"I give theftS cols 'pr- the founding ef a Ctlleg. 1* >hu_Colon.y»_ D ¦YAILE-WSni^KOTirY- DIVINITY SCHOOL TROWBRIDGE LIBRARY GIFT OF First Baptist Church, New Hst©» Gbe /IDessages ot tbe Bible EDITED BY Professor Frank K. Sanders, Ph.D., of Yale University, and Professor Charles F. Kent, Ph.D., of Yale University. Messrs. Charles Scribner's Sons take pleasure in announcing that they have in course of preparation a series of hand-books which will enable every reader of the Bible to appreciate and to obtain a mastery of the essential facts and teachings contained in it. This series is not a substitute for the Bible, but an aid to the rev erent, appreciative, and enthusiastic reading of the Scriptures; in fact it will serve the purpose of an ORIGINAL AND POPULAR COMMENTARY ON THE BIBLE. Technicalities and unsettled questions will be, as far as possible, ignored. Each volume will be prepared by a leading specialist and will contain such brief introductions as serve to put the reader into intelligent relation to the general theme treated. The editorial re arrangement of the order of the Biblical books or sections will repre sent the definite results of sober scholarship. I. Ube /messages of tbc Earlier ipropbets. (Ready.) II. Ube /messages of tbe Hater ipropbets. (Ready.) III. Ube /messages of tbe lawgivers. (Ready.) IV. Ube /messages of tbe ipropbettc an© iprfestlB Tfotss torlans. (Ready.) V. Ube /messages of tbe ipsalmfsts. (Ready.) VI. Ube /messages of tbe Sages. (In Preparation.) VII. ube /messages of tbe JDramatic ipoets. (In Preparation.) VIII. Ube /messages of tbe Rpocalsptfcal TKHriters. (Ready.) IX. Ube /messages of 3esus according to tbe S^nops tiStS. (Ready.) X. Ube /messages of testis according to tbe $ospel of 30bn. (Ready.) XI. Ube /messages of Paul. (Ready.) XII. Ube /messages of tbe Bpostles. (Ready.) Ube /messages of tbe Bible EDITED BY Professor Frank K. Sanders, Ph.D. formerly of Yale University AND Professor Charles F. Kent, Ph.D. of Yale University VOLUME X THE MESSAGES OF JESUS ACCORDING TO THE GOSPEL OF JOHN Ube /iDeggaQes of tbe Bible THE MESSAGES OF JESUS ACCORDING TO THE GOSPEL OF JOHN THE DISCOURSES OF JESUS IN THE FOURTH GOSPEL, ARRANGED, ANALYZED AND FREELY RENDERED IN PARAPHRASE BY James Stevenson Riggs, D.D. Professor of Biblical Criticism in Auburn Theological Seminary NEW YORK CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 1907 Copyright, 1907, by CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS Published, November, 1907 TROW DIRECTORY PAINTING AND BOOKBINDING COMPANY NEW YORK PREFACE This little volume has a twofold aim. It seeks to give an interpretation of the Gospel and to set forth the Gospel's peculiar structure and nature. The former aim is ac complished by means of a paraphrase in which underlying connections of thought are supplied, figurative terms are explained and such amplifications of the text are intro duced as shall make the meaning clear. Such a method gives room for only the results of exegesis. The discussions showing why and how these results are obtained belong to commentaries which consider the text piece by piece. If a paraphrase is of any value it is in presenting as a con nected, readable whole what has been obtained by a careful critical study of each phrase and sentence. Such value we hope the book offers. Every earnest student of this Gospel knows how pro longed and determined has been the battle of criticism over its worth and its authorship. Hardly a chapter has escaped destructive attack and noble work has been done in defense. In the form of introductions and explanatory additions I have sought to call attention not so much to negative critical theories as to the points against which vii Preface these theories have been directed. The striking difference between the Fourth Gospel and the Synoptics requires explanation. Has it been made by declaring that the book is a second-century production or by postulating another author than the Apostle John? It is to help the student to answer such questions for himself that all along the way attention has been called to those points in style, structure and thought which bear upon these critical inquiries. In considering them all may not come to the same conclusion, but to him who studies with devout, reverent sympathy one judgment is sure to be formed, and that is that the Gospel's exalted, spiritual conception and presentation of Christ are matchless. I am indebted to many interpreters and critics for help and suggestions. It is a pleasure to acknowledge the unfailing courtesy and assistance of the editors at whose request this work was undertaken. James S. Riggs. Auburn, October xi, 1907. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION PACE I. The Problem of John's Gospel 1-15 II. Did the Apostle John write the Gospel? . 16-35 a. External Evidence 16-21 2. Internal Evidence 22~35 III. Influences Formative of the Gospel . . . 36-36 1. The Old Testament 45-47 a. The Teaching of Paul 48-50 3. The Ephesian Environment 5I_56 IV. The Apostle John 57-71 THE PROLOGUE AND THE BEGINNINGS OF THE ' HISTORY Chapters I-II : 1 1 I. Its Representative Character 75-82 II. Its Interpretation : (1: 1-18) 82-85 III. The Beginnings of the History .... 86-87 IV. The Testimonies of the Baptist .... 88-95 1 . First Testimony to Deputation from Jerusalem (1 : 19-28) . .... 88-90 ix Contents PAGE 2. Second Testimony (i : 29-34) .... 90-94 3. Third Testimony (1 : 35-42) ¦ • 94^95 V. The Testimony of Philip and Nathanael (1 : 43-50 9fi-97 VI. The Miracle at Cana (2 : i-n) 98-99 THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS Incidents selected to illustrate that self-revelation of Jesus which awakened faith in Judea, Samaria and Galilee Chapters II: 12— IV: 54 I. The- Ministry in Judea (2:13-3:21) . . 103-115 ±. The Cleansing of the Temple (2 : T3-22) . 103-106 ,x. The Signs wrought in the city (2 : 23-25) . 107 3. The Conversation with Nicodemus (3 : 1-15) 108-112 4. Comments .of the Evangelist (3 : 16-21) 11 3-1 15 II. Jesus in -the 'Country Districts of Judea (3:22-36) . 116-121 1. The Last Witness of John the Baptist (3:22- 26) 2. The Words of the Baptist (3 : 27-30) . 3. Reflections of the Evangelist (3 : 31-36) . III. The Ministry ln Samaria (4 : 1-42) . . . 1. The Conversation with the Samaritan Woman (4:1-26) 2. The Return of the Disciples (4 : 27-39) • IV. The Ministry in Galilee (4 : 43-54) . . . 1. The Cure of the Nobleman's Son . . . 116- -Il8 118- -119 119- -I2T 12 2- -128 122- -126 126- -128 129- 131 129- -131 Contents THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS Events selected to show that self-revelation of the Messiah which was made in the presence of unbelief and opposition both in Galilee and Jerusalem Chapters V-XII PAGE I. The Miracle at the Pool of Bethesda (5 : 1-47) 135-150 1. Introductory (5:1) 135 2. Healing of the Cripple (5 : 2-16) . . . 136-139 3. Teaching Following the Miracle (5 : 17-47) 139-150 (a) Outline of Teaching and Interpretation of verses 19-30 I4I-I4S (6) Outline of Teaching and Interpretation of .Verses 31-47 i45_I5° II. The Feeding of the Five Thousand (6: 1-59)150-166 i. Introductory 150-151 2. The Narrative Concerning the Miracle (6: 1-21) 151-156 3. The Teaching of Jesus (6 : 26-59) • • • ¦ 156-166 a. Introductory 15^ ¦ 2. The First Discourse: The True Bread (6:26-40) 157-161 3. The Second Discourse: Coming to (that is be lieving in) the Son (6 : 41-51) 162-164 4. The Third Discourse (the Appropriation of Life) (6:52-58) 164-166 III. The Crisis in Galilee (6:60-71) 166-169 1. The Fourth Discourse : The Essential in the Messiah is the Spiritual (6 : 62-65) • 166-168 *. The Confession of Peter (6 : 67-71) . . . 168-169 IV. Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles (7:1-52) 169-184 1. Introductory 169-170 xi Contents PAGE 2. The Conversation in Galilee with His Brethren (7 : 1-10) . . . . .... 171-172 3. The Public Interest in Him (7 : n-13) . . 172 4. The Discourse Concerning His Teaching (7:14-24) 173-175 5. The Discourse Concerning His Origin (7:25- 29) 176-178 6. The Discourse Regarding His Departure (7:30-34) 178-180 7. The Discourse Regarding the True Fountain (7:35-38) 180-181 8. Comment of the Evangelist (7 : 39) . . . 182 9. A General Summary of the Effect of these Addresses upon the Multitude and upon the Officials (7 : 40-52) 182-184 V. The Rupture in Jerusalem (8 : 12-59) - • • 184-201 1. Introductory 184-185 z. The First Discourse : Christ's Witness — lam the Light of the World (8 : 12-20) . . . 185-187 3. The Second Discourse: The Seriousness of the Difference between the Jews and Jesus (8:21-30) 4. The Third Discourse (8 : 31-59) . . "(1) Encouragement and Warning to be Faithful (8:31-36) (2) A Conversation showing what Their Claim of Descent from Abraham was Worth (8 : 37-47) (3) The Preeminence of Jesus (8 : 48-59) VI. The Cure of the Man Born Blind (9 : 1-38) 1. Introductory . . . . ... 2. The Account of the Miracle (9 : 1-7) . . 3. The Consequent Discussions and Investiga tion (9 : 8-34) 4. The Spiritual Outcome of the Miracle (9:35- 38) xii 187- -191 191- -201 102- 194 195- -197 I08- -201 201- -209 201- -202 202- -204 204- -208 208- -209 Contents PAGE VII. The Spiritual Teaching in Connection with the Cure of the Man Born Blind (9 : 39-10 : 42)209-224 1. Introductory 209-211 2. The General Effects of the Ministry of Jesus upon the World as Suggested by His Experi ences with the Blind Man (9:39-41) . . . 211-212 3. Jesus the Shepherd (10 : 1-21) .... 212-219 (1) The Real Shepherd (10 : 1-6) .... 213-215 (2) Jesus the Door of the Sheep (10 : 7-10) . . 215-216 (3) The Good Shepherd (10:11-18) . . . .216-219 (4) TheResuItof these Teachings (10 : 19-21) . . 219 4. His Sweeping Claims (10 : 22-40) .... 219-224 (0 His Witness to His Messiahship (10 : 22-30) . 220-222 (2) The Justification of His Claim to be Son of God (10 : 34-39) 222-223 5. The Departure Beyond the Jordan (10: 40-42) 224 VIII. The Raising of Lazarus (11:1-57) .... 224-236 1. Introductory 224-226 2. In the Perea (n : 1-16) . 226-228 3. In Bethany (n : 17-46) 228-232 4. In Jerusalem (i 1 : 47-53) 233-235 5. Jesus Goes to Ephraim (n : 54) .... 235 6. All Watch for Him in Jerusalem (n : 55-57) 236 IX. The Threefold Relationship of Christ (12 : 1-36) 236-252 x. Introductory 236-238 *. The Supper in Bethany (12 : 1-8) .... 238-240 3. The Triumphal Entry (12 : 9-19) .... 240-244 4. The- Request of the Greeks (12 : 20-36) and subsequent addresses 245-247 (1) Introductory 245~246 (2) First Address: The Way to Life's Enlargement and Glorification (12 : 24-26) 247-249 xiii Contents PAGE (3) Second Address: The Significance of the Passion (12 : 27-33) 25° (4) The Perplexity of the Jews and Christ's Treat ment of it (12:34) 25J (5) Their Duty in Reference to the Light (12 : 35, 36) 25I-252 X. A Review of Jewish Unbelief by the Evangel ist (12 : 37-50) 253 1. The Cause (i 2 : 37-43) 254-255 *. The Seriousness of the Unbelief of the Jews (12 : 44-5°) 255-256 JESUS AND HIS DISCIPLES The self-revelation made to faith Chapters XIII-XVII I. The Purification of the Disctples' Faith (i-y-i-l°) 259-268 ±. Introductory 259-261 2. General Introduction to Chapters 13—17 . . 261 3. TheWashingof the Disciples' Feet (13 : 2-20) 261-265 4. The Dismissal of Judas (13:21-30) . . . 265-268 II. The Discourses (13:31-14:31) 268-284 1. Introductory 268-271 2. The Announcement of His Departure (13 : 31— 38) 272 3. Comfort for Disciples Perplexed and Saddened by the Thought of His Departure (14 : 1-31) . 273-284 (1) The Promise of Reunion (14 : 1-11) . . . 273—277 (2) The Promise of Power (14 : 12-17) - • • 277- 279 (3) The Promise of Personal Manifestation (14:18- 26) 279-282 (4) The Bequest of Peace (14 : 27-30) . . . 282-284 III. The Relation of Christ's Disciples to Him AND OF THE WoRLD TO THEM (15 : 1-16 : 6) 284-292 i. Introductory . . .... . 284-287 xiv Contents PAGE 2. The Relation of Christ's Disciples to Him (15: 1-17) • 287-290 3. The Relation of the World to the Disciples (15 : 18-16 : 6) 290-292 IV. The Mission of the Spirit (16:7-15) . . 292-295 V. The Joy ofthe Disciples on the Resurrection Morning (io : 16-24) • 296-299 VI. A Summary and a Conclusion (16 : 25-33) • • 299-301 VII. The Prayer of Jesus (17:1-26) . . 302-309 1. Introductory 302-304 2. A Prayer for Himself: Glorify Me (17 : 1-5) 304-305 3. Prayer for His Disciples: Keep them in Thy Name (17:6-19) ... .... 306-308 4. Prayer for Those Who through the Disciples' Word should Believe on Him (17 : 20-26) . 308-309 THE PASSION The Triumph of Unbelief. Victory through Death. The Highest self-revelation of Jesus Chapters XVIII-XIX I. General Introduction 3i3-3T4 II. The Arrest (18:1-12) 314-317 III. The Examination before Annas (18 : 13-27) . 317-320 IV. Jesus Before Pilate (18:28-19:16) .... 320-327 V. The Crucifixion and Death (19:17-30) . . 327-329 VI. The Four Enemies and Five Friends (19:23-27) 329-333 VII. The Burial (19 : 38-42) 333-335 XV Contents THE RESURRECTION The Beginning of Exaltation. The Messiah Glorified. Faith Triumphant Chapter XX PAGE I. Introductory 339-340 II. Peter and John at the Empty Sepulchre — John's Faith (20 : 1-10) 340-342 III. Christ's Appearance to Mary Magdalene (20:11-18) 342-344 IV. The Appearance to the Disciples, Thomas being Absent (20 : 19-23) 344-346 V. The Appearance to the Disciples, Thomas being Present (20 : 24-29) .... . . 346-347 VI. Conclusion and Purpose of the Gospel (20 : 30- 30 348 THE EPILOGUE Chapter XXI ' I. Introductory 35!-352 II. The Episode at the Sea of Tiberias (21 : 1-23) 352-357 III. Concluding Words (21 : 24, 25) 357—358 APPENDIX I. The Narrative of the Woman taken in Adul tery (7 : 53-8 : ii) 361-364 II. Books of Reference 364-370 III. Index of Blblical Passages 373-374 INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION THE PROBLEM OF JOHN'S GOSPEL All critical questions concerning the Gospel of John The two really narrow down to these two: "Is the Gospel trust- {jonTregSdl worthy history?" "Did the Apostle John write it?" The c^spd1"'3 discussion of matters pertaining to the answering of these questions has called into being a voluminous literature. As might be expected, that literature furnishes all varieties of opinion, from a radical, negative reply on the one side, to a fully conservative estimate on the other. Through all the years in which this discussion has been going on the All varieties Church has read and cherished this priceless treasure of ° answers its Scriptures, finding in it that exalted and spiritual con ception of her Lord which she believes is truthful and trustworthy. That the judgment of the Church shall ever be the unanimous verdict of criticism may be too much to expect, but it is safe to say that the time has gone by when such estimates as make the book wholly a creation of the imagination or a mere speculative theological treatise can find much support. 3 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Book not a In some form reality is expressed in the remarkable theimagina- scenes and sayings of this Gospel. Whether that reality in°therGos-y inheres in reminiscences which have been freely handled, pel or in constructions which reflect the mind and purpose of Jesus, it is there, and gives abiding value to the whole. Theprob- The problem concerning the Gospel has been to discover in it that substance of fact and teaching which shall con stitute a reliable source of our knowledge of the Master and to give an explanation of the form under which it all has been presented to us. The differ- Every reader of the Gospel is familiar with the striking tweenSynop- differences between its account and that of the Synoptics. Fourth g'os- Except for a few incidents Judea, not Galilee, is the scene &* of its events. As we follow its story we move in a different atmosphere. The plain, simple recital of the other gos pels gives place to a selection of events which are illustra tive of the truth which the author sees and which it is his The Gospel main object to set forth. So intent is he upon this that events illus- he does not hesitate to tell over quite fully some things truth"2 °f which we already know, in order that we may have their inner meaning, and to leave out some whose omission sur prises us, until we find that in another way he has given us also their deeper interpretation. By far the greater number of events seems to be those whose significance has Narrative come to light only in the fulness of his experience and in arGal?lean the progress of the truth. The narrative presupposes a mmastry Galilean ministry, but it was at Jerusalem, the theological 4 According to the Gospel of John Introduction centre of the nation, that Jesus spoke more largely of him self in terms that needed both time and experience to bring out their full value. The Gospel is supplementary, there- Gospel only fore, not so much in the way of seeking to add a series of sense supple- events to those given us by the Synoptics as in offering us, mentary by means of its peculiar reminiscences, a larger, more spiritual portrait of the world's Saviour. We are con stantly brought face to face with the abiding realities of the spiritual. Jesus is their embodiment and their ex ponent. He is not a mere passing figure of earthly history; he is a revelation of the unseen; the exalted standard of spiritual achievement and destiny. No writing of the New Testament consequently reveals A marked more clearly what criticism speaks of as a "tendency" than in theGos- does the Fourth Gospel. Indeed, it states its purpose in pe explicit terms "that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye may have life in his name" (20:21). The Fourth Gospel is no more Notabiog- a biography than are the others. It makes no claim any rncWthan more than they do toward giving us a "life of Christ," ar hence lays no emphasis upon a complete record as regards the places of his activity or the deeds of his ministry. In this respect it offers no more of a problem than does the Gospel of Mark. Either is simply a collection of memora bilia; in the one case of experiences in Galilee, in the other in Judea. There is also a difference in the chronology of Difference in , . , ,.r- • chronology the Fourth Gospel, but here again the difference spnngs 5 Introduction The Messages of Jesus from the purpose of the Gospel. The times of most in tense interest in the capital were when the people gathered from all parts of the land and from the Dispersion for the solemn feasts of the Temple ritual. In part from loyalty to the system under which he was born; in part to give to his teachings the widest reach, Jesus went up to the feasts. The record of his witness to himself contains, therefore, the reminiscence of the various festivals and the hints for a larger ministry than the Synoptics, with their account of TheSynop- but one passover, require. We are not left without indi- more than cations in the Synoptics themselves, that John's chronology oneyear jg ^ mQre jj^gjy (see M]^_ 2; ^ Mk g. ^g. -yfa_ 2^. ^j; Luke 13: 34), and some results are difficult to account for without the longer time and the repeated visits to Jerusa- The dates of lem which he supplies. When it comes to specific instances, supper and such as the cleansing of the Temple or the date of the probably111 Last Supper and the Crucifixion, we believe that the ul- correct timate decision will favor the accuracy of the Fourth Gospel. Difference in The great outstanding difference, however, between tionoTjesus John and the others is in his presentation of Jesus. This difference has been so emphasized by certain students of the Gospels as to compel a categorical "either — or" — either the Synoptic portrait must be accepted or the Johan nine, since, they tell us, both cannot be historically true. Opinion of "The Johannine Christ," says Holtzmann, "is complete mimn Z from the very first. He appears without childhood and 6 According to the Gospel of John Introduction youth, but is all along the divine Word manifested in the flesh. All traces of growth, of struggle, and of wrestling such as mark the growing Son of God of the Synoptics, are for the most part expunged and weakened, character istically transformed and renovated. In this way is treated whatever speaks of dependence, as, for example, the stories of birth and youth; whatever points to deficient foreknowledge or to failure, the choice of the traitor Judas; whatever to real passivity, Gethsemane and Gol gotha." * Wernle concludes a similar contrast with the Wemle's words: "In fine, the difference between the Christ por traits may be expressed in the simple formula: Here man — there God."2 "It is a peripatetic God who is depicted,"3 Opinion of says Wrede. The fact that these judgments are given by those who The Gospel ^.1 • • t i,» i i does not hide acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord makes them the human- seem all the more prejudicial to the historicity of the Gos- ' yo pel. The simple question is, Are they correct? That the Fourth Gospel intends that we shall understand the ex alted, divine character of Jesus is unquestionable. The description "the Word made flesh" is its own, and is of the highest significance, but we are not to forget that it is "the Word made flesh." That implies limitations and puts em phasis upon the humanity of Jesus. How can one whose body becomes weary (4: 6), whose spirit is vehemently 1 Einleitung, p. 432. 2 Die Quellen des Lebens Jesu, p. 25. 3 Character uni Tendenz, pp. 31, 37. Introduction The Messages of Jesus Beyschlag's judgment Does the Gospel lack develop ment? Its point of view of Jesus troubled (13: 21), and whose soul is deeply disturbed (12: 27) be said to give no evidence of his real humanity? Why does he ask for information (11: 34), declare that he can do nothing of himself (5: 19), and enter into all the earnestness of prayer, if we are to see in him only a God? Beyschlag's words are much nearer the truth when he says "The Fourth Gospel denies nothing that is innocently human to Jesus, neither hunger nor thirst, weariness nor sadness, suffering nor death, nor struggle of soul, neither the distinction of his will from the divine, nor the exercise of prayer and worship toward God; the Johannine Christ acknowledges all human dependence upon God. And it is simply not true, what is so often asserted, that John con ceived his Christ as omniscient and omnipotent." ' As to all lack of development set forth in Holtzmann's criti cism that "the Johannine Christ is complete from the very first," the question is, For what kind of development do we look? The scope of the Gospel excludes designedly all consideration of the birth and childhood of Jesus. Be lieving, as we do, that Jesus became conscious of his Mes siahship at the Baptism, and that the Temptation, which was the psychological outcome of the call given him at the Jordan to take up his Messianic place and work, both settled his supremacy and defined for him the character of his mission, we think it but in accord with the purpose of the writer that he should begin just where he does, after 1 N . T . Theol., vol. ii, p. 416. According to the Gospel of John Introduction the trying days in the wilderness. From the first it is the Messiah in the full consciousness of his position and mis sion whom we are to contemplate. Neither in the Synop- Neither the tics nor in John is there any development after the Dor John baptismal scene in the consciousness of Jesus as to his Mes- opnTenUnd" siahship. It is one thing to say this of Jesus; it is quite an- J^o,^.^ other to assert that in the recognition of this Messiahship there is no development in John's Gospel. The Synoptics let us see how gradual the process is by which the disciples attained this great conception. It is no contradiction of this belief that in the opening chapters of the Fourth Gos pel some of those disciples in their first enthusiasm declare that they have found the Messiah, inasmuch as they use a term which the common expectation and their enthusi asm suggested, but which they then little understood. In the course of the comment attention is called to the inter pretative additions of the evangelist which belong to his point of view rather than to the time to which they are as signed (see 1:29; 2:21). Making allowance for these, The Gospel and being careful not to read into terms more than the sit- opment fa uation allows according to the Gospel itself, we shall find {ioenrof the' reason for the modification of the judgment that there is Me5Slah no development. Chapter 7 gives us pretty clear evi- dence that on the part of the people there was no such definite issue as the no-development theory suggests. "Some of the multitude, therefore, when they heard these words, said, This is of a truth the prophet. Others said, 9 Introduction The Messages of Jesus This is the Christ. But some said, What, doth the Christ come out of Galilee?" (7: 40, 41). Even later than this, at the Feast of Dedication, the Jews ask, "How long dost thou hold us in suspense? If thou art the Christ tell us plainly" (10: 24). Facts like these warrant the conclusion that "the writer of this Gospel is as clearly conscious as any of the Synoptists of the real course of events, and that he, too, was well aware that the Messiah, when he came, had not forced a peremptory claim upon an unwilling peo ple. The anticipated confessions of the early chapters, whatever we may otherwise think of them, are really sub ordinate and (so to speak) accidental; the main course of the ministry is not conceived differently in the Fourth Gos pel and in the Synoptics."1 The differ- If, then, in the point of his humanity, and in the setting tween forth of that reserve of the actual declaration of his Mes- and°john ;s siahship the two narratives are not so unhke as one might stood Tn the suppose, wherein does the difference lie? We can answer realization tn;s onjy as we tjy to realize the position of the writer. of the posi- J J L tion of John Years had gone since the departure of Jesus from the world, Jerusalem had been destroyed, Christianity had found its way far beyond the limits of the Holy Land. The meaning of the spiritual, universal Messiahship had grown clearer and more comprehensive. Sayings which at the time they were first uttered may have seemed vague, certainly less applicable to the exigencies of life than the 1 Sanday: Criticism of Ihe Fourth Gospel, p. 165. IO According to the Gospel of John Introduction pithy, sententious maxims or the striking suggestive para bles of the Synoptics, became definite and rich in content. One after another these sayings were recalled from those memorable struggles in the capital. Together they set forth the fundamental and essential significance of him who uttered them. The old and often-cited analogy be- The analogy tween the accounts of Socrates given by Xenophon and and Plato fa Plato is apt and forceful. How meagre after all would lo^ocra^es011 have been our real knowledge of the great Athenian teacher m pomt had not Plato opened to us the wealth and worth of his philosophy. It is objected that there is something monotonous in The Gospel John's depictions of Jesus; something one-sided. Again andsome- we must return to the specific purpose of the Gospel, noto'nous Variety of circumstances, the stage setting of the drama, -{f^L^ the scenery of the picture — these are all entirely subor dinate to the one central person upon whom the eye of the interpreter is fixed. We must look at him. All the vari ety that is of any moment is in what he says of himself; in what he is and means to men, to the world as his word here or there reveals it. And so the repeated "I ams" — the statements which carry us to the underlying spiritual re lations existing between him and the Father; the purport of his mission for the spiritual awakening, judgment and salvation of men — are the substance of the Gospel. If there is monotony in them, it is such as might come from one's trying to describe the meaning of the sun to our phys- n Introduction The Messages of Jesus ical universe. In all this lies the real difference in the The dis- presentation of Jesus. And so we are brought face to face a chief ob- with the discourses which give us just this presentation. gospel'0 'he They have long been the chief source of objection to this Gospel. "A Jesus who preached alternately in the manner of the Sermon on the Mount and of John 14-17 Julicher's _ is a psychological impossibility."1 "To discourse in Sy- opinions noptic and Johannine fashion is precisely what Jesus did not do." 2 These are decisive words. What shall be A marked said of them? It is vain to enter a wholesale denial of the styleTn marked difference between the style and general content Fourth Gos- of tng has shown quite inadequate for such knowledge as is evident — or he must have resided a long time in the land as did Origen or Jerome, or he must have been a native of the land. Between the second and third explanations decision can be made sure, perhaps, only by an appeal to other characteristics of the Gospel which shall confirm this accuracy of geographical detail. There is nothing in the geography itself which stands in the way of Palestinian origin. Furrer's objection,2 that the use of the "Sea of Tiberias" for the "Sea of Galilee" is a mark of second-century origin, may be accounted for on the the ory of the date of the Gospel being just at the beginning of the transition from one form to the other.3 One historical detail is usually cited as indicating a writer from some centre in the Dispersion, and that is the reference to the high-priest of "that year" (ii: 49, 51; 18: 13). Of this H. Holtzmann says, "that it is due to the author's familiarity with the practice in Asia Minor of annually changing the high-priest of the new temple ded icated to the worship of the Emperor, the year being called by his name." * This could only be on the assumption 1 Expositor, 1892, pp. 164-170. 