Interpretation of the New Testament by Theophylact of Bulgaria. John XII: biography Gospel of John chapter 12 interpretation

The previous chapter ended with a sad description of the dishonor that was done to our Lord Jesus, when the scribes and Pharisees declared Him a traitor to their church and disgraced Him as best they could. However, the history recorded in this chapter balances the previous one, representing the honor that was paid to the Redeemer, despite all the charges brought against Him. So, one was opposed to the other. Let us see how honored the Lord Jesus was when He was in the depths of humiliation.

I. Mary honored Him by anointing His feet at the supper in Bethany, v. 1-11.

II. The common people honored Him with shouts of joy as He entered in triumph into Jerusalem, v. 12-19.

III. The Greeks honored Him by inquiring about Him, greatly desiring to see Him, v. 20-26.

IV. God the Father honored Him by testifying about Him with a voice from heaven, v. 27-36.

V. The Old Testament prophets honored Him with their predictions of the unbelief of those who heard the news about Him, v. 37-41.

VI. He was honored by some of the rulers, whose consciences testified in his favor, although they had not the courage to confess it openly, v. 42, 43.

VII. He claims honors by asserting the Divine nature of His messenger, and the fidelity of the account He gave of His commission in this world, v. 44-50.

Verses 1-11. In these verses we have:

I. The kind visit our Lord Jesus made to his friends at Bethany, v. 1. He left the province six days before the Passover and came to Bethany, a village which was in the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem, like the environs of our capitals. He stayed there with His friend Lazarus, whom He had recently raised from the dead. His arrival in Bethany can be regarded as:

1. As a preparation for Easter, which He intended to celebrate, in connection with which the date of His arrival is specified: Six days before Easter. Devout people took time to prepare themselves for this celebration, therefore it became necessary for our Lord Jesus to fulfill all righteousness. Thus, He showed us an example of holy self-destruction before the holy celebration of the Gospel Easter; Let us listen to the voice crying: Make straight the way of the Lord.

2. As a voluntary exposure of Himself to the danger that threatens Him from His enemies. Now, when His hour drew near, He went to where He could be found by them, and freely gave Himself into their hands, although He had already shown them how easily He could bypass all their snares.

Note.

(1) Our Lord Jesus suffered voluntarily; His life was not taken from Him by force, but He Himself gave it: Behold, I come. Just as the power of His persecutors could not overcome Him, so their cunning could not take Him by surprise, but He died because He Himself wanted it so.

(2) Just as there is a time when we are allowed to withdraw for our own safety, so there is a time when we are called to risk our lives in the cause of God, like St. Paul, who was led by the Spirit to Jerusalem.

3. As an act of kindness to His friends in Bethany, whom He loved, and from whom He was soon to be taken. It was a farewell visit; He came to say goodbye to them and leave them words of consolation before the approaching day of testing.

Note. Although Christ leaves His people for a while, He makes them understand that He leaves them with love, and not with anger. Bethany is spoken of here as the village where Lazarus, who died, was, whom He raised from the dead. The miracle performed here glorified this place and made it famous. Christ came here to see what fruit this miracle brought; for Christ watches those places where He has wrought miracles and shown special favors, desiring to know whether there are results. He watches the growth where He sowed abundantly.

II. The warm welcome that His friends gave Him in Bethany: There they prepared a supper for Him (v. 2), a great supper, a feast. The question is often asked: Was this the same event recorded in Matthew 26:6ff that took place in Simon's house? Most commentators believe that this is so, because both in content and in many circumstances the two stories coincide. However, that one occurs after it was said: “in two days there will be Easter,” and this one took place six days before the holiday. It also seems incredible that Martha would serve in someone else's house, and therefore I, along with Dr. Lightfoot, am inclined to think that the two stories are different; the one described by Matthew took place on the third day of Easter week, and this one on the seventh day of the previous week, which was the day of the Jewish Sabbath, the night before His triumphal entry into Jerusalem; that story took place in the house of Simon, and this one in the house of Lazarus. Since these were the most open and solemn receptions given to Him in Bethany, Mary probably marked both these occasions with this sign of her respect; what she had left after the first anointing, when she had spent the pound (v. 3), she used in the second anointing, when she had poured out all, Mark 14:3. Let's see how this technique is described.

1. They prepared supper for Him, for supper with them was usually the best meal. They did this as a sign of gratitude and respect towards Him, for the feast is given in honor of friendship; They also did this in order to be able to have free and pleasant communication with Him, for the feast is arranged for the sake of communication. Perhaps Christ had in mind this and similar receptions that were given to Him in the days of His flesh, when He promised to sup with those who would open the door of their hearts to Him, Rev. 3:20.

2. Martha served them; she herself served at the table as a sign of her great respect for the Teacher. Although she was not the last person in society, she nevertheless did not consider it beneath her dignity to serve when Christ reclined at the table. Likewise, we should not consider it dishonor or humiliation for ourselves to condescend to any service that can bring honor to Christ. Earlier, Christ scolded Martha because she cared about many things. But she did not leave her ministry because of this, like some who, when they are scolded for one extreme, rush with irritation to the other. Yes, she still served, but no longer as before, at a distance, but within earshot of the gracious words of Christ; she considered blessed those who, as the Queen of Sheba said about Solomon’s servants, always stand before Him and hear His wisdom; It is better to be a servant at the table of Christ than a guest at the table of a prince.

3. Lazarus was one of those who reclined with Him. The truth of his resurrection (as well as the resurrection of Christ) was proved by the fact that there were those who ate and drank with him, Acts 10:41. Lazarus did not go into the desert after his resurrection, as he was obliged, after being in the afterlife, to constantly remain a hermit in this world; no, he freely communicated with people, like others. He reclined as a monument to the miracle that Christ performed. Those whom Christ has raised to spiritual life will recline with Him. See also Eph 2:5,6.

III. The special honor that Mary did Him, above all others, by anointing His feet with fragrant ointment, v. 3. She had a pound of pure precious ointment, which she probably kept for herself; but the death and resurrection of her brother had sufficiently weaned her from the use of such things, and she anointed the feet of Jesus with it, and, as another sign of her reverence for Him and her self-abasement, wiped them with her hair. All those present paid attention to this, for the house was filled with the fragrance of the world. See also Proverbs 27:16.

1. She doubtless did this as a sign of her love for Christ, who gave real tokens of his love to her and her family; in this way she learns to repay. She showed by this act that her love for Christ was:

(1) Generous love. She has never spared her means in His service, and now shows such ingenuity in creating occasions for expenditure for pious purposes, while most try to avoid such occasions. As soon as something especially valuable is in her hands, she is in a hurry to give it to Christ, in order to thereby honor Him.

Note. Those who love Christ with a true love love Him so much more than this world that they are willing to give the best they have to Him.

(2) Helpful love; She not only gave Christ her ointment, but also poured it on Him with her own hand, although she could have ordered one of her servants to do this. Moreover, she anointed His head not, as was usually done, but His feet. Just as true love does not skimp on expenses, so it does not spare its strength, bringing honor to Christ. Considering what Christ did and suffered for us, we are extremely ungrateful if we consider any service by which He might be truly glorified to be too difficult or too low.

(3) Believing love; in this act, faith was manifested, operating by love, faith in Jesus as the Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One, who, being at the same time priest and king, was anointed in the same way as Aaron and David. Note. God's Anointed One must be our Anointed One. Did not God anoint Him with the oil of gladness more than His fellows? Let us anoint Him with the peace of our best feelings more than all our rivals. As we agree with Christ as our King, we must agree also with God's plans, making Him our head, as He appointed, Hos. 1:11.

2. The fact that the house is filled with a pleasant fragrance from the world can mean the following:

(1) Those who receive Christ into their hearts and dwellings bring there a sweet fragrance; the presence of Christ brings with it ointment and incense that gladden the heart.

(2.) The honors given to Christ are a consolation to all his friends and followers; for God and virtuous people they are an offering, a pleasant fragrance.

IV. The displeasure which Judas expressed at what Mary had done in token of her reverence for Christ, v. 4, 5. Note:

1. The man who found fault with her was Judas, one of His disciples, not of the same nature as them, but only one of their number. The worst of men can hide behind the mask of the best profession; many claim to be related to Christ, but in reality they do not love Him. Judas was an apostle, a preacher of the gospel, and yet he disapproved and reprimanded this display of pious affection and piety.

Note. It is sad to see how godly life and holy zeal are criticized and not supported by those who, in the duty of their ministry, are obliged to promote and warm them. But it was the one who was going to betray Christ.

Note. The coldness of feeling towards Christ and the secret contempt for serious piety manifested in those who profess to be Christians are sad omens of the final apostasy. By showing their worldly disposition in matters of little importance, hypocrites reveal their readiness to retreat in the face of more serious temptations.

2. The pretext with which he concealed his displeasure (v. 5): Why not sell this ointment, since it was intended to be used for pious purposes, for three hundred denarii (which, in our money, is 8 pounds, and 10 shillings) and not give it to the poor?

(1.) It is a vile lie, gilded with specious pretensions, for Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

(2.) This is worldly wisdom, condemning godly zeal for folly and misrule. Those who pride themselves on their worldly prudence and despise others for their consistent piety have more of the spirit of Judas in them than could be thought.

(3) Charity towards the poor appears here as a pretext for opposing the duty of piety towards Christ and as a secret mask to cover up greed. Many exempt themselves from spending on the needs of charity under the pretext of saving for these needs; while clouds full of rain pour it on the earth. Judas asked: “Why not give to the poor?” To which one could easily answer: “Because it is better to give it to the Lord Jesus.”

Note. We must not think that the ministry of those who do it differently from us, and not in the way we want, is unacceptable; as if everything should be recognized as unreasonable and worthless, which does not correspond to our standards and our concepts. Proud people believe that whoever does not consult with them does not receive reasonable advice.

