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Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 12:44

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Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.

44. cried ] Comp. Joh 7:28; Joh 7:37. The expression implies public teaching.

believeth not on me ] His belief does not end there; it must include more. This saying does not occur in the previous discourses; but in Joh 5:36 and Joh 8:19 we have a similar thought. Jesus came as His Father’s ambassador, and an ambassador has no meaning apart from the sovereign who sends him. Not only is it impossible to accept the one without the other, but to accept the representative is to accept not him in his own personality but the prince whom he personates. These words are, therefore, to be taken quite literally.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

44 50. The Judgment of Christ

The Evangelist has just summed up the results of Christ’s ministry (37 43). He now corroborates that estimate by Quoting Christ Himself. But as Joh 12:36 seems to give us the close of the ministry, we are probably to understand that what follows was uttered on some occasion or occasions previous to Joh 12:36. Perhaps it is given us as an epitome of what Christ often taught.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Jesus cried and said – John does not say where or when this was; it is probable, however, that it was a continuation of the discourse recorded in Joh 12:30-36. Jesus saw their unbelief, and proceeded to state the consequence of believing on him, and of rejecting him and his message.

Believeth not on me – That is, not on me alone, or his faith does not terminate on me. Compare Mat 10:20; Mar 9:37. It involves, also, belief in him that sent me. Jesus uniformly represents the union between himself and God as so intimate that there could not be faith in him unless there was also faith in God. He did the same works Joh 5:17, Joh 5:20, Joh 5:36; Joh 10:25, Joh 10:37, and taught the very doctrine which God had commissioned him to do, Joh 8:38; Joh 5:30, Joh 5:20-23.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Verse 44. Jesus cried and said] This is our Lord’s concluding discourse to this wicked people: probably this and the following verses should be understood as a part of the discourse which was left off at the 36th verse. Joh 12:36

Jesus cried – he spoke these words aloud, and showed his earnest desire for their salvation.

Believeth not on me, (only,) but on him that sent me.] Here he asserts again his indivisible unity with the Father: – he who believes on the Son believes on the Father: he who hath seen the Son hath seen the Father: he who honours the Son honours the Father. Though it was for asserting this (his oneness with God) that they were going to crucify him, yet he retracts nothing of what he had spoken, but strongly reasserts it, in the very jaws of death!

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

The words, at first view, seem to contain a contradiction, and denying the same act as to the same person; as if any man could believe, and yet not believe on Christ; but there is nothing less in them. By the same figurative way of speaking God tells the prophet Samuel, 1Sa 8:7, the people had not rejected Samuel, (that is, not Samuel alone), but they had rejected him. So Mar 9:37, Whosoever receiveth me, receiveth not me, ( that is, not me alone), but him that sent me. So 1Th 4:8. Or else thus, He that believeth on me, doth not believe on a mere man, as I appear at present to the world, but he also believeth on God that sent me. The Jews owned one God the Father, and acknowledged him the object of their faith, Joh 14:1, Ye believe in God; but they were blinded as to Christ, appearing only in the form of a man. So that our Saviour again by these words asserts his Divine nature, his oneness and equality with his Father; so as he was also the object of their faith, as well as his Father.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

44-50. Jesus criedin a loudtone, and with peculiar solemnity. (Compare Joh7:37).

and said, He that believethon me, &c.This seems to be a supplementary record of someweighty proclamations, for which there had been found no naturalplace before, and introduced here as a sort of summary and windingup of His whole testimony.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Jesus cried and said,…. Upon this occasion, on account of the prevailing hardness and unbelief of the Jewish nation, and the non-confession of him by those who did believe him to be the Messiah. He cried with a loud voice, that he might be heard, and his audience left inexcusable; it denotes the concern of his mind, the vehemence of his spirit, and that openness and freedom in which he discharged his ministry, by showing the nature, excellency, and usefulness of believing in him, and the dangerous consequences of unbelief:

he that believeth on me, believeth not on me; which is not to be understood simply and absolutely, for this would be a contradiction in terms: they that believe in Christ, do believe in him, and they do right to believe in him; Christ is the object of faith; he is proposed as such in the Gospel; and it is his Father’s will, and his own advice, that his people should believe in him: but then those that truly believe in him, do not believe in him as a mere man, but as God, as the Son of God; and not as separate from, or to the exclusion of his Father: nor do they believe in him as a new, or another God, but as the one God with the Father, and the Spirit; for he and his Father are one: nor do they believe in him “only”; and so the Arabic version reads; but in God the Father also: nor does their faith rest in him, but it proceeds through him, as the Mediator unto God; see 1Pe 1:21. Besides, he is here to be considered in his office capacity, as being sent of God; and he that believes on him as the sent of God, does not so much believe on him, as on the sender of him, as follows:

but on him that sent me; just as whatever honour or dishonour are done to an ambassador, sent by an earthly king to a foreign court, are not so much done to the ambassador that is sent, as to the king that sends him; for what is done to him, is all one as if it was personally done to his prince: so he that despises Christ, despises him that sent him; and he that receives Christ, receives him that sent him; and he that believes on Christ, believes on him that sent him; see Lu 10:16.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

Christ’s Last Discourse with the Jews.

44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. 45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. 46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. 47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. 48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. 49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.

We have here the honour Christ not assumed, but asserted, to himself, in the account he gave of his mission and his errand into the world. Probably this discourse was not at the same time with that before (for them he departed, v. 36), but some time after, when he made another public appearance; and, as this evangelist records it, it was Christ’s farewell sermon to the Jews, and his last public discourse; all that follows was private with his disciples. Now observe how our Lord Jesus delivered this parting word: he cried and said. Doth not wisdom cry (Prov. viii. 1), cry without? Prov. i. 20. The raising of his voice and crying intimate, 1. His boldness in speaking. Though they had not courage openly to profess faith in his doctrine, he had courage openly to publish it; if they were ashamed of it, he was not, but set his face as a flint, Isa. l. 7. 2. His earnestness in speaking. He cried as one that was serious and importunate, and in good earnest in what he said, and was willing to impart to them, not only the gospel of God, but even his own soul. 3. It denotes his desire that all might take notice of it. This being the last time of the publication of his gospel by himself in person, he makes proclamation, “Whoever will hear me, let them come now.” Now what is the conclusion of the whole matter, this closing summary of all Christ’s discourses? It is much like that of Moses (Deut. xxx. 15): See, I have set before you life and death. So Christ here takes leave of the temple, with a solemn declaration of three things:–

I. The privileges and dignities of those that believe; this gives great encouragement to us to believe in Christ and to profess that faith. It is a thing of such a nature that we need not be shy either of doing it or of owning it; for,

1. By believing in Christ we are brought into an honourable acquaintance with God (Joh 12:44; Joh 12:45): He that believes on me, and so sees me, believes on him that sent me, and so sees him. He that believes on Christ, (1.) He does not believe in a mere man, such a one as he seemed to be, and was generally taken to be, but he believes in one that is the Son of God and equal in power and glory with the Father. Or rather, (2.) His faith does not terminate in Christ, but through him it is carried out to the Father, that sent him, to whom, as our end, we come by Christ as our way. The doctrine of Christ is believed and received as the truth of God. The rest of a believing soul is in God through Christ as Mediator; for its resignation to Christ is in order to being presented to God. Christianity is made up, not of philosophy nor politics, but pure divinity. This is illustrated, v. 45. He that sees me (which is the same with believing in him, for faith is the eye of the soul) sees him that sent me; in getting an acquaintance with Christ, we come to the knowledge of God. For, [1.] God makes himself known in the face of Christ (2 Cor. iv. 6), who is the express image of his person, Heb. i. 3. [2.] All that have a believing sight of Christ are led by him to the knowledge of God, whom Christ has revealed to us by his word and Spirit. Christ, as God, was the image of his Father’s person; but Christ, as Mediator, was his Father’s representative in his relation to man, the divine light, law, and love, being communicated to us in and through him; so that in seeing him (that is, in eying him as our Saviour, Prince, and Lord, in the right of redemption), we see and eye the Father as our owner, ruler, and benefactor, in the right of creation: for God is pleased to deal with fallen man by proxy.

2. We are hereby brought into a comfortable enjoyment of ourselves (v. 46): I am come a light into the world, that whoever believes in me, Jew or Gentile, should not abide in darkness. Observe, (1.) The character of Christ: I am come a light into the world, to be a light to it. This implies that he had a being, and a being as light, before he came into the world, as the sun is before it rises; the prophets and apostles were made lights to the world, but it was Christ only that came a light into this world, having before been a glorious light in the upper world, ch. iii. 19. (2.) The comfort of Christians: They do not abide in darkness. [1.] They do not continue in that dark condition in which they were by nature; they are light in the Lord. They are without any true comfort, or joy, or hope, but do not continue in that condition; light is sown for them. [2.] Whatever darkness of affliction, disquietment, or fear, they may afterwards be in, provision is made that they may not long abide in it. [3.] They are delivered from that darkness which is perpetual, and which abideth for ever, that utter darkness where there is not the least gleam of light nor hope of it.

II. The peril and danger of those that believe not, which gives fair warning to take heed of persisting in unbelief (Joh 12:47; Joh 12:48): “If any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not, not I only, or not now, lest I should be looked upon as unfair in being judge in my own cause; yet let not infidelity think therefore to go unpunished, though I judge him not, there is one that judgeth him.” So that we have here the doom of unbelief. Observe,

1. Who they are whose unbelief is here condemned: those who hear Christ’s words and yet believe them not. Those shall not be condemned for their infidelity that never had, nor could have, the gospel; every man shall be judged according to the dispensation of light he was under: Those that have sinned without law shall be judged without law. But those that have heard, or might have heard, and would not, lie open to this doom.

2. What is the constructive malignity of their unbelief: not receiving Christ’s word; it is interpreted (v. 48) a rejecting of Christ, ho atheton eme. It denotes a rejection with scorn and contempt. Where the banner of the gospel is displayed, no neutrality is admitted; every man is either a subject or an enemy.

3. The wonderful patience and forbearance of our Lord Jesus, exercised towards those who slighted him when he was come here upon earth: I judge him not, not now. Note, Christ was not quick or hasty to take advantage against those who refused the first offers of his grace, but continued waiting to be gracious. He did not strike those dumb or dead who contradicted him, never made intercession against Israel, as Elias did; though he had authority to judge, he suspended the execution of it, because he had work of another nature to do first, and that was to save the world. (1.) To save effectually those that were given him before he came to judge the degenerate body of mankind. (2.) To offer salvation to all the world, and thus far to save them that it is their own fault if they be not saved. He was to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Now the executing of the power of a judge was not congruous with that undertaking, Acts viii. 33. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away, it was suspended for a time.