2 Zeitschrifl fur die N . T. Wissenschaft, 1902, p. 261. 3 See Sanday, Criticism of the Fourth Gospel, p. 1 1 4. a Lehrb. d. Einleitung in die N. T., p. 469. 26 According to the Gospel of John Introduction that heathen custom in the matter was to be taken as the norm of custom in Jerusalem — an unlikely assumption for a Jew anywhere. Why is not the explanation of Weiss Weiss's and others completely satisfactory, "He was the high- factory 'S priest of that noteworthy, fatal year"? Such points as are cited to show the influence of Alex andrian thought, and hence that the Gospel is from the pen of an extra-Palestinian Hellenist, will be noted in the chapter on the formative influences of the Gospel. The third proposition, which we now must consider, is Third prop- that the writer of the Gospel was an eye-witness of the thor°an eye- events he narrates and a personal companion of the Lord. Wltness Just here it is important to emphasize again the fact that Trust: the whole consideration of the trustworthiness of the Gos- 0f Gospel pel rests upon two bases, the general character of the dis- bases0" 'W° courses and the historicity of their narrative settings. We have already seen that we must, for the discourses, allow a considerable subjectivity which leaves them true to truth, if not always in ipsissimis verbis. The question now is, Have we such a presentation of the historical situation, revealed in events, conditions, and atmosphere, as leads us to conclude that one who was actually present, an actor in the scenes he depicts, or a witness of the events he nar rates, is giving us the record of the whole ? So important is it to keep this question in mind as one considers the suc cessive scenes of the Gospel, that we have called the read er's attention to it in various introductions to the scenes 27 Introduction The Messages of Jesus themselves. At this point we should like to give a unified The author impression of the testimony. It is well to note at the out- aneye-wit-e set that in several different places the writer makes the "'"'' distinct claim to being an eye-witness. These passages are i: 14; 19: 35; 21: 24, and 1 John 1: 1. Each merits a moment's attention. The First Epistle of John "is so closely connected with the Fourth Gospel in vocabulary, style, thought, scope, that these two books cannot but be Passage in regarded as works of the same author." ' The declaration of the opening words of the Epistle is, therefore, pertinent. "That which was from the beginning, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, (edeatrdfieSa) and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life." To behold (deatrdcu) is, in the New Testament, used uni formly of bodily vision and, taken together with the words "our hands handled," makes a strong assertion of actual johni:I4 personal association with Jesus. Of the same decisive character is the statement in John 1: 14, "The Word be came flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld, ideao-d/ieda, his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father) John 19: 35 full of grace and truth." The third passage, 19:35, "And he that hath seen hath borne witness and his wit ness is true; and he (eneivos) knoweth that he saith true that ye also may believe," has caused some difficulty be cause of the peculiar form of reference in in.ifi.vos. Who 1 Westcott, Epistles of John, p. 30. This is also the judgment of several critics who do not accept the authorship of John the Apostle for the Gospel. 28 According to the Gospel of John Introduction is referred to thereby? Is it the author objectifying him self (Weiss, Godet, Bruce, Westcott), or is he pointing to Christ (Zahn, Sanday) ? Godet has shown the absurdity of referring it to a third party and thus construing it into a denial of the apostolic origin of the Gospel. The first interpretation is to be preferred; it is in keeping with the usage of eKehos elsewhere in the Gospel (see 9: 37). In John 21:24 21: 24 we have the confirmation of the trustworthiness of the Apostle's record as that of an eye-witness. The "we" may be the Ephesian elders. Such is the direct claim which the writer makes. What does the Gospel How does offer us to substantiate the claim? Leaving particu- 'ubsta"^6 lars to be noted in connection with the interpretation ci^im?115 of the different chapters, we offer several general con siderations: (1) Details regarding time, place, persons, which have no Unessential especial importance for the narrative are best explained as e|ptiined personal reminiscences. "On the morrow he seeth Jesus rlmfais°nal coming" (1: 29). " It was about the tenth hour" (1: 39). cen«s "The third day there was a marriage," etc. (2: 1). "Philip answered him" (6: 7). "Now the servant's name was Malchus" (18: 10). There are many such unessential details in the Gospel. (2) The persons who enter upon the scene are sin- Persons de- gularly life-like and real— the Baptist, Peter, Andrew, Angularly Thomas, Judas, Pilate, Martha, and Mary. The first l%like chapter, for example, is remarkable not only in its group 29 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Touches of local color in various places Dr. Drum- mond's opinion of personages, but in their distinctness and historical truth fulness, as we can verify them from other sources. The Gospel is singularly faithful to the historical situa tion in regard to the two great parties in Jerusalem. The Pharisees in most cases take the initiative against Jesus. When the Sadducees come to the front, as in n: 47-50, it is with their characteristic fear in mind, "The Romans will come and take away both our place and nation." Pilate's pitiful position between Rome and the relentless accusers of Jesus is vividly portrayed. These are but some of the figures that play consistently their parts in the scenes that are true to the times in which Jesus lived. (3) In various scenes there are touches of local color which imply personal experience. This appears, for exam ple, in the conversation of Jesus with the Samaritan woman; in her appeal to Jacob, and in her question about the place where men ought to worship. Chapters 6, 7, 9 have many similar touches in them. These, together with the writer's familiarity with the land of Palestine and with Jerusalem, are points not easily accounted for, if the writer himself was not an eye-witness. Dr. Drummond does not feel their cogency, thinking that such an "unexampled, unknown, and unmeasured literary genius"1 as the writer of the Gospel was, could have pro duced "an untrue narrative possessing such verisimili tude," or, at least, that it would be hazardous to say that 1 Authorship and Character, p. 378. 3° According to the Gospel of John Introduction he could not. To which Sanday's reply is certainly suf ficient, that "where facts can be explained easily and nat urally without having recourse to any such extraordinary assumption, the world is content so to explain them." In addition to all these evidences for an eye-witness who Was the was a Jew of Palestine, have we any which show us that he an apostle? may have been a member of the Uttle band chosen by the Lord to accompany him through the land, and carry on his work after he was gone? In other words, have we any reasons for thinking that the writer was an apostle? It Designa- is well known that the writer does not name himself, but incidents there are designations which point to some one who was ^me'oSe very near the Master. Thus in 21: 20 Peter refers to JJe'jiaster "the disciple whom Jesus loved," and he is spoken of as reclining near to Jesus at the supper (13: 23). He also stood by the mother of Jesus at the cross (19:26), and was in company with Peter, when Jesus appeared to the disciples on the shore of the Lake of Galilee (21: 7). At the opening of the story of the Gospel two disciples heard Jesus speak, accepted his invitation to go to his abode. One of the two was Andrew. The other, who remembers distinctly the hour when they went with Jesus (four o'clock in the afternoon), is not named. Is this perhaps the one who is afterward called "the beloved disciple?" Before this question can be answered, it will be well to ascertain if the Gospel itself gives us evidence of the writer's close fellowship with the Lord and his disciples. It is Weiz- er's view 3i Introduction The Messages of Jesus Evidence that the un- named dis ciple came close to Jesus Evidencethat he was closely as sociated with the band of apostles sacker who thinks that the portrait of Jesus given us in the Fourth Gospel could not have been drawn by a personal friend.1 Exactly the opposite seems to us the case. The very interpretation which it offers presupposes an intimacy in association which would prepare him for this portrayal. Even amid the limitations of his first discipleship, a nature such as the writer of this Gospel reveals would give re sponse to the exalted truth to which he listened. How much more would he be able to glorify the life which in earthly fellowship had been so spiritual, when his own ex perience had come fully to understand its divine meaning. Here and there are hints that this "unnamed" disciple was admitted to very close personal relationship with Jesus. He gives us more than once the reason why the Master adopted a certain course of action (2: 24; 4: 1; 5: 6; 6: 15; 7: 1; 13: 1; 16: 19). He lets us see that often the mind of Jesus was open to him (6: 6, n; 18: 4; 19: 25) regarding the future. At the last supper he reclined upon his bosom; he followed him to the high-priest's palace, stood by the cross, and there received the care of his mother. Surely these are marks of especial friendship. No one questions the fact that after their especial ap pointment the disciples were constantly with Jesus in his journeyings through the land. If the data which may be gathered from the Gospel lead to any conclusion, it is that the writer of it was closely acquainted with this chosen 1 Das Apostol. Zeil., p. 517. 32 According to the Gospel of John Introduction band. Their thoughts, secret fears, and anxious ques tionings are known to him (2: 17; 4: 27; 6: 19, 60; 16: 17; 20: 25). He tells us how they changed their views of cer tain matters, as the development of events brought them better understanding (2: 21; n: 13; 12: 16; 13: 28; 20: 9). To him we are indebted for certain conversations of Na thanael, Peter, Thomas, Philip, and others. Indeed, his whole relation to the disciples, as one of their number, seems natural and ordinary. He keeps back his name, but does not therebv wish to appear mysterious. As for claim- He claims , * . . . no supen- mg any superiority to Peter, it is not apparent, unless one ority to construes the phrase "the disciple whom Jesus loved," which is descriptive of personal thanksgiving and praise, into an assumption of pride. There seems sufficient reason, therefore, for saying that the writer of the Gospel was a Palestinian Jew, who en joyed close companionship with Jesus and his disciples. We now reach the critical question, Who was he? If the If the pre- A vious steps conclusions formed at each step of our advance are cor- are sure, rect, then the writer must have been either the Apostle may have John or some disciple, equally favored. Students familiar johnM1" with the criticism of the Gospel know that each alternative v^edfdafs. has been taken and defended. It will be of interest to ex- ciPle amine first the theory which ascribes the Gospel to "a dis ciple of the Lord" who is not John the Apostle. One form Deiff's of this theory is given by Dr. Delff, and is to the effect that the beloved disciple was a native of Temsalem. a member 33 Introduction The Messages of Jesus of the aristocracy, and belonged to one of the high-priests' families. The supports for this are the statement (18: 15) that "that disciple was known unto the high-priest"; that so large a part of the Gospel has to do with Jerusalem; that Polycrates speaks of John wearing the irerdkov (the high -priest's golden plate); that Papias (seconded by the de Boor Fragment) declares that both the sons of Zebedee were "slain by the Jews." This "beloved disciple" can be identified with John the Presbyter. As has been said before, one who stood in such close contact with Jesus and the actual scenes of his life would satisfy the requirements of the Gospel itself. There are certain difficulties in the problem which would be met by the acceptance of the Presbyter John as the author of the Gospel, but there are other difficulties created which are certainly grave. The best theory is that which will cover most satisfactorily the Objections largest number of facts. Dr. Delff's view compels him to Delff's consider the Galilean events of the Gospel as later inser tions; it makes the necessity of accounting for the John who appears with Peter in the Acts and in Galatians; it accepts the two witnesses as to the violent death of the Apostle, as against the common tradition of the Church that the Apostle did not die in that way. Furthermore, any identification of John the Apostle with John the Pres byter must assume confusion on the part of those whose relations to each other in life and work make such con fusion difficult to accept. Partition theories admitting 34 view According to the Gospel of John Introduction two hands in the construction of the Gospel run against the serious difficulty of the structural unity of the Gospel. It is, therefore, to John the Apostle we turn, as giving us The author, the best answer to the question of authorship. We know from the Synoptics that he was one of an inner group from the Twelve which was admitted to especial privileges. It is no argument against his possible relationship with some of the leaders in Jerusalem that he was a fisherman in Galilee, and his residence in Ephesus, in the latter part of his life, has not been successfully disputed. It is not John's au- claimed that all the difficulties of this intricate problem doesnotdo are done away with by attributing the Gospel to John the au Sfficul- Apostle; rather, that this view of the matter meets the re- tles quirements of the case more fully than any other. As has It meets re- been well said, "in literary questions we cannot look for of the case demonstration"; certainly not for such demonstration as Iharfother shall convince all critics. One conclusion, however, is Vlews sure: that the Gospel gives us a Christ whose portraiture does not contradict that of the Synoptics, but rather en larges and glorifies it, and places it in an historical setting which is unquestionably trustworthy. 35 Introduction The Messages of Jesus III INFLUENCES FORMATIVE OF THE GOSPEL Exact date of writing of Gospel uncertainTestimonyas to its originClement of Alexandria Eusebius The exact date when the Gospel was written cannot be determined. There are, however, indications sufficient to help us to fix approximately the time. First, however, it is important to recall what tradition has to say regarding its origin. Clement of Alexandria (circa 150-circa 220 a.d.), as reported by Eusebius,1 says that "John, perceiving that the external facts had been made plain by the Gospel (the Synoptic account), being urged by his friends, and inspired by the Spirit, composed a spiritual gospel." Eusebius himself, quoting the substance of an existing tradition, writes: "They say that John, who had employed all his time in proclaiming the Gospel orally, finally proceeded to write for the following reason: The three gospels al ready mentioned having come into the hands of all, and into his own too, they say that he accepted them and bore witness to their truthfulness; but that there was lacking in them an account of the deeds done by Christ at the begin ning of his ministry." It is to be noted in passing, that this testimony gives an inadequate impression as to the "sup plementary" character of the Gospel, which does indeed supplement the Synoptics, but not only in the way Eu- 1 H. E. vi, 14; 111 , 24. 36 According to the Gospel of John Introduction sebius supposes. The Muratorian Canon (date uncertain, Muratorian but some time near the beginning of the second century) is more explicit in its witness. "The Fourth Gospel (was written by) John, one of the disciples (i. e., Apostles). When his fellow-disciples and bishop urgently pressed him, he said, 'Fast with me (from) to-day, for three days, and let us tell one another any revelation which may be made to us either for or against (the plan of writing).' On the same night it was revealed to Andrew, one of the apostles, that John should relate all in his own name and that all should review (his writing)."1 Irenasus tells us that John lived in Asia until the time irenasus of Trajan,2 and that he published his gospel while staying at Ephesus, in Asia.3 Here is evidence of a persisting tra- A persistent dition that John wrote his gospel while in Asia. Un- that the doubtedly there are embellishing details which must be wr0itfeen ^as subtracted from the account, but the fact that the Gospel EPhesus was written in Ephesus, in the later years of the Apostle's life, seems adequately attested. The testimony of Ire nasus, as we have seen in the preceding chapter, is much more than an isolated statement. It is based upon an ex perience which reaches back through personal relation ship to the Apostle himself. We turn now to mark those internal in- i-. • ic i • i l j.1.- dications of indications within the Gospel itself which support this iate date external testimony. Taking smaller matters first, we note 1 Muratorian Fragment (lines 9-16). 2 Euseb. H. E., iii, 23. 3 Ibid., v, 8 31 Introduction The Messages of Jesus EvangelistexplainsJewishnames and customs Retrospective pas- The escha tology of the Gospel that the evangelist explains Jewish names and customs. The other gospels give us such explanations, but in John they are more frequent and particular. The removal of his hearers both in time and space from the scenes of the Lord's ministry would make these explanations very help ful. Examples may be seen in 2: 6; 5: 2; 6: 1, 4; 7: 2, 37; 9: 7; 10:22, 23; 11:18, 55; 12: 1; 18: 28; 19: 14, 17, 31, 42; 21: 1. Again, there are passages which show that he looked back to a time when statements were made which were not then realized, as, for example, that about the Spirit: "The Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified" (7: 39). Such interpretations given from the light of his present experience are found in 12:33; 18:32; 19:36; 21:19. ^ut these are, after all, minor matters. There are weightier considerations which mark far more clearly the late date of the Gospel. Space forbids the setting forth of more than one or two. One of the notable features of the Gospel is its eschatology. It is well known that the Epistles of Paul look forward to the second coming of the Lord as an event of the near future, and describe its realization in terms which are almost wholly apocalyptical. In the Synoptics Jesus himself had spoken in language which seemed to give warrant to these hopes. It is remarkable how little of this apocalyptical form of expectation is found in the Gospel. Is it not to be explained by the stupendous changes which had come upon Judaism, leaving the horizon clear for that realiza- 38 According to the Gospel of John Introduction tion of a spiritual coming upon which the Fourth Gospel lays such emphasis? The destruction of Jerusalem, the opening up of the way to the Gentiles, the essentially spir itual mission of Jesus — did they not open up a vision of a more inward and real coming than apocalyptic forms could convey? "There are no prophecies of the seizure of the Holy City; there is no reiterated promise of a return; the judgment had been wrought. Christ had come."1 And while it is true that here and there expressions appear which recall the apocalyptic hope of earlier days, it is also true that "the Parousia is taken out of its apocalyptic set ting and identified with the return of Christ in that larger spiritual activity on which he had entered through his death." 2 This change of emphasis could come only with time. Events must show that no such speedy, visible re turn as the early Church longed for, was originally intended by Jesus himself. There must be a process of coming be fore there could be such issues as apocalyptic forms present to us without historical perspective. How often since the early apostolic age the Church has made the same mistake, and become almost impatient of the slow development of a spiritual kingdom! The thought of Christ's return is as vital to John as it is to Paul and the Synoptics, but it is presented to us in its more spiritual form, due not simply to his own insight, but to the possibility of that fuller un- 1 Westcott, Com. on John, Introduc, p. xxxviii. 2 E. F. Scott, The Fourth Gospel, p. 312. 39 Christ's mission Introduction The Messages of Jesus derstanding which the progress of the years and of Chris tianity gave him. The changes of time throw light upon truth. The uni- Another confirmation of the later date of the Gospel, acter of from the Gospel itself, is seen in the emphasis which ap pears upon that line of prophecy which has to do with the universal character of Christ's mission. Not only does this come to light in the remembered sayings of Jesus, but the Apostle puts it into interpretations which he himself gives. A notable instance of this is his explanation of the judgment of Caiaphas. The crafty priest had urged the decisive action of the Sanhedrin in the words "it is ex pedient for you that one man should die for the people." John's comment is that, "he said this not of himself, but being high-priest in that year he prophesied that Jesus should die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but in order that he might gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad (n: 57). With force does Westcott say of this, that "When the evangelist wrote these words he was reading the fulfilment of the unconscious prophecy of Caiaphas in the condition of the Christian Church about him." l And the difference between him and the Synoptics, as the same author says, is not that they give us no idea of the universalism of the mission of Jesus, but that they neither give it the prominence which it has in the Fourth Gospel, nor trace it back to the same pro- 1 Com. on John, Inlroduc., p. xxxvi. 40 According to the Gospel of John Introduction found reason as is exhibited in such sayings as, "Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice" (18: 37), and es pecially in the great central doctrine of the Gospel — the doctrine of eternal life through faith in him. The bar riers of race and clime are all down. Jew and Gentile are distinctions lost sight of in the one name Christian. Judg ment is upon men as men who turn from the light wherever it comes to them. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. Judaism had made its decision. "He came to his own and his own received him not" (1: n). "Now it is the Saviour of the world" who stands forth in the person of his Master. All this had been gain ing new and larger meaning as the writer faced the de velopments of his later years. The widening vision of experience sent him back to the life and words of Jesus to find in them the larger meaning which his vision called for, and the promised guidance of the Spirit (16: 13) had been given him to just this end. Considerations like these second the tradition which Some time , . . .. . ,-, . , , .in the last assigns the writing of the Gospel to the latter years of decade of John's Ephesian residence. Without presuming to specify century the year we are, in the last decade of the first century, sufficiently near the time for our immediate purpose, namely, the study of the influences formative of the Gospel. In order to do this it will be well to get some idea of the Ephesus, ,. .jt *ls position position and character of Ephesus at this period, it was and charac- the capital of proconsular Asia, a city distinguished for 4i Introduction The Messages of Jesus its trade and commerce, and above all, as the place of the famous temple of Diana. These three facts are really the indices of its life. All that is implied in the term "official residence " characterized this Ionian city. In the wake of its large and flourishing business came wealth, luxury, and grandeur. Its religious importance made its streets familiar with the presence of strangers from all over the then-known world who came to visit its wonderful temple. And it is told us that in a.d. 55 Artemis of Ephesus was the deity "whom all Asia and the civilized world worshipped." A great The city, therefore, was the very centre of heathenism. A heathenism lucrative business was carried on in the manufacture of small silver models of the goddess, which travellers took with them not only as objects of worship, but also as a means of protection against evil influences. More in teresting for us, however, than the noble temple, the stately streets, the costly homes, and the crowds of heathen wor- Much intel- shippers, is the story of its intellectual activity. Here the tivity with- Greek and Asiatic spirit came into contact. The policy dersS °r °f Alexander to make his conquests centres of Greek civilization was carried out by his successors in all this Western Asia Minor coast. But Hellenism means, as is well known, a conglomerate of various civilizations under the dominance of Greek influence. Greeks, Jews, and native Asiatics were the component parts of the populations of these flourishing cities, and each learned, from the other. All comers were given the rights of citizens; even the 42 According to the Gospel of John Introduction Jews enjoyed this right through the device of the "tribe," by which they were able to keep their own forms of worship. The result was that ease of intercourse which insured a rapid development in commerce, wealth, and culture. In a land, however, where, apart from the Jewish inhabitants, the highest ideals centred about false gods, there was little possibility of great, noble thought. Religious con- Religions ceptions and philosophic theories were compared, discussed, opines and modified, but withal the time was devoted to a "rather compare empty and shallow kind of philosophic speculation." Here also the Greek and the Jew attempted that amalga mation of conceptions with which Alexandria has made us familiar. In a word, the city was the embodiment of a varied, active, restless, superstitious, corrupt life reaching out far and wide beyond its own boundaries; a centre of power and influence of immeasurable importance. It is Paul turned not strange that Paul turned to it as a point of vantage for great geld the proclamation of his gospel. The length of his stay or wor shows how much store he set by the establishment of Christianity within its borders. Amid perils, against fierce opposition, and with many discouragements, the brave Apostle labored and taught, until not only a church was built up within the city, but also "aU they that dwell in Asia heard the word of the Law, both Jews and Greeks." The letters s -j to seven We have only to turn to the letters to the seven churches churches ....... show posi- to discover the temptations and penis which beset the tion of Church in this region of worldly ambitions, moral looseness, this region 43 Introduction The Messages of Jesus What was demanded in a preacher of the gospel in Ephesus How the Gospel meets this demand John's growth in spiritualknowledge and fertile speculation. As another has tersely said, "The Church's centre of gravity was no longer at Jerusalem ; it was not yet at Rome; it was at Ephesus." The very situation was in itself an invitation to such an one as- John to devote his best energies and maturest thought to the defence and support of the truth and the Church. More was demanded than a recital of the external facts of the earthly ministry. Fanciful speculations, endless geneal ogies, and ingenious fables had to be met and discredited by essential and abiding principles, by invigorating and ennobling ideals, by a vital, divine, personal reality whose fulness and perfection would satisfy life's profoundest needs and save to the uttermost. Paul had preached all this in his doctrines of the "second man from heaven"; of the exalted and indwelling Christ. John came to tell over the story of redemption in such a way as should show them that in the historical Jesus they were to recognize the eternal Christ who evermore gives life to those who believe in his name. And so "the record moves not on the lines of the ordinary succession of events, so much as on the pathway of ideas: life is manifested under the symbols of water and of bread; truth under the symbol of light. Miracles are signs, and words are the instrument of judg ment."1 It is not to be supposed that all this was the outcome of some sudden resolution to write a gospel. That would be 1 J. A. Robinson, The Study oj the Gospels. 