Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 5:20
For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that himself doeth: and he will show him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
20. For the Father loveth the Son ] Moral necessity for the Son’s doing what the Father does. The Father’s love for the Son compels Him to make known all His works to Him; the Son’s relation to the Father compels Him to do what the Father does. The Son continues on earth what He had seen in heaven before the Incarnation.
he will shew him, &c.] Or, Greater works than these will He shew Him. ‘The Father will give the Son an example of greater works than these healings, the Son will do the like, and ye unbelievers will be shamed into admiration.’ He does not say that they will believe. ‘Works’ is a favourite term with S. John to express the details of Christ’s work of redemption. Comp. Joh 5:36, Joh 9:4, Joh 10:25; Joh 10:32; Joh 10:37, Joh 14:11-12, Joh 15:24.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The Father loveth the Son – This authority he traces to the love which the Father has for him – that special, ineffable, infinite love which God has for his only-begotten Son, feebly and dimly illustrated by the love which an earthly parent has for an only child.
Showeth him – Makes him acquainted with. Conceals nothing from him. From apostles, prophets, and philosophers no small part of the doings of God are concealed. From the Son nothing is. And as God shows him all that he does, he must be possessed of omniscience, for to no finite mind could be imparted a knowledge of all the works of God.
Will show him – Will appoint and direct him to do greater works than these.
Greater works than these – Than healing the impotent man, and commanding him to carry his bed on the Sabbath day. The greater works to which he refers are those which he proceeds to specify – he will raise the dead and judge the world, etc.
May marvel – May wonder, or be amazed.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 20. Greater works than these] Two of these he immediately mentions: Raising the dead, Joh 5:21. And judging the world, Joh 5:22.
That ye may marvel.] Or, So as to make you wonder. Our Lord sometimes speaks of himself as God, and sometimes as the ambassador of God. As he had a human and Divine nature, this distinction was essentially necessary. Many errors have originated from want of attention to this circumstance.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
For the Father loveth the Son; both as his Son by eternal generation, Mat 3:17, and also as the Messiah sent by him into the world, to finish the work the Father had given him to do: and look, as a father will make his son acquainted with all that he doth; and not only so, but communicates all his power and skill to his son, so far as he can: so the Father communicates all his power to the Son, working all things in him, and by him; and he will in and by him work greater things than this, healing this poor man; he will by him raise the dead, &c.
That ye may marvel: Christ knew that they would not believe, and all the effect that his miracles had upon the generality of the Jews, was but causing in them a stupefaction, amazement, and admiration, as Joh 11:47; whereas it was their duty, not only to marvel, but to have believed also, without which their admiration did but cause that they had no cloak for their sin.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
20. Father loveth . . . and showethhim all, c.As love has no concealments, so it results from theperfect fellowship and mutual endearment of the Father and the Son(see on Joh 1:1 Joh1:18), whose interests are one, even as their nature, that theFather communicates to the Son all His counsels, and what has beenthus shown to the Son is by Him executed in His mediatorialcharacter. “With the Father, doing is willing; itis only the Son who acts in Time” [ALFORD].Three things here are clear: (1) The personal distinctions inthe Godhead. (2) Unity of action among the Persons resultsfrom unity of nature. (3) Their oneness of interest is nounconscious or involuntary thing, but a thing of gloriousconsciousness, will, and love, of which the Personsthemselves are the proper Objects.
