Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 14:19
Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
19. a little while ] Comp. Joh 13:33, Joh 16:16.
but ye see me ] In the Paraclete, ever present with you.
because I live, ye shall live also ] i.e. that higher and eternal life over which death has no power either in Christ or His followers. Christ has this life in Himself (Joh 5:26); His followers derive it from Him (Joh 5:21).
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
A little while – This was the day before his death.
Seeth me no more – No more until the day of judgment. The men of the world would not see him visibly, and they had not the eye of faith to discern him.
But ye see me – Ye shall continue to see me by faith, even when the world cannot. You will continue to see me by the eye of faith as still your gracious Saviour and Friend.
Because I live – Though the Saviour was about to die, yet was he also about to be raised from the dead. He was to continue to live, and though absent from them, yet he would feel the same interest in their welfare as when he was with them on earth. This expression does not refer particularly to his resurrection, but his continuing to live. He had a nature which could not die. As Mediator also he would be raised and continue to live: and he would have both power and inclination to give them also life, to defend them, and bring them with him.
Ye shall live also – This doubtless refers to their future life. And we learn from this:
- That the life of the Christian depends on that of Christ. They are united; and if they were separated, the Christian could neither enjoy spiritual life here nor eternal joy hereafter.
- The fact that Jesus lives is a pledge that all who believe in him shall he saved. He has power over all our spiritual foes, and he can deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and from all temptations and trials.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 19. Because I live] As surely as I shall rise from the dead, so shall ye. My resurrection shall be the proof and pledge of yours. And because I live a life of intercession for you at the right hand of God, ye shall live a life of grace and peace here, and a life of glory hereafter.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The world seeth me now only with fleshly eyes; it will be but a little while, and the men of the world shall be able to see me no more; I shall be crucified, and laid in the grave; and though I shall rise again, yet I shall not be seen of them: (we read of no appearances of him after his resurrection, but to his disciples):
but ye see me, or shall see me; so they did often after his resurrection with their bodily eyes; or it may be understood of a spiritual sight by the eye of faith, or of a sight of experience; as seeing often in Scripture signifieth enjoying.
Because I live, that is, I shall live by my resurrection from the dead, and by my glorious ascension into heaven, you also shall live the life of grace here; and though your bodies must die, because of sin, yet your souls shall upon the death of your bodies live; and in the resurrection, both your souls and bodies shall live, and together be glorified with the: all this grace and mercy shall flow out to you from me as Mediator, and because I live.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
19. world seethbeholdeth.
me no more, but yeseebehold.
meHis bodily presence,being all the sight of Him which “the world” ever had, orwas capable of, it “beheld Him no more” after His departureto the Father; but by the coming of the Spirit, the presence ofChrist was not only continued to His spiritually enlighteneddisciples, but rendered far more efficacious and blissful thanHis bodily presence had been before the Spirit’s coming.
because I livenot”shall live,” only when raised from the dead; for itis His unextinguishable, divine life of which He speaks, in view ofwhich His death and resurrection were but as shadows passingover the sun’s glorious disk. (Compare Luk 24:5;Rev 1:18, “the Living One”).And this grand saying Jesus uttered with death immediately inview. What a brightness does this throw over the next clause, “yeshall live also!” “Knowest thou not,” said LUTHERto the King of Terrors, “that thou didst devour the Lord Christ,but wert obliged to give Him back, and wert devoured of Him? So thoumust leave me undevoured because I abide in Him, and live and sufferfor His name’s sake. Men may hunt me out of the worldthat I carenot forbut I shall not on that account abide in death. I shalllive with my Lord Christ, since I know and believe that Heliveth!” (quoted in STIER).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more,…. The men of the world now see me with their bodily eyes, which is all the sight they have of me; and this they will be deprived of in a very little time; they will see me no more until the time that I shall come in the clouds of heaven to judge the world; and then every eye shall see me:
but ye see me; ye see me now, and shall see me after my resurrection, as they did; for then he appeared alive and conversed with them for forty days; and when he ascended into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God, they saw him by faith crowned with glory and honour; and will see him as he is when he comes a second time to take them to himself in glory.
