Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 19:37
And again another Scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
37. They shall look ] All present, especially the Jews. The whole world was represented there.
pierced ] See on Joh 19:34. The word here used occurs nowhere else in N.T. excepting Rev 1:7, and forms a connexion worth noting between the Gospel and the Apocalypse (see on Joh 11:44, Joh 15:20, and Joh 20:16); all the more so because S. John here agrees with the present Masoretic Hebrew text and in every word differs from the Greek of the LXX. The Greek softens down ‘pierced through’ (which seemed a strange expression to use of men’s treatment of Jehovah) into ‘insulted.’ See on Joh 6:45, Joh 12:13; Joh 12:15, where there is further evidence of the Evangelist having independent knowledge of Hebrew, and therefore being a Jew of Palestine.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Another scripture – Zec 12:10. We must here be struck with the wonderful providence of God, that so many scriptures were fulfilled in his death. All these things happened without any such design on the part of the men engaged in these scenes; but whatever was done by Jew or Gentile tended to the fulfillment of prophecies long on record, and with which the Jews themselves ought to have been familiar. Little did they suppose, when delivering him to Pilate when he was mocked when they parted his garments when they pierced him – that they were fulfilling ancient predictions. But in this way God had so ordered it that the firmest foundation should be laid for the belief that he was the true Messiah, and that the designs of wicked men should all be overruled to the fulfillment of the great plans which God had in sending his Son.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Joh 19:37
They shall look on Him whom they have pierced
Looking at the pierced One
The text in relation
I.
TO THE JEWS.
1. In relation to the past. It was the fulfilment of prophecy. Zechariah Zec 12:10) had predicted what they would do. Christ honours Scripture even in His death, and makes even His enemies contribute to its fulfilment.
2. In relation to the present.
(1) Some looked regretfully. They had trusted that He would have redeemed Israel.
(2) Some looked remorsefully. One cannot but believe that there were misgivings in the breasts of other actors in this grim tragedy, than in those of the Centurion and Judas.
(3) But the evidence goes to show that most looked maliciously and murderously, and had no compunctions for their awful crime.
3. In relation to the future.
(1) In the immediate future some looked on Jesus as set forth by Peter evidently crucified, and cried, What shall we do? and were saved (Act 2:1-47.); and many more through the instrumentality of Paul.
(2) In the remote future. All Israel shall be saved, if not as a race, as penitent believers, looking unto Jesus.
II. TO SINNERS GENERALLY. Inasmuch as sin was the moving cause of the Crucifixion, and the Jews were literal actors, not simply as Jews, but as wicked men, so the guilt of that crime rests upon the sinful race of men. Men look on Him whom they have pierced.
1. Now. Where Christ is known at all He is the central, all-commanding figure. All men must look, whether they like it or not.
(1) Some look, and then look away–indifferent to His agonies and to the salvation they procured. Self-righteousness is sufficient, or salvation procured in that way a superfluity. Is it nothing to you all ye that pass by?
(2) Some look and scoff. The Cross is still a stumbling-block or foolishness to infidels, or profane, or hypercritical persons. The offence of the Cross has not ceased.
(3) Some look, and are softened into penitence, encouraged to believe and live.
2. Hereafter. All shall some day look again (Rev 1:7); but the Pierced One will occupy not a Cross but a Throne, and will be seen either as a Judge, saying, Depart ye cursed, or as an everlasting Saviour saying, Come ye blessed. Which will He be to you? You may learn from your present attitude. (J. W. Burn.)
Looking and learning
I. THEY AWAKEN HALLOWED SORROW. Sorrow for sin is the germ of repentance. True repentance flows from the Cross.
II. THEY KINDLE ENLIVENING HOPE. Christ was pierced, not only by man, but for man, and by His stripes we are healed.
III. THEY NERVE US TO SUBMISSION. How patiently Christ submitted.
IV. THEY EXCITE US TO ZEAL. He laid down His life in His Fathers work. Should we not give up our gratifications for Him?
V. THEY RECONCILE US TO DEATH. It is not likely we shall die so painful a death as Christ did. But by death He conquered. Through Him we shall through death obtain a crown. (The Homilist.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
So also by seeing Christs side pierced, (a thing not very usual), they might have understood, that he was the person mentioned, Zec 12:10.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
37. And again another scripturesaith, They shall look on him whom they piercedThe quotationis from Zec 12:10; not takenas usual from the Septuagint (the current Greekversion), which here is all wrong, but direct from the Hebrew.And there is a remarkable nicety in the choice of the words employedboth by the prophet and the Evangelist for “piercing.” Theword in Zechariah means to thrust through with spear, javelin,sword, or any such weapon. In that sense it is used in all the tenplaces, besides this, where it is found. How suitable this was toexpress the action of the Roman soldier, is manifest; and ourEvangelist uses the exactly corresponding word, which the Septuagintcertainly does not. Very different is the other word for”pierce” in Ps22:16, “They pierced my hands and my feet.” Theword there used is one signifying to bore as with an awl orhammer. How striking are these small niceties!