4. The certain and unavoidable judgment of unbelievers at the great day, the day of the revelation of the righteous judgment of God: unbelief will certainly be a damning sin. Some think when Christ saith, I judge no man, he means that they are condemned already. There needs no process, they are self-judged; no execution, they are self-ruined; judgment goes against them of course, Heb. ii. 3. Christ needs not appear against them as their accuser, they are miserable if he do not appear for them as their advocate; however, he tells them plainly when and where they will be reckoned with. (1.) There is one that judgeth them. Nothing is more dreadful than abused patience, and grace trampled on; though for awhile mercy rejoiceth against judgment, yet there will be judgment without mercy. (2.) Their final judgment is reserved to the last day; to that day of judgment Christ here binds over all unbelievers, to answer then for all the contempts they have put upon him. Divine justice has appointed a day, and adjourns the sentence to that day, as Matt. xxvi. 64. (3.) The word of Christ will judge them then: The words that I have spoken, how light soever you have made of them, the same shall judge the unbeliever in the last day; as the apostles, the preachers of Christ’s word, are said to judge, Luke xxii. 30. Christ’s words will judge unbelievers two ways:– [1.] As the evidence of their crime, they will convict them. Every word Christ spoke, every sermon, every argument, every kind offer, will be produced as a testimony against those who slighted all he said. [2.] As the rule of their doom, they will condemn them; they shall be judged according to the tenour of that covenant which Christ procured and published. That word of Christ, He that believes not shall be damned, will judge all unbelievers to eternal ruin; and there are many such like words.

III. A solemn declaration of the authority Christ had to demand our faith, and require us to receive his doctrine upon pain of damnation, Joh 12:49; Joh 12:50, where observe,

1. The commission which our Lord Jesus received from the Father to deliver his doctrine to the world (v. 49): I have not spoken myself, as a mere man, much less as a common man; but the Father gave me a commandment what I should say. This is the same with what he said ch. vii. 16. My doctrine is, (1.) Not mine, for I have not spoken of myself. Christ, as Son of man, did not speak that which was of human contrivance or composure; as Son of God, he did not act separately, or by himself alone, but what he said was the result of the counsels of peace; as Mediator, his coming into the world was voluntary, and with his full consent, but not arbitrary, and of his own head. But, (2.) It was his that sent him. God the Father gave him, [1.] His commission. God sent him as his agent and plenipotentiary, to concert matters between him and man, to set a treaty of peace on foot, and to settle the articles. [2.] His instructions, here called a commandment, for they were like those given to an ambassador, directing him not only what he may say, but what he must say. The messenger of the covenant was entrusted with an errand which he must deliver. Note, Our Lord Jesus learned obedience himself, before he taught it to us, though he was a Son. The Lord God commanded the first Adam, and he by his disobedience ruined us; he commanded the second Adam, and he by his obedience saved us. God commanded him what he should say and what he should speak, two words signifying the same thing, to denote that every word was divine. The Old-Testament prophets sometimes spoke of themselves; but Christ spoke by the Spirit at all times. Some make this distinction: He was directed what he should say in his set sermons, and what he should speak in his familiar discourses. Others this: He was directed what he should say in his preaching now, and what he should speak in his judging at the last day; for he had commission and instruction for both.

2. The scope, design, and tendency of this commission: I know that his commandment is life everlasting, v. 50. The commission given to Christ had a reference to the everlasting state of the children of men, and was in order to their everlasting life and happiness in that state: the instructions given to Christ as a prophet were to reveal eternal life (1 John v. 11); the power, given to Christ as a king was to give eternal life, ch. xvii. 2. Thus the command given him was life everlasting. This Christ says he knew: “I know it is so,” which intimates how cheerfully and with what assurance Christ pursued his undertaking, knowing very well that he went upon a good errand, and that which would bring forth fruit unto life eternal. It intimates likewise how justly those will perish who reject Christ and his word. Those who disobey Christ despise everlasting life, and renounce it; so that not only Christ’s words will judge them, but even their own; so shall their doom be, themselves have decided it; and who can except against it?

3. Christ’s exact observance of the commission and instructions given him, and his steady acting in pursuance of them: Whatsoever I speak, it is as the Father said unto me. Christ was intimately acquainted with the counsels of God, and was faithful in discovering so much of them to the children of men as it was agreed should be discovered, and kept back nothing that was profitable. As the faithful witness delivers souls, so did he, and spoke the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Note, (1.) This is a great encouragement to faith; the sayings of Christ, rightly understood, are what we may venture our souls upon. (2.) It is a great example of obedience. Christ said as he was bidden, and so must we, communicated what the Father had said to him, and so must we. See Acts iv. 20. In the midst of all the respect paid to him, this is the honour he values himself upon, that what the Father had said to him that he spoke, and in the manner as he was directed so he spoke. This was his glory, that, as a Son, he was faithful to him that appointed him; and, by an unfeigned belief of every word of Christ, and an entire subjection of soul to it, we must give him the glory due to his name.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

Cried and said ( ). First aorist active indicative of , to cry aloud, and second aorist active of defective verb , to say. This is probably a summary of what Jesus had already said as in verse 36 John closes the public ministry of Jesus without the Synoptic account of the last day in the temple on our Tuesday (Mark 11:27; Matt 21:23; Luke 20:1-21).

Not on me, but on him ( , ). “Not on me only, but also on,” another example of exaggerated contrast like that in verse 30. The idea of Jesus here is a frequent one (believing on Jesus whom the Father has sent) as in John 3:17; John 5:23; John 5:30; John 5:43; John 7:16; John 8:42; John 13:20; John 14:1; Matt 10:40; Luke 9:48.

Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament

Cried [] . This is not meant to relate a reappearance of Jesus in public. The close of His public ministry is noted at ver. 36. It is in continuation of the Evangelist ‘s own remarks, and introduces a summary of Jesus ‘ past teaching to the Jews.

Believeth – on Him that sent Me [ – ] . This is the first and almost the only place in the Gospel where the words believe on are used with reference to the Father. This rendering in Joh 5:24 is an error. See Joh 14:1. The phrase is constantly associated with our Lord. At the same time it is to be noted that it contemplates the Father as the source of the special revelation of Christ, and therefore is not absolutely an exception to the habitual usage. The same is true of Joh 14:1.

Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament

1 ) “Jesus cried and said,” (iesous de ekraksen kai eipen) “Then Jesus cried out and said,” with a loud voice, with vehement oratory, addressed to all who could possibly hear His physical crying appeal, an unusual form of address by Him, Mat 12:19, reaching out His hand to help, Rom 10:21; Isa 65:2.

2) “He that believeth on me,” (ho pisteuon eis eme) ”The one who believes in me;- This was His last cry to the world, as a prophet, with loud emotional emphasis, as the Savior, the Messiah, the Son of God, Joh 1:12; Joh 13:14-18; Joh 13:36; Joh 8:21-24.

3) “Believeth not on me,” (ou pisteuei eis eme) “He believes not only in me,” alone, in isolation from Him who sent me, Joh 3:17-18; Rom 1:16; yet, an excessive craving for the praise of men leads to many acts against what they believe to be right, and against their own conscience,

4) “But on him that sent me.” (alla eis ton pempsanta me) “But also in the one who has sent me,” Mar 9:37; Joh 5:24; Gal 4:4-5; Joh 17:4-5.

Summarily, Jesus affirmed that as an ambassador for the Father to believe on and follow Him was to do the same to His Father, as well as to reject Him was to reject the Father, Joh 12:23; Joh 12:30; Joh 12:43; Joh 7:16; Joh 8:42.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

44. And Jesus cried. The object of Christ, in this statement, is to encourage his followers to a proper and unshaken steadfastness of faith; but it contains also an implied reproof, by which he intended to correct that perverse fear. The cry is expressive of vehemence; for it is not a simple doctrine, but an exhortation intended to excite them more powerfully. The statement amounts to this, that faith in Christ does not rely on any mortal man, but on God; for it finds in Christ nothing but what is divine, or rather, it beholds God in his face. Hence he infers, that it is foolish and unreasonable for faith to be wavering or doubtful; for it is impossible to offer a greater insult to God, than not to rely on his truth. Who is it then that has duly profited by the Gospel? It is he who, relying or this confidence, that he does not believe men but God, quietly and steadily contends against all the machinations of Satan. If, then, we would render to God the honor due to him, we must learn to remain firm in faith, not only though the world were shaken, but even though Satan should disturb and overturn all that is under heaven.

He that believeth on me believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. Believers are said not to believe on Christ, when they do not fix their whole attention on his human countenance. Comparing himself with the Father, he bids us look at the power of God; for the weakness of the flesh has no firmness in

itself. When we shall, afterwards, find him exhorting the disciples to believe on him, it will be in a different sense; for, in that passage, God is not contrasted with man, but Christ is brought forward with all his gifts and graces (33) which ought to be sufficient for upholding our faith.

(33) “ Avec toutes ses graces et dons.”

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

THE IMPERATIVE WORDS

Text 12:44-50

And Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.

And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him that sent me.

I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me may not abide in the darkness.

And if any man hear my sayings, and keep them not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him; the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day.

For I spake not from myself; but the Father that sent me, he hath given me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

And I know that his commandment is life eternal: the things therefore which I speak, even as the Father hath said unto me, so I speak.

Queries

Why is Jesus repeating in Joh. 12:44-46 what He has said so many times before?

How shall we reconcile Joh. 12:47-48 with Joh. 9:39?

What is the commandment which the Father had given to Jesus to speak?

Paraphrase

And Jesus cried aloud and said, Every man who believes in me, is in reality believing in Him who sent me; and every man who beholds my words and works and nature is beholding Him who sent me. I have come into the world as the Light and whoever continues to believe in me will not abide in the darkness of ignorance and sin, Yet, if anyone hear my teachings and does not keep them, I do not judge him now, for I have not come now to judge the world but to save the world. But every man who rejects me and will not accept my teachings certainly will be judgedand the very words that I have spoken will be his judge at the last day when I shall come again. For I have not spoken on my own authority: the Father sent me and He has given me a commandment and told me what I should teach and speak. And I know that His commandment is the only way to eternal life. Therefore, the doctrines which I speak are exactly the commandments which the Father has given me.

Summary

This cry from the heart of Jesus is a last public appeal for men to believe in Him and obey His teachings before the judgment comes, It is almost a summary of His whole public teaching.

Comment

It seems most probable that this cry of Jesus is directly related to the terrible unbelief just manifested by the Jews. It also is a fitting climax to His public ministry. What Jesus says in these last few verses are a concise summary to all that He taught publicly: (a) His equality with the Father; (b) His coming into the world to be the Light of the world; (c) His primary purpose in the first advent was to save the world; (d) rejection of His teaching brings eventual judgment; (e) His message was given to Him by the Father.