Because I live, ye shall believe also: Christ lives as God, as man, and as Mediator: as God, he lives the same life his Father does, partaking of the same nature, and possessing the same perfections; so he lived from everlasting, and will live to everlasting; as man, he lived first a private, and then a public life, attended with meanness, reproaches, sorrows, and sufferings; a life which was filled up with acts of devotion and piety to God, and with doing good to the bodies and souls of men; he lived in all obedience to the law of God, and at last endured the penalty of that law, in the room and stead of his people; when his life was taken away for a while, and then taken up by him again; and now, as man, he lives, and lives for evermore. As Mediator, he has his life from the Father, which is dependent upon him, by whom he was set up in an office capacity from everlasting; and as such will live to everlasting, to see the travail of his soul, the fruit of his sufferings, to make intercession for his people, and to rule until all enemies are made his footstool. And his people “live also”, which is to be understood, not of the preservation of his disciples from dying with him, when he died; for then it should rather have been said, “because I die, ye shall live”: nor of the continuance of their natural life in this world; for the saints are not to live always here; nor do they desire it, nor is it proper they should; death is for their advantage; it is a blessing to them. Though these words may be understood of a corporeal life, which they shall live after the resurrection; for though they die, they shall live again, and never die more; they shall not only live and reign with Christ a thousand years, but to all eternity. They also live a spiritual life now; a life of grace and holiness from Christ; a life of faith on him, and sometimes of communion with him, and desire to live to his honour and glory; and shall hereafter live an eternal life of perfection and pleasure, with Father, Son, and Spirit, for evermore. Now between these two lives, the life of Christ, and his people, there is a close connection; the one is dependent on the other, and secured by the other: “because I live, ye shall live also”; the spiritual life of a believer is from Christ, and is maintained by him; the same which is in the head, is in the members; yea, it is not so much they that live, as Christ that lives in them, and therefore their life can never be lost; it is bound up in the bundle of life with Christ, and is hid safe and secure with him in God, and so out of the reach both of men and devils. The corporeal life of the saints after death, in the resurrection morn, springs from, and is secured by the life of Christ: his resurrection from the dead is the pattern and pledge of theirs; he undertook to raise them from the dead, and will do it; as sure as his dead body is raised and lives, so sure shall theirs; their bodies, as well as their souls, are united to Christ; and by virtue of this union, which death does not, and cannot dissolve, they shall be raised and live again. They are in Christ whilst they are dead; and because they are “the dead in Christ”, they shall “rise first”. Their eternal life is in the hands of Christ, and when he, who is the true God, and their eternal life, shall appear, they shall appear with him in glory.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
But ye behold me ( ). Emphatic position of (ye) in contrast to the blind, unseeing world. Cf. John 13:33; John 16:10; John 16:16.
Because I live, ye shall live also ( ). This is our blessed guarantee of immortal, eternal life, the continued living of Jesus. He is the surety of a better covenant (Heb 7:22), the Risen Christ Jesus. He had said it before (6:57).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Ye shall live also [ ] . This may also be rendered, and ye shall live, explaining the former statement, ye behold me. So Rev., in margin. This is better. John is not arguing for the dependence of their life on Christ ‘s, but for fellowship with Christ as the ground of spiritual vision.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1 ) “Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; (heti mikron kai ho kosmos me ouketi theorei) “Yet a little time and the world beholds me no longer.” It can no longer observe, evaluate, or scrutinize me.
2) “But ye see me: (humeis de theoreite me) “Yet you all behold or observe me,” and will again one day, for one day you will come to join me in my Father’s estate, where I am preparing an heir-setting place for you all, Rom 8:17; Rom 8:23.
3) “Because I live, ye shall live also,” (hoti ego zo kai humeis zesete) “Because I live you all will also live,” I live as the fountain of spiritual life, Joh 10:27-29. As believers and as an organic institution, my church, Mat 16:18; Eph 3:21, my house, Mar 13:34-35; 1Ti 3:15; Heb 3:1-6; my bride, Joh 3:28-29; Rev 19:7-9. See also Rev 1:18; Rom 5:10; Rom 8:11; 2Co 4:10-11; Heb 7:25; You will also draw your life from my life, my eternal life, unending in nature and duration, 1Jn 5:13. Paul expressed it, “Christ liveth in me,” Gal 2:20.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
19. Yet a little while. He continues the commendation of special grace, which ought to have been sufficient for alleviating, and even for removing the grief of the disciples. “When I shall have withdrawn,” says he, “from the view of the world: still I shall be present with you.” That we may enjoy this secret beholding of Christ, we must not judge of his presence or his absence according to carnal perception, but we must earnestly employ the eyes of faith for contemplating his power. Thus believers always have Christ present by his Spirit, and behold him, though they be distant from him in body.