3. Identifying and revealing the hypocrisy hidden in the words of Jude, v. 6. The Evangelist makes a remark on this matter, acting on the instructions of the One who tests the heart: He said this not because he cared about the poor (as he tried to show), but because he was a thief: he had a cash drawer with him.. .

(1) He was not motivated by mercy: not because he cared about the poor. He had neither compassion for them nor sympathy for their needs; the beggars he had to remember were merely a means to his selfish ends. Thus, some ardently fight for the power of the Church, and others for its purity, while about them it can be said that they do not care about the Church; for them it is all the same whether the true influence of the Church will increase or decrease, but under the pretext of caring for these interests they make a career for themselves. Simeon and Levi showed zeal for circumcision not because they cared about the seal of the covenant, just as Jehu was not at all jealous of the Lord of hosts when he said: “...look at my zeal for the Lord.”

(2) He was driven by greed. The essence of the matter was this: since the ointment was intended for his Teacher, he preferred to turn it into money in order to put it in the common piggy bank, which was entrusted to him, and only then he knew what to do with it. Please note:

Judas was a treasure-keeper in the house of Christ, which is why some explain his nickname Iscariot, which means bearer of the box. Look,

First, what means did Jesus and His disciples have to live on? They were very few; they had no farms, no trade, no barns, no storerooms, but only a bag, or, as some understand the word, a box or money chest, in which there was exactly enough money to feed them, with all the surplus , if there were any, they were given to the poor; they carried it with them wherever they went. Omnia mea mecum porto - I carry everything I own with me. This box was replenished by donations from kind people, and the Teacher and His disciples had everything in common. Let this reduce the importance of worldly wealth in our eyes and make us indifferent to the formal attributes of position in society and the rules of etiquette and reconcile us with a low standard of living and an honorable position in society, if such a lot has befallen us in life, because such was the lot of our Teachers; for He became poor for our sake. Look,

Secondly, who was in charge of what little they had; it was Judas who carried the money box. His ministry was to receive money and pay, and we do not find that he accounted for the financial transactions that he made. He was appointed to this service: 1. Either because he was the least, the last of all the disciples; neither Peter nor John were made guardians of the box (although this was a trusted and profitable position), but Judas, the least of them all.

Note. Worldly pursuits lead to apostasy and degradation of the minister of the Gospel; see 1 Cor 6:4. The prime ministers in Christ's kingdom refused to deal with financial matters, Acts 6:2. 2. Either because he sought to occupy this position. His heart was filled with thoughts of money, so he was entrusted with a cash box for safekeeping:

(1) Either out of mercy towards him, in order to please him and thereby oblige him to be faithful to his Teacher. The subjects of a government are sometimes dissatisfied with it because they find themselves neglected; but Judas had no reason to complain about it: he wanted this box, and he got it.

(2) Either for the trial of him, to punish him for secret wickedness: something was given into his hands that was supposed to become a snare and snare for him.

Note. Strong internal inclinations to sin are often rightly punished by strong external temptations to it. We have little reason to love or be proud of this box, for we are at best only its custodians; the same keeper of this box was Judas, a bad man born into the world in order to be hanged (pardon the expression). The carelessness of fools will destroy them.

He was entrusted with the cash drawer, and he was a thief, that is, he had a tendency to steal. The dominant love of money robs the heart just as anger and revenge kill it. Perhaps he was actually guilty of appropriating the funds of his Teacher and using for his own personal purposes what was given for general needs. Some suggest that he was currently thinking about how to line his pockets and then run away, leaving his Teacher, because he had heard from Him so much about coming disasters with which he could not come to terms.

Note. Those who have access to the public money, and who are entrusted with the management of it, must be guided by the inviolable principles of justice and honesty, so that no stain of vice may adhere to their hands; though some do not take it seriously that they cheat by robbing the government, or the church, or the country, yet fraud is theft, and since society is of greater importance in comparison with individuals, and robbing it is a greater sin in comparison with sin robbing an individual, then the guilt for theft and the fate of the thieves will turn out to be a very serious matter. Judas, who betrayed the cause entrusted to him, soon after betrayed his Master.

V. Christ's justification of Mary's action (v. 7, 8): “Leave her...” By this He showed that He approved of her good work (though He was completely dead to all sensual pleasures, nevertheless, since it was the manifestation of her good will, He expressed a good disposition towards this) and takes care that she is not annoyed for this: Excuse her, - this is how this passage can be interpreted; “forgive her this time, if it’s a mistake, then it’s her love’s mistake.”

Note. Christ does not want those who earnestly seek to please Him, to be criticized or quenched, though their honest endeavors are not always so prudent, Rom. 14:3. Though we would not do what they did, yet let us leave them. Justifying Maria

1. Christ gives a favorable interpretation of Mary’s act, which was not understood by those who condemned her: “She saved this for the day of My burial.” Or: “She kept it for the day of My embalming” (Dr. Hammond, Hammond). “You do not spare the world for the embalming of your dead friends and do not say that it should be sold and distributed to the poor. This same anointing was either intended for this purpose, or at least may be so interpreted; for the day of My burial is approaching, and she has anointed the Body, which is already almost dead.” Notes:

(1.) Our Lord Jesus thought much and often about His death and burial; It would be good for us to think about the same thing more often.

(2.) Often Providence opens the door of opportunity to good Christians, and the Spirit of grace opens their hearts, that the manifestations of their pious zeal may be more timely and beautiful than their own foresight could have made them.

(3.) The grace of Christ interprets kindly the godly words and actions of virtuous men, and not only brings the best out of what is bad, but makes the best out of what is good.

2. He gives a full answer to Jude's objection, v. 8.

(1) In the Kingdom of Providence there is such an order that we always have the poor with us, one or the other, so that we show mercy to them (Deut. 15:11);

such will exist as long as there is madness and suffering in this mortal world.

(2) In the Kingdom of grace, such an order has been established that the Church does not always have with her the bodily presence of Jesus Christ: “You do not always have Me with you, but only for a little time.”

Note. When two duties come into competition with each other, we need to have wisdom to understand which of them should be preferred; it must be determined by circumstances. We should take advantage of opportunities, and, moreover, first of all and most energetically, those of them that promise to be the shortest and elude us the fastest. A good duty that can always be performed must give way to one that can only be performed now.

VI. The general attention which our Lord Jesus attracted to Himself during this supper at Bethany (v. 9): Many of the Jews knew that He was there, for the whole village was talking about Him, and they came there in a whole crowd; especially since He had been hiding just recently, but now appeared like the sun peeking out from behind a dark cloud.

1. They came to see Jesus, whose name had been exceedingly glorified and made famous by the recent miracle which He had wrought in raising Lazarus. They came not to listen to Him, but to satisfy their curiosity by the possibility of seeing Him here in Bethany, since they were afraid that on this Passover He would not appear openly, as He usually did. They came not to seize Him or denounce Him, although the government declared Him a criminal of the law, but to see Him and pay their respects to Him.

Note. There are those who give their affection to Christ, despite all the efforts of His enemies to misrepresent Him. Since it became known where Christ was at the moment, crowds of people flocked to Him.

Note. Where the king is, there is his court; Where Christ is, there the people will be gathered together, Luke 17:37.

2. They came to see Lazarus together with Christ, since it was a very attractive sight. Some came to be confirmed in their faith in Christ by hearing the story of the resurrection of Lazarus from his own lips. Others came only to satisfy their curiosity and to say later that they saw a man who died and was buried, but then came to life; so that Lazarus served on these holy days as a spectacle for those who, like the Athenians, spent their time in talking and listening to something new. Perhaps some came to ask Lazarus curious questions about the state of the dead, to learn about news from the afterlife. We ourselves may have sometimes said: “We would travel a long way for one hour of conversation with Lazarus.” But if anyone came for this purpose, Lazarus probably did not say a word and did not give them any account of his visit to the afterlife. In any case, Scripture remains completely silent and tells us nothing about this. And we should not philosophize beyond what is written. However, our Lord Jesus was there, to whom they should have turned much sooner than to Lazarus; for if we do not listen to Moses and the prophets, Christ and the apostles, if we do not heed what they tell us about the afterlife, then we will not believe, even if Lazarus rises from the dead. We have a more sure prophetic word.

VII. The indignation of the chief priests at the growing influence of our Lord Jesus, and their design to put an end to Him (v. 10, 11): they decided (or decreed) to kill Lazarus also, because for his sake (because of what was done to him, and not because of what he said or did) many of the Jews came and believed in Jesus. Notice here:

1. How vain and unsuccessful had hitherto been their efforts against Christ. They did everything in their power to turn the people away from Christ and incite them against Him, and yet many of the Jews, their neighbors, their henchmen, their admirers, were so conquered by the convincing power of Christ's miracles that came out from under the influence of the priests and from their party, came out from obedience to their tyranny and believed in Jesus, and all because of Lazarus; his resurrection revived their faith and convinced them that Jesus was undeniably the Messiah, had life in Himself and the power to give life to others. This miracle strengthened their faith in His other miracles, which, as they heard, He performed in Galilee; Was anything impossible for Him who could raise the dead?

2. How absurd and reckless was their decision to kill Lazarus now. Here is an example of the most brutal fury that can exist; They became like a wild bull in a net, filled with rage, and rushed in different directions, not realizing anything. This is a sign that they were not afraid of God and were not ashamed of people. For:

(1) If they had feared God, they would not have behaved so defiantly towards Him. God wanted to miraculously revive Lazarus, but they wanted to kill Him with malice. They shout: “Destroy this one from the earth! for he must not live,” whereas God had just recently returned him to earth, thereby declaring that he must live; wasn't that rebellion against God? They wanted to kill Lazarus, thereby challenging the Almighty to raise him again, as if they could compete with God and encroach on the rights of the King of kings. Who has the keys of hell and death, He or they? O caeca malitia! Christus qui suscitare potuit mortuum, non possit occisum - Blind hatred! To believe that Christ, who could resurrect someone who died a natural death, cannot resurrect someone who was killed (Augustine, Augustine in loc). Lazarus was chosen as the object of their special hatred because God distinguished him with signs of His special love, as if they had entered into an alliance with death and hell for active defense and decided to deal cruelly with all deserters. It would seem that they should have consulted about how they could make friends with Lazarus and his family and, through their mediation, be reconciled with Jesus, whom they persecuted; but the god of this world has blinded their minds.

