John 13

them.] As if He had said, This which I have now done is easy to be understood, and so are also all those other Christian graces and virtues, which I have heretofore, by My life and doctrine, recommended to you; but it is not enough to know these things, ye must do them likewise. The end and life of all our knowledge in religion is to put in practice what we know. It is necessary, indeed, that we should know our duty; but mere knowledge of it will never bring us to that happiness of which religion designs to make us partakers, if our knowledge have not its due and proper influence on our lives. Nay, so far will our knowledge be from making us happy, if it be separated from the virtues of a good life, that it will prove one of the heaviest aggravations of our misery; and it is as if our Lord had said, If ye know these things, woe will indeed befall you if ye do them not. Abp. Tillotson.

— and testified.] That is, spake openly and plainly. Bp. Mann.

A new commandment I give unto you.] I give this commandment to all my disciples, “that ye love one another” after My example, who have so loved you and all mankind, as to lay down my life for all, even for My enemies, from pure affection to their souls: this is the love which ye are to imitate, in your conduct towards each other. Dr. Whitby.

— that ye love one another;] This benevolent disposition is made the great characteristick of a Christian, the test of his obedience, and the mark by which he is to be distinguished. This love for each other is that charity described at 1 Cor. xiii. 4, containing all the qualities there attributed to it, humility, patience, meekness, and beneficence; without which we must live in perpetual discord, and consequently cannot pay obedience to this commandment by loving one another; a commandment so sublime, so rational, and so beneficial, so wisely calculated to correct the depravity, diminish the wickedness, and abate the miseries of human nature, that, did we universally comply with it, we should soon be relieved from all the inquietudes arising from our own unruly passions, anger, envy, revenge, malice, and ambition, as well as from all those injuries to which we are perpetually exposed, from the indulgence of the same passions in others. S. Jesyns.

Chap. XIV. ver. 1. Let not &c.] Here our Lord addresses an admirable discourse to His afflicted disciples, breathing consolation, and encouragement to trust in God and in Him also, for protection, support, and final reward. Dr. Hales.

Let not your heart be troubled:] Be not discouraged at My departure, or the troubles consequent upon it: but support your hearts with faith in the Father, and in Me, who am one with the Father, and consequently able to defend you in the execution of My commands. Dean Stanhope.

Our Lord here prescribes the proper remedy against trouble; namely, trust and confidence in God, the great Creator and wise Governour of the world, and likewise in Himself, the blessed Son of God, and the Saviour of the world. Abp. Tillotson.

John 13:2

2. — are many mansions:] In which, after all your labours, ye will find eternal rest; and into which I enter first with the sacrifice effected by My death, in order to prepare a place for you. Dr. Whitby.

The consolations and promises here held out to the Apostles justify the hopes of all Christians who follow their Saviour in meekness and constancy, integrity and piety, though not in the like painful steps which they did, of dying for the testimony of the same truth. The abundance of the reward provided for all such is here illustrated; for those mansions are “many,” and furnish room for all who make it their care to seek and be qualified for them, however great the number of such may be; also the exquisite nature of the happiness which will then be attained; since these mansions are in the house of the Father, where is all happiness and perfection, and in whose presence is fulness of joy. Dean Stanhope.

John 13:3

3. — I will come again &c.] At my second advent, I will receive you into those mansions, that ye may abide with Me for ever, and be made partakers of the happiness I there enjoy. Dr. Whitby.

John 13:4

4. — whither I go ye know, &c.] To what place I am going, ye cannot but know, by what I have just now told you; and the way thither likewise I have intimated with sufficient plainness. Bp. Mann.

U 2

Christ professeth himself the way, the truth, S. JOHN. and the life, and one with the Father.

Anno DOMINI 23.

John 13:6

6. — I am the way, &c.] I am the guide and director to these heavenly mansions, and so “the way;” I am the teacher of the truth revealed for this purpose, and so “the truth;” I am the author and only source of eternal happiness, and so “the life:” to the enjoyment of this, with my Father, no man can attain, except by obeying and relying on Me. Dean Stanhope.

— no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.] It is by Jesus Christ alone, that we, ignorant and short-sighted beings, come to the knowledge of God; for without Revelation we could never have known Him, as He is in His nature and attributes; but, in a still more proper sense, no man cometh to the favour of God, but by Christ: He is the propitiation of our sins, and through Him alone we are received into the favour of God, and procure the pardon of our sins, to the purposes of final salvation. Bp. Beveridge.

John 13:7

7. — ye should have known my Father also.] Who is in Me, and is made visible by His works done in Me. And, from the time I have been with you, ye have known Him by His word, and have seen Him by His works. Dr. Whitby.

John 13:8

8.—If I wash thee not, thou hast no part] Meaning, by an easy and customary allusion to what was then passing, that, without such holiness and purity of mind as is naturally represented by cleaning and washing the body with water, he could not be a worthy Apostle and preacher of the Gospel. Dr. S. Clarke.