Because I live. This statement may be explained in two ways. Either it may be viewed as a confirmation of the former clause, because I live, and you shall live; or, it may be read separately, because I live, you also shall live; and then the meaning will be, that believers will live, because Christ liveth I willingly embrace the former opinion, and yet we may draw from it the other doctrine, that the life of Christ is the cause of our life. He begins by pointing out the cause of the difference, why he shall be seen by his disciples, and not by the world It isn’t because Christ cannot be seen but according to the spiritual life, of which the world is deprived. The world seeth not Christ; this is not wonderful, for the death of blindness is the cause; but as soon as any man begins to live by the Spirit, he is immediately endued with eyes to see Christ. Now, the reason of this is, that our life is closely connected with the life of Christ, and proceeds from it as from its source; for we are dead in ourselves, and the life with which we flatter ourselves is a very bad death. Accordingly, when the question is, how we are to obtain life, our eyes must be directed to Christ, and his life must be conveyed to us by faith, that our consciences may be fully convinced, that, so long as Christ lives, we are free from all danger of destruction; for it is an undoubted truth, that his life would be nothing, when his members were dead.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(19) Yet a little while.Comp. Joh. 13:33; Joh. 16:16.
But ye see mei.e., in the spiritual presence of the Paraclete. The words may indeed have their first fulfilment in the appearances of the forty days (comp. Act. 10:41), but these appearances were themselves steps in the education which was leading the disciples from a trust in the physical to a trust in the spiritual presence. (Comp. Joh. 20:17.) To the world the grave seemed the closing scene. They saw Him no more; they thought of Him as dead. To the believers who had the power to see Him He appeared as living, and in very deed was more truly with them and in them than He had been before.
Because I live, ye shall live also.Better, for I live, and ye shall live. Our Lord speaks of His own life in the present. It is the essential life of which He is Himself the Source, and which is not affected by the physical death through which He is about to pass. They also who believe in Him shall have even here this principle of life, which in them too shall be affected by no change, but shall develop into the fulness of the life hereafter. Because He lives, and because they too shall live, therefore shall they see Him and realise His presence when the world seeth Him no more.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
19. Yet a little while A few brief hours which precede my ascension.
Ye see me With the eye of the spirit ye recognize that Christ is present. Some one has said that if the eye of our faith were as strong as the eye of our body, we should see the angels of God around us. Much better might it be said we should see a present Jesus before us.
Because I live, ye shall live The word live is here to be taken in the very fulness of the term life. In the very garden of Eden the giving of a Redeemer preceded the continuance of the race. Had Christ not been promised and predetermined, Adam would have produced no progeny under the irremovable curse, and sure of an unavoidable eternal ruin. Had not Christ been given, the race would not have been begotten. Hence the atonement underlies our very physical life. Grace underlies nature. Hence because Christ lives we primitively live. But more especially after his ascension, it is because he lives that we live a spiritual life during the dispensation of the Spirit, and shall live a glorified life in the kingdom of glory. Well for us, then, that Christ cannot die, but ever liveth to intercede for us. Because he liveth we shall live also.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Joh 14:19. Yet a little while, A little while indeed, for he was crucified the next day: and he more particularly declares, that he would not appear to the Jewish nation in general after his resurrection, but only to his disciples. He adds, “Because I live, by rising from the dead, ye shall live also,by rising from the dead; and also now by means of those divine influences which you shall derive from me, to cherish the workings of grace in your hearts, and to train you up to a growing meetness for sharing with me in eternal life.” Comp. 2Co 4:10-11.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Joh 14:19 . .] sc . . Comp. Joh 13:33 , Joh 16:16 ; Heb 10:37 ; Hos 1:4 ; Psa 37:10 .
] Corporeally. Comp. also Act 10:41 .
] But you, whilst the world no more beholds me, do behold me , although corporeally I am no more present, through the experience of my spiritual presence; [152] you behold me spiritually , in that you experience my presence and my communion with you, in the communication of myself, and in my working upon you by means of the Paraclete. The terminus a quo of the present tenses, which represent the near future as present, is, indeed, not quite the same in and , since the already begins with the death of Jesus, but the . first after His return to the Father; this distinction, however, disappears before the Johannean view of the death of Jesus as a departure to God.