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And again another Scripture saith,…. Zec 12:10 which as the former is referred to on account of the not breaking of his bones, this is cited as fulfilled by the piercing of his side:
they shall look on him whom they pierced; in the Hebrew text it is, “upon me whom they have pierced”; the reason of this difference is, because Christ, who is Jehovah, is there speaking prophetically of himself, here the evangelist cites it as fulfilled in him, that is, that part of it which regards the piercing of him; for that of the Jews looking upon him and mourning is yet to be fulfilled, and will be at the time of their conversion in the latter day, and at the day of judgment. And as the piercing of the Messiah has been literally fulfilled in Jesus, there is reason to believe, though the Jews are to this day hardened against him, that that part of the prophecy which concerns their looking to him, and mourning for him on account of his being pierced by them, will also, in God’s own time, be fulfilled. Nor is it any objection to the application of this prophecy to our Lord Jesus, that not the Jews, but the Roman soldiers pierced him, since what one does by another, he may be said to do himself: though it was a Roman soldier that pierced the side of Christ, the Jews might desire and urge him to do it; and however, they agreed to it, and were well pleased with it; and just so Christ is said to be crucified and slain by them; though this was done by the above soldiers, because they prevailed upon Pilate to pass the sentence of death upon him, and to deliver him to the soldiers to be crucified. From the citation of this passage it appears, that the writers of the New Testament did not always follow the Greek version of the Old Testament, which here renders the words very differently, and very wrongly; but John cites them according to the Hebrew text, even which we now have, and which is an instance of the truth, purity, and integrity of the present Hebrew books of the Old Testament. The Jewish doctors n themselves own that these words respect the Messiah, though they pretend that Messiah ben Joseph is meant, who shall be slain in the wars of Gog and Magog; for since their disappointment, and the blindness and hardness of heart which have followed it, they feign two Messiahs as expected by them; one Messiah ben David, who they suppose will be prosperous and victorious; and the other Messiah ben Joseph, who will suffer much, and at last be killed.
n T. Bab. Succa, fol. 52. 1. & ex codem R. Sol. Jarchi, R. David Kimchi, R. Aben Ezra, & R. Sol. ben Melech. in Zech. xii. 10.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
They pierced (). First aorist active of , late verb, correct translation of the Hebrew of Zec 12:10, but not like the LXX, in N.T. only here and Re 1:7.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) “And again another scripture saith,” (kai palin hetera graphe legei) “And again (in prophecy) another scripture says,” accurately foretold:
2) “They shall look on him,” (opsontai eis) “They shall look at him,” both there and thereafter, upon His coming to judge them, Ecc 12:13-14; Mat 12:36-37; Heb 9:27; 2Ti 4:1-2.
3) “Whom they pierced.” (hon eksekentesan) “Whom they did pierce,” as declared also, Zec 12:10; Rev 1:7, and shall wail because of Him.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
37. They shall look on him whom they pierced. This passage is violently tortured by those who endeavor to explain it literally as referring to Christ. Nor is this the purpose for which the Evangelist quotes ib but rather to show that Christ is that God who formerly complained, by Zechariah, that the Jews had pierced his heart, (Zec 12:10) Now, God speaks there after the manner of men, declaring that He is wounded by the sins of his people, and especially by their obstinate contempt of his word, in the same manner as a mortal man receives a deadly wound, when his heart is pierced; as he says, elsewhere, that his Spirit was deeply grieved, (188) Now, as Christ is God manifested in the flesh (1Ti 3:16,) John says that in his visible flesh was plainly accomplished what his Divine Majesty had endured from the Jews, so far as it was capable of enduring; not that God can be at all affected by the outrages of men, or that the reproaches which are cast at him from the earth ever reach him, but because by this mode of expression he intended to declare with what enormous sacrilege the wickedness of men is chargeable, when it rises in rebellion against heaven. What was done by the hand of a Roman soldier the ]Evangelist John justly imputes to the Jews; as they are elsewhere said to have crucified the Son of God, (Act 2:36,) though they did not lay a finger on his body.