8. — Lord, shew us the Father.] He says this, conceiving grossly of the subject, and alluding perhaps to the manifestations which God was pleased to make of Himself to Moses, Elias, and others. Dean Stanhope.

John 13:9

9.—Lord, not my feet only, but &c.] An expression of his earnestness to become a true disciple of Christ.

9. — hast thou not known me.] He implies, that to discern nothing more than human in the Son, is not to know the Son; and to descry the Divine perfections under that veil of humanity, was to see the Father in the Son. Dean Stanhope.

John 13:10

10.—He that is washed needeth not &c.] Meaning, by the same allusion as before, that he who has once heartily embraced the Gospel, and for some time obeyed its doctrines, must not be supposed ever after to stand in need of any entire change of heart and mind, but only to cleanse himself continually from the unavoidable incursions of daily infirmities. Dr. S. Clarke. It was the uncleanness of sin, or the filth of an evil conscience, which was to be taken away by this washing. More than a single moral lesson was therefore couched in this act; indeed, the necessity and efficacy of certain means, by which mankind were, in general, to be cleansed from sin, was that which was ultimately and mainly signified by it. Bp. Hurd. —ye are clean, but not all.] Hereby clearly intimating Judas’s intended perfidy. Abp. Newcome.

10. — I am in the Father, and the Father in me?] One in substance, and mutually in each other. Dean Stanhope. See notes at chap. x. 30.

John 13:12

12. — and greater works than these shall he do;] By propagating My religion swiftly throughout the world, in opposition to the powers of earth and hell. Dr. Trapp.

John 13:13

13. — whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, &c.] Implying, that nothing which they shall attempt in the execution of their ministry, with the invocation of His name, and the interposition of His power, should be insuperable to them; by means of which the Christian religion should be promoted, and so bring honour to the Father. Dean Stanhope.

John 13:14

14. If I then, your Lord and Master, &c.] If I, whom ye acknowledge to be of infinitely greater dignity and authority than yourselves, have condescended with all humility to do the meanest office of servitude and kindness to you, My inferiours and disciples; how much more ought ye, if ye be sincere in your love and obedience towards Me, with all willingness and cheerfulness to do all acts of kindness, humility, and charity, towards each other; who, in comparison of Me, are all equals and fellow-servants, notwithstanding that seeming superiority which the state of the world, or the order of the Church, may give you over one another. Dr. S. Clarke. —to wash one another’s feet.] Readily to discharge this humble office, or any similar one, for each other. Abp. Newcome.

15. — I will do it.] In a similar sentence at John xvi. 23. our Lord says, “He (the Father) will give it you.”

But in this text He seems to mention Himself particularly, to teach us, that we should direct our prayers to Him, as the same God with the Father, to trust on Him for granting what we pray for, and to believe that it is He, or the Father in and through Him, that grants our prayers. Bp. Beveridge.

John 13:15

15. If ye love me, keep my commandments.] What does our great Lord and Master here say to those who profess to love Him? “If ye love Me, keep My commandments;” without which indeed we have no ground to think we love Him, but have all the reason in the world to fear and dread Him. For if, notwithstanding all that He hath done and suffered for us, we shall still continue to break His laws, dishonour His name, and refuse those easy terms which He has offered to us in the Gospel, what can we expect but that He will leave us to the judgment of God, to be punished as our sins deserve? Bp. Beveridge.

John 13:16

16.—neither he that is seat &c.] Neither are you, My Apostles, whom I shall appoint the governours of

16. — I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter.] Meaning the Holy Ghost, “the Spirit of Truth,” ver. 17. The Greek word here used is Paraclete, which expresses the several offices performed by the Holy Spirit, of interceding as an advocate, of exhorting, and of comforting. He, our Saviour says, when He cometh, shall not depart, as I do now, but shall abide with you “for ever,” as long as ye continue obedient to My precepts, ver. 15. Dr. Hammond.

What a fund of encouragement is here afforded for patience in troubles, and perseverance in every virtue! We see how greatly the Christian is the care of Heaven. The most Holy Trinity is represented as co-operating to the salvation of believers. Let us, above all things, avoid the sin of not concurring humbly and earnestly with such a helper. Dr. Ogden.

These words present to us, in the shortest compass, what the Scriptures in various parts present to us at large; namely, the three Persons of the Godhead, who concur in the work of man’s redemption. Here is the Son interceding, the Father granting, and the Spirit coming, to form the Church, and ever after to sanctify and preserve it.

How pleasing, how comfortable a consideration is it, that we have an Intercessor on high, through whose prayer to the Father, not only the good things of this world, redeemed from the curse by Him who first created them, and made them salutary and holy, are granted

John 13:18

18.—I know whom I have chosen:] I know that one of you will forsake and betray Me: and I knew from the beginning that so it would be; but it was necessary that I should permit these things so to be; and hereby will that Scripture be fulfilled in Me, as it was in David. Pa. xli. 9. Dr. S. Clarke. As Ahithophel, though he was his familiar friend, betrayed David, who was a type of Me, so will Judas, My familiar friend at My table, betray Me. Dr. Whitby. —He that eateth bread with me] This was a peculiar aggravation in the East, where the rites of hospitality were very sacred, and are so to this day. Abp. Newcome. —hath lifted up his heel] See Pa. xli. 9. The expression is taken from wrestlers, who endeavour to supplant each other with their feet. Rosemüller.