, . . ] Not: because I live, you also will live (Nonnus, Beza, Godet), but, corresponding to the progress of the discourse (comp. Joh 14:17 ), a statement of the reason of what precedes: for I live, and you shall live . Note the change from the present to the future, and that and cannot without arbitrariness be taken as essentially different in idea, but that manifestly, since it exists without interruption (present), denotes the higher life of Christ independent of death , of Christ, who, by His departure to the Father, becomes a partaker of the heavenly glory . Christ lives , for He is, indeed, Himself the Possessor and bearer of the true (comp. Joh 5:26 ); death, which translates Him into the glory of the Father, by no means breaks off this true and higher life of His (although His life ceases), but is only the medium of the consummation and transfiguration of this His into the everlasting heavenly and (comp. Col 3:3-4 ). Out of this consciousness the Lord here utters the words: . And He adds thereto: : and you shall live, i.e . you shall be partakers (in its temporal development on to its glorious consummation) of the same higher , liable to no death (Joh 11:26 ), under the life-giving (Joh 6:33 ) influence of the Spirit. “Stat enim illud fixum, nullam fore ejus vitam membris mortuis,” Calvin. Thus the life is in both essentially alike , only with this difference, that it is original in Jesus, and with His approaching departure is already at its glorious consummation; but in the case of the disciples, being imparted by Christ in the Holy Spirit, who is the (Rom 8:2 ), it is, in the first instance, to be unfolded within (before the Parousia as the living fellowship with the exalted Christ), in order to become, at the Parousia by means of the resurrection (Rom 8:11 ) and relative transformation (1Co 15:51-52 ), the participation in His . Comp. the idea of the in Paul, Rom 6:8 ; 2Co 7:3 ; 2Ti 2:11 . The moment which assigns the reason ( ) lies simply in this, that the above two-sided is the necessary condition of the promised . If the higher , that is meant, were to be the lot only of Christ, and not also thereafter (through the working of the Spirit) that of the disciples, there could be no mention of a beholding of the Lord on the part of the disciples. The paritas rationis for the mutual relation would be wanting, and thereby the disciples would lose the capacity (the eye, as it were) to see Christ. But thus the living behold the Living One . The reference to the resurrection of Jesus has led to interpretations like that of Grotius (comp. Euth. Zigabenus): you shall see me actually alive (“non spectrum”) and remaining in life amidst the impending dangers; or (so Theophylact, comp. Kuinoel): I shall, as having risen, be alive , and you shall be as newly made alive for joy! or: I rise again , and you shall (at the last day) arise (so Augustine). Again the interpretation of in Weiss ( Lehrbegr . p. 70) of the new life, which arises in the disciples through the reappearance of the Risen One, who is recognised by them (as in the case of Thomas, Joh 20:28 ), is a forced expedient, proceeding from an erroneous assumption, and is not appropriate, moreover, to , Joh 14:20 , which is definite and valid for all disciples, nor to the intimate reciprocal confidence of Joh 14:20-21 ; wherefore Weiss again, adding violence to violence, explains Joh 14:21 of the further unfolding of the new communion begun with the appearances of the Risen One (p. 276). Had the resurrection been spoken of, the simplest explanation would be that of Kaeuffer, p. 136: “quae instat fortunae vicissitudo nec me nec vos poterit pessumdare,” according to which, however, a thought of much too small importance would result, and, besides, the change of tense is overlooked. But if, according to the above, both and must embrace time and eternity, then De Wette has incorrectly limited to the life of faith with its joyous victory over death and the fear of death; on the other side again, Luthardt has erroneously understood it only of the life of transfiguration after the Parousia, because can only denote the glorified life, an assumption, however, which is unsupported, since the expression used is not .
[152] Not: through the being caught away to me at the Parousia (Luthardt). The and the must certainly he contemporaneous . Invisible for the world (comp. Joh 7:33-34 ), Christ is beheld by His own .
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 1688
OUR LIFE DEPENDENT ON THE LIFE OF CHRIST
Joh 14:19. Because I live, ye shall live also.