For comments on Joh. 12:44 see our comments on Joh. 7:16. For parallel teaching on these verses see our comments on Joh. 5:1-47; Joh. 7:1-53; Joh. 8:1-59. For comments on Joh. 12:47, see our comments on Joh. 9:39. There is no contradiction here. Jesus did not come into the world the first time to judge the world, but to save the world. However, the mere fact that He came, inevitably involves judgment. Every man must answer the question, What think ye of Christ? Every man shows what he is by his attitude toward Jesus and, therefore, judges himself. Jesus is Gods touchstone of judgment. By a mans attitude to Jesus a man himself stands revealed for what he truthfully isby his reaction to Jesus and His teaching, man passes judgment on himself.

But whoever rejects the person of Christ and will not obey His teachings will be judged by the teachings of Christ on the last day. The word that Christ has preached and that which He inspired the apostles to teach (His atoning death, His oneness with the Father, that He is the only way of salvation), will be that standard by which the world will be judged in the last day (cf. Rom. 2:16; 2Th. 1:8-9).

That which Jesus taught was exactly the scheme of redemption which God the Father had planned before the foundation of the world. The Son became the Great Apostle (One sent) of the commandment which was eternal life. But what is that commandment? And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ . . . (1Jn. 3:23). So in this one great commandment is a summary of the whole public ministry of Jesus.

Thus the self-revelation of Christ to the Jews has now been concluded. The remainder of the gospel of John records Christs revelation to His disciples in a special way. R. C. Foster summarizes in this manner:
I.

The Self-revelation of Christ to the World, Joh. 1:19Joh. 12:50

The Proclamation, Joh. 1:19Joh. 4:54

The Conflict, Joh. 5:1Joh. 12:50

II.

The Self-revelation of Christ to the Disciples, Joh. 13:1Joh. 21:23

The Last Ministry of Love, ch. 1317

The Victory Through Death and Resurrection, ch. 1820

Epilogue, 21

We especially like the comments of Barnes here, It is such a close as all his ministers should desire to makea solemn, deliberate, firm exhibition of the truth of God, under a belief that on it was depending the eternal salvation of his hearers, and uttering without fear the solemn message of the Most High to a lost world.

Quiz

What apparently made Jesus cry out this closing discourse?

Make a list of the things which summarize the ministry of Jesus in these verses.

How did Jesus coming judge men?

What will the standard of judgment be for the world in the last day?

What is the great commandment which the Father gave to the Son?

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(44) The last few verses (Joh. 12:37-43) have given us the thoughts of St. John as he looked back on the unbelief of Judaism. He had given our Lords closing word in Joh. 12:36, and there stated that He hid Himself from them. He now gives other words of our Lord condemning the unbelief of which he had been speaking, and of which the probable explanation is that they are a summary of words previously uttered by our Lord, but grouped together here as specially bearing upon the subject of which he is writing. For the remaining verses of this chapter, the Notes will therefore consist chiefly of reference to earlier passages where the same words have already occurred.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

(44) Jesus cried and said.Comp. Notes on Joh. 7:28; Joh. 7:37. This forbids our understanding these words of any private discourse addressed to the disciples. The phrase implies public teaching addressed to the multitude, and it may be inferred that there was some such teaching after Joh. 12:36.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

44. Believeth not on me Not on me simply as man, but as the incarnation of Jehovah, of the Jehovah seen in vision by Isaiah.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

‘And Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in me believes not (only) in me but in him who sent me. And he who closely observes me sees him who sent me’.

This then was the essence of Jesus’ proclamation. He was the One sent from God, and in Whom God could be seen. To believe in Jesus was to believe in the Father. To observe Jesus closely was to see the Father (and as Joh 14:7-9 evidences this meant literally). For He revealed the glory of God. And that included the fact that He and the Father are essentially One. (See Joh 7:16; Joh 8:19; Joh 8:42; Joh 10:30; Joh 10:38; Joh 13:20; Joh 14:7-9)

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

A Final Summary of His Teaching ( Joh 12:44-50 ).

John is now concerned that the last that we hear of Jesus before the hours leading up to His crucifixion will be the essence of His message, a message that has been constantly repeated. It is for this that He will be put to death, and John wants it to be quite clear.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

Joh 12:44. Jesus cried, &c. To strengthen the faith of those who believed on him, and to inspire them with courage to confess him, (see Joh 12:42.) our Lord cried and said in the temple, “Be it known unto you all, that in these extraordinary steps which I take for the reformation of abuses and the vindication of my Father’s house, I act by his immediateauthority; and he that cordially believes in me, believeth not in me alone, but in him that sent me, and thereby honours the Father himself. And he that sees me, and regards me with a lively faith, does also in effect see him that sent me, as the perfections of the Father are displayed in me; whereas, he that shuts his eyes against me, excludes the only means of being brought to the true knowledge of him.” See the account given by St. Mark, Mar 11:15-17 of which the present discourse of our Lord was the consequence.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Joh 12:44-45 . The closing observations on Jewish unbelief, Joh 12:37-43 , are ended. Over against this unbelief, together with that faith which stood in fear of men, Joh 12:42-43 , John now gives further, Joh 12:44-50 , an energetic summing up , a condensed summary of that which Jesus has hitherto clearly and openly preached concerning His personal dignity and the divinity of His teaching, in condemnation of such conduct (“ Jesus, on the other hand, cried and said ,” etc.), whereby the reprehensible nature of that unbelief and half belief comes clearly into view. So substantially Bengel, Michaelis, Morus, Kuinoel, Lcke, Tholuck, Olshausen, Maier, Schweizer, B. Crusius, Reuss, Baur, [120] Lange, Brckner, Weizscker, [121] Ebrard, Baeumlein, Ewald, Godet. Joh 12:36 is decisive for the correctness of this interpretation, according to which Jesus has departed from the public scene of action without any announcement of His reappearance; and it is confirmed partly by the nature of the following discourse, which contains mere echoes of earlier utterances; partly by the fact that throughout the whole discourse there are no addressed persons present; partly by the aorists, , Joh 12:48-49 , pointing to the concluded past. This is not in opposition to (against Kling, De Wette, Hengstenberg; also Strauss in the interest of the non-originality of the Johannean discourses), since these words (comp. Joh 7:28 ; Joh 7:37 , Joh 1:15 ) do not of themselves more closely define the point of time which is intended. Hence we are neither to assume, with De Wette, that with John the recollection of the discourses of Jesus shaped itself “under his hand” into a discourse, genuine indeed, but never delivered in such language (what unconsciousness and passivity he is thereby charged with! and see, in opposition, Brckner); nor are we to say, with Chrysostom and all the older commentators, also Kling and Hengstenberg, that Jesus here for once did publicly so speak ( , . , Euth. Zigabenus), in accordance with which several lay hold of the explanation, in contradiction with the text, that He spoke what follows in ipso discessu , Joh 12:36 (Lampe). But when Luthardt (following Besser, in the Zeitschr. f. Luth. Theol . 1852, p. 617 ff.) assumes that Christ spoke these words in the presence of the disciples, and with reference to the Jews, there stands in opposition to this not only the fact, generally, that John indicates nothing of the kind, but also that is not appropriate to the circle of disciples, but to a scene of publicity. Crying aloud He exclaimed , whereby all His hearers were made sensible enough of the importance of the address, and the excuse of ignorance was cut off from them.

. , . . .] A saying. which John has not in the previous discourses. Comp., however, as to the thing, Joh 5:36 ff., Joh 7:29 , Joh 8:19 ; Joh 8:42 , Joh 10:38 .

] simply negativing. The object of faith is not the personality of Jesus in itself, that human appearance which was set forth in Him, as if He had come in His own name (Joh 5:43 ), but God , so far as the latter reveals Himself in Him as in His ambassador, by means of His words and deeds. Comp. Joh 7:16 ; Mar 9:37 . Similarly: He who beholds me , etc., Joh 12:45 . Comp. Joh 1:14 , Joh 14:9 . Yet in this connection the negation ( ) is not expressed, although it might have been expressed; but what had to be affirmed was, that the beholding of Christ was at the same time the beholding of His Sender. In His working and administration, the believing eye beholds that of the Sender; in the of the Son , that of the Father , Joh 1:14 ; Heb 1:3 .

[120] Baur, however, finds in this recapitulatory discourse only a new proof, that with John historical narration is a mere form of his method of representation. Comp. also Hilgenfeld.

[121] Yet the ideas (against Weizscker, in the Jahrb. f. Deutsche Theol. 1857, p. 167 f.) contained in this speech are not different from those of the prologue. The form is different, but not the matter; and the prologue contains more .

Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary

44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.

Ver. 44. Jesus cried, &c. ] As being now to cry his last to them, and is therefore so earnest in his contestation. This was the Conclamatum est proclaimed to this perverse people, his farewell sermon, &c.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

44 50. ] Proof of the guilt of their unbelief, from the words of Jesus Himself . It was by the older Commentators generally thought that these verses formed part of some other discourse delivered at this period. But this is improbable, from no occasion being specified, from Joh 12:36 , and from the form and contents of the passage, and its reference to the foregoing remarks of the Evangelist. I take it with almost all modern Commentators to be a continuation of those remarks, substantiating them by the testimony of the Lord Himself . The words are taken mostly, but not altogether, from discourses already given in this Gospel.

Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament

44, 45. ] . . . not pluperf. (nor ever), but indefinite, as , ., and . above.

. is used of open public teaching, see reff.

On the close connexion with the Father, see ch. Joh 5:24 ; Joh 5:38 ; Joh 8:19 ; Joh 8:42 ; Joh 14:10 . The words are in logical sequence to Joh 12:41 , in which the Evangelist has said that the glory of Jehovah and HIS glory were the same .

Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament

Joh 12:44-50 . A summary of the teaching of Jesus regarding the nature and consequences of faith and unbelief .

Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson

Joh 12:44 . , “but Jesus cried aloud”. suggests that this summary is intended to reflect light on the unbelief and the imperfect faith which have just been mentioned. would of itself lead us to suppose that Jesus made the following statement at some particular time, but as Joh 12:36 has informed us, He had already withdrawn from public teaching. It is therefore natural to suppose that we have here the evangelist’s reminiscences of what Jesus had publicly uttered at a previous time. . This sums up the constant teaching of Jesus that He appeared solely as the ambassador of the Father (see Joh 5:23 ; Joh 5:30 ; Joh 5:43 , Joh 7:16 , Joh 8:42 ); and that therefore to believe on Him was to believe on the Father.

Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Joh 12:44-50

44And Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me. 45He who sees Me sees the One who sent Me. 46I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness. 47If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. 48He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day. 49For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. 50I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me.