44 According to the Gospel of John Introduction to make the Gospel a creation, rather than an interpretation. Years of living memories lie behind it; memories which had deepened with the enlargement of experience; memories wliich had been told again and again with ever fresh accessions of insight and grasp of meaning. When we what is seek, therefore, for the formative influences of the Gospel theaphrase we are not looking for those which have contributed to the influences" substance of the truth which it contains. Jesus and his teaching are the substance of the Gospel. We are seeking rather to determine, if we may, what influences entered into the experience of the writer to help him to the em phasis which he gives to the "eternal" in Jesus; to lead him to the selection of events which he has made, and to use such forms of expression as shall present his Master most comprehensively to his readers. The dominant pur pose of the Gospel of course also exerts a moulding influence upon the whole Gospel. As distinct from this and con tributory to its realization, we are now to ask what in fluences entered into the shaping of the Gospel, making it effective for the exalted purpose which the writer set before him. Three may be noted: (i) The Old Testa ment. (2) The teaching of Paul. (3) His Ephesian environment. 1. The Old Testament John was a Jew. The Old Testament Scriptures were to his people the revelation of God, and yet with that 45 Introduction The Messages of Jesus revelation constantly before them, they had rejected Jesus. Was he therefore a contradiction of the Messianic hopes The Gospel which their holy writings contained? The question brings judaic in up the objection to this Gospel that it is anti- Judaic in spirit and tone. Such terms as "the Jews," "your law," "Abraham your father," and such statements as "the hour cometh when ye shall in this mountain, nor yet at Alleged Jerusalem, worship the Father," "Ye are of your father anti°-ju° ' " the devil," and "All that came before me are thieves and daic tone robbers," are used to prove it. If the proof be valid, then the declaration of Hilgenfeld that the Gospel "breaks every bond between Christianity and its Jewish roots" is The real true. On the contrary, the distinct aim of all that Jesus writer in says in the various discourses is to set forth the preparatory the'oid™ '° character of the Old-Testament revelation and the intimate Mseenin' relatl0n between the law, the prophets and himself. oieje's0usds "Salvation is of the Jews" (4 : 22). Had they believed Moses they would have believed him, for Moses wrote of him (5 : 46). "These things said Isaiah because he saw Christ's glory and spake of him" (12 : 41 — a comment of Two kinds the evangelist). There is a Judaism and a Judaism brought to light in this Gospel. One, blind, self-sufficient, bound by traditions, and deaf to the spiritual accent of true heavenly teaching, makes every contact with Jesus the occasion of deepening its antagonism, until it at last sets up the cross. The other, holding within its whole course — law and prophets— the promise of a Messiah, and revealing 46 of Judaism According to the Gospel of John Introduction in its history a divine purpose of salvation, comes to its final glorious issue in the full revelation of the Son of God. Westcott's remark is here in point, that "three, and three only, of the old saints, Abraham, Moses and Isaiah, are mentioned by the Lord or by the evangelist in connection with Messiah. These three cover and represent the three successive periods of the training of the people; so subtle and so complete are the harmonies which underlie the surface of the text. Christ claimed for himself testimonies The sources from the patriarchal, the theocratic and the monarchical monies"" stages of the life of Israel." But it is not to three names 55fmed for or to three stages of Israel's history that the thought of the himself evangelist turned in meditating upon what Christ said of the preparation of his people for his coming. Their whole spiritual history was adequately interpreted only *n the Word made flesh. He is the key to the Old-Testa- Christ the ment Scriptures. It is only superficial unspiritual thinking old Testa- which at any time affects to think that the law and the ment prophets are of little worth. Of such thinking John is not guilty. He is alive to the divine that is in them, and while, as other writers of the New Testament, he dwells upon the superiority and glory of the final revelation in Jesus Christ, he has seen, too, the abiding significance of those prepara tory scriptures whose meaning cannot be broken. 47 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Different judgmentsupon rela tion of John and Paul Judgment depends upon con ception of the histori cal charac ter of Gos pel 2. The Teaching of Paul On the relation of John to Paul, critical judgment has come to widely differing conclusions. On one side all conscious relationship between them as far as the Gospel is concerned, is denied; on the other, the Gospel represents an advanced form of Paulinism. "The Fourth Gospel is the effort of a gifted mind to ground the higher Christology of Paul in an interpretation, based on partly independent sources, of the ministry and teaching of Jesus."1 In some respects the Johannine theology may be considered a little more than the natural development, along one particular line of Paulinism."2 The whole of the Johannine theology is a natural development from the Pauline."3 For all of these writers, of course, the Gospel is not a true rescript of history, and John did not write it. As representing the opposite judgment, Sanday says: "As it is, the two great apostolic cycles (Paul and John) stand majestically apart. There may be a connection between them, but it is a connection, in the main, underground. There is no direct application, but the parentage of both lies behind."4 As has been suggested, judgment in a measure depends upon one's conception of the historical character of the Gospel. If the discourses are principally constructions 1 Bacon, Inlroduc. to the N . T., p. 251. 2 Scott, The Fourth Gospel, p. 49. 3 Wernle. i Sanday, Criticism oj the Fourth Gospel. 48 According to the Gospel of John Introduction of the evangelist, then the conclusion is not difficult, that similarities of conception are the result of dependence; if not, then affinities must be differently explained. It would be surprising if such an interpretation of Jesus as Paul has given us had made no impression upon one who came into the very region where it had been taught and received. And yet no one can compare the two Differences writers, Paul and John, without realizing how different entationof is their whole method of presentation. The theology Paul of Paul centres about the death and resurrection of his Master; that of John about his incarnation. Neither leaves out that which deeply interests the other, but the emphasis is not the same. Paul is intent upon showing the relation of Christ's death to the law; he cannot be too thankful for "the righteousness of God," revealed and communicated in the propitiatory death of Jesus. The cross is for John the highest proof of the love and grace of God. Justification is one of Paul's great words; the new life "eternal" is for John the inestimable gift of God through Christ. And so we might go on through all the distinctive points of their teaching. If John has borrowed from Paul, he certainly has put upon all that he has taken the stamp of his own genius. The stumbling-block, however, to all this thought of borrowing is that it requires John to so shape the sayings of Jesus as to ascribe to him a truth which originated only with Paul. That might be, if we found in the Gospel simply what Wrede calls a "peri- 49 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Where are we to look for Pauline influence? Illustrations of Fossible auline in fluence patetic God," but the human Jesus of the Fourth Gospel is too consistent with him of the Synoptics to allow this. Where then does the Pauline influence come in? Simply in helping the evangelist to see more clearly the exalted position and work of Jesus. It "bridged the way back" for the memory of John to words of Jesus which became significant in the light of Paul's profound interpretation. A notable instance of this may be found in the testimony of John the Baptist (1:29). Paul's setting forth of the doctrine of the cross is in the sentence, "Who taketh away the sin of the world." So the way was bridged back to those reminiscences in which Jesus speaks of his preexist- ence; of his coming to dwell in the hearts of believers; of his laying down his life for the sheep. It certainly is no derogation of the work of the Holy Spirit that through the thought of another the writer of the Gospel came to a profounder sense of the life and words which he had re membered, or that he had them thereby quickened in memory. We have referred to the subjective element in the Gospel. One needs but to run over the comments of the evangelist, and then ask whether this potent influence might not have had its bearing upon them! Back of both Paul and John is Jesus. In the leading points of their interpretation of him there is no disharmony. That is not because one repeats the interpretation of the other, but because they both see the same great reality. Their points of view are not exactly the same, but that is not 5° According to the Gospel of John Introduction to say that in the portrait which John has given us he has not been helped to remember some of its features more distinctly by the vivid portrayal of Paul. To this extent we believe there is a Pauline influence upon the Fourth Gospel. We have called attention to it in various places in the interpretation. It in no way detracts from the value of the Gospel, but rather reveals the influence of two witnesses to the truth. John is not made greater by ignoring Paul. It is only a matter for praise, if Paul's noble work helped his successor to recall more definitely and fully the words which substantiate any true theology of Jesus. 3. The Ephesian Environment By this is meant those elements in the life and thought of the Asian capital which would also in some way condi tion the form of the presentation of Jesus. The description "Ephesian environment" is not fully satisfactory, as it is not completely exclusive of the point already noted, but it will serve our purpose and become definite as we go on. To dispose of a minor point first, the situation in Ephesus The intro- accounts, we believe, for the way by which John the Baptist jorm the is introduced into the Gospel. A review of the passages th^Go'spe'" in which he appears will show how intent the evangelist is to distinguish him from his Master. "He was not that light, but came that he might bear witness of the light" (1 : 18). And John the Baptist, himself, when he speaks, 51 Introduction The Messages of Jesus dwells upon his inferiority to Jesus. "He that cometh after me is before me." "He must increase, but I must de- Disciples of crease." In Acts 19 : 1-7 is the account of a group of the inEpnesus disciples of John the Baptist, whom Paul found in Ephesus. Whether they had originally come from Palestine or whether they were, as another supposes, a Gnostic group, their reception into the Church had not completely done away with a Baptist party which was making claims in consistent with the truth. Carefully the writer of the Gospel avoids any disparagement of John the Baptist, but from the Baptist's own words he seeks to give him his true place and win these, his mistaken adherents, to the full service of Christ. The specu- A much more pervasive and potent influence was ity of the speculative activity in this centre of the conflux of p esus rei;g;ous an(i philosophic conceptions. The Church was now at least fifty years away from the time of the Lord's Two es- death. There was the easy possibility of danger in two dangers to directions: either to make religion a matter of tradi tion with little spiritual power, or try and get a certain permanent value for the actual history of Jesus by sublimat ing it into a philosophical allegory.1 This latter danger John seeks was peculiarly likely to appear in Ephesus. A permanent permanent value for Jesus was certainly what John was seeking to Jesus °f establish, and at the same time he wished to connect that value with an historical basis. Facts were not to be evapo- 1 Scott, The Fourth Gospel, p. 8. 52 According to the Gospel of John Introduction rated into theories; they were rather to reveal the "promise and potency" of that which is abiding. The gospel, the glad tidings of a Saviour, should be so restated that its living force and changeless value would be unmistakable. Nothing seems to us farther from the truth than that it The Gospel was an attempt to blend Christ's teachings with Greek glomerate philosophy. Every student of the more recent criticism °ruthandS of the Gospel knows how often the Logos doctrine of the iosophyPhl" prologue has been made the proof of just such an attempt. One quotation from a stimulating and richly suggestive work will illustrate this. "Through fellowship with Christ he (the evangelist) had attained to a higher life and a new assurance of God; and he accepts him by a simple judgment of faith as his Lord and Saviour. But he feels it necessary to explain and justify the convictions that have thus been born in him. He has recourse to the speculative forms which the thought of his time afforded, and seeks to express by means of them the purely religious truths of Christianity. The result is that the genuine import of his teaching is to a great extent obscured. We have constantly to disengage it from the alien metaphysic which appears to interpret, but most often warps and conceals it. . . . Jesus revealed the Father because he was identical with the Logos, the eternal principle which, according to current speculation, was the medium of God's activity. His life, therefore, was that of a divine being, self-determined, omniscient, endowed with super- 53 Introduction The Messages of Jesus natural energies. He revealed God not so much in his moral attributes as in his intrinsic nature. The picture of Jesus which passes before us in the Gospel is every where imbued with this conception of him as Logos, and loses in this way much of its reality and attractive power."1 How blindly the Apostle defeated his own purpose in so setting forth the Son of God that men might believe and Three ob- have hfe! As against all this let it be noted (i) that while this view John did lay hold of this loftiest existing philosophic conception of his time, he immediately showed that he was using it as a form of thought by giving it a meaning which no philosophic system of his day would have acknowl edged. "The Logos became flesh." (2) That the con tent of the term is in line with the development of Jewish conceptions, rather than Alexandrian. (3) That the word is never used in the Gospel outside of the prologue. Godet has with force remarked that "John does not come to invite his readers to a metaphysical walk amid the depths of the divine essence, in order to discover a being called The Gospel the Logos."2 And this leads to the further remark that give us the the Gospel itself is in no sense a presentation of the meta- icsofPjesus physics of Jesus or of redemption. Its theology is not an expression of any school of philosophy. It is the utterance of a profoundly spiritual nature speaking with "timeless voice to the permanent needs of men." That it suggests metaphysical questions and leads to metaphysical 1 Scott, The Fourth Gospel, p. 363. 2 Com. on John, vol. i, p. 383. 54 According to the Gospel of John Introduction dogmas, as men seek to penetrate beyond its spiritual teachings to the understanding of the great realities set forth, is unquestionable. That is a far different matter from saying that it is itself a metaphysical or semi-meta physical treatise. As Dr. Drummond has well said, "Its Dr. Drum- philosophical terms are like soft echoes from some lower ™£w world, and the whole treatment of them leaves the impres sion of one who did not belong to the schools, but knew from the society around him the language and the difficulties of the thoughtful men of his time, and sought to answer their questions not by sinking into the wordy dialectics of a sophist, but by taking up current terms and transmitting them with the fire of faith which was more akin to spiritual imagination than to speculative philosophy. . . . The unbelief which is of earth, and cuts men off from God whatever may be their profession, he traces to the unregenerate heart, the false deference to a dead authority, the wishing to agree with the multitude or with the rulers and the learned, the seeking glory from one another and not the glory that comes from God. These are the things that blind men and place them on the wrong side in the great crises of his tory when individuals and nations are sifted, and the heralds of God sound an alarm to a world buried in spiritual Ephesus ex- sleep." 1 Because this is all so splendidly true, we need genera/fa- look only to the general situation in Ephesus to under- upon^U stand this influence upon the Gospel. The intricacies ^l^d 1 Character and Authorship oj Fourth Gospel, p. 25. 55 Introduction The Messages of Jesus and trivialities of varying Gnostic systems are of little moment. It is not true that the writer of the Gospel carries back the hostilities of the latter part of the first century or of the early part of the second. Why should he ? The oppo- The antagonism to Jesus in those days, when the Pharisees fundamen- and the Sadducees and the people sought to seize him and me'rdy tem- finally succeeded, is traced to its ultimate reason; and that poral reason could appear and has appeared again and again with other names and in other lands, for it is in the last analysis unbelief born of moral degradation, intellectual pride, or even spiritual presumption. Over against it stands the Messiah of the Fourth Gospel, speaking with divine accents, living a life unspotted and calling men everywhere to repent from sin, to love God and accept eternal life. He talks no metaphysics; he needs no philos ophy to explain him. Through loving obedience issuing in spiritual-mindedness can he be known. So John came to know him, and with the growth of the years and the experiences of life, to see the deeper eternal meaning of his Master. " Much that at first, in deed and word Lay simply and sufficiently exposed, Had grown (or else my soul was grown to match, Fed through such years, familiar with such light, Guarded and guided still to see and speak) Of new significance and fresh result; What first were guessed as points I now knew stars." 56 According to the Gospel of John Introduction IV THE APOSTLE JOHN Identifying, as we have, the unnamed and beloved disciple At first a of the Fourth Gospel with the Apostle John, the account fheTaptfst of what little we have given regarding him in the Scriptures begins with the time when he was a disciple of John the Baptist. The trumpet call of this last of the prophets had brought him either from Jerusalem or from the shores of Galilee, and he had given himself to the service of quicken ing the nation to repentance. A vein in John's character made him earnestly responsive to the stern, uncompromis ing message of the Baptist, and he doubtless joined in the preaching which should convict the nation of its sin. How long he had been in this service when Jesus first He meets appeared at the Jordan we do not know, but that memo- the Jordan rable day came, and he heard the wondrous testimony of his teacher, "Behold the Lamb of God!" (Jn 1:36). With eager attention he and Andrew listened to Jesus as he spoke that day; and, unwilling to miss a word, they followed him as he moved about among the people. Their deepening interest caught the eye of Jesus, and he asked them what they were seeking. Their counter-question indicates their keen desire to know more about him, and in response to the inquiry as to where he was abiding, Jesus 57 Introduction The Messages of Jesus gave them an invitation to go with him and see (Jn. 1:37- 39). So vividly was the time of that eventful invitation impressed upon John's mind — four o'clock in the afternoon He goes to — that he never forgot it. It was really a crisis hour in his of Jesus; a life (i : 39) for he came from that brief visit with the con- forShim°Ur viction that he had found the Messiah. It matters not that neither of the two who went to the abode of Jesus understood fully what they meant by the word "Messiah." They knew enough to bring about a change in the current John's of their lives. John's home was in Galilee (probably at heather's Bethsaida). Zebedee, his father, was apparently a man business Qc some property (Mk. 1 : 20), and followed the business of fishing in the lake. The fisheries of the sea of Galilee were at this time an important and flourishing industry. No less than three cities on the shore derived their names from the business — Tarichaea, Bethsaida and Chorazin. At the time of the great feasts in Jerusalem there was a large demand for fish, and the business was profitable. A law of the land, supposed to date from the time of Joshua, prevented any monopolization of the fishing grounds. It may have been, as has been suggested, that in connection with this business John was frequently called to Jerusalem, and hence was well known in the capital. Furthermore, the fact that he lived in Galilee is no argument against the supposition that he may have been related to some of the His mother nobility in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Salome. (Compare Matt. 27:56 with Mk. 15:40.) On the next 58 According to the Gospel of John Introduction day after their memorable visit with him, Jesus set out for Galilee, and his new disciples accompanied him on their way home. What occurred on the way is recorded in Jn. 1:43-51. Invited to attend a wedding in Cana, Heaccom- to which his mother had gone, Jesus arrived with his jeTuTto followers, and there they witnessed the beginning of that ^nd/wed- miraculous activity, which made peculiar appeal to the c'Sfaat faith of Jews (Jn. 2:1-11). The time was drawing near for the annual feast of the Passover. Jesus planned to visit this feast and open his public ministry in the capital. At Capernaum they could easily join one of the caravans Goes with moving southward, so they went thither (Jn. 2:12). rusalem to Now for the first time Jesus entered the Temple city in assover the full consciousness of his Messiahship, and John wit nessed that startling deed, the cleansing of the Temple (Jn. 2:13-22). Thiswas followed by a number of miracles performed in the city, which aroused popular interest and curiosity. Not only the people, but the rulers were deeply stirred by this doer of wonders, who was at the same time proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven; and John was permitted to hear the conversation of his Master Hears con- with Nicodemus, one of the Jewish rulers, who came to wlthNlco- make inquiry regarding the new doctrine (Jn. 3:1-15). demus The capital had not shown itself ready for a favoring reception of Jesus, so he withdrew into the country districts of Judea, and continued there the work of preparation (Jn. 3:22). John the Baptist was then baptizing at 59 Introduction The Messages of Jesus yEnon, and the work of the two preachers was naturally confused, though Jesus himself did not baptize. It was at this time that the dispute arose between the disciples of Jesus and John the Baptist, and the Baptist bore his noble testimony to the place and prerogatives of Jesus Is with him (Jn. 3: 22-30). Owing to the suspicion of the Pharisees, in Samaria Jesus left Judea and returned by way of Samaria to Galilee. On the way occurred that memorable scene by the well of Samaria, at which John was present (Jn. 4:1-42) On his arrival in Galilee Jesus went again to Cana, and here John saw "the second sign which Jesus did, having come out of Judea into Galilee," the cure of the nobleman's At home son (Jn. 4:46-54). John now returned to his home for shorttime1 a while, and engaged in the business of fishing. The < imprisonment of John the Baptist soon again called him to the side of his Master, who saw in the confinement of his herald the sign that he must enter at once vigorously upon his mission (Mk. 1:16-20; Matt. 4:18-22; Lk. 5:1- Second 11). With this call begins the second stage of John's cipfeship IS" discipleship, and all we know of it is involved in the record cafut lake- °f tne teaching and general activity of Jesus. It was all a side part of the training which he, with the other disciples, was to have for the arduous work later to be put upon Later them (see Mk. 1:21; 2:22). Later came the choice to apostfe and t^e apostolate, and his mission in life was fully defined of'thunder"" (Mk' S'^i'1^' Matt Io:2_4; Lk. 