AMONGST the various sources of consolation which our Lord opened to his Disciples, to support them under the disappointment that would be occasioned by his death, a very principal one seems to have been, that they themselves would be greatly benefited by his departure: for that he would send to them his Spirit, who should more than supply the want of his bodily presence; and that he himself would more effectually advance their eternal interests than he could do if he were to continue upon earth. He assures them, that though dead as to the body, he would still live; and that, because he lived, they should live also.
From this declaration of his we shall make two inquiries;
I.
What connexion has the life of Christ with his peoples life
Those who are not altogether ignorant of Christ are yet more apt to think of him as a dying, than as a risen Saviour; whereas his life is not at all less connected with our salvation than his death.
His life is the ground and confirmation of all our hopes
[What do we most wish to be assured of, in reference to Christ? We wish to know that he was indeed the Son of God, and not a common manthat he was sent of God on purpose to redeem a ruined worldand that what he did and suffered for us has been accepted in our behalf. These are points of infinite importance, and that lie at the foundation of all our hopes. But by the resurrection of Christ they are all clearly and satisfactorily ascertained: By that he was declared to be the Son of God with power [Note: Rom 1:4.]: by that was the sign, which above all others he himself appealed to in proof of his divine mission, fulfilled [Note: Mat 12:38; Mat 12:40.]: and by that is the acceptance of his sacrifice made known, since the release of our Surety is an undeniable evidence that our debt is paid [Note: Rom 4:25.].
Hence the testimony borne by the Apostles to the resurrection of Christ, was considered as a complete and sufficient proof of every thing that they asserted respecting him.]
It is also a pledge and earnest of all our joys
[Do we feel happiness in the thought of our being made partakers of eternal life, and in the prospect of a speedy possession of it? Behold him risen, him ascended, him seated at the right hand of God: in what capacity enjoys he all this exaltation? As a mere individual? No: but as the Head and Representative of all his people: in his resurrection, he is the first-fruits of which there remains a whole harvest to be gathered [Note: 1Co 15:20.]: in his ascension, he is gone as our Forerunner, to prepare a place for us [Note: Heb 6:20. Joh 14:2.]: and even enthroned as he is at the right hand of the Majesty on high, he sits not there alone; for we, though personally on earth, are mystically made at this very hour, to sit with him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus [Note: Eph 2:6.].
What then is his life but a pledge of ours, or rather an earnest? since it not only assures to us a future blessedness, but is itself the very commencement of our bliss?]
But the expression in our text intimates, that the life of Christ is not merely intimately but also inseparably, connected with the life of his people.
Let us proceed therefore to notice,
II.
What security it affords them that they shall live Here let it be considered how our Lord is occupied, and what he has engaged to do for his believing people:
1.
He intercedes for them
[As the high-priest, after offering his sacrifice, went within the vail to sprinkle the blood upon the mercy-seat, and to burn incense before it, so did our Lord ascend to heaven on purpose to complete the work he had begun, and to offer continual intercession for us at the right hand of God. Now we are assured that him the Father heareth always; and consequently the benefits of his intercession cannot but be poured out on all his people. Hence there is peculiar stress laid on this act of his, as ensuring to us the benefits of his death [Note: Heb 7:25. Rom 8:34.]. His death indeed is represented as making the atonement for our sins, and reconciling us to God; but it is his resurrection to a life of glory in heaven, that completes our justification, and perfects our salvation [Note: Rom 4:25; Rom 5:10; Rom 8:34.].]
2.
He works effectually in them
[By his Spirit he yet dwells in all his saints [Note: See ver. 17, 18.]: and he has engaged that his grace shall be sufficient for them, so that the weakest of them all shall be enabled to do all things through his strength communicated to them [Note: Php 4:13.]. It is this which renders them invincible: their life is hid with Christ in God; yea, Christ himself is their life; and therefore, when he shall appear in his glory, they will assuredly appear there with him [Note: Col 3:3-4.].]
3.
He will come at last, and take them to himself
[When they shall have fought the good fight of faith, and gained the victory over all their spiritual enemies, they will not be forgotten of him: he will send his angels to bear up their spirits to the realms of bliss; and in due time he will restore also their bodies to life; that, in a re-embodied state, they may inherit the kingdom prepared for them. This assurance he gave to his Disciples in the preceding context [Note: ver. 3.]; and when, by that event, death shall be swallowed up in victory, then will the promise in our text be finally accomplished; and their life of grace will be completed in a life of glory.]