Joh 12:44 “He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me” The goal of faith is ultimately in the Father (cf. 1Co 15:25-27). This is a recurrent theme (cf. Mat 10:40; Joh 5:24). To know the Son is to know the Father (cf. 1Jn 5:10-12).

Joh 12:45 What is God like? To see Jesus is to see God (cf. Joh 14:7-10)!

Joh 12:46 The world is in darkness since Genesis 3 (cf. Gen 6:5; Gen 6:11-12; Gen 8:21; Psa 14:3; Isa 53:6; Rom 3:9-23).

Joh 12:47 “If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them” This is a third class conditional sentence which speaks of potential action. Continuing obedience is a sign in our continuing personal relationship by faith! Assurance (see Special Topic at 1Jn 5:13) is based on a changed and changing life of obedience and perseverance (see Special Topic at Joh 8:31, cf. the books of James and 1 John).

Joh 12:47-48 “for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world” Jesus came primarily to redeem the world, but the very fact of His coming forces humans to decide. If they reject Him, they judge themselves (see Special Topic at Joh 8:31, cf. Joh 3:17-21).

Joh 12:49-50 Jesus spoke in God’s authority, not His own.

Joh 12:50

NASB, NKJV”His commandment is eternal life”

NRSV, TEV,

NET”his command brings eternal life”

NJB”his commands mean eternal life”

REB”his commands are eternal life”

NIV”his command leads to eternal life”

Net (footnote)”his commandment results in eternal life”

The first option is the literal Greek text. The others are trying to interpret its meaning.

The NASB has Joh 6:68 as a parallel passage, while Michael Magill’s NT TransLine has Joh 17:8. The Jerome Biblical Commentary (p. 451) has Joh 10:18 as the parallel. Obviously the phrase is ambiguous.

In John there is a fluctuation between the singular and PLURAL of “commandment,” with no exegetical significance.

SPECIAL TOPIC: USE OF “COMMANDMENT” IN JOHN’S WRITINGS

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

He that believeth, &c. Faith in the Lord does not rest in Him, but passes on to recognize that He is the manifestation of the Father. Compare Joh 1:14, Joh 1:18; Joh 3:33.

sent. Greek. pempo. App-174.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

44-50.] Proof of the guilt of their unbelief, from the words of Jesus Himself. It was by the older Commentators generally thought that these verses formed part of some other discourse delivered at this period. But this is improbable, from no occasion being specified,-from Joh 12:36,-and from the form and contents of the passage, and its reference to the foregoing remarks of the Evangelist. I take it-with almost all modern Commentators-to be a continuation of those remarks, substantiating them by the testimony of the Lord Himself. The words are taken mostly, but not altogether, from discourses already given in this Gospel.

Fuente: The Greek Testament

Joh 12:44. , Jesus) This is the epilogue and recapitulation, given in the Gospel of John, of the public discourses of Christ. On this account He says in Joh 12:48-49, I have spoken, as of a thing past.-, He cried) eagerly desiring the salvation of men. [The words from Joh 12:44-50, He that believeth on Me, etc., He spake in the very act of departure (Joh 12:36, departed), when He was now by this time removed from the men by a considerable interval: wherefore He is said to have cried, no doubt in order that those very persons, with whom He had spoken, might hear, not excluding the rest, who were then standing in the temple. John mentioned His hiding Himself previously (though really subsequent to Joh 12:44-50), Joh 12:36, inasmuch as referring to the words, Yet a little while, etc, Joh 12:35-36, While ye have light, believe in the light.-Harm., p. 450.]- , he does not believe [merely] on Me) His belief is not directed to Me alone: 1Pe 1:21, Who by Him do believe in God, that raised Him up from the dead, and gave Him glory, that your faith and hope might be in God. Christ refers and delegates all things to the Father.- , but on) Faith in the Son is also at the same time faith in the Father, because the Father sent the Son, and because the Son and the Father are one; with which comp. ver. foll., He that seeth Me, seeth Him that sent Me; ch. Joh 14:9, etc., Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me, hath seen the Father, etc.

Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament

Joh 12:44

And Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.-He does not believe in Jesus as the author and founder of the good that he did and taught, but in God who sent him and gave him all power and whose will he came to do.

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.

There are some very important truths brought before us in these few verses. They give the conclusion of our Lords presentation of Himself to the world. We have already pointed out that the book really divides into two parts, the first twelve chapters giving the presentation of the Lord Jesus Christ to the world, and in this part He is set forth in every possible way that unsaved men could apprehend Him.

Then beginning with the first verse of chapter 13 and going on to the end of the book, we have His presentation to the hearts of His own beloved people. In these first twelve chapters we have, He came unto his own, but we read that his own received him not (1:11). As we open chapter 13 we read, Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. In the first instance the term His own applies to all those whom He Himself had brought into the world by His power. He came unto his own-but his own received him not. But in the thirteenth chapter, His own refers to a distinct company taken out of the world who had received Him as Savior and owned Him as Lord.

We have seen Him as the Eternal Word, as the Light come into the world, as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, as the great Sin offering, as the Giver of eternal life, as the Living Water, as the One who has power to quicken the dead, as the Truth and the Life, as the Bread of Life come down from heaven, as the Judge of living and dead, and in many other aspects. And in concluding His presentation in these various aspects, He says, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. and he that seeth me seeth him that sent me (12:44). In these words our Lord Jesus Christ seeks to turn the attention of the people away from His mere humanity. He would not have men and women simply occupied with that, blessed as it is. If Jesus is only a man, it is impossible that He should be the Savior of sinners. He did become true Man. The title that He delighted to use was The Son of Man. As Son of Man He came to seek and to save that which was lost, but He could not have saved the lost if He had not been more than Son of Man. He was true Man and true God. In Psa 146:3 it is written, Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom is no help. Even though He were the best of men, if Jesus were not more than man He would be powerless to save sinners.

Therefore, He turns our attention away from His humanity and fixes our minds upon the fact that He was God manifest in the flesh. He says, Put your trust not in Me only, but in Him that sent Me. He that seeth me seeth him that sent me (12:45). The Old Testament insists upon this in the book of Isaiah. After that wonderful promise in chapter 7 that a virgin should conceive and bear a Son, and His name should be called Immanuel, which is, God with us, we read in 9:6: For unto us a child is born [that is His humanity], unto us a son is given [that is His Deity]. He was the child of Mary, born by divine generation, but He was also the Eternal Son of God who came into this world as Man through the gate of birth. The government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. It seems to me that every enlightened Jewish reader, pondering these words, could not fail to see that the promised Messiah must be a supernatural being. These words could not apply rightfully to some great man, a prophet who came to do Jehovahs bidding. They tell us clearly that the Son given is The mighty God.

And then again, in the announcement of His birth, as found in Mic 5:2, we have the insistence upon His eternity of being as the Son of God, But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. How could these words ever find their fulfillment in one who was simply man and not also God? He was born in Bethlehem as man, it is true, but His goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. And the Lord Jesus Christ insisted on this. In 10:30 of this gospel we hear Him say, I and my Father are one. When Philip said to Him, Show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus said unto him, He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works sake (14:8-10). That is, His works proved that He was the divine, eternal Son of God. Who else could have had power to still the waves, or who else could have robbed the grave of its victim? Only One could say, I and my Father are one. And from the beginning this has been the confession of the church of God-the Lord Jesus has ever been recognized as God manifest in the flesh.

In 2Co 5:18 we read, And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. Now what is that ministry? That God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the [ministry] of reconciliation (v. 19). God was in Christ, not in the sense simply of empowering Christ or taking possession of Christ, but in His very nature, He was God and Man in one person.

So again in 1Ti 3:16 we are told, And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. And in the opening verses of Hebrews 1, we are told, God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds (Heb 1:1). Could that ever be said of a mere man? By whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high (Heb 1:2-3). Let me read those words in a slightly different translation: Who being the effulgence of His excellence and the exact expression of His character, and sustaining all things by the word of His might, when He had made purification for sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. This is our Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore, he that believes on Him believes not only on the Man, Christ Jesus, but also on Him that sent Him, God, our Father, for Jesus could say, He that seeth me seeth him that sent me.

And then He goes on to tell us, I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness (Joh 12:46). That is one of the outstanding things of Johns gospel. It is the gospel of the light and life of man. We read in the first chapter, The life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not (vv. 4-5). Light is that which makes manifest, and we are told that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. Jesus says, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (8:12). Therefore to turn away from Him is to turn away from the light. To follow Him and listen to His Word is to walk in the light. We read that, If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin (1Jn 1:7).

Our Lord Jesus Christ is not only the light of the world, but He is the light of heaven. In Revelation 21, where we have that glorious description of the new Jerusalem, the city that has foundation, whose Builder and Maker is God, we read in verses 22-23, And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. Jesus is the light of all heaven as well as the light of the world. And, thank God, many of us can say that God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2Co 4:6).

I am wondering if there is someone among my readers who is perplexed by present world conditions-troubled and distressed as you think of the misery and sorrow that are all about you. In doubt and perplexity you are asking continually, Why, and what, and wherefore? Oh, dear friend, the answer to all your questions may be found in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, for when you know Him, He opens everything up, He explains everything. In Him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Listen to His words again, Whosoever believeth on me shall not abide in darkness. When you put your trust in Him, when you receive Him in faith as your own Savior, when you yield yourself to Him, recognizing Him as your Lord, when you take Him as your divine Teacher, He opens up all the mysteries that perplex you. His light shines upon the darkness and drives it away. In Daniel 2 we read, He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him (v. 22). And when you trust Him, you come into the light and His light makes everything clear. The darkness is [passing], says the apostle John in his first epistle, and the true light now shineth (2:8).

In verse 47 the Lord says, And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. The Lord Jesus Christ came into this scene as the expression of Gods matchless, sovereign grace. He bore all the shame that men heaped upon Him. He permitted them to turn away from His testimony. Some day He is going to appear as the Judge, and then if men have spurned His grace they will have to know the wrath of the Lamb. When the sixth seal is broken, as set forth in Revelation 6, John sees the collapse of what we call civilization in the day of tribulation that is going to follow this wonderful dispensation of the grace of God. We read in verses 15-17, And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

What a remarkable expression, the wrath of the Lamb! We do not associate the thought of wrath with a lamb. We think of a lamb as the very symbol of gentleness and meekness, and it is right that we should. We read, As a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth (Isa 53:7). He allowed sinful men to blindfold and buffet Him with their hands, to cause Him intense anguish, and at last nail Him to a cross of shame. But the days of His lowliness as the rejected One on earth are over, and He sits exalted on the Fathers throne. He is now speaking peace to all who will trust in Him.