(2) If they were ashamed of people, they would not have treated Lazarus, an innocent man, so unfairly, and would not have accused him of any crime. What bonds can hold those who can so easily break the most sacred bonds of common justice and violate the fundamental principles that nature itself teaches? But their own tyranny and prejudice proved to them (as well as to the Roman Catholic Church) sufficient reason not only to justify, but to sanctify the greatest crimes and make them worthy of praise.

Verses 12-19. This story, which tells of the triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem, is described by all the evangelists as worthy of special attention; you can see in it:

I. What honor the common people gave to our Lord Jesus; see Art. 12, 13, where it says:

1. Who gave Him this honor - a multitude of people, oclo polu - a large crowd who came to the festival, which was not the inhabitants of Jerusalem, but those who came from distant parts of the country to worship during the festival. Those who are closer to the temple of the Lord are further from the Lord of the temple. These were people who came to the holiday.

(1.) Perhaps these were those who had heard Christ in the places, and were His great admirers there, and therefore they were eager to pay their respects to Him in Jerusalem, where they knew He had many enemies.

Note. Those who truly value and honor Christ will never be ashamed or afraid to openly confess Him to people in any circumstances that present themselves to them.

(2) Perhaps they belonged to those especially devout Jews who were more pious than their neighbors and came to the holiday a little earlier in order to purify themselves; it was they who so readily desired to honor Christ.

Note. The more people are disposed towards God and religion in general, the better they are disposed to accept Christ and His religion, which does not destroy, but improves all previous revelations and institutions. It was not the leaders and not the great of this world who came out to meet Christ, but common people; someone would call them a rabble, a mob, but Christ chose the weak and unwise (1 Cor. 1:27), He is more glorified by the number than by the greatness of His followers, for He values ​​people for their souls, and not for their names and honorary titles.

2. Why they did it: They heard that Jesus was going to Jerusalem. They asked about Him (John 11:55,56): “...will He not come to the feast?” And now they hear that He is coming; for no one who seeks Christ seeks in vain. Hearing that He was coming, they began to move, wanting to give Him a worthy reception.

Note. The news of the approach of Christ and His Kingdom should cause us to consider what the task of this day is, that we may accomplish it in this day. Israel had to prepare to meet their God (Amos 4:12), and the virgin of Israel to meet the bridegroom.

3. How they paid their respects to Him; They did not have the keys of the city with which to present them to Him, they did not have a sword or staff to carry them before Him, they did not have at their disposal any city music with which they could greet Him, but they gave it to Him what they had; and though it was a despised crowd, it was somewhat like that glorious multitude which John saw before the throne and before the Lamb, Rev. 7:9,10. Although these men did not stand before the throne, yet they stood before the Lamb, the Passover Lamb, who now, four days before the feast, was, according to the established order, separated from the flock to be sacrificed for us. About the heavenly choir it is said:

(1.) That they had palm branches in their hands, and this people also had palm branches in their hands. The palm tree has always been a symbol of victory and triumph; Cicero calls the award-winning plurimarum palmarum homo - the man of many palms. Christ was to subdue principalities and powers to Himself by His death, and therefore it was fitting that the palm of the conqueror should be carried before Him; although He was just girding, He could already boast as one who girded. But that was not all. Palm branches were an integral part of the celebrations of the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15), and the use of this symbol of joy in the greeting of our Lord Jesus signifies that all the Feasts pointed to and were fulfilled in His Gospel, especially the Feast of Tabernacles, Zechariah 14:16.

(2.) That they cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation be unto our God, Rev. 7:10. And these people also exclaimed, proclaiming before Him, as was customary in popular greetings: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!” (Hosanna means salvation). Here is a quotation from Psalm 117:25,26. See how well these simple people knew the Scripture and how correctly they apply it to the Messiah. High thoughts about Christ are best expressed in words from Scripture. With your exclamations:

They claim that our Lord Jesus is the King of Israel who comes in the name of the Lord. Despite the fact that He looked poor and despised at the moment, nevertheless, contrary to the ideas about the Messiah that the scribes taught them, they recognize Him as King. This speaks both of His honor and dignity, before which we must bow, and of His power and strength, to which we must submit. They recognize Him

Firstly, for the righteous King who comes in the name of the Lord (Ps. 2:6), that is, sent by God as not only a prophet, but also a king.

Secondly, for the promised and long-awaited King, for the Messiah King, for He is the King of Israel. According to the light they had, they proclaimed Him as the King of Israel in the streets of Jerusalem and thereby, being Israelites, recognized Him as their King.

They wish with all their hearts the good of His Kingdom, which is implied in the word hosanna, long live the King of Israel, just as they once exclaimed during the accession of Solomon: “Long live King Solomon!” (1 Kings 1:39). By shouting Hosanna, they are asking that

First, His kingdom came in its light and knowledge, in its power and effectiveness. May God make the gospel plow make progress.

Secondly, that it may triumph over its enemies and crush all opposition, Rev. 6:2.

Thirdly, so that it remains. The word hosanna means: May the King live forever! Although there may be rebellion against His Kingdom, let it never be destroyed Psalm 71:17.

They invite Him to Jerusalem: “Welcome, O Coming One; We are glad to see You from the bottom of our hearts. Enter, blessed of the Lord, we are ready to accompany with our blessings the One who greets us with His blessings.” This greeting is reminiscent of what is written in Ps 23:7-9: “Lift up your high gates...” So each of us should welcome Christ into our hearts, that is, praise Him and find our pleasure in Him. As the person and attributes of God, and His dealings with us, so the person and ministry of the Lord Jesus, and His mediation between us and God, should be the objects of our highest satisfaction. Faith says: “Blessed is He who comes.”

II. In what form does Christ accept the honor given to Him (v. 14): Jesus, having found, or taken out, a young donkey, sat on it... How modest it all looked: He alone sits on a donkey, and the crowd of people around Him exclaims Hosanna .

1. It was a more majestic appearance than He usually assumed; He usually walked on foot, but now He rode on a donkey. Although His followers must accept a humble position, and not attach their hearts to that which appears majestic, yet they are permitted to enjoy the services of the inferior creatures, whom God in His providence has placed at our disposal, and over which He has made man ruler, according to His covenant with Noah and his sons.

2. However, this was far from the majesty with which the great of this world usually invest themselves. If He wished to make a solemn appearance among the people, corresponding to the position of a person of the highest rank, then He should have ridden in a chariot like Solomon's (Song 3: 9, 10), with capitals of silver, elbows of gold and a seat of purple cloth. But if we take the concepts of this world as a basis, then such an exit would rather be a dishonor than an honor for the King of Israel, for it would give the impression that He wants to look great, but does not know how to do it. His kingdom was not of this world, and therefore it did not come in an aura of external glory. He humbled Himself, but in a vision John sees Him in glory, on a white horse, with a bow in his hands and a crown on his head.

III. How the Scripture was fulfilled in this: ...as it is written: “Fear not, daughter of Zion!..” (v. 15). Zechariah 9:9 is quoted here. All the prophets testify about Him, and especially about this event from His earthly life.

1. It was foretold that the King of Zion would come, and that He would come sitting on a colt; even this small circumstance was foretold, and Christ saw to it that it was exactly fulfilled. Notes:

(1) Christ is the King of Zion; From ancient times, holy Mount Zion was destined to be the capital, or royal city, of the Messiah.

(2) The King of Zion is and will be watching Zion and is coming to it; although He departed for a short time, He will nevertheless return in due time.

(3) He walks, although slowly (a donkey does not walk quickly), but confidently, and with such a humble and condescending appearance that His faithful subjects dare to turn to Him and expect an answer from Him. Humble petitioners may be worthy of conversation with Him. If Zion is displeased that her King does not appear with greater importance or power, then let him know that although He comes to her riding on a colt, yet against his enemies He will come, rushing through the heavens to help him, Deut. 33:26.

2. Therefore the daughter of Zion is invited to look upon her King, to pay attention to Him, and to notice His approach; look and marvel, for He comes in a visible manner, though not with visible pomp, Song 3:11. Don't be afraid. In Zechariah's prophecy, Zion is called to rejoice and rejoice, but here it is translated as do not be afraid. Distrustful fears are the enemies of spiritual joys; if they are healed, if they are overcome, then they will certainly be replaced by joy; Christ comes to His people to silence their fears. Although the state of affairs may be such that joyful rejoicing seems impossible to us, we still must make an effort to free ourselves from the fear that oppresses us. Rejoice, or at least have no fear.

IV. Remark made by the evangelist regarding the disciples (v. 16): at first they did not understand why Christ did this and how the Scripture was fulfilled; but when Jesus was glorified and after that the Spirit was poured out, then they remembered that this was written about Him in the Old Testament and that they, together with other people, did this to Him according to the Scriptures.

1. Look how imperfect the disciples were in their infancy: even they did not understand this at first. When they brought the donkey and placed Christ on it, they did not realize that they were thereby performing the ceremony of inauguration of the King of Zion. Please note:

(1.) Scripture is often fulfilled by those who do not check their own actions, Isa. 45:4.

(2) Both in the word and in the providence of God there are many excellent objects, which the disciples themselves do not understand at first, when they first become acquainted with Divine objects, when they still see people passing by like trees, when they first encounter them, when they first consider them and reflect on them. What later becomes obvious is initially vague and uncertain.

(3.) When Christ's disciples reach maturity in knowledge, it is good for them to reflect often on how intelligent and weak they were at the beginning of their journey, so that all the glory of the experience acquired may be attributed to grace, and that they themselves may have compassion for the ignorant. When I was a baby, I spoke like a baby.