6:12-19). Mark tells us that at the time of this call he named James and John 60 According to the Gospel of John Introduction "sons of thunder" (Mk. 3: 17) or, as the term is otherwise interpreted, "sons of tumult," "angry men" — a descrip tion which points to a trait in the "beloved disciple" which is often overlooked. It comes out in the incident in regard to the Samaritan village, when these two disciples wished to call down fire from heaven upon the inhospitable Samaritans (Lk. 9:54). To write out the account of the Apostle's experience from this point onward would be virtually to repeat the story of the gospels. John was John now in constant attendance upon his Master, and shared with attendance his companion apostles all the vicissitudes of the life of Master1S journeying, preaching, and service. Some incidents in which John was especially favored may be noted as showing the fact that he was a "beloved disciple." At the raising Especial of Jairus's daughter Jesus took only Peter and James and accorded John into the room of death (Mk. 5:37; Lk. 8:51). hlm These three were with him on the Mount of Transfigura tion (Mk. 9:2; Matt. 19: 1; Lk. 9:28). As reflecting something of the "straight" orthodoxy which appears in the First Epistle is the incident recorded in Mark 9:38 and Luke 9:44, where he forbade a man who was casting out devils, because he was following Jesus. That he had not entered into the true meaning of the Messiahship of Jesus is seen in his ambitious request given in Mk. 10:37, Matt. 20:21. It was he who asked Jesus privately about the fulfilment of the great prophecies concerning Jerusalem. There can be no mistake, therefore, in that 61 Introduction The Messages of Jesus more spiritual understanding of eschatology which came to him after Jerusalem was destroyed. During Passion week he was commissioned with Peter to make preparation for the passover (Lk. 22:8); he reclined near Jesus at the supper, and asked him confidential questions (Jn. 13 : 23- 25); in the garden he was near his agonized Master (Mk. 14:33) and, though in the first moments of panic over the arrest he fled with the others (Matt. 26:56), he soon recovered himself, and followed the procession to the palace of the high-priest (Jn. 18 : 15). His relationship to Jerusalem gave him the privilege of entrance, and from him we learn much of the inner progress of the whole travesty upon justice in the various court scenes. His fearless love took him to Calvary, and there he received from the dying lips of Jesus the command to care for Mary (Jn. 19:26, 27). From Mary Magdalene he hears of the resurrection, and he hastens with Peter to the grave (Jn. 20:2, 3). Once more we hear of him in connection with the appearance of the risen Lord in Galilee (Jn. 21 : 2-7). and there the record of him as far as the Gospels The Gospel are concerned comes to an end. It is withal a meagre him but account, but in what it suggests it is pregnant with a won- meagre derful experience. The numerous touches in the Fourth Gospel, which argue an eye-witness of its scenes, accord with this record of intimacy with Jesus. His later The later history of the Apostle can be known only from a very few references. In the Acts we hear of him 62 According to tlie Gospel of John Introduction in connection with a miracle wrought at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, as he and Peter were going up thither at the hour of prayer (Acts 3:4). The excitement over the event caused his arrest and appearance before the Sanhedrin. Later he and Peter were sent to Samaria to Goes to further the work of Philip (8:14, 15), and Paul speaks amana of him as being in Jerusalem about a.d. 50 (Gal. 2: 1, 9). At that time he was recognized as one of the pillars of the Church (Gal. 2:9). From this time on our knowledge of him is gained Further entirely from the traditions of the Church. According onl°yWfrome to this source he is said to have remained in Jerusalem tra ltIon until the death of Mary, in a.d. 48. The time of his Uncertain departure from Jerusalem is entirely uncertain. He kftejerusa- probably left the city, as did all the other Christians, before Ephrauf '° its destruction in a.d. 70. We have already seen why he would be attracted to Ephesus, where tradition declares that he spent the later years of his life. The importance of the city and the needs of the Church made earnest appeals for help. As, however, the Ephesian residence Ephesian of John is vigorously disputed, it is in order here to review disputed the evidence and see whether we are justified in accepting the generally received conclusion. Irenasus, Polycrates, Three main witnesses Bishop of Ephesus, and Clement of Alexandria are the for it main witnesses for the common tradition. The first is Irenasus very explicit, telling us that John, the disciple of the Lord, who also lay on his breast, likewise published the Gospel, 63 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Considera tions urged againstEphesianresidence Ignatius Value of the argu ment from silence while dwelling at Ephesus.1 "The Church at Ephesus founded by Paul, and with which John lived till Trajan's time (98-117 a.d.), is a truthful witness to the traditions of the apostles."2 We have already noted (chap, i, pp. 15-17) the close re lationship in life and experience of Irenasus, Polycarp, and John. Their united Uves bridge over a whole century of per sonal associations and reverent memories and the witness which they bear to John's residence in Ephesus seems well- nigh conclusive. Two considerations, however, have been urged against it. These are (1) the silence among older writers regarding the Ephesian residence and (2) the pos sible confusion on the part of Irenasus of John the Apostle with John the Presbyter. By " older writers" are meant Poly carp and Ignatius. There is no sufficient reason why Poly carp in his letter to the Philippians should mention John, but it does at first sight seem strange that Ignatius in his Epistle to the Ephesians should have no reference to him. His mention of Paul is called out by the fact that just as the Apostle had received the elders at Miletus on his way to imprisonment in Rome, so he received at Smyrna a delega tion from Ephesus.3 The argument from silence is by no means conclusive, seeing that even Paul is mentioned only by reason of especial circumstances. Furthermore, in the immediately preceding chapter he asks their prayers, "that he may be found in the lot of the Christians of 1 Contra Haer., 'iii, i, i. 2 Ibid., iii, 3, 4. 3 Epis.lo Ephes.,% 12. 64 According to the Gospel of John Introduction Ephesus who have always been of the same mind with the apostles, through the power of Jesus Christ." In connection with other evidence, there is certainly more reason to include John here among the apostles than to leave him out. "When one takes into account the scantiness of the literary remains of this early period, the probable growth of John's reputation during the second century and the prevalence in the Ignatian epistles them selves of a Johannine type of teaching ' the argument from silence loses much of its force."2 In writing of the external evidence (see previous chapter) attention was called to the extreme unlikelihood of the confusion of John the Apostle with John the Presby ter. We must now give attention to the statement of The wit- Eusebius,3 that Papias has not declared that he himself papias was hearer and eye-witness of the holy apostles. The testimony of Papias is: "But I shall not hesitate also to put down for you along with my interpretations whatsoever things I have at any time learned carefully from the eld ers and carefully remembered, guaranteeing their truth. For I did not, like the multitude, take pleasure in those that speak much, but in those that teach the truth; not in those that relate strange commandments, but in those that deliver the commandments given by the Lord to faith 1 See Von der Goltz's Ignatius vim Antiochien als Christ und Theologe in Texte und Untersuchungen, Band XII. 2 "John the Apostle" in Diet, oj Christ and the Apostles (Riggs). 3 H. E., iii, 39. 65 Introduction The Messages of Jesus Points in this witness requiring examination There are two Johns Drum mond 's ex planation ofthe change of tenses and springing from the truth itself. If then any one came who had been a follower of the elders I questioned him in regard to the words of the elders— what Andrew or what Peter said, or what was said by Philip, or by Thomas, or by James, or by John, or by Matthew, or by any other of the disciples of the Lord, and what things Aristion and the Presbyter John, the disciples of the Lord, say. For I did not think that what was to be gathered from the books would profit me as much as what came from the living and abiding voice." ' Two points in this witness require examination: (i) The distinction between the Apostle John and the Presbyter John. (2) The distinction in the tenses of the verb, "said," "say." In regard to the first, there seems to be little doubt that the reference is to two distinct persons. In regard to the second, the explanation given by Drum mond seems most satisfactory.2 In his search for enlight enment Papias inquired after the unwritten sayings of all referred to, except Aristion and John the Presbyter. In their case he was getting information from "books." The "what they say," refers to the time of writing, not to the time of inquiry, and "the books" to words written by some other authors, but entitled perhaps, "Narratives of Aristion," "Traditions of the Presbyter John." These books, being anonymous, needed confirmation by com- 1 H. E., iii, 39. 2 Character and Authorship oj the Fourth Gospel, pp. 199-204. 66 According to the Gospel of John Introduction petent witnesses. Hence, what Papias would say is that he gained what information he could from the unwritten sayings of the Apostles and from the written sayings of Aristion and the Presbyter. " No matter what the Apostles had written, any authentic additions to their teachings would be welcome. But if these were books professing to contain sayings of Aristion and John the Presbyter, Papias might well allege as a reason for inquiring into those sayings that he did not feel as much confidence in the books as in the oral reports." ' If this interpretation be correct, then Papias was not a hearer of even the Pres byter John, as far as this piece of evidence goes. Irenasus got his information about Papias's hearing the Apostle from other sources and Eusebius. Inasmuch as he ad duces no more explicit statement than the above, it cannot prove a confusion of persons. Certainly the passage does not require us to think that the Presbyter John was in Ephesus at all. Dionysius of Alexandria is the author- Dionysius ity for this last fact. He is arguing for the authorship dria cited of the Apocalypse by some other John than the Apostle, john^fa and cites the tradition that "there are two monuments in Asla Ephesus, each bearing the name of John."2 It has been well said "that the existence of two me- Value of the morials in Ephesus such as Dionysius, Eusebius, and Jerome refer to, by no means proves that more than one John was buried there." Over against all this, we 1 Drummond, ibid., p. 20r. 2 Eus. H. E., vii, 25. 67 testimony Introduction The Messages of Jesus must once more emphasize the position and relationship of Irenasus. How the In much the same way an attempt is made to weaken the Polycrates witness of Polycrates by showing from his alleged con- is attacked fusion of the Apostle and the evangeUst PhiUp the like possibility in regard to the Apostle and the Presbyter. Even if it were indisputable that the two Philips had been confused, the fact would constitute no vaUd argument for a confusion of the two Johns. Each must be examined on its own grounds. And it is by no means sure that Poly crates has made a mistake in regard to PhiUp. Dr. Drummond, after an examination of the argument, con cludes that Polycrates is correct. We are, however, con- Theposi- cerned with his testimony to John. And first, we must Polycrates caU attention to the position of Polycrates. He was Bishop tneatrustmg °^ Ephesus, and when he wrote his letter to Victor, Bishop worthiness 0f Rome, was old enough to have been Uving at the time knowledge of Polycarp. Here again we have continuity of experiences adding its support to testimony. He tells us that John, who was both a witness and a teacher, who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord, being a priest wore the sacerdotal plate. He fell asleep at Ephesus.1 The description "who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord" points directly to the Apostle. What is said regarding the sacerdotal plate is likewise said of James,2 the Lord's brother, and is probably nothing more than a figurative expression for 1 Eus. H. £., iii, 31; v, 24. 2 Epiphanius, Haer., lxxvii, 14. 68 According to the Gospel of John Introduction the exalted position which these men held among their Christian brethren. In Polycrates, a contemporary of Irenasus, we have an independent witness. As introductory to the witness of Clement of Alexandria, Clement of it is well to note what he says in reference to his "Mis cellanies" : "This work is not a writing artfully constructed for display; but my notes are stored up for old age as a remedy against forgetfulness." He tells us the order and His refer- nationality of his teachers, that we may know that "these lfaeoftradi- men preserved the tradition of doctrine directly from the fr°m peter,3' holy Apostles, Peter, James, John, and Paul, son receiving Jo^,63^ it from father — though few were like their fathers — until Paul by God's will the seeds of truth from ancestors and Apostles came to them." 1 It is in his story of John and the young disciple who became a robber that Clement bears his witness to John's residence in Ephesus, 2 and because Clement seems to offer a distinct line of tradition, his witness is an independent confirmation of Irenasus and Polycrates.3 It is upon this body of testimony that the Ephesian residence of John has been thought to rest securely. It seems clear, adequate, and satisfactory. We can only imagine the life of the aging Apostle as he talked and worked in this busy centre of Grasco-Oriental Ufe. The needs of the work were such as to demand his 1 Stromala, i, i. ! Eus. H. E., iii, 23. 3 See Drummond, Cltaracler and Authorship, p. 213. 69 Introduction The Messages of Jesus fullest energies, and the Gospel is our evidence for the exalted character of his teaching. John's exile No sketch of the Apostle's life were complete without some reference to his alleged banishment to the island of Patmos. The statement in Revelation i : 9 is probably Weiss's and the basis for the tradition of his exile. Weiss supposes views ay that he went thither to find a religious retreat; Ramsay1 thinks that his banishment was attended with great hard ship and suffering. Certainly the tradition that he was an exile on this lonely island is widely attested. Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Origen, Eusebius, Epiphanius, Jerome, all speak of it. Whether the experience was bitter or not, he came back to Ephesus to end his long and blessed life. At least, such has been the generally accepted faith View that of the Church. That belief, however, has of late been John was ... , . . .... siafa by the questioned, owing to the witness of two authorities2 to the statement of Papias that John was put to death by the Jews. Sanday " places the death of the Apostle among the unsolved problems connected with the Gospel. It is strange, if John died a violent death at the time of his brother, that Eusebius ignores the fact. Perhaps the most plausible explanation of the matter is that a mistaken interpretation of fiaprupav which in its earlier sense did 1 Letters lo the Seven Churches, p. 85. 2 The Chronicle oj Georgius Hamarlolos (ninth century) and the DeBoor Fragment. 3 Criticism oj the Fourth Gospel, p. 251. 70 According to the Gospel of John Introduction not mean death, supported the desire to find a fulfilment of Mark io: 38-39. Brief as this outline is, yet with the help of the Gospel John's and the First Epistle, we may get a fairly just estimate of the great Apostle's character. One's first thought of him is that he was quiet, meditative, of a reflective type of character. All this he undoubtedly was, but there was another side. He could flash up in a moment, and we see him at times when he is intolerant. Certainly he was ambitious. He could love passionately, and hate in tensely. Fortunately the discipline of truth turned his hatred toward that which was untrue and unrighteous. The sharp, straight sentences of the First Epistle tell us how he felt toward the wickedness of the world. The emphasis which both the Epistle and the Gospel put upon the love of God revealed in his Master, tell us how deeply he felt the mercy of redemption. Tender, strong, coura geous, uncompromising, such was he who while a "son of tumult" was yet "the beloved disciple." 71 THE PROLOGUE: THE BEGINNINGS OF THE HISTORY IN THESE BEGINNINGS WE HAVE SET BEFORE US THE SPIRITUAL FORCES WHICH WORK ON THROUGH THE GOSPEL, BRINGING OUT, EACH IN ITS OWN WAY, THE REVELATION OF THE MESSIAH THE PROLOGUE THE BEGINNINGS OF THE HISTORY I Its Representative Character The first eighteen verses of the Gospel constitute Purpose of an introduction, or, as it is usually called, a prologue, logue™ This prologue sets forth the realities which underlie and condition the history given us in the Gospel itself. It presents to us the central figure of the succeeding drama in his relations both to God and to men and the attitude of men toward him. It gives us the motifs, to use a musical phrase, of all the interplay of forces evident in the scenes of the history. For this reason the prologue is a summary as well as an introduction. A study of the Gospel will show that the first eighteen verses do but gather up into compact form all that has been learned. Their pithy sentences are the outcome of the author's reflection upon all he has seen and heard in Galilee and Jerusalem. Hence, the prologue may be called the Gospel in _, , A . . . . miniature Gospel in miniature. The chapters contaimng mci- 75 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus dent and discourse are simply an analysis or illustration of its comprehensive statements. It is true that the epi thet "the Word" does not occur outside of these intro ductory verses, but each chapter contributes its share toward the make-up of this peculiar and pregnant de scription of the Messiah. They that were "his own received him not." How complete a summary that is of the sleepless espionage of the ecclesiastical authorities, the wilful misinterpretations of the Pharisees, the sharply chilled enthusiasms of the people, and the final cruel injustice of Calvary itself! And what are miracle and teaching and sinless conduct but means toward helping us see " the glory as of the only begotten from the Father, Parallels full of grace and truth " ? That this close interrelation betweenprologue between introduction and Gospel may be more evident ospe noje ^g following parallels : In the beginning was Before Abraham was, I the Word and the Word am (8:58). was with God. Glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was (17:5). And the Word was God. This made the Jews all the more eager to kill him, because not only was he 76 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue All things were made through him, and without him was nothing made which has come to be. In him was life. And the Ufe was the Ught of men. And the light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness apprehended it not. There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness that he doing away with the Sab bath, but he actually called God his own Father, put ting himself on an equaUty with God (5:18; 10:32). Thou art my Lord and my God (20: 28). My Father has gone on working to the present mo ment, I go on working too (5:17). I came that they may have Ufe, and have it abun dantly (John 10: 10; 5: 21; 11:25, 26). I am the light of the world (9: 5). And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world and men loved the darkness rather than the Ught, for their works were evil (3:19; 12:46). And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the son of God (1:34). 77 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus might bear witness of the Ught, that all might be- Ueve through him. He was not the Ught, but came that he might bear witness of the Ught. There was the true light, even the Ught which Ught- eth every man coming into the world. He was in the world and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came to his own, and they that were his own re ceived him not. And he confessed, I am not the Christ (1:20). Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him (3 : 28) . He that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the Ught of Ufe (8: 12). The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, be cause I testify of it that its works are evil (7 : 7; 15: 18; 16:9). I know that ye are Abra ham 's seed; yet ye seek to kill me because my word hath not free course in you (8:37). From that day forth they took counsel that they might put him to death (11:53). 78 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to become children of God, even to them that be lieve on his name: which were born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. And we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begot ten from the Father, full of grace and truth. See also 7:1, 5, 12, 20; 15:25. Except a man be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the King dom of God (3:5). See 6: 65; 14: 6. I came out from the Father and am come into the world (16: 28). For the words which thou gavest me I have given unto them, and they received them and knew of a truth that I came forth from thee, and they be- Ueved that thou didst send me (17: 8). And we have beUeved and know that thou art the Holy One of God (6: 69). I glorified thee in the earth, having accom- 79 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus John beareth witness of him and crieth, saying: This was he of whom I said, He that cometh after me is become before me; for he was before me. For of his fulness we all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given by Moses ; grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only be gotten Son which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. pUshed the work which thou gavest me to do (17:4). Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is be fore me, for he was before me (1:29, 30). He that cometh to me shall not hunger; and he that beUeveth on me shall never thirst (6: 35). I am the way and the truth and the life (14: 6). To this end am I come into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth (18:37). He that hath seen me hath seen theFather (14:9). The Father that sent me, he hath given me a com mandment, what I should say and what I should speak (12: 49). So According to the Gospel of John The Prologue This paralleUsm makes several facts evident: (l) Prologue That the prologue is not a mere speculative introduction larivc^mtro- to the Gospel. Its purpose is in no sense metaphysical. ductlon Every sentence is linked with practical issues. No statement transcends the teaching of Jesus himself. Each, rather, is framed from a clear conception of the import of the Master's own utterances or from a pro found understanding of the issues which in history at tended the supreme revelation of the Son. The time has gone by when John's Gospel can be justly called a philosophic or theological romance. The reaUty of history is in it, and the prologue is, in its general state ments, a clear, faithful reflection of that reality. With out the words, deeds, and sufferings of Jesus it never could have been written. The Jewish speculative phi losophy of Alexandria would have repudiated it, for the simple reason that it could not follow "the Word" here spoken of along the paths of incarnate being and suffer ing. Of course it may be said that the very point at issue is here assumed, namely, that the facts of the Gos pel are facts, and that the discourses are genuine and not "variations of the speculative theme placed at the be ginning of the book." Both of these positive positions must have attention and confirmation, as we go on through the interpretation of the Gospel. It is suffi cient now to say that the facts of the narrative have every mark of historicity, and the discourses, whatever The Prologue The Messages of Jesus may be their relation to Jesus or to John, are certainly not speculative constructions in support of a Logos theorem. Prologue (2) That the three leading ideas of the prologue are of fteah?s- the substance respectively of the three facts developed tory simultaneously in the history. These three facts are: The Messiahship of Jesus, the bUnd and pitiful rejection of him by the Jews, and the response made to him in faith by those whose spiritual desires or whose sense of need caused them to Usten to his gracious message. As the story unfolds we come to see even more clearly how fully Jesus has interpreted to us the holiness and love of God, and by this very interpretation shown himself to be the Messiah. We also can watch the deepening an tagonism of the capital, and note as well the answer to his call of those who "knew his voice." II THE PROLOGUE (1:1-18) Relation of He who has been to us the Revealer of God has existed toGod°and from all eternity in communion with God, and is him- creation se,r essentially divine. He is so identified with God in reference to creation that it is possible to say that all things without exception came into being through his cooperation. Creation itself has the stamp of the Messiah upon it. 82 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue Not one thing apart from his presence ever came into being. AU animate things get Ufe from him, and to such beings as possess rational intelligence, that is, to men, the life that was in him became Ught or truth which is the Ufe of the soul. Even now this truth, as Ught, is shining for the blessing of To men men, but they have been unwilUng to receive it. They have believe" n°' preferred the darkness of selfishness. Mark how they (s_Il) have done it. John the Baptist, sent from God, and the last of a long Une of prophets who in their time bore witness to this "Ught of life," suffered the fate of those prophets. He came to bear specific witness to this Ught -truth as em bodied in Jesus. Although he was himself a "burning and shining lamp," he was but a lamp, not the true light,1 and the single, great purpose of all his activity was that men, irrespective of class or condition, might receive the truth as it is in Jesus. From his prophetic warnings and heart-searching appeals men turned contemptuously away. The "darkness" did not apprehend the "Ught." Just what happened in Israel took place in the world at large. This light of life — the essential, archetypal light, which 1 It is not unlikely that the careful distinction riiade between the Baptist and Christ may have been called out by assertions of a Baptist party existing at Ephesus at the time of John's teaching (see Acts 18: 25; 19: 3, 4). In the Clementine Recognition (perhaps from first half of third century) it is said that "some of the disciples of John, who seemed to be great ones, have sepa rated themselves and proclaimed their own master as the Christ" (1: 54). It will be noted that while holding dear the superiority of Jesus to John, the Gospel gives full recognition to the exalted position of the Baptist. »3 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus shines in every man's soul in the illumination of conscience, has been ever coming into the world in those experiences which are meant to teach men the moral significance of Ufe — in a sense of need or of guilt, in mercies or judgments. Yes, from the beginning this Ught has been in the world shining through aU its ordered glory, and yet the world has, with aU its intellectual keenness and philosophic insight, not seen it. Heathen worship and philosophy have been as darkness, which darkness did not apprehend the light. And when at last in personal, human revelation, he came to his own peculiar possession — the people of Israel — what did they do but reject him! To those Were this aU that could be said, the world were dark (12-16) indeed, but the issue has not been wholly calamitous, the witness has not been altogether fruitless. While the nation as a whole refused to receive the Christ, as many as did receive him by faith had given to them the right of becoming God's children — a relationship which springs neither from human parenthood nor hereditary privilege, but solely and wholly from the regenerating power of God himself. And the reason of this glorious outcome of faith in him is that he who had revealed God in various ways in the world's history became man, conjoining the divine and human in one personaUty; and as the Shekinah dwelt within the Tabernacle of old, so he tabernacled here on earth. Then we looked upon his glory, and it was as the glory of an only son who has come from a father — ab- 84 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue solutely without parallel in its perfect revelation to us of the character of God. In him we saw a complete embodiment of redeeming love and saving truth. Even yet is echoing the witness of John the Baptist, who said, "He who cometh after me has come to be my Master, for the very reason that from the beginning he was more exalted than I, being the Son of God." And we have no better proof that aU the fulness of divine love and reaUty was in him than this, that we have all received out of this fulness blessing after bless ing in ever-enlarging measure. Is not this same fulness Contrast made evident also in the contrast between that for which MoseTor the names of Moses and Jesus Christ stand? The Law, and cw'st that divine bestowment which sets forth ideals of righteous- "wf.?08" ness, demands obedience, and threatens penalty, was given through Moses, but in the very coming of Jesus Christ came the revelation of the way to attain to righteous ness, the inspiration and power to make the law an inward principle and deliverance from the bondage of externalism of every kind. When one asks why this fulness all came Christ's full through Jesus Christ we must simply mark again his t?onrofrthe relation to God. Only he who has seen God in the intimacy of personal, unhindered communion can make him fully known. That no man ever did until the man Christ Jesus came. He, from the depths of his insight and from the fellowship of his unparalleled sonship, has interpreted the Father. 