show him greater things,&c.referring to what He goes on to mention (Joh5:21-31), comprised in two great words, LIFEand JUDGMENT, which STIERbeautifully calls God’s Regalia. Yet these, Christ says, theFather and He do in common.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
For the Father loveth the Son,…. As being his Son, his image, the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person; as being of the same nature, and having the same perfections, and so equal to him; [See comments on Joh 3:35];
and showeth him all things that himself doth; not as if he was ignorant of them, since he lies in the bosom of his Father, is the wisdom of God, is the omniscient God, that knows all things; not only all things in men, but all things in God, even the deep things of God: but this is said of the Father, as consulting with him, communicating his designs to him, as his equal; doing nothing without him, as he never did in the works of nature, or of grace: he drew the plan of peace, reconciliation, and salvation in him; he made the worlds by him; and he does nothing in the government of the world without him; and indeed he shows him all things he does, by doing all things; and by him he shows himself, and his works, to men:
and he will show him greater works than these, or he will do greater works by him than these: either than the works of creation; namely, the redemption of the elect, the justification of their persons by his righteousness, and pardon of their sins through his blood, and the regeneration and conversion of them by his Spirit and grace; either of which is a greater work than the making of the world: or greater than he has done under the Old Testament dispensation; than the redeeming of Israel out of Egypt, leading them through the wilderness, and settling them in the land of Canaan; giving them the law, the statutes, and ordinances of God, and working miracles among them: for the redemption of God’s people, by Christ, from sin, Satan, the world, the law, death, and hell, the publishing of the Gospel, the effusion of the Spirit, and setting up of the Gospel dispensation, are greater works than these; and more and greater miracles were wrought by Christ than by Moses, or any prophet under the former dispensation. Though rather the sense is, that greater miracles would be shown, and done by Christ, than these he had now done, in curing a man of his disorder, who had had it eight and thirty years, and bidding him take up his bed and walk; such as raising Jairus’s daughter to life, when dead, and the widow of Naim’s son, when he was carrying to the grave, and Lazarus, when he had been dead four days:
that ye may marvel; this was not properly the end of these greater works shown to, and done by Christ, which were to prove his divine sonship, his proper deity, his true Messiahship, to confirm the faith of his followers in him, and for the glory of God; but this eventually followed upon them: some wondered at them, and believed in him; and others were amazed at them, and confounded by them.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Loveth (). In 3:35 we have from , evidently one verb expressing as noble a love as the other. Sometimes a distinction (21:17) is made, but not here, unless presents the notion of intimate friendship (, friend), fellowship, the affectionate side, while (Latin diligo) is more the intelligent choice. But John uses both verbs for the mystery of love of the Father for the Son.
Greater works than these ( ). is ablative case after the comparative (from , great). John often uses for the miracles of Christ (John 5:36; John 7:3; John 7:21; John 10:25; John 10:32; John 10:38, etc.). It is the Father who does these works (14:10). There is more to follow. Even the disciples will surpass what Christ is doing in the extent of the work (14:12). is future active indicative of , to show. See also 10:32.
That ye may marvel ( ). Purpose clause with and present active subjunctive of . Wonder belongs to childhood and to men of knowledge. Modern science has increased the occasion for wonder. Clement of Alexandria has a saying of Jesus: “He that wonders shall reign, and he that reigns shall rest.”
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Loveth [] . To love is expressed by two words in the New Testament, filew and ajgapaw. Agapaw indicates a reasoning, discriminating attachment, founded in the conviction that its object is worthy of esteem, or entitled to it on account of benefits bestowed. Filew represents a warmer, more instinctive sentiment, more closely allied to feeling, and implying more passion. Hence ajgapaw is represented by the Latin diligo, the fundamental idea of which is selection, the deliberate choice of one out of a number, on sufficient grounds, as an object of regard. Thus filew emphasizes the affectional element of love, and ajgapaw the intelligent element. Socrates, in Xenophon’s “Memorabilia,” advises his friend Aristarchus to alleviate the necessities of his dependents by furnishing means to set them at work. Aristarchus having acted upon his advice, Xenophon says that the women in his employ loved [] him as their protector, while he in turn loved [] them because they were of use to him (” Memorabilia, “2 7, 12). Jesus ‘ sentiment toward Martha and Mary is described by hjgapa, Joh 11:5. Men are bidden to love [] God (Mt 22:37; 1Co 8:3); never filein, since love to God implies an intelligent discernment of His attributes and not merely an affectionate sentiment. Both elements are combined in the Father ‘s love for the Son (Mt 3:17; Joh 3:35; Joh 4:20). Agaph is used throughout the panegyric of love in 1 Corinthians 13, and an examination of that chapter will show how large a part the discriminating element plays in the Apostle ‘s conception of love. The noun agaph nowhere appears in classical writings. As Trench remarks, it” is a word born within the bosom of revealed religion. “‘Eraw, in which the idea of sensual passion predominates, is nowhere used in the New Testament. Trench has some interesting remarks on its tendency toward a higher set of associations in the Platonic writings (” Synonyms,” p. 42).
Greater works will He show Him. As Jesus does whatever He sees the Father do (ver. 19), the showing of greater works will be the signal for Jesus to do them. On works, as a characteristic word in John, see on 4 47.
Ye may marvel. The ye is emphatic [] and is addressed to those who questioned His authority, whose wonder would therefore be that of astonishment rather than of admiring faith, but might lead to faith. Plato says, “Wonder is the feeling of a philosopher, and philosophy begins in wonder” (” Theaetetus, “105); and Clement of Alexandria, cited by Westcott,” He that wonders shall reign, and he that reigns shall rest. ” Compare Act 4:13.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “For the Father loveth the Son,” (ho gar pater philie ton huion) “Because the Father loves the Son,” has affection toward the Son, and both he and I care for you all, though you are at enmity toward me, and toward Him, as self-deceived religious zealots, Rom 8:7-8; Joh 8:44; Rom 10:1-4.