But if men persist in refusing the message, if they will not hear, the Scripture speaks of the wrath of the Lamb as that which succeeds the day of grace. Oh, how foolish it is for people to turn away from Him. He tells us in verse 48, He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. Oh, the folly of rejecting Christ! If men would only realize that in rejecting Him they are sinning against their own best interests!

In Proverbs 1 we hear Wisdom pleading with man to leave the path of folly and hearken to her voice. Who is Wisdom? It really speaks of our Lord Jesus Christ, for He is the wisdom of God. Will you turn away from that which is wisest and best? Wisdom says, If you turn away from Me, the day will come when you will plead in vain for mercy, for I have called, and you have refused. In verses 26-27, He says, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. When will this be? When at last the great day of Gods wrath has come. Now, in this day of His grace, Wisdom pleads with men to take the path of repentance, to receive the message of grace, to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. But if men reject Him and His Word, then the very message that they have heard will rise up against them in judgment in that coming day.

There is another very striking verse in Pro 8:16-17 (Wisdom is speaking): By me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth. I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me. Wisdom, that is Christ, says, I love them that love me. Well, you say, does He not love those who do not love Him? Yes, He loves all men and gave Himself for them, but in a very special way He loves them who love Him. But in righteousness He must judge those who spurn His grace. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day (Joh 12:48). When we reject Christ we are really sinning not only against Him and God, but against our own souls.

In Luk 7:30, we read, But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him. And when, today, men refuse the full, clear gospel message sent out in the power of the Holy Spirit, concerning our Lord Jesus Christ, they are sinning against their own souls. If you, my reader, have been thus acting toward Christ, I plead with you to turn to Him and find a satisfying portion for your soul, lest someday you will be found among them who cry in vain for mercy. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying Lord, Lord, open unto us; and He shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are (Luk 13:25).

And now the last two verses, 49 and 50 of chapter 12: For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me (v. 49). Our Lord Jesus Christ, when He left the Fathers glory and came down to this world, did not cease to be God. He did not cease to be the omnipresent One. He did not cease to be the omnipotent One. He did not cease to be the omniscient One. But He chose not to use His divine omniscience but to learn of the Father. He chose to be localized in a given, definite place as a Man here on earth. And He chose not to use His own omnipotence, but to take His place as Man, subject to God.

Therefore, we are told that the works that He did, He did in the power of the Holy Spirit, and the words that He spoke, He spoke as the Father gave them to Him. This was predicted of Him long years before He came to the world, for Isa 50:2 sets Him forth as to both His Deity and His humanity. We read, Wherefore, when I came, was there no man? When I called, was there none to answer? Is My hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem? or have I no power to deliver? behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness: their fish stinketh, because there is no water, and dieth for thirst. Who is the Speaker here? Anyone reading it must recognize the fact that it is! God Himself. It is the Creator of all things, for it is only God who can say, I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering (v. 3). It was God who caused the blackness to fall upon Egypt. It is God only who can say, At My rebuke I dry up the sea [the Red Sea]. God only could say, I make the rivers a wilderness. No one but God could do these things.

But notice the next verses. It is the same Person, but how different the language! The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned (v. 4). In Leesers beautiful Jewish translation it reads, The Lord GOD hath given Me the tongue of the disciple. Notice, there is no change in the Speaker. The One who could say, I clothe the heavens with blackness, now says, The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary. Here you have His humanity. The Creator has come unto His own creation. Oh, how many millions of weary souls have heard His voice! How many have heard Him say, Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden (Mat 11:28). And they have come and have proven how wonderfully He can fulfill the promises He has made.

Continuing the reading in Isa 50:5-6, The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. It is Jesus speaking through the prophet seven hundred years before He came into the world.

And so He says, I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak (Joh 12:49). Day by day, the blessed Lord learned of the Father what He should say to those who heard Him preach. He gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. Thus, life everlasting is found in receiving the Word. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life (5:24).

And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak (12:50). And this concludes the Lords presentation of Himself to the world. If men refuse the testimony of these first twelve chapters of Johns gospel, God has no more to say to them. He has given His full revelation. Have you received Him, or are you still rejecting Him?

Fuente: Commentaries on the New Testament and Prophets

cried: Joh 7:28, Joh 11:43, Pro 1:20, Pro 8:1, Isa 55:1-3

He: Joh 13:20, Mat 10:40, Mar 9:37, 1Pe 1:21

Reciprocal: Luk 9:48 – Whosoever shall receive this Luk 10:16 – heareth you Joh 3:15 – whosoever Joh 5:24 – He that Joh 5:38 – for Joh 14:1 – ye Joh 14:13 – that Joh 14:24 – and Act 9:42 – and many Tit 3:8 – which Heb 6:1 – faith

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Jesus means that believing on him did not stop there; it includes belief in God also. The truth is that no man can truthfully say he believes on either the Father or the Son without believing on the other.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

These verses throw light on two subjects which we can never understand too well. Our daily peace and our practice of daily watchfulness over ourselves, are closely connected with a clear knowledge of these two subjects.

One thing shown in these verses is, the dignity of our Lord Jesus Christ. We find Him saying, “He that seeth Me, seeth Him that sent Me. I am come as a Light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness.” Christ’s oneness with the Father, and Christ’s office, are clearly exhibited in these words.

Concerning the unity of the Father and the Son, we must be content to believe reverently what we cannot grasp mentally or explain distinctly. Let it suffice us to know that our Savior was not like the prophets and patriarchs, a man sent by God the Father, a friend of God, and a witness for God. He was something far higher and greater than this. He was in His Divine nature essentially one with the Father; and in seeing Him, men saw the Father that sent Him. This is a great mystery, but a truth of vast importance to our souls. He that casts His sins on Jesus Christ by faith is building on a rock. Believing on Christ, he believes not merely on Him, but on Him that sent Him.

Concerning the office of Christ, there can be little doubt that in this place He compares Himself to the sun. Like the sun, He has risen on this sin-darkened world with healing on His wings, and shines for the common benefit of all mankind. Like the sun, He is the great source and center of all spiritual life, comfort, and fertility. Like the sun, He illuminates the whole earth, and no one need miss the way to heaven, if he will only use the light offered for his acceptance.

Forever let us make much of Christ in all our religion. We can never trust Him too much, follow Him too closely, or commune with Him too unreservedly. He has all power in heaven and earth. He is able to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him. None can pluck us out of the hand of Him who is one with the Father. He can make all our way to heaven bright and plain and cheerful; like the morning sun cheering the traveler. Looking unto Him, we shall find light in our understandings, see light on the path of life we have to travel, feel light in our hearts, and find the days of darkness which will come sometimes, stripped of half their gloom. Only let us abide in Him, and look to Him with a single eye. There is a mine of meaning in His words, “If thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” (Mat 6:22.)

Another thing shown in these verses is, the certainty of a judgment to come. We find our Lord saying, “He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not my words, hath One that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.”

There is a last day! The world shall not always go on as it does now. Buying and selling, sowing and reaping, planting and building, marrying and giving in marriage,-all this shall come to an end at last. There is a time appointed by the Father when the whole machinery of creation shall stop, and the present dispensation shall be changed for another. It had a beginning, and it shall also have an end. Banks shall at length close their doors forever. Stock exchanges shall be shut. Parliaments shall be dissolved. The very sun, which since Noah’s flood has done his daily work so faithfully, shall rise and set no more. Well would it be if we thought more of this day! Rent days, birth days, wedding days, are often regarded as days of absorbing interest; but they are nothing compared to the last day.

There is a judgment coming! Men have their reckoning days, and God will at last have His. The trumpet shall sound. The dead shall be raised incorruptible. The living shall be changed. All, of every name and nation, and people and tongue, shall stand before the judgment-seat of Christ. The books shall be opened, and the evidence brought forth. Our true character will come out before the world. There will be no concealment, no evasion, no false coloring. Every one shall give account of himself to God, and all shall be judged according to their works. The wicked shall go away into everlasting fire, and the righteous into life eternal.

These are awful truths! But they are truths, and ought to be told. No wonder that the Roman governor Felix trembled when Paul the prisoner discoursed about “righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come.” (Act 24:25.) Yet the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ has no cause to be afraid. For him, at any rate, there is no condemnation, and the last assize need have no terrors. The bias of his life shall witness for him; while the shortcomings of his life shall not condemn him. It is the man who rejects Christ, and will not hear His call to repentance,-he is the man who in the judgment-day will have reason to be cast down and afraid.

Let the thought of judgment to come have a practical effect on our religion. Let us daily judge ourselves with righteous judgment, that we may not be judged and condemned of the Lord. Let us so speak and so act as men who will be judged by the law of liberty. (Jam 2:12.) Let us make conscience of all our hourly conduct, and never forget that for every idle word we must give account at the last day. In a word, let us live like those who believe in the truth of judgment, heaven, and hell. So living, we shall be Christians indeed and in truth, and have boldness in the day of Christ’s appearing.

Let the judgment day be the Christian’s answer and apology when men ridicule him as too strict, too precise, and too particular in his religion. Irreligion may do tolerably well for a season, so long as a man is in health and prosperous, and looks at nothing but this world. But he who believes that he must give account to the Judge of quick and dead, at His appearing and kingdom, will never be content with an ungodly life. He will say, “There is a judgment. I can never serve God too much. Christ died for me. I can never do too much for Him.”

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Notes-

v44.-[Jesus cried and said.] The connection between the address which begins here and the preceding verse, is not very plain or easy to understand.

Some think that it is a continuation of the address which ended at Joh 12:36, and that John’s comment and explanation in the last seven verses [Joh 12:37-43] must be regarded entirely as a parenthesis. This is rather an awkward supposition, when we look at Joh 12:36, and see at the end, “These words spake Jesus and departed, and did hide Himself.” Unless we suppose that as He was walking away, “He cried and said, He that believeth on Me,” etc., the connection seems incapable of proof. Yet it appears most unlikely that our Lord would have said such things as he was departing.

Others, as Theophylact, think that the address before us is an entirely new and distinct one, and delivered on a different day from that ending at the thirty-sixth verse: viz., on the Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, in Passion Week. This certainly appears to me the least difficult view of the subject. It would then mean that the day after the miracle of the voice from heaven, Jesus appeared again publicly in Jerusalem, and “cried and said.”

However, it is useless to deny that the abrupt manner in which the verse before us and the following verses come in is a difficulty, and one which we know not exactly how to explain. One thing only is very clear: this was probably one of the last public discourses which our Lord delivered in Jerusalem, and forms a kind of conclusion to His ministry in that city. It is a short but solemn winding up of all His public testimony to the Jews.