85 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus III THE BEGINNINGS OF THE HISTORY Where It is the purpose of this Gospel, as we have already rativeSbe-r seen, to lead men to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, ^sy and the son of God, and through that faith to gain eternal life. Consistent with this purpose, John does not begin his account of Jesus until after the Temptation. A mo ment's reflection will show why. It was at the Baptism that Jesus came to the full, clear consciousness of his mission. In that significant hour he was equipped with power for service (Luke 4: 1), and in the word, "Thou art my beloved son, in thee I am well pleased" (Mk. 1 : 11) he heard the confirmation of all his hopes, ques tionings, and longings — he was the Messiah. The weighty, solemn problems of his exalted position called for retirement and meditation. Then came the Temp tation. It is worthy of note that this critical period in the Master's life is put by all the Synoptics immediately after the Baptism. It could have come at no earlier time, for the Temptation is no mere model for Christian conduct in the hour of seduction to evil. It is all that and vastly more, even the settlement of the way by which Messiahship should be realized and manifested. The Baptism and the Temptation are, therefore, of profound 86 According to tlie Gospel of John The Prologue significance in the Ufe of Jesus. He comes from them as the Messiah — proclaimed, tried, triumphant — the very Messiah whom John wishes us to see. He steps out into the light of public service ; and every deed, as well as every word, is to make him indisputable in claim and supremely worthy of acceptance. The marvels that surrounded his birth and the glimpse into his boyhood life are of no moment to John. These do not contribute essentially to his purpose. He begins when the great central figure, who fills all his thought, has come upon the stage. From the very first we must see Jesus who is the Christ. Mark now how graphically the account opens. The last word of the prologue has hardly finished its impress upon the memory when the drama begins whose scenes are to show us how, and with what success, the only begotten Son interpreted the Father; nay, more than this, to show us the only begotten Son as the interpreter of the Father. To continue the figure which John's graphic method suggests, the rolling up of the curtain reveals to us all the typical factors of the tragedy which is to be enacted — John the Baptist, the Jews, disciples, and Jesus himself. We begin our study of the history with that grouping of these factors which comes from the testimonies of the Baptist and the per sonal influence of Jesus. 87 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus The wide spread in terest in a prophet's voice (19) John's re ply to the committeefrom Jeru salem (20-27) IV THE TESTIMONIES OF THE BAPTIST (1:19-42) 1. First Testimony to the Deputation Sent Down from Jerusalem (i : 19-28) The vigorous, earnest, fearless preaching of John had drawn multitudes to him and caused a wide-spread sensa tion. It was something new in Israel to hear again a prophet's voice. The ringing tones of the Baptist broke upon a silence of four centuries and the call, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand," quickened eager hopes and awakened earnest questionings. It was the business of the sanhedrin, the Jewish supreme court in Jerusalem, to keep a watchful eye upon aU matters affecting the re- Ugious welfare of the nation. The claims of any would-be religious leader and the orthodoxy of his teachings must satisfy this august body if he was not to feel the power and constancy of its opposition. Hence the delegation of priests and Levites from Jerusalem. It had two questions to ask: "Who are you?" and "Why do you baptize?" There had been considerable discussion among the people as to whether John the Baptist were the Messiah (Lk. 3: 15). Therefore, their first inquiry, "Art thou the Christ?" to which John gave a quick and decisive answer, "I am not the Messiah." Unless he were an impostor, According to the Gospel of John The Prologue only two possibilities remained : Either he must be Elijah, who, according to the teaching of the scribes, on the basis of Malachi 4:5, would be the forerunner of the day of the Lord, or else that ancient prophet, be it Jeremiah or some other, who was, according to Deuteronomy 18: 15, to come and who by some was distinguished from the Messiah (Jn. 7: 40, 41), by others confused with him (Jn. 6: 14; Matt. 16 : 13, 14). As their expectations involved a bodily return of these ancient worthies, John promptly replied that he was neither EUjah nor the prophet. A merely negative answer, however, would not satisfy the Jerusalem authorities, and upon being pressed for a positive declara tion, the Baptist described himself in the language of Isaiah (40 : 3), and with notable self-effacement as "A voice crying in the wilderness, Straighten the way of the Lord." Immediately, then, came the question, "Why, if thou art neither the Christ nor Elijah, art thou baptizing?" The Pharisees were represented in this delegation, and they wished particularly to know what right he had to treat Israelites as if they were proselytes. According to tradi tion, the purification of the people was to be one of the acts initiating the kingdom, but that purification was to be ac- compUshed either by the Messiah or by his forerunner. The Baptist's answer to this question has been often mis understood. He does not justify his action by emphasizing The Prologue The Messages of Jesus Place of testimony(28) an antithesis between "baptizing with water" and "bap tizing with the Spirit." That comes in the witness of the next day. His answer is virtually this: The situation justifies me, since now in your midst stands one whom you do not know. I know him and he is the one who cometh after me. So exalted is he in character and station that I am not worthy to do even the menial service of undoing his shoe. My baptism with water is a solemn preparation for him. This first testimony to the Messiah was given in Bethany, on the eastern side of the Jordan. Jesuscomes to John the Baptist (29) 2. Second Testimony: To the Multitude upon the First Public Appearance of Jesus as the Messiah (1 : 29-34) Immediately after his baptism Jesus sought privacy that he might, alone with God, consider the duties and claims of his divine mission (Lk. 4:1). As has been already said, it was a time of temptation and of triumph. When he was ready to return to the world, he naturally turned to John, for around him he would find receptive spirits for his message. And it happened that he came to the place of the Baptist's activity on the next day after the departure of the deputation from Jerusalem. These days are all distinctly remembered, for it was on that never- to-be-forgotten third day that "one of the two who heard 90 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue John and followed Jesus" (40), came to the faith which gave him a Saviour and made the writing of this Gospel possible. The Baptist saw Jesus coming, and immediately exclaimed, "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world!" Two questions at once present themselves in regard Does the to this witness : (l) Is the latter half of it an interpreta- oTjohiuhe tion put into the mouth of the Baptist by the evangelist ? wftness'be- (2) To what lamb is reference made by the expUcit ex- long to him? pression ihe Lamb ? The brief summary of the Baptist's preaching given in the Synoptics shows us that his thought of the Mes siah's work was almost entirely one of judgment. "He shall some with fan in hand to cleanse his threshing-floor, and he will gather his wheat into the garner, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire" (Matt. 3: 12). This message suited well the stern, uncompro mising character of the messenger. To a certain extent John was a man of his time. His spiritual earnestness did not save him entirely from sharing that popular vision of glorious issues when judgment should end in triumph. It was the commixture of his conception with all he had taught which led him in the trying days of his imprisonment to send to Jesus to ask him if he were really the Messiah (Matt. 11:3). When Jesus came to the Baptism the quiet dignity 9i The Prologue The Messages of Jesus and moral majesty of his presence overawed this stern prophet of the wilderness. There was no outward sym bol of fierce judgment in his hand. He came with all gentleness and meekness, and John knew too well the perversity of Israel to beUeve that this meek and gentle spirit could meet with anything else than suffering and Isaiah's de- insult. The picture in Isaiah's weU-known description applied to of the " Servant of God " flashed upon his mind, and in the exclamation, "Behold the Lambof God,"heappUed the description to him who stood before him. Isaiah speaks of the "Servant of God" as "bearing," not "tak ing away," and sin-bearing involves two elements — vital sympathy for the one who sins, and unequivocal condemnation of his sin. Hence, in bearing sin Jesus continually expressed judgment, and yet manifested divine compasssion. It is questionable whether John understood that the sufferings of Jesus were to be ex piatory. Such an understanding is beyond the range of conception of any who appear in the Gospels except of Jesus himself. It is true that John was a prophet, and his word may have been a revelation; but it is weU to remember, as Weiss urges, that "it is not in the nature of divine revelation to make communications which have no point of contact either in the spiritual Ufe of the prophets or in the minds of those to whom he speaks." It is one of the notable facts of the experience of the disciples, that they were perplexed until the passion 92 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue week itself, at their Master's words regarding his death. John's position was rather like that of Simeon (Luke 2 : 35) . For these reasons the latter half of the statement appears to be an interpretation of the evangelist. This now is strengthened by the fact that on the next day the Baptist gives the simple witness, "Behold the Lamb of God ! " It will, of course, be understood that this relega tion of the clause to the evangelist in no way detracts from its truthfulness any more than does a like view of 17: 3. All through the Gospel we shall find the evan- geUst adding his interpretations and comments. The brief witness, "Behold the Lamb of God, " makes more intelligible the position and preaching of the Baptist. Had he held such a clear view of the expiatory, atoning death of Jesus as this whole declaration of verse 29 im pUes, it is difficult to understand how he could come into perplexity regarding him (Matt. 11:3). In thus answering the first question we have virtually The lamb answered the second. From the view-point of the evan- jah.s p",. geUst it may be possible to think of the paschal lamb; ure from that of John the Baptist we must keep before us the lamb of Isaiah's Ukeness (Isa. 53 : 7). John well knew that this description of the Messiah jesussu- was utterly different from that which filled the thoughts johnrth°e and hopes of his hearers, so he repeats what he had said BaP,1Et <3°) to the deputation on the previous day: "This is he who 93 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus cometh after me, who has come to be my Master, for the very reason that from the beginning he was more exalted than I, being the very Son of God." He then explains how he came to his knowledge of Jesus as the Messiah. "I did not know him as the Messiah when first I came to bear witness of him, but I knew that I was to prepare the way for his appearance and so I began my work of How John baptizing with water. One day he came to be baptized, knew Jesus and then he was revealed to me, for, just as in prophetic 31 34 vision, I saw the Spirit coming down from heaven as a dove gently descends from the upper air, and that Spirit rested upon him. In other words, I came face to face with that embodiment of meekness and holiness which gave indubitable evidence of the Spirit's presence and power. The vision was to me conclusive, since it presented to me just what he who called me to my mission told me would distinguish the one who was to make men holy by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. I have seen the very Son of God, and my witness since that day has continually been to the Messiah as such." 3. Third Testimony: To Two of His Own Disciples (i:35-42) The begin- The third day's history advances upon the other two, faith not in the character or fulness of the witness given, but in (35-42) the fact that it sets forth the beginning of the Messianic 94 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue activity of Jesus. He is not only declared by the Baptist to be the Lamb of God, but he is received by two of John's disciples who acknowledge his claims. Faith in Jesus makes its glad beginning. It is to be noted, moreover, that this faith is not due to the witness of the Baptist, else the two who followed Jesus would not have addressed him as "Teacher." It was born in those hours when they held quiet converse with him in the abode to which he cordially invited them. So definite is the memory of that significant interview that the very time of its beginning is remembered — four o'clock in the afternoon. Andrew and John were these two disciples. With the birth of faith began the missionary spirit, and Andrew hurried to find his brother Simon, to tell him that he and John had found the Messiah. The story of the Gospel, yet to be opened before us, will show us how imperfectly they understood what they had found, but they knew enough to realize that a new force had entered into their lives. For Simon, as for John, it was a day "big with meaning." The new relationship into which he had come was to be marked by a new name. He was to be called Peter. 95 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus V THE TESTIMONY OF PHILIP AND NATHANAEL (i:43-5l) Jesus in- On the following day as Jesus decided to go forth to to go withP Galilee, with the intention probably of making a farewell lee™^ , 44)" visit to his home before entering upon his public ministry, as he was departing, he came upon PhiUp, a fellow-towns man of Andrew and Peter, from Bethsaida.1 It was undoubtedly the same deep interest in the work of the Baptist as had brought his friends, that had drawn him to the Jordan, and Jesus, marking the earnestness of the man, invited him to accompany them on the journey northward. Philip's tes- They had not been long on the way when Philip meets an Nathanael old friend, Nathanael,2 on his way either to or from the Us, 46) Jordan, and he at once hastens to him with the glad news that he and the others of the little company had found in Jesus, the son of Joseph, of Nazareth, the very one re- 1 Considerable uncertainty yet remains regarding the site of Bethsaida. If there were two Bethsaidas, then the most likely site for the Bethsaida of Galilee is the modem et-Tabgha, on the northwestern shore of the lake. 2 Nathanael is generally identified with Bartholomew. There is no posi tive proof of this identification, but the following reasons are given for it: (1) Bartholomew is coupled with Philip in the list of the Apostles (Matt. 10: 3; Mk. 3:18; Lk. 6:14). (2) Bartholomew is never mentioned in John; Nathanael never by the Synoptics; Bartholomew is a patronymic (son of Tolmai), and suggests the existence of another, personal name. 96 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue garding whom Moses and the prophets had written, that is, the Messiah. Nathanael was astonished at this word, for not only was it proverbial that "out of Galilee ariseth no prophet" (7:52), but also it was to him even more unlikely that from so obscure a town as Nazareth, whose name was not found in the Old Testament, the Messiah could come. He honestly expressed his doubt to Philip, and was earnestly invited to join them and see for himself. As Jesus saw him approaching he remarked in the hearing Jesus's of those about him, "There is a man who is truly an Nathanael Israelite — one who prevails with God — honest, sincere, 4 and earnestly desirous of the truth!" Nathanael, over hearing these words, asks Jesus in surprise how he knew him. Through a miracle of omniscience Jesus had read the troubled but honest spirit of Nathanael, and so he tells him that while he was meditating and praying under the shade of a wayside fig-tree, before Philip had even spoken to him, his whole mind was open to him. This reply, The wit- revealing supernatural knowledge, at once dispelled all thanael to ' doubts, and Nathanael exclaimed, "Thou art the Son of promis^of God. Thou art the King of Israel!" His prayer under lf^°_si) the fig-tree, that he might find him of whom the Baptist was speaking, had been answered. Jesus then said to him, "Thou believest because I said I saw thee under the fig- tree. Greater things than this miracle of knowledge shalt thou see. In me shaU the dream of Jacob be fulfilled, and ye aU shall see in my life and word and works those miracu- 97 The Prologue The Messages of Jesus Ious energies and divine revelations which shall tell you of my unhindered commission with heaven and its constant presence with me." VI THE MIRACLE AT CANA (2:1-11) The failure On the third day after Jesus started from the place where ply of wine John was baptizing he reached Cana of GaUlee, where ding feast*" Nathanael had his home and where Mary at the time was 'I_3' in attendance upon a wedding. Both Jesus and the disciples were invited to the feast, whose supply of wine, probably because of the large addition of guests, gave out. Mary's re- In the perplexity of the situation, Mary turned to Jesus and Ss'meaning urged upon him the manifestation of his Messiahship. In what form she put her request we do not know, but if she asked for a miracle, she asked also for far more. She doubtless wanted the realization of the dreams which had shaped themselves from the prophecies made at his birth, from the reflections of the long years of waiting, and from the astonishing news that had just come from the Jordan. Those dreams were not, and could not be, free from the ele ments which tainted the hopes of even the most spiritually minded of that day — power, earthly glory, visible kingship. The time had come when Jesus must part company with even his mother in so far as she cherished such ambitions. Tenderly, earnestly he said to her, "My dear woman, your 98 According to the Gospel of John The Prologue aims and hopes are not mine. I cannot gratify you. The The reply of time has not come for the manifestation of my Messiahship. Mary's con- You do not understand what you are asking." Realizing (4™™ her mistake, yet confident that in some way, perhaps by sending to friends or by special purchase, he would relieve the embarrassment of the festivities, she said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you to do." Near by stood six stone jars used for customary Jewish purifications both of per sons and utensils, and holding from eighteen to twenty- seven gallons. Jesus commanded the servants to fill them full of water, and, drawing thence, to carry the supply to the master of the feast. This they did. When the master The mira- of the feast tasted the wine, which had been miraculously made wine made from the water, not knowing whence it came (only the servants who drew it from the jars knew that), he sent for the bridegroom and said to him, "Contrary to the usual custom of a feast thou hast, instead of giving poorer wine as the feast progressed, kept the good wine until now." Thus in Cana of Galilee did Jesus begin to work miracles The begin- and to make evident the power with which he had been signs (n) equipped at the Jordan — the power which was to be part of the revelation of his Messiahship. To the disciples alone does the miracle appear to have been a sign pointing to something beyond the display of wonderful power — hence their faith was deepened and strengthened. 99 THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS INCIDENTS SELECTED TO ILLUSTRATE THAT SELF- REVELATION OF JESUS WHICH AWAKENED FAITH IN JUDEA, SAMARIA, AND IN GALILEE THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS I THE MINISTRY TN JUDEA (2:13-3:21) 1. The Cleansing of the Temple (2:13-22) The time was drawing near for the feast of the Passover. Jesus goes Jesus went down with the family and his disciples to naumTia) Capernaum to pay a visit, perhaps, to the home of Zebedee and then to join a caravan for Jerusalem. The Fourth Gospel knows nothing of any earlier visit to the capital than this, and since with the startling act of cleans ing the temple the evangelist opens the public ministry of Jesus, it is weU to bear in mind how completely the relation of the Master to the Holy City had been changed by aU that had occurred at the Baptism. Jesus now comes He goes to to Jerusalem for the first time in the fuU consciousness of (") a m his Messiahship. His cleansing of the central shrine of the nation is in the eyes of the evangeUst truly Messianic; it is symboUc of his whole mission. Being such, it is his torically, in the right place in this Gospel rather than at the last Passover where the Synoptics put it for the reason, in all probability, that they give account of but one Pass over. GraduaUy the business of providing worshippers 103 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus He ex presses his judgment of the Tem ple's dese cration(14- J 7) with offerings or with money for the temple tribute had pushed itself into the Court of the Gentiles. The noise and disorder occasioned thereby, as well as the unfair ad vantages taken from the necessities of the purchasers, had long made this traffic a disgrace to the city. The whole of it was not only inconsistent with the purpose of the court — a place for prayer and meditation — but it was also an insult to the Gentiles. Jesus determined, irrespective of the rights of the temple police, to express his judgment upon it. As he now entered the temple, the very desecra tion was a caU to act. Gathering up some cords lying upon the pavement, He twisted them into a small scourge, and drove the animals out of the sacred enclosure. In an indignation not to be withstood, he swept the money of the money changers onto the floor, and overturned their tables. Then turning to the dove-sellers standing in help less anxiety beside their cages, he said, "Take these things out of the place, and do not be found again making my Father's house a house of trade." In the eyes of the people it was the act of a reformer, justified aUke by the sense of guilt on the part of those who had engaged in or abetted the business, and by the sense of righteousness in those who had deplored the desecration. As the disciples beheld in wonderment the burning, consuming indignation of the Master and afterward thought upon it, the words of Psalm 69:10 came to their minds, "Zeal for thy house shall eat me up." The Jewish authorities, however, were 104 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry in a dilemma. They dared not openly condemn the act, seconded as it was by the conscience of the people, and they were unwilUng to compromise themselves by recogniz ing its justice. They, therefore, demanded a sign or proof The de- of his right to do such a bold deed. Jesus, avoiding a con- sign and the fession of Messiahship, and unwUUng to make claim to the jesus° authority of a mere prophet, answered enigmatically — . ' I9' "Destroy this temple, as your present course of conduct surely will ultimately do, and in a short time I wiU build it up again." He was referring to the erection of the temple of the kingdom of heaven, which was yet to be, but they supposed that he all the while was speaking of the splendid structure wliich Herod began, and which at great cost through forty-six years had been rearing. Of course they derided the pretension, and thus the words were to them no sign. Long after, when the resurrection had made clear to the disciples the significance of the person and work of Jesus, this word gained a new meaning and, helped by the suggestion of the proverbial three days, they ap phed it to the body of the Master. This is the evangelist's view of it, and because he thus interprets it he sees in the attitude of the hierarchy the beginning of that animosity which was at last to bring its accompUshment. We have here in verse 19 a clear instance of the Jo- Aninter- hannine method of interpreting Jesus. In the record of Dy the the trial of Jesus false witnesses declared that he had (2I> s2) io5 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus said that he would destroy the temple made with hands and after three days build another not made with hands. The falsity of this testimony lies in its itaUcized portions. The original form of the statement is undoubtedly that given by John, in which Jesus says nothing about his destroying the temple. At the same time the addition "made with hands" shows how clearly the Jews under stood the reference of Jesus to be to the great stone structure in Jerusalem. Unless he specifically pointed by gesture to his own body, they could not well understand anything else. The phrase "made without hands " is the interpretation which they gave to the assertion of Jesus that he "would raise it in three days." John's account itself (verse 20) shows that there was no indication that Jesus pointed to his body. The whole sentence was enigmatical because referred by his hearers to the temple structure. In Samaria Jesus spoke more clearly, and we find there what he meant by "I will raise it up in three days" (4: 21, 23). He would soon erect a temple in which God would dwell in a truer sense than he ever had in the Holy of Holies. As John understood the work and word of Jesus when he wrote his Gospel, he saw that the crucifixion of Jesus and His resurrection signi fied in their deepest meaning historically the destruction of the temple and its ritual. He therefore reads into the words of Jesus this deeper meaning. It is, how ever, only in this interpretative sense that the words are 106 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry historical. Their truth is unquestionable, but they are John's interpretation. 