Behold what encouragement this subject affords to all;
1.
To believe on Christ
[Were Christ unconnected with us in his present state, we might well doubt the expediency of putting our trust in him: but when we are informed that his almighty power is always occupied in forwarding our salvation, we should instantly commit ourselves into his hands, and expect from him all that our necessities can require. Do we, as creatures dead in sin, desire life? or, as persons quickened from the dead, do we desire more life? or, being possessed of life, do we desire an assurance that we shall never lose it? Behold, Jesus, who came that we might have life, and have it more abundantly, meets your case with exactly such a promise as you want [Note: Joh 10:10; Joh 11:25-26.]Let me then put the question to you, Believest thou this? O beg of God that he would enable you so to do: say, Lord, I believe; help thou my unbelief!]
2.
To suffer for him
[Sufferings of some kind you must expect: there is not one of his people but has some cross to bear. You will find too at times that your trials are heavy: but the heavier they are, the more will his power be magnified in you. This thought afforded inexpressible consolation to the Apostle Paul [Note: 2Co 4:8-10.], and made him even take pleasure in his multiplied afflictions [Note: 2Co 12:9-10.]. Your enemies think little respecting Christ as actively engaged in behalf of his people: but in you they shall see his power and grace: and, whilst his death is exhibited in your sufferings, his life shall be manifested in your support [Note: 2Co 4:11.]. Only take the promise in the text, and you need fear nothing.]
3.
To press forward for universal holiness
[You are not called to beat the air, or to engage either in an uncertain or an unproductive contest: you have a living Saviour, that is pledged both to give you the victory, and to reward your conflicts. Will you not then fight? Will you leave a sin unmortified, an enemy unsubdued? Gird you to the combat: put on the whole armour of God: quit yourselves like men: and know assuredly, that your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
19 Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
Ver. 19. But ye see me ] The spiritual man hath “the mind of Christ,” 1Co 2:16 , and those things revealed unto him that natural eye never saw, carnal ear never heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love him; neither prepared only, but imparted to his beforehand, even in this life. For he reserves not all for the life to come, but gives a grape of Canaan in this wilderness, such as the world never tasted of.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
19 21. ] This is explained to consist in His presence among them by the life of His Resurrection, which is theirs; by ( Joh 14:20 ) the witness of the Spirit in their hearts; and ( Joh 14:21 ) their sanctification by the Spirit in love, and the consequent manifestation of Jesus to them.
Luthardt (ii. p. 309 f.) attempts to confine (and this whole passage) to the , in spite of the plain sense of Joh 14:19-20 , relying on the analogy of Rev 22:17 , and saying that on the common interpretation, the Church would have no cause to long for her Lord: and so Aug [198] , Maldon., Hofm., alli [199] . But manifestly the context is against him: and he must thus explain away many other passages (e.g. Mat 18:20 ). The presence of Christ by the Spirit is none the less real , for being incomplete .
[198] Augustine, Bp. of Hippo , 395 430
[199] alli = some cursive mss.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
19. ] The immediate reference of this is to the forty days (see Act 10:41 ) but only as leading on to its wider and deeper reference to the spiritual life.
, not the principle of Life being immanent in Him.
, in all its fulness, including the most blessed sense of , the Life of the Spirit, here and hereafter. See Meyer’s note.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Joh 14:19 . In a short time, , the world would no longer see Him, but His disciples would be conscious of His presence, , present for immediate future. His presence would be manifested in their new life which they would trace to Him, , . This is confirmed by Paul’s “No longer I, but Christ liveth in me”. Gal 2:20 . The grand evidence of Christ’s continued life and presence is the Christian life of the disciple.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
a little while; i.e. about thirty hours. From the moment the Lord was taken down from the cross and entombed, He disappeared from the eyes of the world. Act 10:40, Act 10:41.
no more. Greek. ouk eti.
shall live also = also shall live.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
19-21.] This is explained to consist in His presence among them by the life of His Resurrection, which is theirs; by (Joh 14:20) the witness of the Spirit in their hearts; and (Joh 14:21) their sanctification by the Spirit in love, and the consequent manifestation of Jesus to them.