It deserves notice, that some, as Tittman, Stier, Olshausen, Tholuck, Bloomfield, and Alford, consider the whole of the passage, from verse 44 to the end of the chapter, to be not the words of Jesus Christ, but a statement of John the Evangelist himself, concerning the doctrine Jesus taught throughout His ministry, and specially at Jerusalem. From this view, however, I strongly dissent. The beginning, “Jesus cried,” etc., seems utterly inconsistent with the theory. There seems no special necessity for adopting it. A plain reader of the chapter would never dream of it.

It is worth remarking that the Greek expression, “He cried,” is very seldom applied to our Lord in the New Testament. It is found in Mat 27:50; Mar 15:39; Joh 7:28-37, and here. In every instance it means a loud cry, such as anyone uses to call attention to what he has to say.

Flacius thinks that the address beginning here is a kind of peroration and summing up of all our Lord’s public teaching to the Jews. In it He repeats the proclamation of His own Divine office and dignity,-the purpose for which He came, to be a “light,”-the danger of neglecting His testimony,-the certainty of a final judgment,-and the direct procession of His doctrine from the Father.

[He that believeth…Me…Him that sent Me.] This remarkable expression seems meant to proclaim for the last time, the great truth so often insisted on by our Lord,-the entire unity between Himself and the Father. Once more Jesus declares that there is such a complete and mysterious oneness between Himself and the Father, that he who believes on Him, believes not only on Him, but on Him that sent Him.-Of course the sentence cannot literally mean that the man who believes on Christ, does not believe on Christ. But according to a mode of speech not uncommon in the New Testament, our Lord taught that all who in obedience to His call put their trust in Him, would find that they were not trusting in the Son only, but in the Father also.-In short, to trust in the Son, the sent Savior of sinners, is to trust also in the Father, who sent Him to save. The Son and the Father cannot be divided, though they are distinct Persons in the Trinity; and faith in the Son gives an interest in the Father. (Compare Joh 5:24-“He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent Me.” And 1Pe 1:21-“Who by Him do believe in God.”)

To draw a wide line of separation between the Father and the Son, as some do, and to represent the Father as an angry Being whom the Son appeases, is very poor theology, and the high road to Tritheism. The true doctrine is that the Godhead of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost is one, and that in the unity of the Godhead there are three Persons, and yet that there is such entire unity between the Persons that He who believes in the Son believes also in the Father.

Zwingle thinks the latent idea is, “Do not think it is a small and insignificant thing to believe on Me. To believe on Me is the same thing as believing on God the Father, and to know Me is to know the Father.”

Bucer seems to think that the address in this verse was meant to encourage those who believed Christ to be the Messiah, but were afraid of confessing Him, to come forward boldly, and acknowledge their belief.

Poole says, that in like manner God says to Samuel, “They have not rejected thee, but have rejected Me,” meaning not thee alone. (1Sa 8:7.)

v45-[And he…seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me.] This deep and mysterious verse proclaims even more distinctly than the last verse, the unity of the Father and the Son. It cannot mean that any one who saw Christ with his bodily eyes, did, in so seeing, behold the First Person in the Trinity. Such beholding we are distinctly told is impossible. He is one “whom no man hath seen or can see.” (1Ti 6:16.) What our Lord seems to mean is this: “He that seeth Me seeth not Me only, as an ordinary man or a Prophet, like John the Baptist. In seeing Me he beholds One who is one with the Father, the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His Person.” (Heb 1:3.) Of course our Lord did not literally mean, “He that sees Me does not see Me.” But He meant, “He that sees Me sees not only Me, but through Me and by Me he sees Him that sent Me, for we cannot be divided.”

The divinity of Jesus Christ seems incontrovertibly proved by this verse and the preceding one. If to believe in Christ is to believe in the Father, and to see Christ is to see the Father, then Jesus Christ must be equal with the Father,-very and eternal God.

The supposition of some, that the first “seeth” in this verse means nothing more than “seeth by faith,” appears rather incredible. At this rate the verse would be only a repetition of the one preceding it. I prefer the idea that “seeth” means literally, “Seeth with his bodily eyes.” Yet Bengel says that “seeth” refers to that vision which faith accompanies, and compares it to Joh 6:40.

The object our Lord had in view in this and the preceding verse, appears to have been twofold. It was partly to proclaim once more the unity of Himself and the Father. It was partly to encourage all believers in Himself, for the last time, before He was crucified. Let them know that in resting their souls on Him, they were resting not on Him alone who was about to die on Calvary, but on One who was one with the Father, and therefore were resting on the Father.

Chrysostom observes on the expression, “seeth Him that sent me,”-“What then? Is God a body? By no means. The seeing of which Jesus here speaks is that of the mind, thence showing the consubstantiality.”

Barnes observes, that this language could not have been used about any mere man. To say it of Paul or Isaiah would have been blasphemy.

v46.-[I am come a light into the world, etc.] In this sentence our Lord proclaims once more the great end and object of His coming into the world. He does it by using His favorite figure of light, and comparing Himself to the sun.-“I have come into a world full of darkness and sin, to be the source and center of life, peace, holiness, happiness to mankind; so that every one who receives and believes in Me, may be delivered from darkness and walk in full light.”

Let us note that the form of language used here seems to teach that our Lord existed before He entered the world. The saints “are the light of the world,” but they do not “come a light into the world.” This could only be said of Christ, who was light before His incarnation, just as the sun exists and shines before it rises above the eastern horizon.

Let us note that our Lord’s language seems to teach that He came to be a common Savior and Messiah for all mankind, just as the sun shines for the good of all. It is as though He said, “I have arisen on the world like the sun in the firmament of heaven, in order that every one who is willing to believe in Me should be delivered from spiritual darkness, and be enabled to walk in the light of spiritual life.”

Once more we may remember that none could give such a majestic description of His mission, but one who knew and felt that He was very God. We never find Moses, or John the Baptist, or Paul, or Peter using such language as this.

The quantity of precious truth taught and implied in this verse is very note-worthy.-The world is in darkness.-Christ is the only light.-Faith is the only way to have interest in Christ.-He that believeth no longer abides in darkness, but has spiritual light.-He that does not believe remains and continues in a state of darkness, the prelude to hell.

The expression, “not abide in darkness,” seems to have a latent reference to those Jews who were convinced of Christ’s Messiahship, but were afraid to confess Him openly. Such persons are here exhorted not to remain, stick fast, and continue in darkness.

Burgon remarks on this verse, “This verse shows that (1) Christ existed before His incarnation, even as the sun exists before it appears above the eastern hills; (2) that Christ is the one Savior of the world, even as there is only one sun; (3) that He came not for one nation, but for all, as the sun shines for all the world.”

v47.-[And if any…hear…believe not.] Having shown the privilege of those who believe in Him, our Lord now shows the danger and ruin of those who hear His teaching and yet believe not.

[I judge him not.] These words can only mean, “I judge him not now.” To put more on them would contradict the teaching of other places, where Christ is spoken of as the Judge of all at the last day. Our Lord’s meaning evidently is to teach that His First Advent was not for judgment, but for salvation, not to punish and smite as a conqueror, but to heal and save as a physician.

[For I am not…judge…save the world.] These words are an expansion and explanation of the preceding sentence, “I judge him not.” They are evidently meant to correct the Jewish impression that Messiah was to come only to judge, to execute vengeance, to smite down His enemies, and to punish His adversaries. This impression arose from misapplied views of the Second Advent and the judgment yet to come. Our Lord, for the last time, declares that He came for no such purpose. Wicked as unbelief was, He did not come to punish it now. He came not as a judge at His First Advent, but as a Savior.

We must take care, however, that we do not misinterpret this sentence. It affords no countenance to the dangerous doctrine of universal salvation. It does not mean that Christ came in order to actually save from hell all the inhabitants of the whole world. Such a meaning would flatly contradict many other plain passages of Scripture. What then does it mean?

It means that our Lord came at His First Advent not to be a judge, but a Savior, not to inflict punishment, but to provide mercy. He came to provide salvation for all the world, so that anyone in the world may be saved. But no one gets any benefit from this salvation excepting those that believe.-The true key to the meaning of the sentence is the contrast between Christ’s first coming and His second one. The first was to set up a throne of grace; the second will be to set up a throne of judgment. The expression in Joh 3:17 is precisely parallel: “God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” If it were lawful to coin a word, the true exposition of the sentence would be, “I came that the world might be salvable.”

But while I say all this, I am unable to see how such expressions as this, and Joh 3:16-17, can possibly be reconciled with an extreme view of particular redemption. To say, on the one hand, that Christ’s death is efficacious to none but the elect and believers, is strictly true. Not all men are finally saved by Christ. There is a hell, and unbelievers and impenitent people will be found there.-But to say, on the other hand, that in no sense did Christ do anything at all for the whole world, but that He did everything for the elect alone, seems to me utterly irreconcilable with this text. Surely Christ came to provide a salvation sufficient for the whole “world.”

I am aware that the advocates of an extreme view of particular redemption say that “the world” here does not mean “the world,” but the elect of all nations, as compared to the Jews. But this view is not satisfactory, and looks very [much] like an evasion of the plain meaning of words.

Why the same Greek word is rendered by our English translators, “judge” in this verse, and “condemn” in the parallel place in Joh 3:17, it is not easy to see.

v48.-[He that rejecteth Me…receiveth not my words…judgeth him.] In this verse our Lord declares positively the future judgment and condemnation of those who reject Him, and refuse to believe His teaching.-The word we render “rejecteth,” is only used here in John’s Gospel. The idea is that of “despising: setting at naught.” (See Luk 10:16.) The person described is one who despises and sets at naught Christ Himself, after seeing Him, and deliberately refuses to acknowledge Him as the Messiah, in spite of all the evidence of His miracles. He is also one who will not receive and take into his heart the doctrines preached by Christ. In short, he despises His person, and refuses to believe His teaching. “Such a man will find at last, though I punish him not now, that there is a judgment and condemnation of him. He will not find that his rejection of Me, and his unbelief, will go unpunished. He has a Judge prepared already. There is one already, though he knows it not, who will witness against him and condemn him.”

[The word…I have spoken…judge him…last day.] Our Lord here declares that the things He publicly preached to the Jews while He was upon earth, would witness finally against those who did not believe, at the last day, and be their condemnation. They will not then be able to deny that they were words of wisdom, words of mercy, words subversive of their false views, words fully explaining Christ’s kingdom, words entirely in accordance with the Scriptures. And the result will be that they will be speechless. The witness of Christ’s words will be unanswerable, and in consequence of that witness they will be condemned.