2. Look at the perfection the disciples achieved when they grew up. Although they were children at the beginning, they did not always remain so, but achieved perfection. Please note:

(1.) When they understood it: when Jesus was glorified. For:

Previously, they had misunderstood the nature of His Kingdom, thinking that it would come in an aura of outward splendor and power, and therefore did not know how to apply the Scriptures that spoke of its unsightly appearance.

Note. A correct understanding of the spiritual nature of the Kingdom of Christ, its power, glory and victory, will keep us from misinterpreting and applying those passages of Scripture that speak of it.

The Spirit, which was to guide them into all truth, had not yet been poured out.

Note. The same Spirit who dictated the Scriptures enables Christ's disciples to understand them. The Spirit of revelation is to all saints the Spirit of wisdom, Eph. 1:17,18.

(2.) How they understood it: by comparing and contrasting prophecies with events, which mutually illuminate each other. This led them to understand both: then they remembered that this was what was written about Him by the prophets and what they did to Him according to what was written.

Note. There is such a wonderful harmony between the word and works of God that remembering what is written enables us to understand what has happened, and observing what has happened helps us understand what is written. As we heard, so we saw. Scripture is being fulfilled every day.

V. The reason which induced the people to render such honors to our Lord Jesus at His entry into Jerusalem, in spite of the strong opposition of the authorities. It was that He recently performed the glorious miracle of raising Lazarus.

1. Look what importance they attached to this miracle and how confident they were in it; Without a doubt, the city was abuzz with talk of this miracle, the rumor about it was on everyone’s lips. And yet, those who considered it proof of the messenger of Christ and placed it as the basis of their faith in Him, wanted to better verify the reliability of this fact and therefore checked the truth of rumors from those who were direct witnesses to it, in order to find out about it reliably, to find out the most obviousness of what happened, which this subject could possess: The people who were with Him at the time when He called Lazarus from the tomb, in response to questions, testified, v. 17. They unanimously declared that all this was true, not subject to dispute or refutation, and were even ready, if necessary, to give appropriate testimony under oath, for this is the meaning of the word ipiapTdpei.

Note. The truth of Christ's miracles has been proven by irrefutable evidence. It is likely that those who saw this miracle not only convinced those who asked about it of its authenticity, but also told those around them without any questioning, thereby wanting to increase the solemnity of this day; the arrival of Christ from Bethany, where this miracle was performed, did not allow them to forget about it.

Note. Those who desire the good of Christ's kingdom must be willing to openly declare what they know, in order to honor Him.

2. How they used the knowledge they received, and what effect it had on them (v. 18): therefore the people met Him.

(1) Some, out of curiosity, wanted to see the One who performed such a miracle. He preached many good sermons in Jerusalem, which, however, did not attract as many people to Him as this one miracle did.

(2) Others, with the most sincere feelings, tried to honor Him as sent by God. This miracle was performed last so that it could confirm the authenticity of all previous miracles and bring glory to Him in anticipation of His suffering. All the works of Christ were not only well done (Mark 7:7), but also well distributed in time.

VI. The Pharisees are outraged by all this; some of them probably noticed the appearance of Christ among the people, and soon they all heard about it. The members of the commission appointed to find means that could help them put an end to Him, thought that they had achieved their goal when He retired, and hoped that He would soon be forgotten in Jerusalem, but now they are tearing and rushing, seeing that all of them dreams turned out to be empty. 1. They acknowledge that they have made no progress in their efforts against Him; it was absolutely clear that they were not getting anything done. They could not by any tricks force people to turn away from Him and by any threats forbid them to show their affection towards Him.

Note. Those who resist Christ and fight against His Kingdom are forced to admit that they are not achieving anything. God will achieve His goals, but they will achieve nothing with the weak efforts of their impotent malice. “You don’t have time to do anything, oik afPSht - you don’t achieve anything.”

Note. It is impossible to achieve success by resisting Christ. 2. They acknowledge that He advanced successfully: "...the whole world follows Him." A huge crowd of people, the whole world, accompanied Him; it is a hyperbole found in almost all languages. Moreover, like Caiaphas, they unconsciously predicted about Christ that the whole world would follow Him, people of all kinds from all corners of the earth; entire nations will become His disciples. But with what intention was this said?

(1) They express their indignation at His ever-increasing influence over men; their own envy makes them irritated. When the horn of the righteous rises up in glory, the wicked see it and are vexed, Ps. 111:9,10. Considering that the Pharisees were great people and were given an abundance of honors, then it would seem that they should not have complained about the insignificant honors with which Christ was now exalted; but proud people make fame their monopoly and, like Haman, do not want to share it with anyone.

(2) In this way they excite themselves and each other to more decisively wage war against Christ. They seem to be saying: “Such a frivolous attitude towards the matter and endless delay will lead to nothing. We must choose some other, more effective way to put an end to the spread of this infection; the time has come to test all our art and all our strength, until the matter takes such a turn that nothing can correct it.” Thus the enemies of religion become even more determined and active when they are defeated; Should her friends lose heart at the slightest disappointment, since they know that her cause is just and that in the end she will win?

Verses 20-26. Now Christ is honored by certain Greeks who respectfully ask about Him. We are not told on what particular day of Christ's last week this event took place, probably not on the same day on which He entered Jerusalem on a colt (for on that day He was busy with public work), but one or two days later .

I. Of those who gave honor to our Lord Jesus, the following is said: Of those who came to worship at the feast, there were some Greeks, v. 20. Some believe that these were Jews of dispersion from the twelve tribes, scattered among the pagans and called Hellenes, Hellenistic Jews. Others believe that these were pagans, the so-called proselytes at the gate, which included the eunuch and Cornelius known to us. Pure, natural religion found the best support among the Jews, and therefore those of the Gentiles who were disposed to piety participated with them in their solemn assemblies, as far as they were allowed. There were sincere worshipers of the true God even among those who were not part of the Israelite community. The gathering of the Gentiles into the Temple at Jerusalem, which took place in the last days of the Jewish church, was a joyful omen of the removal of the wall that separated Jews and Gentiles. The prohibition given to the priests to accept any offerings or sacrifices from the hands of a pagan (which was, however, violated by Eleazar, the son of the high priest Ananias) was, according to Josephus, one of the reasons for the Roman invasion of Judea (Jewish Wars, 2.409-410) . Despite the fact that these Greeks, if they were not circumcised, would not have been allowed to eat the Passover, nevertheless they came to worship on the holiday. We should enjoy our privileges with gratitude, although they may be different from those of which we are deprived.

II. How they honored Him: they desired to become acquainted with Him, v. 21 Having come to the feast for worship, they wanted to make the best use of their time, so they turned to Philip, asking him to help them arrange a personal meeting with the Lord Jesus.

1. Desiring to see Christ, they endeavored to use appropriate means. They did not think that they would not be able to talk to Jesus because of the large crowd of people surrounding Him, they did not stop at a simple desire, but they firmly decided to try what could be done in this situation.

Note. Those who want to know about Christ should try to obtain this knowledge.

2. They turned to Philip, one of His disciples. Some suggest that they were already familiar with him before, because they lived near Bethsaida in pagan Galilee. From this we can learn the lesson that we should take advantage of our acquaintance with good people to increase our knowledge of Christ. It is good to know those who know the Lord. But if these Hellenes lived near Galilee, then they probably had the opportunity to hear Christ there, since this was His main place of residence; Therefore, I think that they turned to Philip only because they saw how he persistently followed Christ, and also because he was the first one they could talk to. Their appeal to one of Christ’s disciples in order to gain the opportunity to communicate with Him Himself testified to their respectful attitude towards Christ, to the fact that they saw in Him someone great, despite His insignificant appearance. Those who wish by faith to see Jesus now in heaven must turn to His servants, whom He has appointed for this very purpose - to be the guides of poor souls in their quest for Christ. Paul was to send for Ananias, and Cornelius for Peter. Bringing the Hellenes to the knowledge of Christ through Philip meant what the activity of the apostles would be and what benefit their ministry should bring in converting the pagans to faith and teaching the nations.

3. Their address to Philip was brief: “Sir! we want to see Jesus.” They addressed him with respect as a person worthy of respect, because he was close to Christ. They had one desire - to see Jesus; not just to see His face so that when they return home they can say that they have seen the One about whom they cannot stop talking (it is likely that they have already seen Him during His public appearances), but to talk with Him in a relaxed atmosphere and learn from Him, which was impossible to achieve during His leisure time, since He was always busy with social work. Now, when they came to the feast to worship, they wanted to see Jesus.

Note. When we begin to celebrate the holy sacraments, and especially when we approach the celebration of the Gospel Easter, our greatest desire should be the desire to see Jesus, the desire to deepen our acquaintance with Him, to be confirmed in our trust in Him, to advance in conformity with Him; the desire to see in Him our own Person, close to us, to maintain communication with Him and to receive grace from Him: we do not achieve the goal of our coming if we do not see Jesus.

4. Philip informed his Master of this, v. 22. He speaks to Andrew, who was also from Bethsaida and was a senior in the school of the apostles, along with Peter, and consults with him about what should be done, whether, in his opinion, this request will be accepted, since Christ sometimes said that sent only to the house of Israel. They agree with each other that they should turn to Christ, and Philip expresses the desire that Andrew would go with him, remembering how favorably he promised to receive them when two of them agreed to ask for any matter, Matthew 18: 19.

Note. The servants of Christ should help each other and work together in bringing souls to Christ: two are better than one. Apparently, Andrew and Philip brought news of this to Christ while He was teaching the people, for we read (v. 29) about the people standing there; He was rarely left alone.

III. Christ accepts the honor bestowed upon Him, as is evident from what He then said to the people in v. 23 ff., where He foretells the glory that He Himself will have in His followers (v. 23, 24), and the glory that His followers will have, v. 25, 26. What He said was intended to guide and encourage these Greeks, and with them all others who wanted to get to know Him.