2) “And sheweth him all things,” (kai panta deiknusin auto ha autos poiei) “And shows to Him all things which he does,” continually or repeatedly, makes it known to me, His Son, the Heir of His estate, Joh 3:16; Rom 8:17. This does not imply that Jesus was ignorant of the Father’s works but uses condescending terms to clarify heavenly things and thoughts, Joh 3:12; Joh 3:35; Joh 17:26.
3) “And he will shew him greater works than these.” (kai meizona touton deiksei auto erga) “And he will show him greater works than these,” these miraculous deeds, that had “shook up” the Jews, inclusive of this recent healing of the impotent man of 38 years, Joh 5:5; Joh 5:9. Greater works than these also alludes to spiritual healing of the soul, Joh 5:21-27; Joh 14:12.
4) “That ye may marvel – (hina humeis thaumazete) “In order that you all may really marvel,” or be astounded. This seems to allude to His crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, and the testimony of believers and unbelievers that witnessed these greater works the Father did, Rom 8:11; Act 2:22-24; Act 2:32; Act 3:12-19; Act 4:5-13; Act 13:26-33.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
20. For the Father loveth the Son. Every body sees how harsh and far-fetched is the exposition of this passage which is given by the Fathers. “God,” they say, “loves himself in the Son.” But this statement applies beautifully to Christ as clothed with flesh, that he is beloved by the Father. What is more, we know that it is by this excellent title that he is distinguished both from angels and from men, This is my beloved Son, (Mat 3:17.) For we know that Christ was chosen, that the whole love of God might dwell in him, and might flow from him to us as from a full fountain. Christ is loved by the Father, as he is the Head of the Church. He shows that this love is the cause why the Father does all things by his hand. For when he says that the Father SHOWTH to him this word must be understood to denote communication, as if he had said, “As the Father hath given to me his heart, so he hath poured out his power on me, that the Divine glory may shine in my works, and — what is more — that men may seek nothing Divine but what they find in me.” And, indeed, out of Christ it will be in vain to seek the power of God.
He will show him greater works than these. By these words he means that the miracle, which he had performed in curing the man, was not the greatest of the works enjoined on him by the Father; for he had only given in it a slight taste of that grace of which he is properly both minister and Author; namely, to restore life to the world.
That you may wonder. By adding these words, he indirectly charges them with ingratitude in despising so illustrious a demonstration of the power of God; as if he had said, “Though you are dull and stupid, yet the works which God shall afterwards perform by me will draw you, however reluctantly, into admiration.” Yet this appears not to have been fulfilled, for we know that seeing, they saw not; as Isaiah also says that the reprobate are blind amidst the light of God. I reply, Christ did not now speak of their disposition, but only threw out a suggestion as to the splendor of the demonstration which he would soon afterwards give that he was the Son of God.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(20) For the Father loveth the Son.Do men deny His divinity? God is His Father. There is, therefore, oneness of essence. The unity of His work with Gods work has for its basis the Eternal Love, which showeth to the Son all that the Father doeth. As the relation of Son implies moral inability to do anything apart from the Father, so the relation of Father implies moral necessity to impart all to the Son.
Greater works than these.The works which He had done could only be explained by the unity of His work with that of the Father; but in the development of His own human nature and His mediatorial work, there will be shown to Him, and He will show to man by doing them in their midst, works of which these are but as the first signs. The ye is emphatic, and the word marvel should also be noticed. Ye who seek to kill Me shall yourselves see works which, against your will, shall be wonders to you; but against your will they cannot be signs. Ye will marvel, but ye will not believe!
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
20. Father loveth the Son Love is, as it were, the cement by and in which the Trinity is Unity.
Showeth him The consciousness of the Son knows the works, and he reveals them, to the marvel of men.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Joh 5:20. Sheweth him The word , rendered sheweth, has a reference here to the ample, comprehensive, and infinite knowledge which the Son has of the whole plan of the Father’s counsels in all their mutual relations and dependencies. He will shew him greater works than these, “Will enable him as man, to do greater miracles than any that he has done hitherto, and which, though they may not convince, will certainly astonish you, and make it impossible for you to gainsay him, at least with any show of reason.”
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Joh 5:20 . Moral necessity in God for the aforesaid , etc. Comp. Joh 3:35 .
refers to the whole of what follows down to , of which , etc., gives the result.
] “qui amat , nil celat ,” Bengel. The distinction between this and (which D., Origen, Chrysostom here read), diligit (see Tittmann, Synon . p. 50), is to be retained even in John, though he uses both to denote the same relationship, but with varying definiteness of representation. Comp. Joh 3:35 , Joh 21:15 . is always the proper affection of love. Comp. Joh 11:3 ; Joh 11:36 , Joh 16:27 , Joh 20:2 , et al . But this love has its basis in the metaphysical and eternal relation of the Father to the Son, as His (Joh 1:14 ; Joh 1:18 ), and does not first begin in time. Comp. Luthardt.