We see here that the words of those who speak for God are not thrown away because they seem not believed at the time. Christ’s words, though despised and rejected by the Jews, did not fall to the ground. Those whom they did not save they will condemn. There will be a resurrection of all faithful sermons at the last day.-Great is the responsibility of preachers! Their words are always doing good, or adding to the condemnation of the lost. They are a savor of life to some, and of death to others. Great is the responsibility of hearers! They may ridicule and despise sermons, but they will find to their cost at last, that they must give account of all they hear. The very sermons they now despise may be witnesses against them to their eternal ruin. Let us note that our Lord speaks of judgment and the last day as great realities. Let us take care that we always account them such, and live accordingly. The Christian’s best answer to those who ridicule his religion is to say, “I believe in a judgment and a last day.”

Let us note that condemnation is taken for granted, if not directly expressed, as the portion of some at the last day. Then let us not listen to those who say that there is no future punishment, and that all persons of all characters, both good and bad, are at last going to heaven.

Zwingle remarks that the expression, “My word shall judge,” is parallel to such expressions as, “The law puts a man to death,” though it is not actually the law, but the executioner that does it. The law only shows him to be worthy of death. So the works and words of Christ will show the unbelieving to be worthy of judgment and condemnation.

v49.-[For I have not spoken of myself.] In these words our Lord once more, as if for the last time, declares that mighty truth which we find so often in John,-the intimate union between Himself and His Father. “I have not spoken of myself, of my own independent mind, and without concert with my Father in heaven.”

The object of saying this is evident. Our Lord would have the Jews know what a serious sin it was to refuse His words, and not believe them. In so doing men did not refuse the words of a mere man, or a prophet, like Moses or John the Baptist. They were refusing the words of Him who never spake alone, but always in closest union with the Father. To refuse to receive the words of Christ, was to reject not merely His words, but the words of God the Father.

Here, as in many other places in John’s Gospel, the Greek does not mean, “I have not spoken concerning myself, but out of or from myself.”

[But the Father…gave…commandment…speak.] Here our Lord explains and enforces more fully what He said of “not speaking from Himself.” He declares that when He came into the world, the Father gave Him a “commandment,” or a commission, as to what He should say and speak to men. The things that He had spoken were the result of the eternal counsels of the ever blessed Trinity. The works that He had done were works which the Father gave Him to do. The words which He spoke were words which the Father gave Him to speak. Both in His doing and speaking nothing was left to chance, unforeseen, unprovided, or unpremeditated. All was arranged by perfect wisdom, both His words and His works.

When we read of the Father “sending” Christ, and giving Christ a “commandment,” we must carefully dismiss from our minds all idea of any inferiority to God the Father on the part of God the Son. The expressions are used in condescension to our weak faculties, to convey the idea of perfect oneness. We are not speaking of the relation that exists between two human beings like ourselves, but between the Persons in the Divine Trinity.-The “sending” of the Son was the result of the eternal counsel of that blessed Trinity, in which Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are co-equal and co-eternal. The eternal Son was as willing to be “sent” as the eternal Father was to “send” Him.-The “commandment” given by the Father to the Son as to what He should teach and do, was not a commandment in which the Son had no part but to obey. It was simply the charge or commission arranged in the covenant of redemption, by all three Persons in the Trinity, which the Son was as willing to execute as the Father was willing to give.

The distinction between “say” and “speak” in the Greek is not very clear. Burgon thinks the phrase is meant to include “every class of discourse; as well the words of familiar intercourse, as the grave and solemn addresses.” But I am not satisfied that this can be proved.-. Lapide says that “to say is to teach and publish a thing gravely, and to speak is to utter a thing familiarly.” Bengel, however, distinguishes them in precisely the contrary way!

There certainly seems to be an intention in the verse to refer the Jews to the well-known words of Deuteronomy, concerning the Prophet like unto Moses. “I will raise up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words into His mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command Him.” Our Lord’s hearers, familiar from their infancy with Scripture, would see at once that Jesus claimed to be the promised Prophet. The Father’s words were in His mouth. He spoke what was commanded Him. (See Deu 18:18.)

v50.-[And I know…His commandment…life everlasting.] The meaning of this sentence seems to be: “I know, whether you like to believe it or not, that this message, commandment, or commission, which I have from my Father, is life everlasting to all who receive it, and believe. You, in your blindness, see no beauty or excellence in the message I bring, and the doctrine I preach. But I know that in rejecting it you are rejecting life everlasting.”-Thus Peter says to our Lord, “Thou hast the words of eternal life” (Joh 6:68): that is, we know Thou hast a commission to proclaim and publish eternal life.-Thus our Lord says, “The words that I speak are spirit and life.” (Joh 6:63.)

Poole and others say this sentence means, “I know that the way to life everlasting is to keep His commandments.” But I cannot think this is the meaning.

Hall paraphrases the sentence, “The doctrine which by His commandment I preach unto you, is that which will surely bring you to everlasting life.”

[Whatsoever I speak…as Father…so I speak.] This sentence seems intended to wind up our Lord’s public discourses to the unbelieving Jews at Jerusalem. “Whatsoever things I am teaching now, or have spoken to you all through my ministry, are things which the Father gave to Me to speak to you. I am only speaking to you what the Father said to Me. If therefore you reject or refuse my message, know once more, for the last time, that you are rejecting a message from God the Father Himself. I speak nothing but what the Father said to Me. If you despise it, you are despising the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob.”

Let us remember that the holy boldness of this last verse should be a pattern to every minister and preacher of the Gospel. Such a man ought to be able to say confidently, “I know, and am persuaded, that the message I bring is life everlasting to all who believe it; and that, in saying what I do, I say nothing but what God has showed me in His Word.”

END OF VOL. II.

Fuente: Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels

Joh 12:44. But Jesus cried and said. In what sense are we to understand the cry and utterance about to be mentioned? Was it public or private? Or is it strictly speaking no utterance of Jesus at all, but only a summary by the Evangelist himself of the main points of that teaching of Jesus which he had recorded in the previous part of his Gospel? That it was not public is clear from the fact that the ministry had closed at Joh 12:36; and it is impossible to meet this difficulty by the supposition that the cry is merely a continuation of the first words of that verse. That it was not private is equally clear, partly from the use of cried (comp. Joh 7:28; Joh 7:37), partly because the nature and tone of the words themselves are such as to suggest that Jesus is speaking to the Jews, not to His disciples. The only supposition therefore is, that the passage contains an epitome or summary of the words of Jesus to the Jews. The words cried and said are therefore equivalent to, This was the teaching of Jesus when He spake openly to the world. The Evangelist, however, does not give the summary in his own words, but (we can hardly doubt) makes use of actual sayings uttered by his Master at various times,sayings which for the most part combine and give forcible expression to truths which we have found stated in the discourses of this Gospel. There is in this section but little that is new; on the other hand, there is very little actual repetition of verses from earlier chapters. If our view of the passage is correct, the words were spoken by Jesus; the selection is made by John.

He that believeth in me, believeth not in me, but in him that sent me. This is the first and almost the only place in this Gospel (see chap. 1) in which the words believe in, so constantly associated with our Lord (see chap. Joh 2:11), are used in reference to the Father. Once indeed, in chap. Joh 5:24, the Authorised Version reads believeth on Him that sent me, but, as we have seen, this is a mistranslation. No words could more strikingly express what Jesus had accomplished for those who received Him: He had led them to the Father, and through Jesus they are now believers in God (1Pe 1:21), throwing themselves with absolute trust on God revealed in Christ. Hence the appropriateness of the words in this place, where the full effect of the mission of Jesus upon the many (Joh 12:40) and upon the few is traced. The form of expression here recalls chap. Joh 7:16 : as there Jesus declares that the words which He speaks are words received from God, so here that the faith He has awakened and rendered possible is faith in God. In each relation He is Mediator between God and men.

Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament

In these verses we have our Saviour’s farewell sermon to the Jews, concerning his person, office, and doctrine; as touching his person, he acquaints them with his divine nature, his oneness and equality with the Father; and accordingly challenges not only the assent, but also the obedience and adoration, of their faith. Jesus cried, saying, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. That is, he that believeth on me, doth not believe on a mere man, but on him that is truly and really God, as well as man; and therefore he being true God, one in essence, and equal in power and glory, with the Father, their believing in him was believing in God the Father that sent him.

Observe, 2. The argument which our Saviour uses, to prove that believers in Christ do believe in the Father: He that seeth me, seeth in me him that sent me.

Learn, 2. That the Father is not to be seen but in the Son; nor can believers know what the Father is, but by seeing what the Son is; and what they see the Son to be, that the Father is in him; For he that seeth me, seeth him that sent me.

Observe, 3. The dreadful judgment which Christ denounces against all unbelievers, and such as reject him, by rejecting of his gospel; for though, at Christ’s first coming, his errand was not to to judge the world, but to save the world, that is, to offer the tenders of salvation to lost sinners; yet at his second coming he would judge them at the last day; when the word preached to them, and rejected by them, will give a judicial testimony against them.

Learn hence, 1. That Christ and his doctrine are inseparable: to receive his doctrine, is to receive him; and to reject his doctrine is to reject him.

2. That such rejecters of Christ and the doctrine of the gospel, shall not escape the judgment of Christ at the great day.

3. That at the great day, were there not other witness against the rejecters of Christ and his gospel, but the word preached, yet that alone will be sufficient both for their conviction and condemnation. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him the last day. The word is now the rule of living, and it shall be hereafter the rule of judging: now it is the rule by which we must live to Christ, then it shall be the rule by which we shall be judged of Christ.

Observe, 4. The argument and reason which our Saviour produces, to prove that the word of God, and the doctrine of the gospel, slighted and rejected, should condemn sinners at the great day; namely, from the divine authority of his doctrine; for albeit his doctrine was his own, as he was true God, yet as man, and as Mediator, it was not his own, but the Father’s which sent him; so that his word and doctrine being divine, and the Father’s as well as his (or he did not speak of himself; that is, of himself and alone without the Father) it despisers of it.

Learn thence, 1. That though the doctrine of the gospel be Christ’s own, as he is truly and really God, yet it was not his own as mere man, exclusive of the Father, who is one God with him, and who gave him a commission and instruction, as Mediator, to preach and publish the glad tidings of the gospel; For, says he, I have not spoken of myself, but the Father which sent me gave me a commandment.

2. That the doctrine which Christ delivered by command from the Father, doth point out the way to eternal life, and will bring lost sinners thereunto, if they sincerely believe it and obey it: I know that his commandment is life everlasting.