1. He foresees a rich harvest of converted Gentiles, of which this was the beginning, v. 23. Christ answered the two disciples, who had spoken a good word about the Greeks, but doubted their success, as follows: “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” - to be glorified through the acceptance of the pagans into the Church, for which He must be rejected by the Jews. Please note:

(1.) What was the purpose of this, the glorification of the Redeemer: “Can this be? Are the pagans also beginning to seek Me? Is it possible that the morning star also rises for them and the blessed dawn, which knows its place and time, begins to embrace the ends of the earth? Then the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” This was not a surprise to Christ, but it was a paradox to those around Him.

Note:

The calling, the effective calling of the Gentiles into the Church of God was a great honor for the Son of Man. The increase in the number of the redeemed contributed to the exaltation of the Redeemer.

There was a time for the glorification of the Son of Man, a set time, a certain hour, and now at last this time has come, when the days of His humiliation are fulfilled and ended, and He says with glee and triumph: “The hour has come...”

(2.) In what a singular manner must this end be accomplished, by the death of Christ, as is implied in the following analogy (v. 24): “Truly, truly, I say to you, to you to whom I have announced My death and sufferings, If a grain of wheat falls just to the ground, but into the ground, will not die, will not be buried and will not perish, then one thing will remain and you will never see anything from it; and if he dies, in accordance with the laws operating in nature (otherwise it would be regarded as a miracle), he will bear much fruit, for God gives each seed his own body.” Christ is this grain of wheat, the most valuable and most useful of grains. It says here:

On the necessity of the humiliation of Christ. He would never have been the living head and life-giving root of the Church if he had not descended from heaven to this cursed earth and ascended from the earth onto this cursed tree and thus accomplished our redemption. He must give up His soul to death, otherwise He could not have received a portion among the great, Isa. 53:12. He was to have descendants, but He had to shed His Blood to redeem and purify them, to win them to Himself and crush their resistance. The humiliation of Christ was also necessary as a condition for receiving that glory which He was to receive by bringing many into His Church; for if He had not by His sufferings made the necessary retribution for sin and thereby brought eternal truth into this world, He would not have been sufficiently prepared to receive those who were to come to Him, and therefore He would have to remain alone .

About the fruit of Christ's humiliation. In His incarnation He fell to the ground, it seemed as if He were buried alive in this earth, so well was His glory hidden; but that was not all: He died. This immortal seed submitted to the laws of all mortals, He lay in the tomb, like grain lying under clods of earth, and just as grain emerges from the earth again, but now as a green plant, fresh and lush, and grows greatly, so the deceased Christ gathered thousands to Himself. living Christians and became the root for them. The salvation of souls until now and henceforth until the end of time is possible only through the death of this grain of wheat. Thus the Father and the Son are glorified, the Church is increased in number, the mystical body is maintained in proper order, and its construction will eventually be completed; and when time shall be no more, the Captain of our salvation, bringing many sons to glory by the merit of his death, and perfected through his sufferings, will be honored for ever with the praise and admiration of the saints and angels, Heb. 2:10,13.

2. He predicts and promises a generous reward for those who will wholeheartedly accept Himself and His Gospel, His interests and prove this by their faithfulness in suffering for Him or in serving Him.

(1.) In suffering for Him (v. 25): He who loves his life more than Christ will destroy it; but he who hates his soul in this world and prefers the favor of God and participation in Christ will preserve it to eternal life. Christ laid great emphasis on this teaching because the great design of His religion was to tear us away from this world by presenting before us another world.

See the fatal consequences of too much love for your soul; many love themselves to death and destroy their soul with this excessive love for it. Whoever loves his earthly life so much that he completely indulges in its pleasures and turns care for the flesh into lusts, thereby shortens his days, destroys his life, which he loves so much, and is deprived of another life, which is incomparably better. Whoever loves the life of his body, its decorations and pleasures so much that, out of fear of losing it or them, he rejects Christ, will lose it, that is, he will lose true bliss in the afterlife, trying to preserve imaginary bliss in this world. A person can give skin for skin and thereby make a good deal, but whoever gives his soul, his God, his heaven for this life, buys it too dearly and turns out to be guilty of the recklessness of selling his birthright for lentil stew.

See also the blessed reward of holy contempt of life. He who hates the life of the body so much that he is ready to part with it in order to preserve the life of the soul will find both with untold gain in eternal life.

Note:

Firstly, the disciples of Christ are required to hate their souls in this world; life in this world presupposes the existence of life in another world; to hate the first life means to love it less than the second. Our life in this world includes everything that we enjoy in it: wealth, fame, entertainment and longevity in their possession. We must hate all these things, that is, treat them with contempt, as useless things and incapable of making us happy, fear the temptations that they conceal within themselves, and gladly part with them when they begin to compete with the service of Christ, Acts 20 :24; 21:13; Rev 12:11. The power of piety lies in the fact that it triumphs over the strongest natural inclinations, and the secret of piety is in its highest wisdom, which makes people hate their own lives.

Secondly, those who, out of love for Christ, hated their lives in this world will be richly rewarded in the resurrection of the righteous. He who hates his life in this world will keep it; he entrusts it into the hands of Him who will preserve it into eternal life and restore it to such great superiority as heavenly life can have in comparison with earthly life.

(2) In His service (v. 26): Whoever confesses that he serves Me, let him follow Me, as a servant follows his master, and where I am, who ksh o SidKOvog o Idd eotsh - there let my servant be; that is, some interpret it as a duty: let him be there to serve Me. We understand this as a promise: My servant will also be there to share bliss with Me. And so that this does not seem like something insignificant, He adds: “And whoever serves Me, My Father will honor him,” and this is enough, even more than enough. The Greeks wanted to see Jesus (v. 21), but Christ makes them understand that just seeing Him was not enough: they had to serve Him. He came into this world not to become a spectacle to be looked at, but to become a king to rule over us. He also says this to encourage those who sought Him to become His servants. When hiring servants, they usually agree on the nature of the work and the payment for it; Christ does the same here.

The work that Christ expects from His servants is very light and moderate, quite suitable for them.

First, they need to accompany their Teacher on His travels: Whoever serves Me, let him follow Me. Christians are to follow Christ, follow His methods and precepts, do what He says, follow His example and pattern, walk as He walked, follow His leading, which He brings about through His providence and through His Spirit. We must go where He leads us and the way He leads us; must follow the Lamb wherever He goes before us. “Whoever serves Me, whoever enters into such a relationship with Me, let him take up the work of serving Me and let him always be ready to respond to My call.” Or: “Whoever truly serves Me, let him openly and publicly confess his relationship to Me, following Me, just as a servant acknowledges his master, following Him through the streets.”

Secondly, let them be present with their Teacher in the places of His rest: “Where I am, there let My servant also be to serve Me.” Christ is where His Church is, in the assemblies of the saints, where His sacraments are performed, let His servants be there to stand before Him and receive instructions from Him. Or: “Where I will soon be, in heaven, where I am now going, there let my servants think and feel, there let them dwell, where Christ sits, Col. 3:1,2.

The wages which Christ promises His servants are very high and glorious.

First, they will be blessed with Him: Where I am, there will My servant be also. To be with Him here on earth, when He was in poverty and humiliation, did not represent any advantage, therefore, He means that they will be with Him in paradise, will sit with Him at His table, on His throne; to be with Christ there is heavenly bliss, John 17:24. Christ speaks of heavenly bliss as if He were already in it: Where am I, because He was confident in it, close to it, it occupied His heart and stood before His eyes. And He offers His servants, as a reward for their service and suffering, the same joy and glory which He thought would abundantly reward Himself for His own service and suffering. Those who follow Him along His path will end up with Him at the end.

Secondly, they will be honored by His Father; He will reward them for all their sorrows and losses, honoring them with such honor as is worthy of the great God and far superior to that which the worthless worms of the earth expect to receive. The reward will be God Himself, who will accept service to the Lord Jesus as service to Himself. The reward will be honor, true, lasting honor, the highest honor that comes from God. Proverbs 27:18 says: He who keeps his master (with submission and diligence) will be honored. Those who serve Christ will be honored by God, which will be revealed in the future, but today remains hidden. Those who serve Christ must humble themselves, in addition, they constantly suffer reproach from the world, as a reward for both they will be exalted in due time.

Up to this point, Christ’s speech refers to the Greeks who wanted to see Him, it calls on them to serve Him. Nothing is said about what happened to those Hellenes, but one would like to hope that they, who so seriously sought the path to heaven and directed their gaze towards it, found it and followed it.

Verses 27-36. Now the Father honors Christ with a voice from heaven, which caused the next part of His conversation, which, in turn, served as a reason for His further conversation with the people. In these verses:

I. Christ speaks to His Father in connection with the indignation that gripped His spirit: “My soul is now troubled...” (v. 27). This word that came out of the mouth of Christ was strange and especially surprising because it was said at the moment of the most rosy prospects, in view of which He should, it seems, have said: “My soul is now content.”

Note. Sometimes significant uplifts of spirit are replaced by indignation of the soul. In this changing world, we must expect that our joy will be darkened and that the highest consolations will serve as a stepping stone leading to new experiences. When Paul was in the third heaven, he had a thorn in the flesh. Please note:

1. Christ's fear of approaching suffering: “My soul was now troubled...” This was the beginning of a dark and depressing period, the first attacks of suffering of His soul, the beginning of His struggle, His soul began to grieve mortally.

Note.

(1.) The sin of our soul troubled the soul of Christ when He entered upon the work of our redemption and salvation, and made His soul a sacrifice for our sin.

(2.) The trouble of His soul was intended to relieve the trouble of our souls, for He said thereafter to His disciples (John 14:1): “Let not your hearts be troubled; why should your hearts be troubled, and mine also?” Our Lord Jesus went boldly into His work, seeing the prospect of the joy set before Him, and yet succumbed to the indignation of His soul. Holy sorrow does not contradict spiritual joy and is the path to eternal joy. Christ was now indignant, He was now in sadness, in fear, but only for a while; this disturbance was not meant to continue indefinitely, it was not meant to last. This should also console Christians in their experiences; they are short-lived and will turn into joy.