2. The Signs Wrought in the City (2 : 23-25) The cleansing of the Temple made Jesus the centre of The effect interest during the days of the feast. Crowds must have cles'in j'eru- attended him whithersoever he went, and we can suppose sa em that he began immediately to preach about "the King dom." As a teacher he came unaccredited by school or rabbi, but power had been given him at the Jordan by which to win attention to his message. That power he now used in performing wonderful cures, and the record is that many believed on his name when they saw the miracles which he did. It must be remembered, however, that if these people looked upon him as the Messiah, it was with confused notions as to what the Messiah would be. A wonder-worker who would finaUy by miracle bring about the supremacy of the nation in the world they all would eagerly follow. It would be far different with many when they came to see that "the Kingdom " meant no such issue. Jesus soon detected the mere wonder-seeking faith and was Jesus's dis- . '• xt. , j • j trust of a very guarded in reference to it. His long and varied ex- sign-begot- perience with men had made him an expert in judging their (23-25) motives. His opening work in Jerusalem had resulted in grievous disappointments as well as in cheering successes. 107 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus 3. The Conversation with Nicodemus (3:1-15) The pur- This scene is very closely connected with the verses narraHve/ immediately preceding it. A faith begotten by miracles otNicodef is the faith of Nicodemus. While therefore this chap- mus ter shows how Jesus treated such a faith when it came seeking for Ught, the main purpose of the narrative is its record of the self -revelation of Jesus. Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, is a type of the noble side of Pharisaism. His mental attitude re flects faithfully the historical situation in which he was placed. The preaching of John the Baptist allowed no exceptions to its call for repentance, and thereby gave grave offence to the religious leaders of the day. Jesus came preaching about that same Kingdom and attesting the reality and value of this message by the working of wonderful signs. Would he make the same inflexible demand ahke of Pharisee or pubUcan, of priest or social outcast ? Nicodemus, deeply impressed with what he had seen, determined to seek out this new teacher and ask. UnwilUng to have it known thai; he was cultivating intercourse with Jesus, he came by night. He came probably with a patronizing tone, and Jesus spoke to him as a representative of a class. Of aU that passed between the two we have only a meagre account, but it is made up of such striking state- 108 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry ments as would fasten them upon the memory of one who Ustened to it. " Rabbi, the miracles which we (referring to other mem- Nicode- bers of the Sanhedrin) have seen you perform are to us in- quirieslncon- dubitable proof that you are a teacher sent from God, for no Kingdom one could do such wonderful deeds unless by God's direct ^I_3' assistance. In your teaching you have spoken often of the Kingdom of God. I have come in order to know more about it. Are we to see in these miracles signs of its appearing? When shaU we see it? What must one do to enter into it? " "You ask me^when you shall see it?" said Jesus. "I cannot tell you too emphatically that no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he has been born anew." It was not the mere wording of the demand that caused The reason Nicodemus to hesitate, accustomed as he was to the prise of figurative language of the Old Testament. It was the ^codemus universal appUcation of it that he could not understand. He questions further, therefore, for the purpose of drawing out an explanation. "How can a man like me, being old, be born anew? He cannot enter into his mother's womb a second time and be born, can he?" Jesus now advances to the interpretation of the word The re- "anew" and says with solemn emphasis, unless one is ^Vntering born "of water and of the spirit" he cannot enter into the f^sf' Kingdom of God. Jesus sends Nicodemus, as representing 109 PubUc Ministry The Messages of Jesus the Pharisaic party, back to the Baptist. Only by the way of John could they approach him. The terms here are generic, and mark the attitude of the soul on one side in repentance and the incoming of the divine on the other in Ufe-giving power, without which no man can have part in the Kingdom of God. The difficulty with Nicodemus came from his education. He had been taught and had come to believe that those who sought to keep the law had thereby a claim to the Kingdom of God. "Being born again" was a requirement aU weU and good for those who came from without the pale of Judaism, or for those within it who had grievously sinned or in any way despised the law. Jesus surprises him by telUng him that coming into the Kingdom "is conditional upon quite another and far more radical demand; upon change of heart, upon the produc- The neces- tion by the Spirit within a man of spiritual Ufe." And new birth6 that the necessity of this demand may be clear, he calls ' " attention to the general law that no principle can produce results superior to itself, applying it here in the words, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." The child is Uke its parent in physical organization and in capabiUties, adapted to the physical environment into which birth brings him, and yet with capacities for a higher spiritual Ufe. That Ufe never comes into actual being until the heart has been quickened by the Spirit. The Kingdom of God is the rule of God in the inner life. no According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry Birth into merely national or ecclesiastical privileges does not of itself bring about the heart's acceptance of that ex alted, inner Kingship. That is the outcome of the Spirit's energy. Do not, therefore, wonder that I said to you that you must be bom again. The Spirit, by which one is born anew, is absolutely free and independent of all earthly conditions, especially of all Jewish conceptions as to worthiness in regard to the Kingdom of heaven. Like the wind, which blows where it wiU, and whose pres- The process ence you can know only from its effects, not being able to birth^mys- teU whence it comes and whither it goes, so he who is born tery ^8' anew can know only from the effects in soul and life that he is born anew. The process is an utter mystery. Still The per- Nicodemus was in perplexity. To this process of a spiritual Nicodemus birth he seems to have been a complete stranger. He could 9' not, therefore, get away from the desire to have some the oretic understanding of it. Because he had no experience, he put his sad, earnest question, "How can these things be?" Jesus is justly astonished that such spiritual ignorance should be discovered in a teacher of the nation, especially as the Old Testament made it abundantly clear that he who would be obedient to the message of God should experience the Spirit's presence and blessing (Ezek. n: 19; 18:31; Jer. 4: 4; 31: 33). He therefore makes known to Nicode- The real at- mus his real attitude of unbeUef. " John the Baptist and I unbefief speak from experience; both of us bear witness to that (l1' I2) which we have seen." You yourself came saying that no Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus The only adequateteacher of heavenlythings(13-15) one could do the miracles which you have seen me do unless God were with him, and yet you refuse to take the very first step toward the Kingdom of heaven; you refuse to meet the very first requirement for the Spirit's blessing. You and your coUeagues will not accept one witness. How then can I make clear to you those profounder teachings regarding the Kingdom — God's purposes for the redemption and blessing of men — if you wiU not accept in faith such teach ing as I have already given you regarding the necessity of being born anew? And yet there is no one to teach you and others about these "heavenly things" except myself, for the necessary quahfication is that one should have, so to speak, gone up to heaven and dwelt there, in order to speak authoritatively of them. Only I, the Son of Man, have had such intimate and abiding communion with God (see 1 : 1) as gives one the right to say that he has "come down" from heaven and, therefore, I speak of what I know. And faith in me is not to come through that exaltation of which the nation and its leaders are dreaming — the exaltation of kingly pomp and earthly glory. Nay, rather, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must, in God's plan and purpose, the Son of Man be lifted up. It is by a cross, by utter, loving self-sacrifice, that he is to be exalted in order that every one who accepts him by faith may have in him and through him, enduring Ufe. 112 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry 4. Comments of the Evangelist (3:16-21) The conversation with Nicodemus ends at verse 15. intcrpreta- This fact brings us to a feature of the Gospel which mer- evangelist; its careful attention. It is to be remembered that the c^e tb be evangelist wrote long after the time of the events here ^"fbe" recorded. The author looked back upon the Ufe and are based teaching of his Master from the point of view of the end of the century. Paul's splendid work had been accom- pfished, and his theology of the crucifixion and resurrec tion had been written. The whole meaning of the in carnation had been set forth. The nature, power, and reach of the Messiahship of Jesus were understood. It was possible, therefore, for the evangeUst to add, where he thought it necessary, such comments upon the words of Christ as would give their full significance. In so doing he has made the words of Jesus the basis of all reflections he has written. He writes such comments not upon his own authority, but as the result of his profound insight into the character and mission of Jesus. This enUghtenment of the Spirit pervades the whole Gospel and is apparent in one form or another. Weiss sees it, for example, in verses 13 and 14 of this chapter, where the definite clear outUnes seem to him due to the writer's interpretation of words of Jesus which as origi nally spoken would not have carried us so far. Be that H3 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus as it may, we certainly have in verses 16-21 reflections of the evangeUst, rather than the direct words of Jesus. Both the character of the statements and their phraseol ogy show this. We may analyze these statements as f oUows : THE MISSION OF THE SON I. Its Source and Purpose. (a) Source: The love of God (16). (6) Purpose : To give Ufe through faith to save the world. H. The Consequences Attending It. (a) No judgment for him who beUeves (18 a). (6) Judgment upon unbeUef (18 b). The reasons for these consequences : (1) The love of darkness or sin on one side, since deeds are evil. (2) The love of Ught or hoUness on the other, since one does the truth. God's pur- Jesus said that God sent him "in order that everyone who the world believeth may have in him enduring Ufe." The theology of Christ's day taught that the Messiah was to come to judge the Gentiles. Note that God did not send his Son to men in or der to execute judgment upon them. His love was and is for the whole world, and the depth of that love can be measured only by the gift which expresses it — his only Son. God so 114 (16, 17) According to the Gospel of John pubUc Ministry loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son in order that every one who would beUeve in him might have enduring Ufe. Salvation, not judgment, was the supreme object of the Messiah's mission. At the same time judgment must attend men's attitude toward that mission. Jesus is the Why judg- exponent of the spiritual. He not only shows men what a tends the spiritual Ufe means in its highest expression, but he also jlflus™ 8) points out the way into it, and gives the power to enter. If a man, therefore, turns away from Jesus and will have noth ing to do with him, he is by his very conduct under judg ment. He has refused to give his Ufe to the control of those principles and influence for which the name of the only Son of God stands. Judgment lies for him in the very nature of things. The opposite, of course, is true of him who be- Ueves, that is, who commits his Ufe to the dominion of the spiritual. The real underlying cause of this judgment attending The under- Christ's coming is the inward disposition of men. Those o?judgaUSe who are deUberately living sinful Uves have no sympathy ™g_'2I) with goodness. They want nothing to do with that which makes the sinfulness of their sin evident to them. Any rev elation of their iniquity is to be avoided. They hate the Ught. NaturaUy they would with determination keep away from him whose life and word are the light of the world upon all matters moral and spiritual. On the other hand, truth-loving men, wherever found, are drawn to Jesus. They welcome such light as he gives, because what they "5 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus have done has been what they have conceived to be in ac cord with God's will, and in the light this will only be more evident. II JESUS IN THE COUNTRY DISTRICTS OF JUDEA (3 122-36) 1. The Last Witness of John the Baptist (3: 22-30) Why Jesus After the cleansing of the temple, the various signs country 'dis- within the city, and the conversation with Nicodemus, judea°£ Jesus left Jerusalem, and spent several months in the country districts of Judea. His presentation of himself in the metropoUs had met with Uttle response, and it had not yet been made clear by that sad indication, the im prisonment of the Baptist, that he should begin his work in GaUlee. He stiU had his desires fixed upon the capital, and wljile awaiting his opportunity used the time to make preparation, much as John the Baptist him self was doing at Aenon near to SaUm. Jesus was care ful not to confuse his position with that of the Baptist, for he did not himself baptize with water (4 : 2), but his disciples in all probabiUty preached the same message as John, and administered the same rite. For a time the work of the two, of Jesus and of his forerunner, seemed to run parallel, and the apparent rivalry in service of the disciples of the Master caused the disciples of John anxiety and dissatisfaction. This 116 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry feeUng gave the Baptist the occasion for his last re corded tribute to Jesus, to which John appends some profound reflections of his own. It is this tribute which serves the ¦plan of John. After the events which happened in Jerusalem, Jesus, The prox- realizing that the time had not yet come for further work in jmsus and the city, withdrew with his disciples into the country dis- Baptist16 tricts of Judea, where he spent some time preaching about <22~24) the Kingdom, while his disciples administered the rite of baptism. John the Baptist at the same time was baptizing at a place called Aenon, ' where there was a goodly supply of water, and to which the people kept coming from all about to receive baptism. From the account in the Synoptics it would appear (Mk. i : 14; Matt. 4: 12) that John was im prisoned immediately after the Temptation. To correct this impression, the evangelist says that John had not yet been cast into prison. It is fair to suppose that, unhindered by the restraints of the hierarchy in the capital, large numbers came to Jesus 1 The identification of Aenon is not yet sure. The allusion to what was done beyond the Jordan (26) shows that the place was in western Palestine. Much can be said in favor of the springs at the head of the Wady Farah. With this identification some light is thrown upon the Samaritan incident of the next chapter, for the scene of the Baptist's activity was then not far from Shechem. Weiss places its scene on the border of Galilee, along the Jordan; Furrer identifies it with the springs of Ain-Fara, about two hours distant from Jerusalem. It is to be noted that the Semitic name indicates local knowledge. 117 PubUc Ministry The Messages of Jesus and to his disciples to be baptized. When the news of this great gathering reached the circle about John, brought per haps by the Jew who argued with the Baptist's disciples, a discussion arose as to the respective value of the two bap- The jeal- tisms. Indeed, it was difficult for John's disciples to under- disciples of stand why Jesus entered at aU into competition with their Baptist e master. They came to John with their perplexity. "Rab- (25, 26) Jjj" (.1^ ggj^ I I Jjg -yyJjQ ^ ^& ^J-Jj ^ ^ ^gyQUfJ (Jjg Jf^a^ and to whom you bore witness, has himself taken up the work of baptizing, and the people are all flocking to him. Is it fair that one whom you by your testimony introduced to pubUc attention should set up a rival work ?" John's an swer, which at once and completely dismisses aU thought of rivalry, is the objective point of this record. 2. John's Last Witness to Jesus (3:27-30) A joyful recognition of the Master's supremacy and enlarging influence (29 e, 30) . Joyful, since (a) The positions of all men in honor able service are given them by God. That fact in itself car ries high honor with it (27). (6) He had always considered him self as the friend of the bride groom, who can only rejoice at the bridegroom's voice. 118 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry There can be no question of rivalry when you once clearly An honor to understand that every position, every honor, every success in of GodS"' the service of God is the gift of heaven. Whether one shaU &*$.£) be great or smaU so long as he is faithful, makes, therefore, little difference. It is an honor to be a servant in any capac ity. And you yourselves will bear me witness that I dis tinctly have said that I am not the Messiah. I am simply the one sent to be his herald. That is the honor given me from heaven; it is sufficient. Or to take another figure familiar to you aU (Isa. 54: 5; John the Hos. 2: 18), I am the bridegroom's friend, not the bride- humility groom. It is to the bridegroom that the bride belongs. (3o) When, therefore, I hear the bridegroom's voice and see him welcomed by an ever-increasing multitude who constitute his bride, shall I not rejoice? This success over which you are troubled is really the completion of my joy. In the very nature of things I must become less and less important, and he more and more so, as he becomes known and under stood. 3. Reflections of the Evangelist (3:31-36) Again the text presents us with sufficient reasons for Evidence concluding that the evangelist is speaking, not John the words til a Baptist. Note the use of "the Son" (35, 36), a mode of Seme™™ee°.f expression not Ukely on the Ups of the Baptist; the broad, hst general statements in verses 32, 33, which do not well 119 PubUc Ministry The Messages of Jesus comport with the situation pictured in 29 ; and the close connection of thought. To the thought of the supe riority of Jesus to the Baptist the writer appends his re flections upon the absolute supremacy of Christ. The section may be analyzed as follows : THE SUPREMACY OF THE SON I. By reason of his origin: He is from above, and so in contrast to every other teacher which is "of the earth" (31). II. By reason of his teaching: He bears witness to what he has seen and heard (32). The confirmation which faith gives to the supreme value of this teaching (33) and the reason (34). III. By reason of his position: All things are given into his hand (35). Conclusion: The consequences to men from the ac ceptance or rejection of one who is thus supreme (36). The teacher John has emphatically declared the superiority of Jesus above" to himself. Let me add that not only is he thus superior, (31-33) but, because of his heavenly origin, he is above aU messen gers and interpreters of God. They, being of earthly origin, are men like the rest of us in their whole manner of being, 120 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry feeUng, and thinking. They can speak even of heavenly things only from the earthly point of view and, therefore, with the limitations of merely human conceptions. He who is of heavenly origin and, on that account, above all, bears witness to that which he has immediately seen and heard in heaven, that is, in unshadowed fellowship with God. So few of aU the multitudes who have heard him or of him have re ceived this witness that it seems as if no one had been willing to accept it. But whoever has received it has, from his own experience, been able to say "God is true," for in the words of Jesus, God's ambassador, he has heard the words of God. It was to this end that God gave him the Spirit without God measure, namely, that he might be helped and guided in jesuslnd teaching men the words of the Father, whose love for the hfsVnand° Son led him to give into the Son's hand the execution of all ^eVofmen the divine purposes with reference to the salvation of men. hence the * r ^ significance Whoever, therefore, believes in the Son shall have enduring of 'ai,t.h,or 7 ' ° unbelief life; whoever disobeys him, refuses to commit his life to him (34-36) for guidance and power, shall not see life. God's unalter able and necessary displeasure with that which is unspiritual and sinful, abides upon him. 121 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus III THE MINISTRY IN SAMARIA (4:1-42) 1. The Conversation with the Samaritan Woman1 (4:1-26) Jesus About noon Jesus reached Jacob's well. The tra- Samarftan dition was that on a plot of ground purchased from earlier Jacob" a' settlers, the patriarch had dug this well, probably to avoid well (i-7a) trouble with his neighbors, and had afterward given the pos session to Joseph. It was, therefore, a spot of sacred mem ories both to Jew and Samaritan. Located at the foot of the northeastern slope of Mount Gerizim, it is about half a mile from the village of Askar (then caUed Sychar) and one mile eastward from Shechem. Here Jesus, wearied and thirsty, sat down to rest, and soon after a Samaritan woman came from the field to get a supply of water. The disciples, at least those of them who had with them the means for drawing water, had gone to the neighboring town to buy food. Jesus, therefore, asked the woman to give him a drink. In astonishment, she asked in turn how he, a Jew, could so far forget himself as to ask drink from a Samaritan, and that too, from a woman, for, as the evangelist explains, the Jews had little to do with the Samaritans. Through centuries, dating from the time when the Samaritans were 1 The opening words of this chapter are considered on page 129. 122 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry refused a part in the rebuilding of the Temple after the exile, an intense feeling of bitterness had existed between them and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Forgetting his Jesus's thirst, Jesus at once sought to interest the woman in him- approach- self by saying to her, "If you but knew about the free gift |jfe) which God has made to the world, and who it is who is ask ing you for a drink, you, losing sight of all distinctions be tween Jew and Samaritan, would ask of him and he would give you Uving water." Understanding nothing of the spir itual import of these words, her mind dwells only upon physical thirst and daily needs, and so she replies, "Sir, thou hast no vessel to draw water with, and this well is deep. Where then will you get this living water of which Her interest you speak? You surely are not greater, are you, than our (n-15) father Jacob, who gave us this well, and who himself, to gether with his children, servants and flocks, drank from it?" Keeping the figure, the Master seeks now to deepen her in terest and bring her nearer to his real meaning by empha sizing the satisfying and lasting effects of this living water of which he had spoken. Every one who drinks of the water of this weU becomes thirsty again. He has to come day after day for a fresh supply. On the contrary, he who drinks of the water which I shall give him shall never thirst. Indeed, the water which I shall give shall be within him a living spring bubbling up not only all through this life, but also in the endless life beyond. The contrast which Jesus aU through had been drawing between the intermittent, par- 123 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus tial satisfactions of a sensuous life and the deep, abiding satisfaction of fellowship with God, was unperceived. The poor woman knew nothing of soul-thirst. She had only a vague sense of such help as would save her from the neces sity of coming every day to the burdensome duty of drawing water from the well, and so she asks for the water which wUl forever quench her physical thirst and reUeve her from its wearisome demands. Her con- By a sharp turn in the conversation Jesus now aims to aroused awaken in her a sense of spiritual need. A miracle of in- (16-ip) sight na(j 0penef] t0 nml tbe woman's whole domestic life, and he at once framed a command which should flash upon her her guilt. "Go, call thy husband and come hither." She tried to hide her sin by an equivocal declaration, "I have no husband," but her shame became only more evi dent as Jesus interpreted her words. "Rightly have you said that you have no husband, for you have had five husbands — a record which means moral looseness, if not actual crime — and now you are living with a man who is not your husband. Your statement certainly is true." Awe-struck by this revelation of her history, the woman realized that she had to do with no ordinary man. "Thou art a prophet, I perceive," she said, and the acknowledg ment was tantamount to a confession of her sin. She seeks The conversation had become painfully personal, and by to avoid the , ,. , , , . . , ..... personal di- way of relief she turns to him with a question familiar to every Jesus (20) Samaritan. Her own confession and the presence of this 124 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry Jewish prophet gave it new and momentous interest. Point ing to Mount Gerizim, upon whose summit the Samaritans had built a temple after their rejection by the Jews, and where, even though that temple had been destroyed by John Hyrcanus, in 129 B.C., the worship of her people had been continued, she said, "From the time of our ancestors this mountain has been our sacred place of worship, but you Jews declare that Jerusalem is the place where man ought to worship. Which is right?" AppeaUng to the faith which he had awakened Jesus repUed, "The time is not far where is away when neither on this mountain nor on the Temple hill place' to in Jerusalem wiU men worship the Father. For the pres- ZnGe™\m ent, however, Jerusalem is the right place. Your people Hxfjf™~ by rejecting the messages of the prophets have missed the («. «> larger, completer revelation which God through them has given of himself, hence, relatively, though you know the God of the law, you worship in ignorance. You know nothing of those great promises wliich have inspired the worship of the Jews by showing them that out of their midst was to come the world's salvation. But soon even True wor- Jerusalem will have lost its distinctive honor, for the time matter of is close at hand, yes, has already come (Jesus is referring to f2\%4) himself and to his few disciples) when the true worshippers of the Father will not be those who go to any specific place to worship, but those who worship him from the heart, and with a right knowledge of who and what he is. As confirm ing this, let me say that now and right here the Father is 125 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus God is seeking just such worshippers. He is Spirit, as we all know. He needs no temple either here or in Jerusalem. The worship which he requires must correspond then to his nature; it must be spiritual and in accordance with truth." The Understanding perhaps, only that at some time, near at hopeTna hand, neither Gerizim nor Jerusalem would figure in the laratfon deC" religious Ufe of men, but unable to comprehend the pro- (25, 26) found statements of Jesus regarding true worship, the per plexed woman anticipated the time when the great prophet ¦ — the Messiah of Samaritan expectation (Deut. 18: 18) — would come and explain to them all difficulties. "I know that he is coming," she said to Jesus in earnest confidence, "and when he comes he wiU make known to us all things." Without reserve, for there were no political dreams con nected with the Samaritan hopes, Jesus declared to the as tonished woman, "I, who am speaking to you, am the Messiah." 