A question now arises as to this passage taken from the prophet, (189) Does God promise to the Jews repentance to salvation, or, does he threaten that he will come as an avenger? For my own part, when I closely examine the passage, I think that it includes both; namely, that out of a worthless and unprincipled nation God will gather a remnant for salvation, and that, by his dreadful vengeance, he will show to despisers who it is with whom they have to do; for we know that they were wont to treat the prophets as insolently as if the prophets had told nothing but fables, and had received no commission from God. God declares that they will not pass unpunished, for he will at length maintain his cause.
(188) Here Calvin’s Latin Copy refers to the words of our blessed Lord in Mat 26:38, My soul is sorrowful, even to death; but the French Copy refers to Isa 63:10, But they rebelled, and Grieved His Holy Spirit. — Ed.
(189) “ On fait une question sur ce passage du prophete.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(37) They shall look on him whom they pierced.The words, as they occur in the Authorised version, of the prophecy are, They shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, but the reading which St. John has followed is that of many MSS., and is adopted by many Rabbinic (as Rashi and Kimchi) and many modern authorities (as Ewald and Geiger). The Greek translation (LXX.) of the prophet avoided the strong word pierced, as applied to Jehovah, and substituted for it insulted. St. John translates the original Hebrew freely for himself (comp. Rev. 1:7), and gives the undoubted meaning of the Hebrew word, translating it by the same Greek word which is used by Aquila, Theodotion, and Symmachus. He thinks of the prophecy which spoke of Jehovah as pierced by His people, and sees it fulfilled in the Messiah pierced on the cross.
For the fulfilment of the prophecy, comp. Notes on Joh. 8:28; Joh. 12:32. Jewish Rabbis, and Greek proselytes, and Roman soldiers alike looked, as they stood before the cross, on Him whom they pierced. That scene is typical. He shall draw all men unto Him, and the moral power over the heart of humanity will be the heart of love, which loves and therefore saves him that has pierced it through and through. God commendeth His love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
37. Whom they pierced The quotation is from Zec 12:10, with which compare Psa 22:16: They pierced my hands and my feet. According to the prophet, God should pour upon the house of David (who in the Psalm quoted personates the pierced Messiah) the spirit of penitence, by which they should look with weeping upon the pierced One, and mourn as for an only Son, by them slaughtered. In this bodily piercing John sees a physical fulfilment of the prophetic physical image. It impressed his senses as he gazed. It was by inspired after-thought that he fully realized the Scripture verification. The visible image here too embodies its world of import. John saw the soldier look upon him whom his spear had pierced.
So every penitent Jew of John’s time looked upon the pierced and crucified Messiah and repented. In the fulness of time all Israel shall look upon him whom they have pierced, and repent; and all men whose sins have been the spear that pierced his side, have just reason to look upon him and repentantly mourn, as over a son their sins have murdered.
This leaving his bones unbroken, yet piercing his side, exhibited to John both the divine preservation and the sacrificial execution of the Lamb of God. Had Jesus been executed by Hebrew law his body must have been mutilated and crushed by stoning; so that, strange to say, the old Hebrew prophecy had to wait for the Roman to come, and in a mode his laws had prescribed, to sacrifice the Son of David according to the Scriptures. No wonder that John asseverates so solemnly that he saw it with his own marvelling bodily eyes.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Seventh Scripture Fulfilled: His Side Pierced – In Joh 19:37 John the apostle records the seventh Old Testament prophecy fulfilled during Jesus’ Passion, which says His side would be pierced.
Joh 19:37 Old Testament Quotes in the New Testament – This is taken from Zec 12:10.
Zec 12:10, “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced , and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.”
Note also a reference to Jesus’ pierced side in Joh 20:24-27 and Rev 1:7:
Joh 20:24-27, “But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.”
Rev 1:7, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him : and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.”
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
Ver. 37. They shall look upon him ] This is not a threat, but a promise, Zec 12:10 , fulfilled,Act 2:37Act 2:37 , when Peter’s hearers felt the nails, wherewith they had crucified Christ, sticking fast in their own hearts, and piercing them with horror, .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
37. ] LXX, , but the Evangelist has given the literal and, as now acknowledged (Lcke), true sense of the word . The does not refer to the Roman soldiers, but to the repentant in the world, who, at the time the Gospel was written, had begun to fulfil the prophecy: and is not without a prophetic reference to the future conversion of Israel, who were here the real piercers , though the act was done .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
an other. Greek. heteros. App-124. saith. Note the careful discrimination in the words used. The former Scripture was fulfilled, i.e. filled full. This is not fulfilled, but in order to its fulfilment it was necessary that He should be pierced. See Zec 12:10. It was fulfilled in the case of those who looked upon Him, but waits for its com plete fulfilment when the spirit of grace and supplication is poured out on repentant Israel, look. Greek. opsomai. App-133.