2. The difficulty in which He found himself after this, as indicated by the following words: "...and what shall I say?" This does not mean that He consulted with someone as having a need for advice, it was a reasoning with Himself about what needed to be said now. When our souls are disturbed, we must guard against rash utterances, but reason with ourselves as to what ought to be said. Christ speaks as if he were at a loss, as if He did not know what He should choose. It was a struggle between the work that He took upon Himself and which required suffering from Him, and the nature that He took upon Himself and which feared it; He paused between them, hesitating: “...what should I say?” Looking around Him, He did not find anyone who could help, and this led Him to a dead end. In this bewilderment of Christ, when He spoke like a man caught in a dead end, Calvin sees a great example of the humiliation of the Lord. Quo se magis exinanivit gloriae

Dominus, eo luculentius habemus erga nos amoris specimen - The more the Lord of glory humbled Himself, the brighter became the proof of His love for us. Thus, He was, like us, tempted in all things, to encourage us, when we do not know what to do, to direct our eyes to Him.

3. His prayer to God at the moment of this difficulty: “Father! deliver Me from this hour!” yok th upa ta ite - from this hour. He prays not so much that this hour will not come, but that He will endure it. Deliver Me from this hour - this was the voice of innocent nature, her feelings poured out in prayer.

Note. When a soul is in confusion, its duty and its way out of the difficulty is to turn to God for help through faithful and fervent prayer, looking to Him as a Father. Christ went into suffering voluntarily, and nevertheless prayed for deliverance from it.

Note. Prayer for deliverance from suffering can be fully combined with patience in this suffering and submission to the will of God. Notice that He calls His suffering this hour, meaning that the expected events are at hand. He thereby indicates that the time of His suffering was:

(1.) A set time, fixed to the hour, and He knew the time. It had already been said twice before that His hour had not yet come, but now it was so close that He could say that this hour had come.

(2) For a short time. The hour passes quickly, just as Christ’s suffering must have passed; He could see through them the joy that was set before Him.

4. His submission to the will of His Father in spite of this. He immediately corrects Himself and, as it were, takes back His words: “But for this hour I have come.” The first word was behind sinless nature, and the last word was behind Divine wisdom and love.

Note. Those who want to do right must be guided by a second voice. The one who has a complaint speaks first in court; but if we want to judge with righteous judgment, we must listen to the other side. It is the second thought that stops Christ: “But for this hour I have come.” He reassures Himself not by the fact that he cannot avoid it, since there was no salvation from it, but by the fact that he does not want to avoid it, for it was a consequence of His own, voluntary commitment and was supposed to be the completion of His entire enterprise; if He were to flee now, it would destroy everything He had done so far. This refers to those Divine councils regarding His suffering, according to which He should have humbled himself and suffered in this way.

Note. What we must reconcile with the darkest hours of our lives is that we are all destined to survive them. 1 Thessalonians 3:3.

5. His view of the Father, glorified by these sufferings. Having taken back His first petition, He submits a new one and wants to remain faithful to it: “Father! glorify Your name." He puts into these words the same meaning as into the words of the Father! Thy will be done, for the will of God is to glorify Himself. His words express not just submission of Himself to the will of God, but something more - the dedication of His suffering to the glory of God. It was the word of the Mediator, He spoke it as our Substitute, undertaking to satisfy the Divine justice that demands retribution for our sin. The damage we have done to God by our sin concerns His glory, for we can do no other damage to Him. We could never compensate for this damage, and no other creature could do this for us; therefore, God had no choice but to be glorified through our destruction. For this reason, our Lord Jesus intervened, took upon Himself the obligation to defend the insulted honor of God, and He did this through His humiliation; He denied Himself the honor due to the incarnate Son of God and subjected Himself to the greatest reproach. Here He gives the deposit of this satisfaction as its equivalent: “Father! glorify Your name; let Your justice be glorified by sacrifice, and not by the death of the sinner; let this duty be upon Me; I am solvent, but the main culprit is not.” So, what He did not take away, He had to give.

II. The Father's response to this appeal. He has always heard Him and He hears Him now. Please note:

1. How did this answer come? A voice from heaven. The Jews speak much of the bashkola, the daughter of the voice, as one of the various ways in which God spoke to the prophets in times past; yet we find no instance of Him speaking thus to any but our Lord Jesus; this honor was reserved for Him (Matt. 3:17; 17:5);

2. What was the answer. The answer corresponded exactly to the petition (“Father, glorify Your name”): “And I have glorified it and I will glorify it again.” When we pray as we have been taught, “Our Father, hallowed be thy name,” then it is a comfort to us that that prayer is answered; it was given here to Christ, and in Him to all true believers.

(1) The name of God was glorified in the life of Christ, in His teaching and miracles, in all the examples of holiness and virtue that He left.

(2.) It was now to be glorified in the death and sufferings of Christ. His wisdom and power, His justice and holiness, His truth and goodness were perfectly glorified; the requirements of the violated law were fully satisfied; insults to God's government were atoned for; God accepted this satisfaction and declared Himself completely satisfied. What God has done to glorify His own name should inspire us to expect that He will do more for it. He who has hitherto defended His glory will continue to defend it.

III. Opinion of those present regarding this voice, Art. 29. It may be hoped that among them were those whose minds were so well prepared to receive the Divine revelation that they understood what was said and bore witness to it. However, the erroneous assumptions expressed by the crowd are noted here; some of them said it was thunder; others, who noticed that it was articulate, intelligible speech, said that it was the Angel who spoke to Him. It proves:

1. That what happened was a reality even in the opinion of those who were not at all disposed towards Him. 2. That they did not want to agree with the obvious proof of the Divine messenger of Christ. They would rather say that it was this, or that, or something else, than to admit that it was God who spoke to Him in answer to His prayer. However, weren't these articulate sounds that thundered like thunder (as in Rev. 10:3,4) the voice of God? Or if the Angels spoke to Him, were they not God's messengers? God speaks this way one time and another time, and man does not notice it.

IV. The explanation given by our Savior concerning this voice.

1. Why he was sent (v. 30): "He was not for Me, not to encourage Me, nor to satisfy My desire (in which case he would have been a secret whisper in His ears), but for the people."

2. “So that you, My disciples, who must follow Me in suffering, may be comforted in them with the same consolations that comfort Me.” Let this help them to part with life itself for His sake, if necessary, in order to thereby bring glory to God.

Note. The promises and support given to our Lord Jesus in His sufferings were for our sake. For our sake He was sanctified and comforted.

2. What did the spoken words mean? He who was formerly in the bosom of the Father knew His voice and what it meant; When God said He would glorify His name, He meant two things:

(1.) That by the death of Christ there would be a victory over Satan (v. 31): "Now is the judgment...." He speaks with divine rejoicing and triumph. “Now is the summer of My redeemed, and the appointed time for the smiting of the serpent’s head, for a crushing blow against the powers of darkness; the time has come for this glorious feat, now, now that great deed must be accomplished, which has been pondered for so long in Divine councils, which has been announced for so long in the scriptures, which the saints have been waiting for so long and the demons have been afraid of.” The essence of this celebration is that:

Now is the judgment of this world; Kpimg, in the language of medical terminology: “Now the crisis of this world has come.” The sick, severely ill world is currently in a state of crisis; the critical day has come when the trembling needle must deviate towards life or death for all mankind; all those who do not receive recovery in this case will remain helpless and hopelessly ill. Or, most likely, this passage should be read in the language of legal terminology: “Now the trial begins, the purpose of which is the execution of the prince of this world.”

Note. The death of Christ was a judgment on this world. First, it is a judgment of discovery and discernment - judicium discretionis (Austin, Austin). There must now be a trial of this world, for the character of every man must be determined by his relation to the cross of Christ; for some it is madness and a stumbling block, for others it is the wisdom and power of God, as can be seen in the example of the two thieves crucified with Him. Every person will be judged according to what he thinks about the death of Christ.

Secondly, it is a judgment of favor and justification for the elect of this world. On the cross, Christ stood between the righteous God and the guilty world as a sacrifice for sin and a surety for sinners, and when judgment was carried out on Him, when the sins of all of us were laid on Him and He was tormented for our iniquities, then it was, as it were, a judgment on this peace, for its result was to bring eternal righteousness, not only to the Jews, but to the whole world, 1 John 2:1,2; Dan 9:24.

Third, there is the judgment of condemnation brought upon the powers of darkness, see John 16:11. The court is appointed for protection and deliverance, to assert violated rights. In the death of Christ the famous judgment took place between Christ and Satan, between the serpent and the promised seed; it was a competition for dominance over the world. The devil has ruled the sons of men for a very long time, from time immemorial, and now he makes his claims to this, basing them on the fact that as a result of the Fall, God lost His rights. We have seen how he wanted to make a compromise (Luke 4:6,7): he was ready to give the kingdoms of this world to Christ on the condition that he would possess them by obeying him in everything, but Christ wanted to try to take them away. By His death He acquires the lost right in the face of Divine justice and then honestly disputes and restores it in the heavenly court. The power of Satan is declared illegal, and the world, by judgment, is placed at the disposal of the Lord Jesus as His by right, Ps. 2:6,8. The judgment of this world is that it belongs to Christ, and not to Satan; therefore let us all become subjects of Christ.

Now the prince of this world will be cast out.

Firstly, the devil is here called the prince of this world, because he rules the people of this world with the help of the means of this world; he is the ruler of the darkness of this world, that is, this dark world, all those who walk in darkness, 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph 4:12.