Luthardt (ii. p. 309 f.) attempts to confine (and this whole passage) to the , in spite of the plain sense of Joh 14:19-20, relying on the analogy of Rev 22:17, and saying that on the common interpretation, the Church would have no cause to long for her Lord: and so Aug[198], Maldon., Hofm., alli[199]. But manifestly the context is against him: and he must thus explain away many other passages (e.g. Mat 18:20). The presence of Christ by the Spirit is none the less real, for being incomplete.
[198] Augustine, Bp. of Hippo, 395-430
[199] alli = some cursive mss.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 14:19. , no longer) Act 10:41, God showed Him openly (after the Resurrection), not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God.- ) ye see Me, and shall see Me, namely, alive. For even the force of the antithesis in , no longer, carries with it the need of supplying the Future [Whereas the world both seeth and shall see Me no more, ye both see and shall see Me].-, because) The cause why they shall see Him.-, I live) Not only I shall live, but I live: Rev 1:18, I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore.-, ye shall live) The future: for the life of believers follows the life of Jesus; and it is not of themselves, but by (of) Him that they live. Comp. ch. Joh 6:57, As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father, so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Joh 14:19
Joh 14:19
Yet a little while,-[Less than twenty-four hours Jesus would be crucified.]
and the world beholdeth me no more;-[None but his disciples saw him after his burial.]
but ye behold me:-[The present use of the future.]
because I live, ye shall live also.-[The mind of Jesus sweeps on in its outlook to the glorious consequences of the resurrection. Not only shall they see him for the few weeks between the resurrection and ascension, but they, too, will conquer death, and they, in their restored and eternal life, will continue to behold him.] In a short time he would be crucified. This was spoken on the day preceding his crucifixion. The world could see him till his burial. Then the world would see him no more. But his disciples would see him after his resurrection and would be with him through eternity. The world did not see Jesus after his resurrection, only his brethren.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
world
kosmos = world-system. Joh 15:18; Joh 15:19; Joh 7:7. (See Scofield “Rev 13:8”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
a little: Joh 7:33, Joh 8:21, Joh 12:35, Joh 13:33, Joh 16:16, Joh 16:22
because: Joh 14:6, Joh 6:56-58, Joh 11:25, Rom 5:10, Rom 8:34, 1Co 15:20, 1Co 15:45, 2Co 4:10-12, Col 3:3, Col 3:4, Heb 7:25, 1Jo 1:1-3
Reciprocal: Lev 14:6 – the living bird 1Sa 25:29 – with the Lord Psa 18:46 – Lord Psa 72:15 – And he Eze 47:9 – shall live Hos 6:2 – we Mat 23:39 – Ye shall not Mat 26:11 – but Luk 13:35 – Ye shall not Luk 20:38 – for all Luk 22:32 – I have Luk 24:15 – Jesus Joh 5:26 – so hath Joh 6:47 – He that Joh 6:57 – even Joh 8:35 – but Joh 10:28 – they Joh 16:19 – A little Joh 20:19 – came Rom 6:8 – we believe Rom 8:10 – but Gal 2:20 – but 2Ti 2:11 – we shall Heb 7:8 – he liveth 1Pe 2:4 – a living Rev 1:18 – that liveth
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
LIFE THROUGH CHRIST
Because I live, ye shall live also.
Joh 14:19
There is only one law of life, and that law uniform, whatever the manifestation. Let us note three of the essentials of life.
I. Life has never been seen.Living matter we have; but the minutest examination failed to give a glimpse of life itself. We detect life by its operations. Because I live, ye shall live also meant a new localisation for new ends, an extension of powers through the existing power of a life triumphant over death.
II. Life is the cause, never the effect of organisation.By baptism the living soul is lifted into higher life, made part of an organism. Matter is lifeless until taken up into union with quickened forms. We who conform to the law of the higher life are in Christ by a unifying process. In the organic life of His Body we find fullness of expression.
III. Life must be reproductive.Non-productive life is practically non-existent. The question of the risen Christ is not Are you saved? but Are you saving? The man who is not saving others has not yet entered into the fullness of Christs life.