] He shows Him all , permits Him to see in immediate self-revelation all that He Himself doeth , that the Son also may do these things after the pattern of the Father. Description of the inner and essential intimacy of the Father with the Son, according to which, and indeed by virtue of His love to the Son, He makes all His own working an object of intuition to the Son for His like working (comp. Joh 5:17 ), the humanly conditioned continuation of what He had seen in His pre-human existence, Joh 3:11 , Joh 6:46 . [207]
, . . .] a new sentence, and an advance in the discourse, the theme of all that follows down to Joh 5:30 : and greater works than these (the healings of the sick spoken of) will He show Him; He will give Him His example to do them also.
] the divine purpose of this, not in the sense of (Baeumlein).
] ye unbelievers . Jesus does not say ; He means the surprise of shame , viz. at the sight [208] of His works.
[207] This intimate relationship is to be regarded as one of uninterrupted continuity , and not to be limited merely to occasional crises in the life of Jesus (Gess, Pers. Chr . p. 237), of which there is not the slightest indication in John’s Gospel. Comp. Joh 1:51 . This very continuous consciousness depends upon the continuance of the Logos consciousness (Joh 8:29 , Joh 8:59 , Joh 17:5 , Joh 16:32 ), a view which is to be maintained against Weizscker, who introduces even visions ( evang. Gesch . p. 435) in explanation of this passage, in the face of the known history of Jesus.
[208] For the astonishment connected with the is implied in the context. See Ngelsbach, z. llias , p. 200, Exo 3 .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
20 For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
Ver. 20. For the Father loveth the Son ] This noteth that eternal power of doing miracles that is in Christ. As that which follows, “He will show him greater works,” &c., is to be referred to the declaration of that his power.
That ye may wonder ] Though ye believe not; for such was the hardness of their hearts grown; as neither ministry, misery, miracle, nor mercy could possibly mollify. “Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish,” Act 13:41 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
20. ] For (this last is ensured by the fact, that) the Father loves the Son, and shews to Him (in this the Lord sets forth to us the unfolding of the will and purposes of the Father to (Mar 13:32 ; Act 1:7 ) and by Him, in His Mediatorial office) all things which He Himself does (all the purposes of His secret counsel; for with the Father, doing is willing; it is only the Son who acts in time ); and this manifestation will go on increasing in majesty, that the wonder which now is excited in you by these works may be brought out to its full measure (in the acceptation or rejection of the Son of God wonder leading naturally to the of Joh 5:23 ).
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Joh 5:20 . And the Son is enabled to see what the Father does, because He loves the Son and shows Him all that He Himself does. The Father is not passive in the matter, merely allowing Jesus to discover what He can of the Father’s will; but the Father , shows Him, inwardly and in response to His own readiness to perceive, not mechanically but spiritually, all that He does; apparently without limitation, for is habitual present as in previous clause, and cannot be restricted to the things God was then doing in the case of the impotent man. Besides, a merely human sonship scarcely satisfies the absolute and of this passage. , the Father through the Son will do greater works than the healing of the impotent man; cf. 14:12; “that ye may marvel”; this seems an inadequate motive, but Joh 5:23 explains it. In the following passage, spiritual quickening is meant in Joh 5:21-27 , while in Joh 5:28-29 , it is the bodily resurrection that is in view.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
loveth. Greek phileo. One of the characteristic words of this Gospel. See page 1511, and App-135.
works. See note on Joh 4:34.
that = in order that. Greek. Nina.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
20.] For (this last is ensured by the fact, that) the Father loves the Son, and shews to Him (in this the Lord sets forth to us the unfolding of the will and purposes of the Father to (Mar 13:32; Act 1:7) and by Him, in His Mediatorial office) all things which He Himself does (all the purposes of His secret counsel;-for with the Father, doing is willing; it is only the Son who acts in time); and this manifestation will go on increasing in majesty, that the wonder which now is excited in you by these works may be brought out to its full measure (in the acceptation or rejection of the Son of God-wonder leading naturally to the of Joh 5:23).
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 5:20. ) He who loves, hides nothing [from the object of his love].-, showeth) in heaven. Comp. , seeth, Joh 5:19. He showeth that [the Son] may do so also. This showing is the part of intimate unity. They compare with this the passage of the Psa 45:5, Thy right hand shall SHOW [Engl. Vers., Joh 5:4, teach] thee wonderful [terrible] things.-) Himself.-) shall show, by doing them. The Father at once showeth and doeth, and the Son seeth and doeth; not at different times.-, works) Jesus more often calls them works than signs, because in His own eyes they were not miracles.-) even to that degree that.-, ye) who now hate, will honour with admiration and belief. This effect was wrought especially at the resurrection of Lazarus [Joh 11:43; Joh 11:45, Many of the Jews, which had seen the things that Jesus did, believed on Him].