Secondly, it is said about him that he will be cast out and will be cast out now. Everything that has been done so far in order to weaken the kingdom of the devil was done by the power of the coming Christ, and therefore it is said that this is being done now. Having reconciled the world with God at the cost of His death, Christ overthrew the power of death and cast out Satan as the destroyer; Having returned peace to God through the teaching of the cross, Christ overthrew the power of sin and cast out Satan as a deceiver. His stung heel caused the serpent's head to be bruised, Gen. 3:15. When his prophecies fell silent, his temples were deserted, his idols were destroyed, and the kingdoms of this world became the kingdoms of Christ, then the prince of this world was cast out, as can be seen from comparing this with the vision of John (Rev 12:811), where it is said that this was made by the blood of the Lamb. Christ's frequent casting out of demons from the bodies of people indicated the great design of His entire enterprise. Notice with what confidence Christ speaks here about victory over Satan; she is almost conquered, and He triumphs over her even at the moment of preparation for death.

(2.) That by the death of Christ souls would be converted, and Satan thus driven out (v. 32): "And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto myself." Notice the following two points here:

The great design of our Lord Jesus was to draw everyone to Himself, not only the Jews, who for a long time had professed themselves close to God, but also the pagans who had wandered far from Him; for He was the Desired One of all nations (Hag 2:7), and to Him all nations were to be gathered. His enemies were afraid that the world would follow Him, but He wanted to draw them to Himself, despite their resistance. Observe here that in the work of converting souls Christ is all in all.

First, it is Christ who draws souls: I will draw them to Himself. Sometimes this is attributed to the Father (John 6:44), but here it is attributed to the Son, who is the arm of the Lord. He does not draw to Himself by force, but draws with human bonds (Hos 11:4; Jer 31:3), draws like a magnet; the soul becomes willing, but only on the day of power.

Secondly, we are drawn precisely to Christ: “I will draw them to Me as the center of their unity.” The soul, which was away from Christ, is brought into communion with Him; whoever avoided Him and did not trust Him begins to love Him and trust Him - reaches out to Him, into His arms. Now Christ was going to heaven and wanted to draw the hearts of people there with Him.

A strange method chosen by Him to carry out His plan by ascending from the earth. To forestall our error in interpretation, what He meant by this is reported (v. 33): These things He spoke, signifying by what kind of death He should die, the death of the cross, although they were plotting and attempting to beat Him to death. stones. The crucified person was first nailed to the cross and then raised on it. He was raised up to be a spectacle for the world; exalted between heaven and earth, as unworthy of either heaven or earth. And yet the word used here means glorious exaltation: idv yfyvv - when I will be exalted. He considered His suffering His honor. Whatever our death may be, if we die in Christ, we will be lifted up out of this underground prison, out of this lion's den, into the realms of light and love. We must learn from our Master to speak of death with holy pleasure: “We will then be lifted up.” The ascension of Christ from the earth was followed by the drawing of all people to Him.

First, it followed him in time. The death of Christ brought with it great growth of the Church; we read of thousands who were miraculously fed after one sermon spoken by Christ during His life on earth, and of thousands who joined the Church after one sermon spoken after His death. Israel began to multiply in Egypt after the death of Joseph.

Secondly, it followed him as his blessed consequence.

Note. The death of Christ contains a powerful, effective force that attracts souls to Him. Although for some the cross of Christ is a stumbling block, for others it is a stone of attraction. Some see in this an allusion to the capture of fish with a net (the ascension of Christ was, as it were, the casting of this net, Matthew 13:47,48) or to the raising of a banner that gathers soldiers around itself. However, it most likely resembles the ascension of the copper serpent in the desert, which attracted to itself all those bitten by poisonous snakes as soon as it became known that it was raised and contained healing power. Oh, what crowds flocked to him! In the same way, people flocked to Christ when salvation in Him began to be preached to all nations, see John 3:14,15. Perhaps this has something to do with the position in which Christ was crucified - with outstretched arms inviting everyone to Him and hugging everyone who came. Those who betrayed Christ to this shameful death thought thereby to distract all people from Him, but the devil was defeated by his own bow. From the eater came the poisonous.

V. The people's objection to what He said, and their fault with His words, v. 34. Although they heard the voice from heaven and the words of grace that came out of His mouth, yet they object and seek a reason to quarrel with Him. Christ called Himself the Son of Man (v. 23), one of the titles of the Messiah with which they were well acquainted, Dan. 7:13. He also said that the Son of Man must be lifted up, which they understood as an indication of His death, and He probably explained it to them that way; some think that He repeated here what was said to Nicodemus (John 3:14): “...so must the Son of Man be exalted.” Speaking against this:

1. They referred to those writings of the Old Testament which speak of the eternity of the Messiah, that He is so far from ending His life in the midst of His days that He will be a priest forever (Ps. 119:4) and a king forever (Ps. 88:30 ff.), that He should have long life for ever and ever, and His years for generation and generation (Ps. 20:5; 60:7);

from all of the above they concluded that the Messiah cannot die. Thus, a great knowledge of the letter of Scripture with an unsanctified heart can end up in the humiliating service of unbelief and fight against Christianity with its own weapons in its hands. Their persistence in opposing what Jesus said becomes clear when we consider the following:

(1.) When they turned to the Scriptures to confirm that the Messiah endured forever, they paid no attention to those passages which speak of the sufferings and death of the Messiah. They heard from the law that the Messiah abides forever, but have they never heard from the law that there will be no Messiah (Dan 9:26), that He will give up His soul to death (Isaiah 53:12) and that, in particular, the hands and His feet will be pierced? Why then are they perplexed about the ascension of the Son of Man?

Note. We often fall into great errors, and then defend them with arguments from Scripture, separating what God has united in His word, and rejecting one truth under the pretext of confirming another. We have heard how the Gospel exalts undeserved grace and at the same time prescribes duty to us, and we simply accept both with our hearts, without separating them or opposing one to the other.

(2.) When they opposed what Christ said concerning the sufferings of the Son of Man, they also lost sight of what He said concerning His glory and exaltation. They heard from the law that Christ remains forever, but did they not hear how our Lord Jesus said that He would be glorified, that He would bear much fruit and draw everyone to Himself? Didn't He just promise the glory of immortality to His followers, which implies His existence forever? But they did not pay any attention to these words. Thus, dishonest debaters oppose different parts of the opponent’s opinion, with which they could not disagree if they only accepted it in its entirety. The teachings of Christ also contain paradoxes that are stumbling blocks for people of damaged minds: how Christ can be crucified and at the same time glorified, how He can be lifted up from the earth and at the same time attract everyone to Himself.

2. After this they asked, “Who is this Son of Man?” They asked about this not with a desire to receive instruction, but with mockery and insult, as if they had already baffled and deposed Him: “You say: the Son of Man must die, but we have proven that the Messiah must not die, where then Your messiahship? This Son of Man, Whom You claim to be, cannot be the Messiah, so You better think about claiming something else.” They were turned against Christ by His insignificance and poverty; they preferred not to have any Christ than to have a suffering Christ.

VI. What Christ said in response to this objection, or, better, what He said to it. Their objection was simply a quibble; they themselves could answer it if they wanted: a person dies, and yet he is immortal and abides forever, so is the Son of Man. Therefore, instead of answering these wicked men according to their wickedness, He earnestly warns them not to waste the time of opportunity by inventing such vain and fruitless cavils as these (v. 35, 36): "For yet a little time , only for a little while, the light is with you, so be wise with yourselves and walk while there is light.”

1. In general, we can notice here:

(1.) Christ's concern for the souls of men, His desire for their welfare. With what tenderness He advises those who plotted against Him to take better care of themselves! Even when He suffered such reproach from sinners, He desired their conversion. See also Prov 29:10.

(2.) The way he used to persuade those who objected was by teaching them with gentleness, 2 Tim. 2:25. If people's consciences were awakened and they realized that they need to take care of their eternal destiny, if they thought about how short their life is and how little time they have left, then they would not waste precious thoughts and time in inventing useless ones. nitpicking.

2. In particular, we see here:

(1.) What an advantage the Jews had in having Christ and His Gospel among them, and how short and uncertain was their possession of it. “For yet a little while light is with you...” Christ is this light, and some of the ancient theologians suggest that by calling Himself light, He indirectly answers their objection. His death on the cross is as well consistent with His continuance forever as the setting of the sun in the evening is with His continued existence. The longevity of Christ's kingdom is compared to the longevity of the sun and moon, Ps. 71:17; 88:37.38. The position of the celestial bodies is unchanged, and yet the sun and moon know their west and eclipses occur with them; so Christ, the Sun of righteousness, abides forever, although His sufferings eclipsed His glory and He shone above our horizon only for a short time. So:

At this time there was light with the Jews: Christ was physically present with them, they heard His sermons, saw His miracles. Scripture is our light shining in the darkness.

He did not have long to be with them, Christ was soon to leave them, their visible theocratic state was to cease to exist, and the Kingdom of God was to be taken from them, and then Israel would be seized with blindness and bitterness.

Note. We all need to think about how long this light will be with us. Time is short and opportunities may not last that long. The lamp can be moved; at least we will soon be moved from our place. Nevertheless, for a little while the light of life is with us, for a little while the light of the Gospel is with us, the day of grace, the means of grace, and the Spirit of grace.

(2.) What warning is given to the Jews about the best use of this advantage while they have it, since they were in danger of losing it: Walk while there is light. Like travelers who make the best use of the daylight hours so as not to be caught in the darkness of the night on their way, since traveling at night is both inconvenient and unsafe. “Let’s,” they say, “let’s pick up the pace and hurry forward while the day still lasts.” This is how we should treat our souls wisely as they make their way to eternity.

Note:

Our duty is to go, to reach towards the heavens and to get closer to them, becoming more and more consistent with them. Our life is but a day, and we have but a day's journey to make.

Daylight hours are best for travel; Day is the right time for work, as night is for rest. Likewise, the right time for receiving grace is the time when the word of grace is preached to us and the Spirit of grace wrestles with us, so at this time we should be active.