2. The Return of the Disciples (4:27-39) Their sur- Just at this juncture the disciples came back from Sychar. n"conhat As they Ustened to him talking with this woman their won- a woman"1 derment increased, so contrary was it to all custom for a (27) rabbi to speak with a woman. Astonishment, however, did not go so far as to lead them to ask impertinent questions, such as "What are you after?" or "Why are you talking with her? " Reverence kept them silent. 126 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry Soon after their return the woman, leaving her water-pot The mes- standing by the well, hurried away with her heart fuU to the wo8man to8 town to teU of her experiences. "Come, go with me," she ^gj"™ exclaimed in her excitement to a gathering of men whom she first met, "and see a man who has told me everything I ever did; " adding hopefully, but shyly, "You do not think he can be the Messiah, do you?" Startled by the news, they went out of the city as fast as they heard it, and all across the fields were people going toward Jesus. In the meantime the disciples urged Jesus to take some The higher food. In the joy of the moments just gone he had forgot- jesus^a! ' ten weariness, thirst, and hunger. Indeed, he said virtuaUy (»if »4) to the disciples, "I have had a feast of which you have no conception." Knowing little of the conversation, they did not understand him, and questioned one another as to whether any one had possibly brought him something to eat. Jesus, therefore, explains to them what he means. My food is that inner satisfaction of the heart wliich results from doing the wiU of him who sent me, and from accom- pUshing what he gave me to do. You recaU that on our way hither as we passed through the fields of growing grain, you spoke of the promise of the harvest yet four months distant. Look there at the people hurrying toward us! How like they are, in their readiness to beUeve, to fields white with ripened grain ready to be garnered! So like The Sa- them, indeed, that at this very hour the reaper has only to harvest1 take his sickle and go to work, that both the sower and the "s^ 127 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus reaper may rejoice together over the harvest home. It is but just now that I sowed the seed in the heart of the peni tent woman who was here by the well. Out of this com pany coming to us, you, as harvesters, can have immediate reward in the ingathering of souls which shall be as eternal The sower treasure in the garner of God. Thus can we rejoice to- reaper may gether. This whole experience is but an ideal fulfilment of gether '° tne common saying "One sows and another reaps." More- (36, 37) over, what is happening to-day will be true aU through your ministry. Others wiU have toiled and you will reap the benefit of their work and suffering. The out- The report of the woman had served to awaken faith in days' many in the city, and when they came to Jesus they invited (39-42T k™ to stay wli^ tQemi which they did for two days. It was doubtless a time fuU of teaching, for many more of the Samaritans believed on him because of what their own ears had heard and no longer simply because of the testimony of the woman. Just what he taught them we can only sur mise, but it was full enough and explicit enough to make them confident that he was the Saviour of the world. ' 1 This comprehensive description of Jesus occurs in but one other place in the New Testament (viz.: 1 John 4: 14), and it is possible that it should be here considered a Johannine conception put into the mouths of the Samaritans rather than their own confession. They acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah, and this then is John's interpretation of their acknowledgment. The con ception seems too large and clear for these people. On the other hand, it must be remembered that they did not have some of the prejudices to over come which blinded the Jews; also we do not know what Jesus said and did in those two memorable days. 128 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry IV IN GALILEE (4:43-54) 1. The Cure of the Nobleman's Son (4:43-54) This last scene of the second part of the Gospel brings Reasons us again to Galilee. At the opening of the chapter a went north reason is given for the journey to the north, namely, the t0 Gahlee suspicious threatening attitude of the Pharisees. Verse 44 seems to give another. The two are supplementary; they give really opposite sides of the same reason. It was because of his popularity (3:26) that Jesus felt obliged to leave Judea. In Galilee he would have no apprehensions from such a source, for there in his own country he was without honor. Two considerations regarding the incident now before us must be kept in mind. (l) This miracle is probably not identical with the This mira- cure of the centurion's servant (Matt. 8:5; Luke 7:2). notidenti- The differences between the two are too great to allow [nMatt. sTs identification.1 (2) This incident does not belong in the Galilean min istry, which did not begin until after the imprisonment of John the Baptist, but is an event, happening in Gali- 1 Weiss contends for their identification; so do several recent writers upon this Gospel. 129 PubUc Ministry The Messages of Jesus lee to be sure, but to be included in what is called the early Judean period of the Master's ministry. Note how it is referred to: "He came again to Cana." This is the second miracle which Jesus did coming out of Judea into GaUlee. Soon after this Jesus went back to Jerusalem to the feast of Purim, and after that returned to take up his Galilean ministry. Jesus goes Two days after the scene at Jacob's well Jesus departed and is sur- for Galilee, for his mission was really to his own people. fhTrecep- He had left Judea because his popularity had drawn upon him g'Ven him ^e suspicious attention of the Pharisees. Two days of (43-45) happy, blessed work in Samaria had been enjoyed, and now with sad face he turned toward GaUlee. No popularity there would awaken any fear about him, for the old saying that "A prophet hath no honor in his own country" was true in his experience. Imagine his surprise, therefore, when the Galileans gave him a friendly reception. The evangelist is careful to explain, however, that this reception was due to the fact that many of the GaUleans had been in Jerusalem during the Passover and had been witnesses of his wonderful deeds. Their interest in him was not grounded upon a secure foundation. This is apparent in the incident which follows, which occurred in Cana, whither Jesus went either because his family had settled there, or for the reason that he was sure to find friends. The report of the miracles wrought in Jerusalem had rapidly been According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry spread abroad in Galilee and so came to the ears of a certain court officer in Capernaum, whose son was dangerously ill with a fever. As soon as the man knew that Jesus had re- A court turned to Galilee he determined to put the case of his boy seeks the before him. It was really the resolve of a man in despera- son6(46, 47) tion. He would try this wonder-worker. Accordingly, he went up from Capernaum to Cana and begged Jesus to re turn with him at once and heal his child. At the moment, the man's request seemed to embody the spirit of the whole people, whose one wish appeared to be to make Jesus a mere doer of wonders. They would not believe his word as a prophet. They must have from him signs in the shape of veritable marvels. This painful reflection Jesus utters in the officer's presence as if speaking directly to him, but the man's anxiety was too deep to be thus turned away, and again he begged Jesus to go with him before it was too late and his Uttle one be dead. Jesus now puts his faith to a Jesus puts real test. He declines to go to Capernaum, but bids the faith to a officer return for he shall find his son living. He had now sustains it" only the word of Jesus upon which to rest his faith. He (4 ~54' had seen no miracle; he did not even have in the willingness of Jesus to go with him the promise of a miracle. He had only the declaration "Thy son liveth." This he accepted, and started homeward. The distance from Cana to Caper naum is between twenty and twenty-five miles. Some where on the way the servants of the officer met him and told him that his son had passed the crisis and was doing 131 Public Ministry well. "When did he begin to improve?" he asked. "Yes terday about one o'clock the fever left him," they replied, and then the man knew that the word of Jesus spoken at that very hour was the word of power which had saved his child. Not only he, but all his household, whose anxiety and sor row had thus been turned into joy, believed in the divine claims of Jesus. 132 THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS EVENTS SELECTED TO SHOW THAT SELF-REVELATION OF THE MESSIAH WHICH WAS MADE IN THE PRESENCE OF UNBELIEF AND OPPOSITION, BOTH IN GALILEE AND JERUSALEM THE PUBLIC MINISTRY OF JESUS I THE MIRACLE AT THE POOL OF BETHESDA (5:1-47) 1. Introductory (5:1) In all discussions upon the chronology of the Lord's The signifi- life John 5 : 1 occupies a very important place, and va- j0hn 5 : 1 in rious conclusions have been reached regarding it. Near- Qgy ofthe0' ly every feast in the Jewish calendar has been selected j1e1"Ugtry of by different commentators as the one indicated — the Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles, or Purim. Which ever is right (and we are inclined to decide for Purim), the scenes at this feast closed the early Judean ministry, a ministry crowded full of Messianic revelations, but attended by comparatively small results. This fifth chapter is significant for John not only because of the miracles, but more especially on account of the words of Jesus. They are rich in Messianic claims. This Import of chapter also marks the beginning of the conflict through as a whole which "unfaith "develops; the Messiahship of Jesus also stands out in teachings which are unique and ex alted. 135 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus 2. Healing of the Cripple (5:2-16) The pool of In the course of time came a feast of the Jews, and Jesus and its com- went up to Jerusalem. There was at that time in the north- folk5'^, 3)° eastern part of the city, not far from the Temple inclosure and near the sheep-gate or market, an intermittent thermal spring about which a pentagonal peristyle had been built and which was called in Aramaic "House of Mercy" (Be thesda). In this covered space around the pool might be seen at any time a company of poor, suffering folk — blind, lame, palsied — waiting and watching for an opportunity to get into the water while it was bubbling up from beneath, as, at that time, it was thought to have its greatest efficacy. The esr Among the waiting invalids was one who for thirty-eight valid who years had been a sufferer. From talking with the man thefpity'of himself Jesus doubtless learned this fact, and it made a Jesus (5-7) str0ng appeal to his compassion. In this appeal he recog nized God's direction to act. "Would you like to be weU?" he asked. The man could readily see that Jesus was not mocking him, and therefore the very inquiry was suggestive of hope and help. "It is not a question of de sire, sir," he replied, "for I should like to be well; it is rather one of power and opportunity. I am powerless, as you see, and when the spring gushes up I have no one to plunge me into the healing waters. Another gets ahead of me, because I am so helpless and slow." Jesus then said to 136 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry him, "Get up, take your mat and walk." With the com- Hismh-ac- mand was given the power for its execution. The man took (8°p) mie up the piece of carpet upon which he had been lying and walked away. This all happened on the Sabbath. The scene now shifts from the pool to a street in the city. The happy As the happy man is going along carrying his mat under fronted by his arm, he is seen by some of the rabbis, who confront ^hocharge him with his violation of the law in carrying any burden on ^{™a7^ the Sabbath. It is to be noted that the Scribes and Phari- 'he law. (10-13) sees were especially devoted to the discussion of two sub jects: "purification" and "the Sabbath." In each case they had so amplified the law by their refinements in inter pretation as to make it an almost intolerable burden; for example, they distinguished thirty kinds of work forbidden by the fourth commandment. The law indeed stands in Exodus 23: 12 and Jeremiah 17: 21, "Take heed to your- The Jewish selves and bear no burden on the Sabbath day," but its in- sabbath tent was merciful in seeking to prevent wearying labor on the day of rest. That intent had been completely "hedged in" by the UteraUstic interpretations built up around it by the Scribes, so .that their law read in this way: "Whosoever on the Sabbath bringeth anything in or taketh anything out from a pubUc place to a private one, if he hath done this inadvertently he shall sacrifice for his sin; but if wilfuUy he shaU be cut off and be stoned." Jesus in every case, as here, ignored these traditional interpretations. Naturally the "Doctors" were incensed. In response to the 137 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus charge that he was violating the Sabbath, the man told them that the one who had made him well — certainly an adequate authority to his mind — had told him to do just what he was then doing. "Who is the fellow who com manded you to carry your mat through the city streets on this holy day?" they contemptuously asked. "I do not know," was the man's reply. It seems that Jesus, to avoid a scene, had quietly slipped out of the crowd which had gathered about the place, so the man had no further oppor tunity of speaking with him. Jesus meets Shortly after this Jesus was in the Temple, and there he man in the found the man, engaged in all probability in offering a emp e U4) thanksgiving for his cure. From the word now spoken to him, "Sin no longer," we learn that his wearisome illness was due to sinful habits against which Jesus earnestly warned him, lest, indulged in again, they bring him to that spiritual death which is worse than physical disease. In this conversation the man learned Jesus's name and, as afterward he went to the authorities to justify himself for The man his offence against the Sabbath, he told them who had cured him healed him. This he did from no malicious intent, but rather with the conviction that one who could do such a wonderful deed had a right to command him to violate the sacred day. The authorities took no such view of the case, but began a determined persistent persecution of Jesus because of his disregard of their Sabbath regulations. 138 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry The defence with which he met this persecution is jesus's de- summed up in the words, "My Father worketh hitherto, hiraef/for and I work." Jesus agreed with the authorities in holding Ihe man°on that the scriptural command regarding the Sabbath £* Sabbath grounded itself upon the Sabbath rest of God (see Ex. 20 : n), but he completely repudiated their conception of that rest. Rightly understood, it did not and should not exclude the preserving, protecting, healing energy of God. It was consistent with a ceaseless activity of wisdom and power, of righteousness and mercy. The cure of this help less sufferer was but a manifestation of this mercy. "My Father worketh hitherto," and I, his Son, make his working the rule of my activity. When, as long as, and since, he works, I work. Instead of being a defence for his Sabbath conduct, these words added a new cause for hostil ity. In the ears of his persecutors they were pure blas phemy, since thereby he made peculiar claim to an especial relationship to God and to an equality of right of freedom in doing. A justification of this claim foUows. 3. The Teaching Following the Miracle (5:17-47) There are two possible views of the words given in Two possi- this chapter in verses 17-47. (1) They may be con- the words sidered as a single address of Jesus based upon the mir- °7^ses acle which he had just performed. (2) They may be looked upon as the substance of several addresses upon 139 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus Johannine form, but truth sub stantially from Jesus the Sabbath question fused together in the memory of the writer and connected with this typical instance of the cure at Bethesda. The second view, which seems pref erable, is supported by the following considerations: (a) The statement in verse 15 "because he was doing these things on the Sabbath," that is, "because he was accustomed to do these things on the Sabbath." The address fits this broader statement. According to verse 10, it is the carrying of the pallet that stands out as un lawful. The reply of Jesus touches a much larger viola tion than this. He is justifying a course of conduct. (6) The address itself gives no hint of its historical setting. To be sure, the cure on the Sabbath is an introduction to it, but it is used simply as a typical instance, and there fore nothing is said about the effect of the discourse. It ends, as has been said of it, "in the air." Would this be the case if this were a specific address directed simply to this specific instance? (c) A notable intricacy of thought: verses 19, 20 are an example of this. This is a mark of Johannine form. Indeed, the whole section, if considered from the second point of view, gives opportu nity for studying this very Johannine form. The ques tion may be justly asked, How do we know that we have the substance of the words of Jesus ? Two reasons may be given in reply: (1) The character of the utterances. They are not after the fashion of human imagination. (2) The support given to their genuineness by Uke state- 140 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry ments of Jesus in the Synoptics. Compare verses 17, 18 with Mark 2 :27, 28; 19, 20 with Matthew 11 : 27 (a pas sage rising to the height of the Johannine Christology) ; 21-24 with Matthew 10: 40, 11: 27, 28: 18; 25-29 with Matthew 25: 46; 30 with Matthew 26: 39; 37-40 with Luke 24:26,27, 44-46; 41-44 with Matthew 13:15, 18: 1-4; 45-47 with Luke 16: 29-31. The whole sec tion may be divided into parts, 17-30, 31-47. In order to get a comprehensive view of the thought, an analysis for each part is given. Verse 17 gives the theme which verses 19-30 sustain. GENERAL OUTLINE OF VERSES 19-30 Theme: The Absolute and Constant Fidelity of the Son's Working to the Father's (17). I. The Son does nothing of his own initiative (19). II. The Son does whatever the Father does (19 b) (and this is possible) since (a) The Father in his love for the Son shows to him all the things which he, the Father, does (20 a). (6) The Father will include in his showing greater works than have as yet been shown (20 b) e.g. Quickening (21) Spiritual Resurrection 24 a, c, 25. 141 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus (26) Bodily Resurrection 28, 29 a. Judgment (22) Present Judgment 42 b. (27) Final Judgment 29 b. The purpose of (a) and (b) : That all may honor the Son as they honor the Father (23). Self is never I have said to you that I constantly and absolutely make point aof 'the my Father's activity the reason and measure of my activity. jesusYill) That means that I do nothing, veritably nothing, to meet my own needs or to gratify my own ambitions. Self is never the starting-point of my action. I do nothing of my self; only that which I see the Father doing. Self-origina ting or self-furthering action is completely shut out, for the things, whatsoever they may be (whether Sabbath viola- God reveals tions, or not), which the Father is doing, I do likewise. My he shall do work is both coincident and coextensive with his; and it is t2 so not simply because of a clear apprehension on my part of the spiritual meaning and purposes of my mission, but also because of the revelation of what he is doing and would have me do, which he constantly gives me through the providences in which I am placed and the appeals made to me. His constant revelation is proof of his love. You have had experience as to how I was led to perform these Sabbath cures. The time is coming when he will lead me 142 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry to the doing of greater deeds than these, that even you, who question my authority and are blind to my sonship, may marvel. These greater things are no less than "quicken- They shall ing" and "judgment." Are you not accustomed to pray, greater "Thou, O Lord, art mighty; thou quickenest the dead; evenq'ikk- thou art strong to save; thou sustainest the living by thy ™jn*,|"t mercy; thou quickenest the dead by thy great compassion; (2ob> 21) thou makest good thy faithfulness to them that sleep in the dust; thou art faithful to quicken the dead. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who quickenest the dead"? Just as the Father has power to raise up the dead and quicken them, so I, his Son, under his direction can exercise this same quick ening power upon whomsoever I will, whether Jew or Gen tile. The one condition to my exercising it is willingness to receive it (illustrated in all these Sabbath cures). Hence judgment the awful prerogative of judgment attends that of quicken- quickening ing. When the Father sent me to be the means of eternal *22' life to whomsoever would believe, he, by that very sending, made judgment depend upon men's attitude toward me. He gave judgment as to all spiritual issues to the Son. Men decide their destinies in reference to the Son (rather than in reference to the Father) . The Father judges no one except through the Son. The purpose of all this is clearly evi- All this is dent : it is that men should honor the Son as they honor the should Father, and whoever does not honor the Son, whose work is sonTs'they identical with that of the Father and whose prerogatives are p°$*T ^ ) quickening and judging, dishonors the Father who sent him. 143 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus Who it is However incredible all this may seem to you, I cannot during life say to you too earnestly and emphatically that whosoever ^24' hears my word with the inner ear and believes on him who sent me, that is, accepts my message as the message of God, has enduring life and is exempt from judgment, yes, has already passed from that state of separation from God which is spiritual death into one of fellowship with him The proph- which is life. And let me solemnly assure you that the time spiritual is coming, indeed, is already here, when those who are fTs-"""011 spiritually dead shall be aroused from their indifference by the preaching of the Son of God, calling them to repent of their sins and believe on him, and those who shall have listened and responded to that preaching shall spiritually live. They shall receive life from me, the Son, to whom the Father gave it when I entered upon my mission, in order that as he himself possesses it in uninterrupted fulness, so should I, to give it to whomsoever I can. When I say "can" the implication of judgment goes with the word, for life is given only to those who will accept it and, therefore, authority has been given to me by the Father to declare judgment; judgment has been inevitably associated with my mission, because as a man I present spiritual life, the kingdom of heaven to men in a form which they can under stand. It is not a theory, nor an abstraction in any form, but a life, which seeing, they must either choose or reject and thus judge themselves. You wonder at me for making such claims. Save your 144 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry wonderment for that hour which is on its way, when this Prophecy of voice which is now sounding in your ears shall call all the resurrection dead from their graves, and they shall come forth in a visible <-28, 29) resurrection whose character shaU be in accord with their deeds. Those who have wrought good shall enter into and realize the fulness of the heavenly life; those who have done evil shall understand the full meaning of condemnation. Once more let me emphasize the word with which I Neither his began. Self is never the starting-point of my action. In his judg- this solemn matter of judging I do not act "of myself." It "hnsdf "° is to gratify no personal bias, nor to express any personal '3°' feeling. It is a judgment based upon a clear perception of what essential righteousness requires. God is holy as well as loving, and his hoUness is just. My judgment is made in the light of these conceptions. As I hear, I judge, and just as my action is not "of myself," because I unceasingly cooperate with the Father, so my judgment is just because I seek to do not my own will, but the holy, just will of the Father. GENERAL OUTLINE OF VERSES 31-47 Theme: The Witness to the Son. I. In itself it is complete and clear, since (a) It is not a mere self-witness, but is that of another whose witness is true (31, 32). 