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Joh 5:20
Joh 5:20
For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that himself doeth: and greater works than these will he show him, that ye may marvel.-He insists that God loves him, reveals his own works to the Son, enables him to do what God does, and he promises that God will enable him to do even greater works than he had yet done in their presence. [This future work would be greater than the miracle just performed.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
the Father: Joh 3:35, Joh 17:26, Mat 3:17, Mat 17:5, 2Pe 1:17
and showeth: Joh 1:18, Joh 10:32, Joh 15:15, Pro 8:22-31, Mat 11:27, Luk 10:22
greater: Joh 5:21, Joh 5:25, Joh 5:29, Joh 12:45-47
Reciprocal: Pro 8:24 – I was Isa 49:5 – yet Mar 1:11 – Thou Mar 2:10 – General Joh 3:32 – what Joh 5:28 – Marvel Joh 8:50 – there Joh 16:30 – are Joh 17:25 – but Act 3:10 – they were Act 8:13 – and wondered 1Co 8:6 – and one 1Co 11:3 – and the head of Christ
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
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On the principle set forth in the preceding verse, a loving and divine Father will take his Son into his confidence, and inform him of the great things that are being done through Providential benevolence. And there were to be still greater things done than the healing of an afflicted man on the sabbath day.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
The Apologists Bible Commentary
John 5
20″For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and greater works than these will He show Him, that you may marvel.”
CommentaryJesus tells us that the reason that He does only what the Father shows Him – and everything the Father shows Him – is because the Father loves the Son. The Son submits to the Father in perfect love, being unable therefore to act independently of the Father, and the Father reciprocates this perfect love by showing the Son “all things” that He is doing. There is nothing that the Father does that He does not show the Son, and so we may trust that Jesus “explains” or “exegetes” the Father perfectly and completely (cf. John 1:18). God’s revelation in His Son is perfect because the Son does “whatever” the Father shows Him, and the Father shows Him “all things He Himself is doing.” Jesus’ implicit claim to Deity is here quite striking, as is the statement that the Father will show the Son even greater works than the healings the Jews have already witnessed – that is, the works of judgment and raising the dead, which Jesus speaks of in the coming verses. Jesus says not only does He know everything the Father is doing, but that He knows what the Father will do. While it is certainly possible that the Father disclosed His future works to the Son, Jesus makes no such qualification here, as we might expect, had Jesus wished to convince his audience that He was not, in fact, “equal with God.” It seems, instead, that the Son knows what the Father will do by virtue of the unity of their shared Will – yet another implicit and stunning claim to Deity. The very obedience and dependence that characterize Jesus’ utter subordination to the Father are themselves so perfect that all Jesus does is what the Father wills and does, so it is nothing less than the revelation of God. Small wonder that Jesus will later declare, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (14:9; cf., Carson, pp. 146-162). In the immediate context, this means that Jesus’ implicitly claimed ‘equality with God’ (vv. 17-18), as real as it is, must never be taken to mean (as the Jews apparently assumed) that God himself was compromised (if the claim were given any credence) or demeaned (assuming it were false). Far from it: the claim was true, but God was thereby revealed” (Carson , p. 252).
Grammatical Analysiskai panta deiknusin autw`a autoV poiei KAI PANTA DEIKNUSIN AUTi hA AUTOS POIEI and all things shows him that which he does. PANTA ?All things, everything. In the absolute sense (BAGD ). Similarly, Louw & Nida and Thayer .
Other Views ConsideredJehovah’s Witnesses objection: Some Witnesses have argued that PANTA here and in other verses does not mean “all” in an absolute sense (cf., John 1:3; Col 1:16). response: While PANTA may be used in a hyperbolic sense in some verses, the word means “all” in the absolute sense, as the lexicons indicate. The burden of proof is on those who would argue against this meaning. There is nothing in the context, nor elsewhere in Scripture, that suggests that Jesus is using hyperbole here. Indeed, since Jesus says the basis of the Father showing Him “all things” is the Father’s love for the Son, it would dilute the Divine Love if PANTA meant anything other than “all things” absolutely.