3. That therefore sinners who rejected the doctrine of Christ contained in the gospel, do highly dishonour, offend, and affront both the Father and the Son, and bring upon themselves a just and righteous judgment; and expose themselves to unutterable and inevitable condemnation. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament

Joh 12:44-50. Jesus On some occasion or other, soon after this, in order to strengthen the faith of those timid and diffident disciples (if such they could be called) last mentioned, and to inspire them with courage; cried Or proclaimed, with a loud voice, when, it appears, a considerable number of people were gathered about him; and said, He that believeth on me Really and cordially; believeth not on me alone, but on him that sent me And thereby does honour to the Father himself. As if he had said, My doctrine, declarations, and promises are so evidently from God, that he who believeth on me, may more properly be said to believe on God, by whose authority and whose word I preach. And he that seeth me He that seeth the miracles which I perform, seeth the operation of his power by whom, as man, I act. Or, He that sees me and regards me with a lively faith, seeth him that sent me As the perfections of the Father are displayed in me: whereas, he that shuts his eyes against me, excludes the only means of being brought to the true knowledge of the Father. I am come a light into the world I am the Sun of righteousness, whose beams dispel the darkness of ignorance, folly, and sin, in which men are involved, and am come to deliver all who believe on me out of that darkness. And if any man hear my words Which I am so frequently and continually speaking; and yet believe not, I judge him not Rather, I condemn him not; for I came not I am not at present come; to judge (to condemn) the world Or to perform any work of wrath and terror, whatever ill usage I may meet with in it; but the design of my present appearance is mild, kind, and gracious, and I am come to save the world And make its inhabitants happy, in time and in eternity, if they will be so wise as to hearken to the proposals I offer. See! Christ came to save even those that finally perish! Even they are a part of that world which he lived and died to save. He that rejecteth me, &c., hath one that judgeth him But though I shall not now execute judgment upon those who hear my doctrine and do not believe and obey it, nevertheless they shall not pass unpunished. The word that I have spoken shall judge, &c. For the doctrine which I have preached shall bear witness against them at the day of judgment; and because it has aggravated their sin, it shall heighten their punishment. For I have not spoken of myself Either on my own motion, or on any precarious conclusions, drawn from principles divinely taught; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment Gave me ample instructions; what I should say, and what I should speak Two words signifying the same thing. The Old Testament prophets sometimes spoke of themselves, but Christ spake by the Holy Spirit at all times. God the Father gave him, 1st, His commission; he sent him, as his agent and plenipotentiary, to concert matters between him and man; to set on foot a treaty of peace, and to settle the articles thereof. 2d, His instructions; which are here called a commandment; for they were like those given to an ambassador, directing him not only what he may say, but what he must say. The Messenger of the covenant was intrusted with a message which it was necessary he should deliver. Christ, as Son of man, did not speak that which was of human device or contrivance; and, as Son of God, he did not act separately from, but in perfect union with, his eternal Father. Observe, reader, our Lord Jesus, though he were a Son, learned obedience himself before he taught it us. And I know that his commandment Understood, believed, and obeyed; is life everlasting That is, is the way to it, and the beginning of it. Whatsoever I speak, therefore Whatsoever I declare in my doctrine to those that hear me; even as the Father said unto me, so I speak I alter nothing in the message which he has sent me to deliver. In other words, because I am sensible that the doctrines and precepts which the Father hath commanded me to declare, are the only conditions of eternal life, and that it depends upon the knowledge and observance of them; therefore I have proposed them with the greatest faithfulness, plainness, and confidence. Hence I am worthy of credit; both in respect of my commission, and in respect of the fidelity with which I have executed it. So that the doctrine which I preach should be received as coming from the Father, and you should consider that by rejecting it you will be guilty of despising his authority. Thus, what is contained in this last paragraph appears to be, with St. John, the epilogue of our Lords public discourses, and a kind of recapitulation of them.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

II. The Consequences of Faith and Unbelief: Joh 12:44-50.

Israel was not only blinded with reference to the signs; it was deaf as regarded the testimonies which accompanied them, and this is what finally renders its unbelief unpardonable. Such is the meaning and spirit of this passage; it is not a summary of the teaching of Jesus in general. It is a resume made from the special standpoint of Jewish unbelief. The first part sets forth the privilege connected with faith (Joh 12:44-46); the second, the condemnation which will strike unbelief (Joh 12:47-48); the third, the reason of the gravity of these two moral facts which was so decisive (Joh 12:49-50). Criticism rightly disputes the view that Jesus ever delivered the following discourse; it alleges, with good grounds, the absence of all indication relative to the occasion and locality in connection with which this discourse was given, as well as the want of any new idea (see Keim, for example). But it falls into error in concluding from this that there is an artificial composition here which the evangelist places in the mouth of Jesus (de Wette), and in extending this conclusion to the discourses of Jesus, in general, in the fourth Gospel, discourses which are only the expression of the author’s own thoughts (Baur, Reuss, Hilgenfeld).

Is it admissible that the evangelist himself would have ever dreamed, at this point of his narrative, of presenting to us a discourse of Jesus as really uttered by him? This is, indeed, what those suppose who make Him speak thus on going out from the temple (Lampe, Bengel), or at the time when he re- entered it again after the departure mentioned in Joh 12:36 (Chrysostom, Hengstenberg), or in a private conversation in presence of His disciples (Besser, Luthardt, 1st ed.). Of these three suppositions, the first two clash with Joh 12:36, which evidently indicates the closing of the public ministry of Jesus. The third, withdrawn by Luthardt himself (2d ed.), has against it the term (he cried aloud.) What, in addition, excludes the idea of a discourse really delivered by Jesus at this time, is that the passage contains only a series of reminiscences of all the previous teachings, and that it is the only one which is destitute of any indication of occasion, time and place. The evangelist has with Joh 12:36 ended his part asnarrator as to this portion of the history. In Joh 12:37 he contemplates the mysterious fact which he has just described and meditates on its causes and consequences. There is then here a discourse composed by John, indeed; but he does not attribute it as such to Jesus; he gives it as the summary of all the testimonies of Jesus which the Jews ought to have believed, but which they rejected. Here precisely is the reason why this passage contains no new idea, and bears no indication of time or place. The aorists (, ), recall all the particular cases in which Jesus had pronounced such affirmations respecting Himself; they must be rendered thus: And yet He had sufficiently said…, He had sufficiently cried aloud… Or as Baumlein expresses it: Jesus hatte aber laut erklart . This interpretation forces itself more and more upon modern exegesis. Hence it follows that each one of the following declarations will rest upon a certain number of passages included in the preceding discourses. To the rejection of the miracles of Jesus which were the testimony of God, (Joh 12:37-43), Jewish unbelief has added the rejection of the testimony of Jesus respecting Himself.

Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)

SUPREMACY OF THE WORD

Joh 12:44-50. And Jesus cried out and said, He that believeth on Me, believeth not on Me, but on Him that sent Me; and he that seeth Me, seeth Him that sent Me. In this affirmation, Jesus certifies His identity with the Father. I have come a Light into the world, in order that every one believing in Me may not abide in darkness. The world had waited four thousand years for the coming of the Incarnate God; meanwhile the profound learning of Egypt, the metaphysical lore of India, the transcendent philosophy of deep-thoughted Greece, and the lofty dictations of mighty Rome, had ransacked the world, exploring every ramification of mythology, science, literature, poetry, oratory, and the fine arts, in the vain and unsatisfactory attempt to solve the mysterious problem of humanity, adjust man to his Creator, tame the ferocity of his animal nature, and subordinate it to the intellectual and the moral, and make him the incarnation of virtue instead of vice, all having exhausted their resources, and despaired of their enterprise, and mutually acquiesced in the conclusion that the Creator and Preserver of the universe would certainly, in condescending mercy, send a Divine Teacher into the world. Hence the Incarnate Son of God was a glorious sunburst on all the nations of the earth, lighting the dark places of every land and clime, and more than satisfying the anticipations of the saints and sages of all the earth.

If any one may hear My words, and not keep them, I do not judge him for I did not come that I may judge the world, but that I may save the world. The judgment of the wicked world can mean nothing but condemnation and retribution. But, fortunately for us all, He came, not for judgment, but for salvation. However, in the end, He will judge the quick and dead.

He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath that which judgeth him: the Word which I have spoken, that will judge him in the last day. How infinitely momentous is the revealed Word of God! By this Word we are saved, sanctified, edified, fortified, and finally judged. If you are out of harmony with any part of Gods Word, to your knees quickly! Repent and get right before you are called into judgment! Even religious people, as a rule, are asleep relative to the momentous importance of the Word.

Because I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father Himself, having sent Me, gave Me the commandment what I may say and what I shall speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life. Therefore whatsoever I speak, as the Father hath said unto Me, so I speak. Jesus here affirms that the commandment of God is eternal life. Now, the commandment is the Divine injunction for us to obey. Hence you see that we must receive the Word as it is, not venturing to tinker with it, nor attempt to bend it to suit our unsanctified natures, as we will all be judged by it precisely as the Holy Ghost gave it. If your life is in harmony with the precious Word, you should than It God and take courage.

Fuente: William Godbey’s Commentary on the New Testament

Joh 12:44-50. Final Summary of Jesus Public Teaching.This summing up of what was most important in the teaching of Jesus throws interesting light on the authors method of recording the speeches. Belief in Jesus is identified with belief in God. He is for men the final revelation of the Father. He came to enlighten, to dispel moral and spiritual darkness. His chief purpose was not to execute the Messianic judgment of men, as some had thought, and rejected Jesus in consequence. Salvation, not judgment, was the object of His coming. But the rejection of Him and His message involved judgment. Refusal to accept His words would condemn men at the last day. For the message was not self-taught. In substance and method of teaching He carried out Gods command who sent Him. What He spake, He spake as God told Him.[87]

[87] [J. M. Thompson (Exp., Aug. Joh 19:15) would transpose 3743 and 4450, and round off the ministry narrative with the last two verses of ch. 20.A. J. G.]

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

12:44 {11} Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth {i} not on me, but on him that sent me.

(11) The sum of the gospel, and therefore of salvation, which Christ witnessed in the midst of Jerusalem by his crying out, is this: to rest upon Christ through faith as the only Saviour appointed and given us by the Father.

(i) This word “not” does not take anything away from Christ which is spoken of here, but is rather spoken in way of correction, as if he said, “He that believes in me does not so much believe in me as in him that sent me.” So is it in Mr 9:37 .

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

The final exhortation to believe 12:44-50

John added Jesus’ words that follow as a climactic appeal to his readers to believe on Jesus. This exhortation summarizes and restates some of the major points that John recorded Jesus teaching earlier. These themes include faith, Jesus as the One sent by the Father, light and darkness, judgment now and later, and eternal life. Jesus evidently gave it to the crowd as a final challenge. He probably delivered it during His week of teaching in the temple during the Passover season.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

The fact that Jesus cried these words out shows their importance. Jesus again claimed to be God’s agent and so closely connected with God that to believe on Jesus constituted believing on God. There is both a distinction between the Son and the Father in their subsistence and a unity between them in their essence (cf. ch. 5).

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

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