always cruel."
The Unbelief of Those in Authority
Verse 45, "Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought Him?"
LGT "Therefore the officers came to the chief priest and Pharisees, and they said to them, Why did you not bring Him?"
The Temple police had already been sent by the Sanhedrin (verse 32), and now they return to the Sanhedrin with their report. Bruce says, "John knows how to use the device of suspense effectively; He now returns to those members of the police force and tells how they came back to the authorities empty-handed. The authorities naturally demand an explanation." These chief priests and Pharisees were a pompous lot; they had authority and that always leads to self-promotion. Whenever religious leaders claim to have special authority there is a tendency to lord it over the people. I like what Calvin says on this issue: "Here we may see how blind is the arrogance of men. To such an extent do they admire and adore the greatness which renders them eminent, [that is distinguished and famous], that they would willingly mingle heaven and earth; for when these haughty and wicked priests ask, why Christ was not brought, they magnify their power so greatly as if nothing ought to oppose their command." We face the same thing in our protestant churches today. It is not just common among the Catholic Church with the Hierarchy all the way up to the false claims of the Pope, that he is the successor of Peter. In our protestant churches the so-called pastor teachers claim to have a supernatural Holy Spirit given gift, and this puts them in a position above the rest of the family as their head, and this is very wrong, for we are all the 'body' only Christ is the head. No man can claim authority, and no man can put himself as Christ's representative without doing a grave injustice to the rest of the family. Some of us older believers that have studied a long time have a privilege to share our knowledge with the rest of our family as equals in Christ, no more, no less, thank you.
Verse 46, "The officers answered, Never man spake like this man."
LGT "The officers answered. Never has one spoken just as this Man."
The police officers were impressed with more of what Christ had said than what He had done. They were so impressed with the manner in which Christ had spoken they couldn't arrest Him. Even though these officers were taken up with the way in which Christ spoke, they weren't convinced enough to believe on Him.
Verse 47, "Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived?"
LGT "The Pharisees therefore answered them, Have you also been led astray?"
The way the sentence is formed using the negative 'me', the Pharisees expected the officers to give a negative answer, 'no we haven't.' It is quite surprising that the disciplined officers would not arrest the Christ as they were sent to do, but as Bruce points out "they succumb to the persuasiveness of His words." The Pharisees by asking the question in just that manner they were obviously attempting to keep these officers in check by saying 'This imposter hasn't seduced you has He? It would certainly be ridiculous if He did lead you away.' I can remember in my early days in college how some of the professors and students whenever they spoke of Christ in history, they would form their speech in such a manner as to make the person who did believe in Christ feel stupid for doing so. I can remember at first I would keep my belief in Christ secret, because I didn't want to appear to be a 'stupid conservative:' however, as time went on, I couldn't keep quiet, because they sounded so stupid in their rejection, I had to speak up; and when I did, guess what? I found that other students were of the same mind as me, and we formed some pretty nice fellowships. I have some fond memories of some of the conversations I have had with some of my stupid conservative brothers and sisters. These Pharisees had this motive in mind, I believe, when they asked their stupid question, 'He didn't lead you astray, too, did He?'
Verse 48, "Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed on Him?"
LGT "Has any out of the rulers believed on Him or out of the Pharisees?"
The question here in verse 48 is formed the same as verse 47 expecting a negative answer. The rulers employed the Temple police officers and they were asking them to tell if any of the rulers that were present believed, and they even widened their scope by including the orthodox Pharisees. The Pharisees were so very highly respected among the people that it was a concern of the Pharisees that had sent the police to know whether any of them were mislead by the Christ.
Verse 49, "But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed."
LGT "But this crowd who know not the Law are accursed."
This curse that the Pharisees pronounced on the common people showed what disdain they had for them [McGee says that their attitude is like some city folks making fun of the country folk, bumpkin - italics mine]. In their minds they were so elevated in their own minds above the ignorant working class (Robertson calls them clod-hoppers) that they even felt they were accursed. [In case any of you kids don't know what a clod-hopper is, it is slang for a farmer who works with the earth - i.e. Clods of dirt that are formed after the farmer has prepared the soil for planting a crop.]
"The disparaging judgment pronounced on the crowd expresses a characteristic attitude of many Pharisees towards the common people - 'the people of the land', as they called them - simply could not be expected to master the details of the oral law, the 'tradition of the elders', and therefore they were always liable to infringe it. Even the liberal Rabbi Hillel, of the generation before Christ, summed up this attitude when he said, 'No member of the common people is pious'. From the Pharisees point of view, the common people could easily be misled by any plausible [reasonable] teacher, because of their shocking ignorance of the true interpretation of the law" (The Gospel and Epistles of John - F. F. Bruce).
Verse 50, "Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them),"
LGT "Nicodemus saying unto them, the one who came to Him before, being one of them,"
This is the first time since chapter three that we hear from Nicodemus; he first came to Christ by night, and he is still concealing the fact that he knew Him. Robertson notes: "Now he boldly protests against the injustice of condemning Jesus unheard. He appears once more (and only in John) in 19:39 with Joseph of Arimathea as a secret disciple of Jesus. He is a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin and his present act is courageous. Like the Lords disciples, I think Nicodemus isn't really convinced of his salvation until after Jesus is resurrected.
Verse 51, "Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?"
LGT "Does our law judge a man unless it hears from himself and know what he is doing?"
This sentence begins with the negative particle 'me' as in verses 47 and 48, so Nicodemus is expecting a negative answer 'no'. "These exponents of the law [the rulers and the Pharisees] were violating the law of criminal procedure; Then I charged your judges at that time, saying, 'Hear the cases between your fellow countrymen and judge righteously between a man and his fellow countryman, or the alien who is with him' (Deut. 1:16 NARSV). Probably Nicodemus knew his protest was useless, but he could at least show his colors and score the point of justice in Christ's behalf. That is common justice in all law, to hear a man's side of the case. There was no legal answer to the point made by Nicodemus" (Robertson). Bruce adds: "The rule to which Nicodemus appealed is formulated thus in rabbinic literature: 'Flesh and blood may pass judgment on a man if it hears his words; if it does not hear them, it cannot establish its judgment'."
Verse 52, "They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet."
LGT "They answered and said to him, Are you also out of Galilee? Search and see that out of Galilee a prophet does not come."
"Art thou also of Galilee?"
This question also begins with the negative particle 'me' so a negative answer is expected: however, a touch of irony [sarcasm] is intended. Bruce says, "But even Nicodemus's protest could only call forth from the angry majority the contemptuous suggestion that he too had become a Galilean. No prophet could be expected from Galilee, they argued, because no prophet had ever come from there." The reason I believe these religious rulers were being sarcastic with Nicodemus is that they knew him well. The question could be paraphrased thus: "Why are you defending this Galilean, are you also from Galilee? Everyone is aware that no prophet has ever come out of Galilee.'
Verse 53, "And every man went unto his own house."
LGT "And each went into his house."
The Sanhedrin Council broke off without coming to any decision as to what they would do with Christ, and they went to there own homes.
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