Fuente: The Apologists Bible Commentary
Joh 5:20. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth. The relation of the Sons acts to those of the Father has been connected with the figure of seeing: the converse is here presented, as showing. The Father showeth what Himself doeth; the Son seeth. The principle of the relation between the Father and the Son, out of which this communion springs, is love,an eternal and continuous and infinite love, the source of an eternal and continuous and perfect communion. The same English words have occurred before, in chap. Joh 3:35; but the original expression is not the same. We shall have occasion in several passages to notice the two Greek words in question, which, as a rule, must be rendered by the same English word, love. Starting from the use of the words between man and man, we may say that the one () denotes rather the tender emotional affection, that the other () is never dissociated from intellectual preference, esteem, choice. The one term is not necessarily stronger than the other. The latter may be more exalted, as implying the result of intelligence and knowledge; the former may be more expressive, as implying a closer bond and a warmer feeling. The first word is most in place when the two who are united by love stand more nearly on the same level, the second is commonly used when there is disparity. The former occurs thirteen times only in this Gospel; once of the Fathers love towards the Son (here), and once of His consequent love to those who love the Son (Joh 16:27); three times of the love of Jesus towards His disciples, and six times of their love to Him; the other two passages are Joh 12:25 (he that loveth his life) and Joh 15:19 (the world would love its own). It does not occur in Johns Epistles, and twice only in the Apocalypse (Rev 3:19, Rev 22:15). On the other hand, the latter word occurs no fewer than thirty-seven times in Johns Gospel and thirty times in his Epistles. In the Gospel it is used seven times of the love between the Father and the Son; once of the love of God to the world (Joh 3:16), and three times of the Fathers love to those who are Christs; eleven times of the love of Jesus towards His own nine times of their love towards Him, and four times of the mutual love of the disciples. In the remaining passages (Joh 3:19 and Joh 12:43) it denotes preference or choice. The fitness of the employment of the two words is very clear in almost all these instances. The first class is that with which we are now concerned, both words being used to denote the love existing between the Father and the Son. The particular passages will be noticed as they occur, but the verse before us and Joh 3:35 are sufficient to show clearly the general principle ruling this whole class. Here, as the context brings into relief the essential relation between the Son and the Father, that word is chosen which most befits the unity of their Being. In Joh 3:35, again, the context fixes our attention on Him whom God hath sent: not the essence but the work of the Son is the leading thought,not the Word in the beginning with God, but the Only-begotten Son given that the world might be saved: the other word, therefore, is there used.
And he will shew him greater works than these. The word showeth in the first part of the verse includes all time: here the future tense is used, not as pointing to a change in the relation of the Son to the Father, as if the showing and the seeing would in the future grow in completeness and intensity, but only because the eternal purpose of the Father for mankind is fulfilled in time, and because the Saviour is looking at successive stages of His work, as developed in human history.The greater works must not be understood to mean simply greater acts, more wonderful miracles, all that we commonly understand by the miracles of Jesus being rather comprehended under the word these. Further, our Lord does not say greater works than this miracle, but greater works than these: and lastly, to compare one of the Saviours miraculous deeds with another, to divide them into greater and less, is altogether foreign to the spirit of the Gospels. The key to the meaning of the greater works is given by the following verses; they include the raising of the dead, the giving of life, the judgment.
That ye may marvel. The design of these greater works, of this higher and more complete manifestation of Jesus, is that ye may marvel. Ye, as throughout this discourse, is an address to those who opposed Him, who would not come to Him, who refused to believe His words. The meaning of marvel, therefore, does not differ from that which we observed in chap. Joh 3:7 : it is not the wonder of admiration and faith, but the marvelling of astonishment and awe.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
The second argument which our Saviour produces to prove his unity in nature, and equality in operation with the Father, is drawn from that special love which the Father beareth to the Son: which inclines him to communicate all things to him by a divine and ineffable communication.
Learn hence, 1. That God the Father loved Jesus Christ his Son, with an essential, natural, and necessary love, as being the substantial image of himself, and the splendor and brightness of his glory. The Father loveth the Son: that is, with an essential, eternal and ineffable love.
2. That the Father’s love to Christ was communicative; his essence and nature, his wisdom an power for operation, to the Son; The Father sheweth the Son all things that himself doth: namely, by a divine, inconceivable, and unspeakable communication.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Ver. 20. The relation of the Father to the Son: For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth him all things that he himself doeth, and he will show him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
The co-operation of the Son in the divine work rests (for) upon the infinite love of the Father, which conceals nothing from the Son. The term expresses tenderness (to cherish), and suits perfectly the intimacy of the relation here described. It was otherwise in Joh 3:35, where the word , which indicates the love of approbation and, in some sort, of admiration (), was found; because the question there was of the communication of omnipotence. The showing of the Father corresponds to the seeing of the Son (Joh 5:19), and is, at once, its condition and consequence; the condition: for the Father unveils His work to the Son, to the end that He may be able to know it and co-operate in it; the consequence: for it is this constant and faithful co-operation of the Son which causes this revelation incessantly to renew itself.