Illustration
O soul of man, called to this wonderful existence, so gifted, yet so rigidly bounded; made for such great things, yet turned aside by such poor ones; so promising, yet so transient; the breath of a day between the two eternities, yet rich with power, and thought, and beauty, rich in capacities of grace and goodness, ever unfolding, ever growing; conscious of such needs and such evils, longing for such firm reality and truth, responding to such calls, and then going hence as if never having beenwhere is to be thy part? What wilt thou do with what is given thee, with that great and fearful thing which we call life? Wilt thou rest in the portion of the first Adam, great, lovely as it often is, merely to live, to see, to be glad in the sky above and Gods blessing on the earth, in our home, in our work? It is enough if we had no more. It is enough to be thankful for if our view closed here. But the first man is of the earth earthy, and there is the Second Man, the Lord from Heaven. He only
Holds for us the keys of either home,
Earth and the world to come.
O soul of man, inheritor of the first Adam, new born to the Second, which wilt thou choose?
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
9
See is used in two senses, literal and figurative or spiritual. Jesus was to be slain the next day, and in a few weeks was to leave the earth. After that the world would lose sight of Him literally. But the apostles were to continue seeing him spiritually through the association made possibly by the Spirit. Because I live. This was to be fulfilled for Christ both bodily and spiritually. He was to come forth from the dead to die no more, and also was to live continuously in the church for which he died and in which all of his faithful disciples would live spiritually.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Joh 14:19. Yet a little while, and the world beholdeth me no longer; but ye behold me. The little while here spoken of is that of chap, Joh 13:33, extending from the moment immediately at hand to the resurrection. After that little while the world beholdeth Jesus no more, but His disciples behold Him,the present tense being used in both clauses absolutely, and not as the mere present of time. In the first clause beholdeth can be understood only of physical vision, for in no other way had the world ever beheld Jesus, and it is thus impossible to exclude a reference to the fact that the risen Saviour did not show Himself to the world. In the second clause behold must be so far at least used in the same sense, and the appearance of the risen Jesus must again be thought of. Yet the meaning of the second behold is not thus exhausted, for it obviously includes a vision of the Redeemer not limited by the forty days between the resurrection and the ascension, but stretching onward into the eternal future. The difference of vision, however, does not lie directly in the word itself: it is conditioned by the state in which Jesus is supposed to be, and by the necessities of the case. The Me of the verse is Jesus glorified: Him, because He is glorified, the world unfit for the vision beholdeth no longer. But the disciples, one with Him not only in His humiliation but in His glory, behold Him, first from time to time with the eye of sense, always with the eye of faith and in the power of the Spirit. It need only be further remarked that this intensifying of the meaning of the second behold may be indicated by the order of the original, which gives the place of emphasis to the word in the second clause; and that, by the view now taken, we at once see the connection of the words that follow: only the living can behold the risen Lord, or have the abiding spiritual sight.
Because I live and ye shall live. Not, Because I live ye shall live also,which would divert the thoughts to something entirely foreign to the course of our Lords remarks; but, Because I live glorified, and ye, in this respect wholly different from the world, shall live in the power of Me your risen Lord, therefore shall this intimacy of intercourse, implied in My coming and your beholding, last unbroken and for ever.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Here our Saviour foretells his approaching death, that within a little time the men of the world should see him no more; for though he rose again, the world saw him no more after his death; for we read of no appearance of him after his resurrection to any, but to his disciples only. Indeed his resurrection to any, but to his disciples only. Indeed the hour is coming when the world shall see him again: namely, at the day of judgment, when every eye shall behold him with terror and amazement.
Observe farther, The consolation given to his disciples, Ye shall see me; and because I live, ye shall live also. Because I am raised from the grave, I will quicken your dead bodies in the grave, and ye shall live also: and as I live by my ascension into heaven, so shall you my disciples live a life of grace here, and a life of glory with myself hereafter.
Learn hence, That a believer’s spiritual life is derived from Christ, who, by his spirit, communicates a quickening virtue to all his members; Because he lives, they shall live also. See how Christ binds up their life together with his own! As if he had said, “Whilst there is vital sap in the root, you that are branches in me shall not wither and die.”
Observe lastly, A farther privilege insured to believers after Christ’s ascension, and the spirit’s mission; they should more perfectly understand the essential union betwixt Christ and his members!
At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, &c. The knowledge which the saints now have of the mysterious and mystical union, is but dark and imperfect; but in heaven they shall understand these things clearly; then and there the essential union of Christ and his Father, and the mystical union between Christ and believers, will be more clearly understood, than we are capable to understand them in this our imperfect state.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Verse 19
Ye see me; ye shall see me.–Shall live; shall be preserved and protected.