145 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus (b) It is not from man (34), even though the testimony of John the Baptist was valid and the Jews welcomed him for a season (33 a, 35) ; but since (a) It is in the works which the Father gave for accomplishment (36) ; (6) It is in the Scriptures (37-40). II. To the Jews it is inadequate and futile, since (o) They rejected the signs. (b) They had neither ear nor eye for the personal revelations of the Father (37). (c) They were guilty of a blind bibliolatry (38-40). The causes of (o), (6), (c) (under II) are: (a) In their lack of the love of God in their hearts (shown in the fact of verse 43). (&) In their purely selfish desires (44). The perilous issue of (a), (6), (c): Even Moses whom they trusted would condemn them (45); the reason for this (46). Importance The question of authority was always one of vital impor- of K author- . x , ; , . ....... ,. ity " in tance in Jerusalem. Involving, as it did, in this matter of jerusa em cures Qn tne Sabbath, the right to transgress Sabbath regu- 146 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry lations, it became acute. Jesus had met it by declaring that his unique relation to the Father gave him both the rea son and right to do what he had done, and that that same relationship gave him authority to quicken and judge. "This is all, however," replied his opponents, "but your own affirmation; what witness have you of its truthful ness ? Such testimony as this to yourself must be sustained and sanctioned." Jesus recognizing, in this instance (see Jesus meets 8 : 14) the principle of general law that no one can hear tes- that hebe" timony in his own cause (verse 31), proceeded to give them DySwitn-ed the required sanction. He began with the witness of God \lfeh) himself, saying, "There is another who beareth witness con cerning me, and I know that his testimony is true." I am not referring to John the Baptist. You sent a deputation to him, and in all that he said he gave an abiding witness to the truth. But 7 look to no man, even though he be a prophet, for the witness to such a reality as my Sonship and its pre rogatives. Howbeit, I call your attention to all that John said, and urge its truthfulness upon you that you may be brought into the way of salvation. He was a burning and Earnest, shining lamp, and, like children, you rejoiced for a while in true as was the briUiant Ught. Your pride and joy in hearing again the 0f johiTthe voice of a prophet caused you to assemble in great numbers appeals tcf to hear him preach; but only for a season. The caU to a ,m?re c°n- r J elusive wit- repentance broke the speU and nothing was done to save him ness (33- at last from prison and death. Earnest, faithful, true as was John's witness, I have a witness which is more conclu- 147 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus Besides the witness of his spiritual ministries is the Father's witness in Scripture (36D-38) The sad mistakenbibliola- try of the Jews (39, 40) sive, and it lies in all the spiritual ministries, whether natural or supernatural, which I am performing and which were given to me by the Father to accomplish. The very char acter of these ministries, revealing as they do love, mercy, and a spiritual purpose, is testimony to the fact that the Father has sent me. Moreover, besides the witness of these ministries is the Father's own witness in the Scripture. He has never come into your midst and by visible form or by sensible sound testified of himself, as I am now testifying. "His voice you have never heard; his form you have never seen." He has, however, through the prophets given you his word, and you have failed to get any vital, abiding hold upon it, as is evident from your unwillingness to accept him whom the Father has sent and about whom His word speaks in promise and prophecy. You search the Scrip tures, counting the letters, trying to determine this or that fact about their order, place, or combination, working out curious interpretations, because you imagine that by such kind of study and diligence you shall find eternal life. ' All through these same Scriptures is the divine message about him who shall bring life and salvation to Israel and the world — in a word, the divine message about me. No sad der evidence of your misdirected, fruitless study can be given than the fact that ye will not come to me, to whom those 1 Hillel's view of Scripture may be expressed in the saying, "He who has gotten to himself words of the law has gotten to himself the life of the world to come." (.Abolh ii, 8). 148 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry Scriptures point, in order that ye may have life. Your bibliolatry issues in real unbelief. Lest you may think that because of offended dignity or jesus does disappointed vanity I am condemning you, and that, after honor'from all, I am eager for your approval and praise, let me say to men (4l) you that I do not receive honor from men. I have no am bition for earthly honors. Nay, the reason of my condem nation is in the fact, which I have discovered, as I have studied you and come to know you, that you have not a real love for God in your hearts. Such love would have made the Scriptures vital to you and enabled you to know God. Alas! That you possess nothing of it, is clear from your unwiUingness to receive me who am come at the Father's bidding and as his representative. If another should come Their de- in his own name, seeking honor among men and making honor from promises in terms of earthly glory, you would understand most reason him and receive him.1 Faith in me is simply an impossi- j^"^1111 bility to those who are always solicitous about earthly pre- {"™ ferment, substituting for the approval of the only God, the flattering judgment, the partisan homage, or the ignorant applause of their fellow-men. Thus I have opened to you the very inmost reason of He would your unbelief, but do not think that, therefore, I shall ac- them; cuse you before the Father. There is no need for me to do selTwould"" do that (45) 1 This statement had historical verification once and again. History gives an account of sixty-four false Messiahs who all succeeded by bold assumption and large promises in winning a following among the Jews. 149 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus that. Your accuser is already before the Father — Moses, the very one in whom your hope has been placed, and whose law you have accused me of transgressing. He is there, and he will raise his voice against you. You ask me how that can be? It results from the relation of faith in Moses to Their faith in me. Had you intelligently, earnestly believed him, understand- you would have believed me. Disbelief in me is disbelief Scripture's m him — disbelief in the record of the promises to the patri- misunder- archs, in the types of the deliverance from Egypt, in the him"?1 6g °£ symD°lic institutions of the law, in the promise of a prophet 47) like to himself, for it was of me he wrote. If then you have missed the real meaning of what he has written, and by the Scriptures have not come to a real true faith in God and to a spiritual understanding of his promises, how can it be ex pected that you will believe my words? II THE FEEDING OF THE FIVE THOUSAND (6:1-59) 1. Introductory The critical The event of the feeding of the five thousand with its of this subsequent teaching brings us to the critical point of all GaUlee1 that ministry of preaching and healing which is marked GaUlean; to the point where half -faith is transformed into full unbelief. Again it is true that it is not so much 15° According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry the miracle alone as what is said and done in conse quence of the miraculous action of Jesus that interests John. The character of the true Messiah is in this chap- The Mes- ter made to stand out not only against the disappointed chapter is misconceptions of the people, but in his vital relations to thesupport6 men. In the fifth chapter Jesus is presented us as in o£ llfe intimate union with the Father and as the source of life. Now we are to see how in vital contact with men He may be the support of life. The study of this chapter is, therefore, the study of another series of Messianic claims. 2. The Narrative Concerning the Miracle (6:1-21) Afterward Jesus went away from Capernaum and its Jesus takes neighborhood to the other side of the Lake of Galilee (the pies away Lake of Tiberias). The disciples had just returned from their mission, full of enthusiasm over their success, and to give them opportunity for rest Jesus had bidden them, with out attracting attention, go with him to a quiet spot over on the northern shore. Curiosity and, in all likelihood, an undefined expectation were at this time widespread, for the marvellous cures which Jesus was continually per forming kept a crowd always about him. Just at this time, too, the whole land was in motion, since the Passover was close at hand, making it easy to get a large multitude to gether. The Uttle group, therefore, did not get away with- JS1 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus Crowd foi- out notice and while they were crossing the crowd was loTorth™ hurrying around the head of the lake. Before it arrived sho'reof the Jesus had time to go back upon the hill-side with the disci- Uke (2) pjes an(j tau, a while. Then the people began to stream in upon them, and the sight so touched his compassionate heart, for they seemed to him Uke sheep without a shepherd, that he gave up his original purpose of a quiet day with his disciples, and, interpreting his compassion as the direction of the Father, taught them and healed their sick all day long. As evening drew near, the disciples, reminding him of the fact that they were in an uninhabited spot and that the people were in need of food, begged him to send the crowd away into the farms and villages to buy food. After work " Suppose you undertake the task of feeding them," Jesus JesuT d1"- ' replied, and turning to Philip, whose matter-of-fact, calcu- feedtheS '° lating turn of mind would at once busy itself with the ques- ?^-6)e t'on> ^e asked, "Where can we buy bread enough for the whole company?" It is to be noted that Jesus put this question to Philip simply to see whether it would possibly occur to the naive disciple that there might be some other way out of the difficulty than that of calculating and buy ing. Jesus himself knew at the time what he intended to do. It never once entered Philip's mind that there could be any other way, so he replied after some figuring, that But a small thirty-five dollars' (the sum the disciples probably had on food on" hand) worth of bread would not provide for such a crowd. hand (7-9) « qq ancj seg j1QW manv ioaves you can find among the !S2 According to the Gospel of John PubUc Ministry people," said Jesus to the disciples. Andrew, Peter's brother, soon brought him word that there was a boy present who had five barley loaves and two small fishes to sell — a pitifully inadequate supply for so many. The time for the manifestation of divine power and help had come, and Jesus commanded the disciples to arrange the whole crowd in groups of hundreds and fifties upon the green hill-slope. Then, taking the loaves and fishes in his The mira- hands, he began, after he had given thanks to God, to break fdaveVand them and, by means of his disciples, to distribute them ^13) through the great company. Steadily the distribution con tinued until all had had plenty. Indeed, there was an abundance left and the disciples were bidden to gather this up in order that there should be no waste. The fragments amounted to twelve basketfuls. The conclusions of the crowd were quick and moment- Effect of ous: "This is the prophet who was to come into the world." (ilj,™")10 e "He has the power to lead us to victory and glory." "Let us seize him, take him to Jerusalem, and proclaim him King!" It was a critical moment for Jesus. He had to act deci sively and at once, else aU his work hitherto would end in ruin. He must show the people, even though in doing it he signed his own death-warrant, that he could not be the Messiah they desired. First he ordered the disciples, either because they already were joining in the enthusiasm of the crowd, or because he feared they might be caught by the infection, to go down to the boat, and, if he did not come 153 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus The disci ples set out for Caper naum (16-18) Jesuscomes to them (10-21) to them by nightfall, to row over the lake in the direction of Bethsaida. Then he addressed the people, refusing to con sider their wishes, and bade them go quietly away. Not desiring to go down through the moving crowd to the boat, he went further back up the hill-side and engaged in prayer. It was late when the disciples went down to the shore. As it had become quite dark and Jesus had not come, they set out over the lake toward Capernaum. The water at the time was in heavy commotion, being stirred up by one of those strong wind currents common to this lake, and due in large measure to the configuration of the shores. Being driven out of their course, the disciples had rowed a long while and accomplished only about three miles when they saw Jesus walking upon the sea and getting near to the boat. In their alarm at what seemed to them a ghost they cried out, but were immediately reassured by the familiar voice of the Master, who called to them to not be afraid, since it was he. When they knew who it was they would have gladly taken him into the boat. So intent had they been upon the event of the appearance of Jesus that they did not notice the movement of the boat, which came almost immediately upon the shore for which they had set out.1 1 It is well known that more than one commentator has concluded that, had we only John's account, there would be no good reason for supposing a miracle in connection with this scene of crossing the lake. Exegetically there is no sufficient basis for a miracle in the text since "on the sea" (19) may also mean "on the shore" (see 21: 1). In that case Jesus went around by the head of the lake, and the wind driving the boat so that they were not clear as to 154 According to the Gospel of John PubUc Ministry After the words of Jesus the night before, many doubtless a large went away home, but a large company, in ardent hope that awaSsny they might yet induce him to lead them as their Messiah, the north- had remained aU night under the open sky, and with the ^'"°f the first morning light began to look for him. The last they had lake seen of him had been when he went back up the hill-side. He must still be somewhere about, they thought, for there was only one boat on the beach the night before and the disciples had gone away in that without him. While they were watching and waiting some boats came across the lake toward them, and at first they supposed the disciples were returning, but the boats turned out to be from Tiberias. Concluding, at last, that he must have gone around the head It crosses over in of the lake, they arranged with the Tiberias boatmen to take boats from them over to Capernaum, where they believed they would and finds Jesus on their course, brought them in the very early morning near the northwestern Rpnnesaret shore where they saw Jesus. Startled at his appearance, since they did not (24, 25) know exactly where they were, they were quieted by his greeting, and then they wanted to take him into the boat. Hardly had they expressed their willingness when the boat's keel grated upon the shore. This natural ex planation is of course impossible if Matthew's account, which includes the rescue of Peter, be accepted, but it is noteworthy that Mark, who gives the recollections of Peter, says nothing about this rescue. Why should Peter omit such a significant personal reminiscence? The omission of the event from both Mark and John arrests attention. Unless this scene is added, there seems to be no sufficient reason for the miracle, for the disciples were apparently in no great danger and Jesus did nothing for them after he came to them. Whence Matthew obtained his account cannot be known. Clearly what he gives makes the whole account miraculous, and as such it is generally received. 155 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus be most likely to find him. Jesus had apparently avoided going to this city, but he was not far away and was discov ered somewhere on the plain of Gennesaret. They ap proached him with the question as to when he had come over to this side of the lake. At this point the teaching con nected with the miracle of the feeding of the multitude be gins. 3. THE TEACHING OF JESUS (6:26-59) 1. Introductory Several dis- Instead of one discourse we have here at least their gen- three, with perhaps a change of scene and of audience ter C ara° f°r eacn one- It is again virtually a grouping of dis courses with reference to the miracle of the loaves, and these discourses are all marked by a strong Johannine impress. They show close and difficult connections; they contain fixed refrains (39, 40, 44, 54; 33, 50, 58; 35, 48, 51); they set over against the blinding literalism of the Jews the "true" spiritual interpretation. (See 28, 29; 34, 35; 52, 53). They show also views of thought which, while they may not be called Pauline, suggest Pauline influence. iS6 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry 2. The First Discourse: The True Bread (6:26-40) I. Its Source. (a) It is given by the Father (32), through the Son (27). (b) It comes down from heaven (32, 33). II. Its Nature, (a) It is personal and vital and spiritual (33, 35). III. Its Power. (a) It gives life (33). (6) It satisfies hunger forever (35) . IV. Its Attainability. It is gained not by physical exertion (27), but by spiritual work (29), which work is be- Ueving in Jesus Christ (29), or coming to him in faith. This last thought of "coming" sug gests the attitude of the Jews and the truth given in 37-40 (an important parenthesis) may be analyzed as follows : (1) The certainty of the realization of the coming in the case of those whom the Father is giving him (37 a). They shall reach him (the Son). (2) The surety of the issue to those who come (37 b). iS7 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus Reasons for (1) and (2): (a) Jesus came to do the Father's will. (b) That will includes (l) and (2): viewed from the divine side, viewed from the human side, and involving (a) present salvation, (b) future resurrection. Jesus lays To the question, "When and how did you come to be motives of here?" Jesus gave the people no answer. He immediately seekmgPhim addressed himself to the motives which were impelling ^26^ people to seek him, and there was need of speaking em phatically and directly, since they had missed, or, what is practically the same thing, misinterpreted the meaning of the signs which he had hitherto given them. Only the outward or earthly side had made appeal to them. In the miracles of cure, they saw merely the healing; in that of the supply of food, only that gratification of physical need which gave seconding to their dream of that time when by the Mes siah, "they should all be gathered together in the garden of Eden, and should eat and drink and satiate themselves all the days of the world." "Verily, verily," said Jesus, "you are seeking me, not because you have seen in my wonderful deeds glimpses of the spiritual revelations of the true mean- 158 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry ing of my person and work, but because you ate of the few loaves, were filled and thereby quickened in your carnal Messianic expectations. For this reason you have followed me over the wearying distance from Bethsaida Julias; for this reason you toil after me from place to place. Do not The food spend your energies in this way trying to get the food which they'should perisheth — the fleeting, material satisfactions of an hour. (j"Vjg) Make it rather the obj'ect of your earnest effort to secure that food which will meet your need not only here, but all through the life beyond. You can have it as a gift from the Son of Man — one who fully understands your needs — since God, the Father, has by just such wonderful deeds as you witnessed last evening authenticated him as the one to bring to men this imperishable blessing. Fixing their thought upon the necessity of personal effort, they met his exhortation with a question reflecting the legalistic external service of God with which they were familiar. "If we are to work, what are we to do in order to satisfy God?" "You What they are to do this," said Jesus in reply, "commit yourself un- (20) reservedly, wholly, and forever to him whom he hath sent — to me." "That is a large demand," was their answer. What have you to show that will convince us of its legiti macy? You say that we have misunderstood the signs. If we have not seen that which we thought sufficient to lead us to hail thee as our king, what adequate sign will you offer us in order that we may believe you? The critical question really returns to you. "What are you doing to justify such *59 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus The de mand for a sign; some thing as convincingas Moses gave (30, 31) The true bread of heaven of far greater value than the manna (32) " I am the bread of life" (33-35) sweeping, comprehensive requirements? Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness. Through forty years Moses gave them that wonderful bread from heaven. Do something on as grand a scale as that; show yourself greater than Moses and then it will be time to ask us to believe." To this Jesus made reply as follows: "In two essential particulars you are mistaken in your views about the manna. In the first place it was not given to your fathers by Moses, and, sec ondly, while it was a sort of bread from heaven, it was not really heavenly bread. My Father is giving you now that genuine bread from heaven, which Moses could not give, since the bread of God is that spiritual food which comes actually from heaven and which gives life to the world." With their thoughts intent only upon some physical inter pretation of the word, they asked him to give them evermore of this kind of bread. Jesus had now brought them to the critical point of all his leading. Dropping all disguise, He said, "I am the bread of life." He who with a sense of spiritual need, born of his consciousness of sin and his own helplessness, comes to me for help and strength and hope shall in no wise be left unsatisfied — his hunger shall be surely stilled; he who in complete trust commits himself to me for spiritual power and direction in life and for salvation in death shall be as one whose thirst has been forever quenched. Alas! How different it is with you ! You have seen me doing the works which the Father gave me to do; you have eaten of bread miraculously provided. Through 160 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry all these signs I have been trying to show myself to you, and yet you refuse to believe. The sad issue of these significant days in Galilee, fore- The source shadowing as they did his ultimate rejection by the nation, °l jeHusTn brought home to the mind of Jesus a time of earnest ques- critfca 63) was? WiU it not then be clear that the spiritual is the essential in my Messiahship? Is it not always the spirit, and the spirit alone, that is Ufe-giving? "Flesh," without it has no abiding value; it is like manna. All the words through which I have offered myself to you are meant to be channels of the spirit and of life to you, since in believing those words you would be brought into contact with the life in me. There are, however, some of you who do not be- Some Ueve in this vital way. Jesus could say this, for he knew J^n from from the beginning of the discipleship of many how con- hopes'and stantly they kept in view fleshly hopes and dreams, and wmy'^°„s; from the beginning of his close association with Judas he h?ld to saw that his ambitions were becoming more and more fixed (64. 65) 167 him (66) Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus in the same direction. These would ultimately drive him to betrayal. This same misdirected faith led Jesus also to the reflection that no one could come into personal spirit ual relations with him unless the Father by some ex perience had awakened him to the spiritual meaning and value of life. Many leave Hereupon many of his disciples turned back and walked no longer with him. 2. The Confession of Peter (6:67-71) It is possible that several weeks intervened between the discourse of Jesus recorded in 62-65 and this con fession of Peter. If so, then the days were probably marked by a continual defection from the band of dis ciples. By Weiss and Godet this scene is identified with that given in Matthew 16 : 16. It is more likely to have occurred some time before. The question of Jesus is meant to test the loyalty of the disciples in view of his refusal to satisfy the materiaUstic hopes of the people and their consequent repudiation of him. The significance of Peter's confession is that it is a tribute to the character of Jesus born of a maturing experience. You will not go, too, will you, said Jesus to the twelve? Peter answering for them, said "No," and gave three rea- 168 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry sons for his answer. There is no other to whom we can go. Peter an- Thou hast the words which bring enduring Ufe to those the twelve who commit themselves to them by faith, and we in believ- wintnot:y ing have come to know that thou art the one free from aU J^j^f" sin and belonging wholly to God. Peter spoke for all, but (]mJj'h)5' Jesus had seen enough in these sad days to make it very evi dent that one of the twelve was playing a devil's part in per verting good to selfish ends. "It is true that I chose you all Jesus refers for myself," said Jesus, "but one of you is a devil." As the (°o,U7ia)S evangelist tells us, he meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscar iot, for he was the one of the twelve who was, in coming days, to betray the Master. IV JESUS AT THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES (7) 1. Introductory Between the occurrence of the events narrated in the six months sixth chapter and those in the seventh intervenes a space chapters of at least six months, for the Feast of Tabernacles was 6 and 7 celebrated in October. Jesus had made in this inter vening time journeys toward Tyre and Sidon, into the DecapoUs and into northern Galilee, where the transfig uration took place. With the crisis in Galilee, however, 169 Public Ministry The Messages of Jesus John's interest in the ministry in the northern province came to an end. The scene is immediately shifted to Jerusalem. We are introduced into the thick of con flicting estimates and again shown the Messiah in the claims which are set over against these estimates. The whole chapter is full of action. The scene is crowded with all sorts and conditions of men — "Jews," the mul titude, the people of Jerusalem, the Sadducees, the Phar isees, and disciples. Here "the crisis becomes hotter; the divisions, the doubts, the hopes, the jealousies, and the casuistry of the Jews are vividly portrayed. We see the mass of the populace swaying to and fro, hardly knowing which way to turn, inclined to believe, but held back by the more sophisticated citizens of the metropolis. In the background looms the dark shadow of the hie rarchy itself, intrenched behind its prejudices and refus ing to hear the cause that it has already prejudged. A single timid voice is raised against this injustice, but is at once fiercely silenced." Over against all this stands the calm, serene, majestic figure of the Messiah . The chap ter presents several features worthy of careful attention : (1) A fulness of detail which argues for an eye-witness. (2) Illustrations of the thematic character of John's presentation of Christ's teaching. (3) A portrayal of the nature and strength of the antagonism whose issue was Calvary. 170 According to the Gospel of John Public Ministry 2. The Conversation in Galilee with His Brethren (7:1-10) Afterward Jesus travelled about in Galilee, being un- The broth- willing to take up his activity in Judea, since the Jews were urge him to on the watch to kiU him. The Feast of Tabernacles, how- leilTnNS-'u- ever, was near at hand, and his brothers (James, Joses, salem