But the initiation and co-operation of the Son in the Father’s work are subjected to a law of progress, as is suitable to the truly human state of this latter. This is what the end of the verse expresses: And he will show him greater works than these. The expression: whatsoever things, in Joh 5:19, gave a hint already of that gradual extension of the domain of the works which the Father entrusts to the Son. Reussthinks that the question is of two different kinds of works, those of the Father appertaining to the outward domain, and those of the Son to the spiritual domain, and that the term greater refers to the superiority of the second to the first. But the bodily resurrection is also the work of the Son (Joh 5:28-29), and Jesus could not, in any case, say that the Son’s works are greater than the Father’s. The word , in like manner, would suffice to refute this explanation. , than these, evidently refers to the healing of the impotent man and to the miracles of the same sort which Jesus had performed and of which the Jews were then witnesses. This is only the beginning. In proportion as the work of Jesus grows in extent and force, the Father’s work will pass more completely into it; and thus will the saying of Isaiah be realized: The pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. The word will showdeclares that the Father will give Him at once the signal and the power to accomplish these greater and still greater works. Comp. Rev 1:1 : the revelation which the Father gave to Him.
The words which close the verse: to the end that ye may marvel, are carefully weighed. Jesus refrains from saying: to the end that ye may believe. He knows too well to whom He is speaking at this moment. The question here, as Weiss says, is of a surprise of confusion. We might paraphrase thus: And then there will truly be something at which you may be astonished. The Jews opened their eyes widely as they saw an impotent man healed: How will it be when they shall one day, at the word of this same Jesus, see mankind recovering spiritual, and even corporeal life! One cure astonishes them: What will they say of a Pentecost and a resurrection of the dead! This somewhat disdainful manner of speaking of miracles would be strange enough on the part of an evangelist who was in the whole course of his narrative playing the part of an inventor of miracles. , in order that, expresses not only a result (), but a purpose. This astonishment is willed by God; for it is from it that the conversion of Israel will issue at the end of time. In view of the wonders produced by the Gospel among mankind, Israel will finally render to the Son that homage, equal to what it renders to the Father, of which Joh 5:23 speaks.
These two verses are one of the most remarkable passages of the New Testament in the Christological point of view. De Wette finds in the expression, of Himself (Joh 5:19), an exclusive and scarcely clear reference to thehuman side of the person of Jesus; for, after all, if Jesus is the Logos, His will is as divine as that of the Father, and there can be no contrast between the one and the other, as the expression, of Himself, would imply. This defect in logic is found, according to his view, again in the words of Joh 16:13, where this same expression, of Himself, is hypothetically applied to the Holy Spirit. According to Lucke, it is only a popular way of presenting the human appearance of Jesus, excluding the divine element. Reuss (t. II., pp. 438ff.) brings out in this passage heresy upon heresy, if the Logos theory, as it has been presented in the Prologue, is taken as the norm of the Johannean thought. According to him, indeed, God is conceived, in the Prologue, as a purely abstract being, who does not act in space and time except through the intermediation of the Logos, who is perfectly equal to the Father, the essence of God reproduced, so to speak, a second time and by itself. According to our passage, on the contrary, the Father does a work for Himself ( ), which He reveals to the Son, and in which He gives Him a share, which is entirely contradictory. According to this latter view indeed, the Father acts directly in the world without making use of the Logos, and the Son is relatively to the Father in a condition of subordination, which is incompatible with the equality of the two divine persons taught in the Prologue.
The judgment of Lucke and de Wette undoubtedly strikes against the conception of the person of Jesus which is called orthodox, but not that of the New Testament and of John in particular. John does not know this Jesus, now divine, now human, to which the traditional exegesis has recourse. He knows a Logos who, once deprived of the divine state, entered fully into the human state, and, after having been revealed to Himself at the baptism as a divine subject, continued His human development, and only through the ascension recovered the divine state. By His human existence and His earthly activity, He realized in the form of becoming, the same filial relation which He realized in His divine existence in the form of being. This is the reason why all the terms employed by Jesusthe showing of the Father, the seeing of the Son, the expressions cannot and of Himselfapply to the different phases of His divine and human existence, to each one according to its nature and its measure. To understand the of Himself, in our passage and Joh 16:13, it is only necessary to take in earnest, as the Scripture does, the distinction of persons in the divine being; if each one of them has His own life, from which He may draw at will, there is no inconsequence between the passages cited.