John 13:20

20.—He that receiveth &c.] He says this to assure them that they should not want the comfort and the reward of those duties of humility and obedience, which He here enjoins upon them. Dr. Hammond.

John 13:21

21.—was troubled in spirit.] Principally at the U Christ foretelleth that Judas should betray him.

Anno DOMINI 23. and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.

John 13:23

23. — leaning on Jesus’ bosom] The Roman custom at meals, which prevailed among the Jews in our Saviour’s time, was to lie on couches, supporting themselves on the left elbow, so that the head of one was against the bosom of the person who was next above him. See Luke vii. 38. Bp. Mann.

— one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.] St. John, the writer of this Gospel.

St. John has five times mentioned himself under the description of “the disciple whom Jesus loved;” see chap. xix. 26; xx. 2; xxi. 7, 20. He has also thrice recorded, that he reclined in the bosom of Jesus, at the last supper, chap. xiii. 23, 25; xxi. 20. Abp. Newcome.

From many circumstances related in the Gospels, it appears that there subsisted between our Saviour and St. John a real, sincere, and tender friendship; and from this we cannot fail to infer, that friendship is perfectly consistent with the spirit of the Gospel, and the practice of every duty which it requires at our hands. But, what is highly important for us to remember, it is in the power of every one of us, though not precisely in the same sense that St. John was, yet in a very significant sense, to be the friend of Christ. We have our Saviour’s own words for it. “Ye are My friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you,” John xv. 14. Our earthly friends may deceive, may desert us, may be separated from us, may be converted into our bitter enemies. But our heavenly Friend has declared, and He assuredly may be trusted, that, if we adhere faithfully to Him, He will never forsake us. Bp. Porteus.

St. John was beloved of Him who was Himself beloved of the Father. If we often set the highest price on the favour of an earthly sovereign, a man whose breath is in his nostrils, what ought we not to give to obtain the love of Him who abideth for ever, and who will make us partakers of His own immortality? We are all the disciples of Christ, and candidates for His favour. Let us ever strive to imitate the character and

John 13:24

24. — beckoned to him.] Made signs to St. John, who was so placed that he could inquire without being heard by the rest. Bp. Mann.

John 13:27

27. — Satan entered into him.] Entered more forcibly into him than before, hurrying him to a speedy execution of his designs. Dr. Hammond.

John 13:28

28. — no man at the table knew] Not even St. John knew the force of the words, that Judas was to betray Him immediately. Grotius.

John 13:29

29. — against the feast;] For the offerings during the whole of the feast. Abp. Newcome.

John 13:31

31. — Now is the Son of man glorified, &c.] Now is the time come, when, having manifested the glory of God in My life, I shall further manifest it in My death, which will terminate greatly to the honour of God, and in extraordinary demonstrations of My own glory and power. Dr. S. Clarke.

John 13:32

32. — God shall also glorify him in himself.] God will exalt Me to inconceivable glory, and give mighty attestations of His having invested Me with great power in heaven and in earth. Dr. S. Clarke.

John 13:34

34. A new commandment] This commandment of loving one another is by our Lord and Saviour so much enlarged, as to its object, beyond what either the Jews or heathens understood it to be, extending to all mankind, and even to our greatest enemies; so greatly advanced and heightened as to its degree, even to the laying down of our lives for one another; so effectually taught, so mightily encouraged, so very much urged and insisted upon, that it may very well be called “a new commandment” for, though it was not wholly unknown to mankind before, yet it was never so taught, so encouraged; never was such an illustrious example of it given, never so much weight and stress laid upon it by any rules of philosophy or religion previously existing. Abp. Tillotson.

The commandment was new, because it was generally neglected in the practice of mankind, and because it was for the most part omitted in the lessons of moral teachers of that age; but the novelty of it consisted

He forewarneth Peter of his denial. CHAP. XIII, XIV. He comforteth his disciples.

Anno DOMINI 23. unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

John 13:36

36. — thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt &c.] Meaning, that after many years St. Peter should follow Him in the likeness of His death, and thereby be made partaker also of His glory. Dr. S. Clarke. This accordingly took place; for he was put to death by crucifixion in the reign of the emperor Nero. Dean Stanhope.

John 13:38

38. — The cock shall not crow.] The early time called

of heaven: 6 professeth himself the way, the truth, and the life, and one with the Father: 13 assured their prayers in his name to be effectual: 15 requesteth love and obedience, 16 promiseth the Holy Ghost the Comforter, 27 and leaveth his peace with them.

Anno DOMINI 23. LET not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.