on. Greek. eis. App-104.
pierced. Greek. ekkenteo. Only here and Rev 1:7 = pierced through. Includes therefore the piercing of the hands and feet. Compare Psa 22:16.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
37.] LXX, , -but the Evangelist has given the literal and, as now acknowledged (Lcke), true sense of the word . The does not refer to the Roman soldiers,-but to the repentant in the world, who, at the time the Gospel was written, had begun to fulfil the prophecy: and is not without a prophetic reference to the future conversion of Israel, who were here the real piercers, though the act was done .
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 19:37. , , they shall look on Him, whom they pierced) is construed with . Zec 12:10, LXX., , . They (the LXX.) read (they danced on, insulted) for (they pierced), although Lampius denies it. The piercing took place on the cross: the seeing or looking on Him, accompanied either with penitential grief or with terror, shall come to pass in other times. Therefore John quotes this passage for the sake of its allusion to the piercing [not for that to the looking].
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Joh 19:37
Joh 19:37
And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.-The scriptures had not only foretold that a bone of him should not be broken, but that he should be pierced. (Psa 22:16; Zec 12:10).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
They: Psa 22:16, Psa 22:17, Zec 12:10, Rev 1:7
Reciprocal: 1Ki 2:27 – that he 2Ki 15:12 – And so Mat 1:22 – that Mat 4:14 – it Mat 21:4 – this Mat 26:24 – Son of man goeth Mar 14:21 – goeth Joh 10:35 – the scripture Joh 12:38 – That Joh 19:24 – that Act 13:27 – they have Act 13:29 – when Gal 3:8 – the scripture Jam 4:5 – the scripture
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
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This prediction is in Zec 12:10. The mere act of looking on Jesus might seem as an unimportant item. But Mat 27:36 says, “And sitting down they watched him there.” This was not from mere morbid curiosity, but it was a part of their duty. Smith’s Bible Dictionary says, “The crucified was watched, according to custom, by a party of four soldiers, Joh 19:23, with their centurion, Mat 27:66, whose express office was to prevent the stealing of the body. This was necessary from the lingering character of the death, which sometimes did not supervene even for three days, and was at last the result of gradual benumbing and starvation. But for this guard, the persons might have been taken down and recovered as was actually done in the case of a friend of Josephus.”
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
[They shall look on him whom they pierced.] It is observed by all expositors, how the Greek version in that place of Zechariah [Zec 12:10], from whence this passage is taken, doth vary: for they have it, they shall look towards me, because they have insulted. So the Roman edition, and so some others. Hence,
It is questioned whether those interpreters did so render the words; or whether this were not an interpolation. To pass by the testimonies of the ancients that ascribe it to the Seventy, let us observe these two things:
I. It is no unusual thing for the Greek interpreters in their renderings sometimes to favour the Jewish traditions, and sometimes the common interpretation of the nation. There want not instances of both kinds: it is the latter we have to do with at this time; wherein take one or two examples, instead of many that might be reckoned up.
What reason can be given that they should render Caphtorim, Cappadocians; and Caphtor, Cappadocia; Deu 2:23; but only because the Pelusiotes and Pelusium were commonly so termed by the Jews? Who could have imagined any reason why they say of Eli, that he judged Israel ‘twenty’ years; when in the original it is forty; 1Sa 4:18; but that they favoured the common figment of that nation, that the Philistines had such a dread of Samson, that for twenty years after his death they stood in as much awe of him as if he was then alive and judged Israel? Of this nature is their rendering son by instruction; (Psa 2:12)…
II. The Chaldee paraphrast thus renders the words They shall ask after me, because they are carried away. Which R. Solomon thus interprets: “They shall look back to mourn, because the Gentiles have pierced some of them and killed them in their captivity.” Which agrees so well with the sense of the Greek version, “They shall look on me [mourning], because the Gentiles have insulted over my people in their captivity,” that I cannot suspect any interpolation in the Greek copies…
Think you that figment about Messiah Ben Joseph (to which the Talmudists apply these words of Zechariah, as also doth Aben Ezra upon the place) was invented when the Greek version was first framed? If not, which is my opinion, then it is probable that the Chaldee paraphrast gave the sense that most obtained in the nation at that time; with which that of the Greek accords well enough…