As to the judgment of Reuss, the idea, which he finds in the Prologue, of an abstract divinity, purely transcendental and without any possible relation to the world, is not that of John; it is only that of Philo. On the contrary, God is, in the Prologue, a Father full of love both for His Son (Joh 5:18) and for the children whom He Himself begets by communicating to them His own life ( , were begotten of God, Joh 5:13). He can thus act directly in the world and, consequently, associate His Son, made man, in His work on the earth. Joh 5:19-20 are in contradiction to the theory of Philo, but not to the conception of the evangelist. It is exactly the same with regard to the subordination of the Son. The true thought of the Prologue is exactly that of our two verses, 19, 20; the dependence, and free dependence, of the Son ( , Joh 5:1). This conception of the Logos undoubtedly, also, contradicts that of Philo, a fact which only proves one thing: that it is an error to make the evangelist the disciple of that strange philosopher, while he is simply the disciple of Jesus Christ. (Introd., pp. 127ff.)
If we wish to form a lively idea of the relation of the work of Jesus to that of the Father, as it is presented here, the best way is to enter ourselves into a similar relation to the Lord Jesus Christ. We shall then have this experience: that the more the faithful servant heartily participates in the work of his Master, the more also does the latter give him understanding in respect to the totality and the details, and the more does He make him capable of realizing it. The agent grows with the work, as the work grows with the agent. The following are well-known examples of each of the two things: Oberlin, his eyes fixed upon Christ as Christ had His eyes fixed upon the Father, discerning the point which the divine work has reached among the inhabitants of Ban-de-la-Roche and what the continuation of this work demands; John Bost, contemplating so many sufferings unrelieved on the soil of France; Felix Neff, shocked at the sight of the deserted Churches of the High Alps; Wilberforce, feeling the chains of his enslaved brethren weigh upon his heart; Antoine Court, weeping over the ruins of the Reformed Church of France; Zinzendorf, finding himself suddenly in the presence of the persecuted Moravian emigrants who arrive in troops in his own lands…; in all these cases, the faithful workman applies his ear to the heart of his Master, discerns its beating, and then, rising up, acts. Christ’s work, that work which He wishes to do, passes then, in a certain portion of it, into the hands of His servant. Thus it is, no doubt, that Christ gradually entered into possession of the divine work, even till it became His own in its totality (Joh 3:35). And having come to this point He gradually gives His own a part in it, who become the free sharers in His working, and He makes real to them that promise which is not without analogy to the saying which we are explaining: Verily, verily, I say unto you, that he who believeth in me, he also shall do the works which I do; he shall do even greater works than these ( ), because I go to my Father (Joh 14:12).
Jesus has just spoken of works, greater than His present miracles, which He will one day accomplish at the signal of His Father. He now explains what these works are; they are the resurrection and the judgment of mankind, Joh 5:21-29. This difficult passage has been very differently understood. I. Several Fathers, Tertullian, Chrysostom, later Erasmus, Grotius, Bengel, finally in recent times Schott, Kuinoel, Hengstenberg, etc., have applied the whole of the passage (except Joh 5:24) to the resurrection of the dead, in the strict sense, and to the last judgment. II. A diametrically opposite interpretation was held already by the Gnostics, then, among the moderns, by Ammon, Schweizer, B. Crusius,it is that which refers the whole passage, even Joh 5:28-29, to the spiritual resurrection and the moral judgment which the Gospel effects; (see also Reuss, in some sort). III. Finally, a third group of interpreters unite these two views in this sense, that they refer Joh 5:21-27 to the moral action of the Gospel, and Joh 5:28-29 to the resurrection of the dead in the proper sense. These are, Calvin, Lampe, and most of the moderns, Lucke, Tholuck, Meyer, de Wette, etc. IV. By taking account, with greatest care, of the shades of expression, we arrive at the opinion that the true progress of ideas is the following: In a first cycle, the thought of Joh 5:17 has been quite summarily developed (Joh 5:19-20). Then, the works of the Father which the Son is to accomplish are precisely stated in a second cycle (Joh 5:21-23); those of making alive and judging. Finally, in a third cycle (Joh 5:24-29) the thought makes a final advance, which brings it to its end, in the sense that Joh 5:24-27 apply to the resurrection and the spiritual judgment, and Joh 5:27-29 to the final judgment and the resurrection of the dead. This last view is, as it seems to me, nearly that of several modern commentators, such as Luthardt, Weiss and Keil.
Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)
Jesus next clarified how He could do whatever the Father does. He could do so because the Father loves the Son (cf. Joh 3:36). Moreover the Father shows the Son whatever the Father does. Continuous disclosure indicates love. The greater works than "these" (i.e., the healing of a paralytic and commanding him to carry his mat on the Sabbath) include giving life to the dead (Joh 5:21) and pronouncing final judgment (Joh 5:22). Part of the purpose of these greater works was to face His critics with His divine authority so they would consider His claims.