We must take care to make the best use of our opportunities for fear that our day may end before we have had time to complete our day's work and our day's journey: "Lest darkness overtake you, lest you be deprived of your opportunities, because you cannot return them, nor can you carry out your work without them.” Then there will be darkness, that is, a complete inability to obtain the great salvation, making the condition of the carefree sinner absolutely miserable: if his work is then undone, then it is likely that it will be undone forever.

(3.) How sad is the condition of those who have sinned outside the light of the gospel, and have come to the end of their day of grace. Those who walk in darkness know neither where they walk nor where they are going; they know neither the path they are following nor the goal they are striving for. Anyone who is deprived of the light of the Gospel and is not familiar with its revelations and instructions endlessly wanders in errors and delusions on countless crooked paths and does not realize it. As soon as we reject the instructions of Christian teaching, we cease to see the difference between good and evil. Such a person goes to destruction and does not know about the danger awaiting him, for he is either sleeping or dancing on the edge of hell.

(4.) How great is the duty and need of each of us arising from all this (v. 36): While the light is with you, believe in the light. The Jews, who at that moment had the presence of Christ with them, should have taken advantage of it; Subsequently, the apostles, wherever they came, were the first to offer the Gospel to them; now He exhorts them not to stand idly in the marketplace, but to accept His offer when it is made to them. Christ says the same thing to all who have the light of the Gospel.

Note.

It is the duty of each of us to believe in the light of the Gospel, to accept it as Divine light, to agree with the truths that it reveals, for it is a lamp to our eyes, and to follow its guidance, for it is a lamp to our feet. Christ is the light, and we must believe in Him when He reveals Himself to us; to believe in Him as a true light that will not deceive us, as a reliable light that will not lead us onto the wrong path.

We must endeavor to do this while the light is with us, to lay hold of Christ while we have the Gospel to show us the way to Him and guide us along the way.

Those who believe in this light will be sons of light, they will be recognized as Christians, who are called sons of light (Luke 16:8; Eph 5:8) and sons of the day, 1 Thessalonians 5:5. Those to whom God is the Father are sons of light, for God is light; they are born again and are heirs of heaven and sons of light, for heaven is light.

VII. Removal of Christ from the Jews: Having said this, and saying nothing more this time, He left them to think about it, and He Himself walked away and hid from them. He did this: 1. For the purpose of convicting them and awakening in them the consciousness of their own sinfulness. If they are not willing to take what He said seriously, then He has nothing more to say to them. They are tied to their unbelief just as Ephraim was to his idols; leave them.

Note. Christ justly deprives the means of grace from those who quarrel with Him, and hides His face from a corrupt generation Deuteronomy 32:20. 2. For your own safety. He hid from their rage and fury, probably retiring to Bethany, where he temporarily lived. From this it is clear that what He said caused them irritation and anger; what should have made them better made them worse.

Verses 37-41. Here we read about the honor that the Old Testament prophets gave to our Lord Jesus, predicting and mourning the unbelief of many who did not believe in Him. That the teaching of Christ met with such a weak response and such strong resistance was a dishonor and sorrow for Him; but the fact that Scripture was fulfilled in this removes all surprise and blame, removes all temptation and all disappointment that Christ might have had. Two things are noted about this rebellious people, predicted by the same messianic prophet Isaiah, namely, that they did not believe and that they could not believe.

I. They did not believe (v. 37): He did so many miracles before them, miracles that seemed to convince them, but they did not believe, but, on the contrary, resisted Him. Please note:

1. What an abundance of means of persuasion Christ offered them: He worked miracles, so many miracles, tooaita oniiEia, which means both “so numerous” and “such great” miracles. This applies to all the miracles He previously performed; Moreover, the blind and lame now came to Him in the temple, and He healed them, Matthew 21:14. His miracles were a great proof of His messengership, and He rests on their testimony. Two features of these miracles are emphasized here:

(1) Their number. There were so many of them, that is, many and different; they were numerous and often repeated, and each new miracle confirmed the reality of all the previous ones. The multitude of these miracles not only served as proof of His inexhaustible power, but also provided additional opportunities for their study. If they contained some kind of deception, then it would certainly have been revealed in one or another miracle; and since all these miracles were works of mercy, the more of these miracles, the more good was done.

(2) Their fame. He performed these miracles in front of them, not in the distance, not in a dark corner, but in full view of numerous witnesses, before their very eyes.

2. How ineffective these means were: ...and they believed not in Him. They could not say anything against the facts, but they did not want to agree with the conclusions arising from them.

Note. The most numerous and most powerful means of persuasion are not of themselves capable of producing faith in hearts corrupted and filled with prejudices. They saw, and yet they did not believe.

3. How the Scripture was fulfilled in this (v. 38): Let the word of Isaiah be fulfilled about the doom... This does not mean that these unbelieving Jews intended to fulfill the Scripture (they rather imagined that the Scriptures speaking of the best sons of the church fulfilled in them), but that the facts exactly corresponded to the prediction, so that (ut for ita ut) the word of Isaiah was fulfilled. The more incredible an event seems, the more Divine foreknowledge is revealed in its prediction. Who would have thought that the Kingdom of the Messiah, supported by such substantial evidence, would meet such powerful resistance among the Jews, which is why their unbelief is called wonderful and wondrous, Isaiah 29:14. Christ Himself marveled at him, but this is precisely what Isaiah’s prediction (Isaiah 53:1) referred to, which has now been fulfilled. Please note:

(1.) The gospel is here called heard from them: "Who believed th dKOh h fjwv - what was heard from us, what we heard from God and what you heard from us?" What is heard from us is the news that we brought, it is similar to a report of some fact or a solemn resolution in the Senate.

(2) It was predicted that comparatively few of those who would receive this message would be convinced and believe it. There will be many who hear, but few will accept this message and believe in it: Who believed what they heard from us? One here, one there, almost no one; none of the wise and noble; to them it is just a rumor that lacks confirmation.

(3.) That so few should believe the message of the Gospel is spoken of as a fact worthy of loud lamentation. The word Lord, which appears at the beginning of the phrase (taken from the Septuagint, but not in the Hebrew text), refers to the messengers of God bringing to Him a sad report of how coldly they and their message were received, like the report of a servant to his master in Luke 14:21.

(4.) The reason why people do not believe the message of the Gospel is because the arm of the Lord has not been revealed to them, that is, because they are unfamiliar with the grace of God and do not submit to it; they have not experienced the power of Christ's death and resurrection, in which the arm of the Lord is revealed. They saw the miracles of Christ, but did not see in them the revealed arm of the Lord.

II. They could not believe because, as Isaiah also said, “This people have blinded their eyes...” This expression is difficult to understand, who can explain it? We are confident that God is infinitely just and merciful, and therefore we cannot allow the idea that some are incapable of good and are doomed to remain evil by God's definition. God does not condemn anyone simply on the basis of His sovereignty; nevertheless it is said: they could not believe. St. Augustine, approaching the explanation of these words, expresses himself with holy fear before penetrating this mystery: Justa sunt judicia ejus, sed occulta - His judgments are just, but they are hidden.

1. They could not believe, that is, they did not want to; they were persistent in their unbelief; This is how Chrysostom and Augustine are inclined to understand this text, while the first of them gives various examples from Scripture showing that this kind of weakness follows from a categorical refusal of the will, such as: they could not speak friendly to him, Gen. 37 :4. See also John 7:7. It is moral impotence, like the impotence of one who is accustomed to do evil, Per. 13:23. But:

2. They could not believe because, as Isaiah said, this people had blinded their eyes. Here the difficulty of interpretation increases; God is certainly not the author of sin, and yet:

(1) We must admit that sometimes in the blindness and bitterness of people who persist in unrepentance and unbelief, the righteous hand of God is visible, rightly punishing them for their previous resistance to the Divine light and rebellion against the Divine law. When God takes from men the grace they have trampled upon and gives them over to the lusts of their hearts, when He allows the evil spirit to do its work in those who resist the good Spirit, when in His providence He places stumbling blocks in the paths of sinners, strengthening their prejudices, then He blinds their eyes and hardens their hearts; these are spiritual judgments, similar to the judgment of pagans who worship idols, when they indulge in shameful passions, and the judgment of apostate Christians, when the effects of error are sent upon them. Note what method of conversion is implied here and what its stages are. Sinners are brought to the point that they:

They see with their eyes, clearly discern the reality of Divine things and gain some knowledge about them.

They understand with their hearts, that is, they apply it to themselves; not only agree and approve, but agree and accept.

They turn, that is, they really turn away from sin to Christ, from the world and the flesh - to God as their blessed destiny. After this, God heals them, justifies and sanctifies them; forgives them their sins, which are like bleeding wounds, and mortifies in them the lusts of the flesh, which are like hidden diseases. When God denies a person His grace, none of the above happens; the alienation of the human mind from God and disgust from the Divine life grows into a deep-rooted and invincible antipathy, and their situation becomes hopeless.

(2.) The Word of God threatens blindness and hardness of heart to those who persist in wickedness, especially foretold of the Jewish church and nation. All His deeds are known to God, and all our deeds are also known to Him. Christ knew in advance who would betray Him, and spoke about it, John 6:70. This confirms the truth of the prophecies of Scripture, and thus even the unbelief of the Jews can strengthen our faith. Also, as a warning to individuals, it is written: Beware, therefore, that what is spoken of the prophets does not come upon you..., Acts 13:40.

(3) What God foretold will certainly come true, therefore we can assert as a necessary consequence, as a reasoned conclusion, the following: therefore they could not believe that God foretold through the prophets that they would not believe; for the knowledge of God is such that He cannot be deceived in His foreknowledge, and His truth is such that He cannot deceive in His predictions, so that the Scripture cannot be broken. However, it should be noted that this prophecy does not name specific people, that is, it cannot be said: “Therefore so-and-so could not believe that the prophet Isaiah said so-and-so.” This prophecy refers to the majority of the Jewish people, who persisted in their unbelief until their cities were desolate and without inhabitants (as seen in Isaiah 6:11,12). However, there is still a remnant (see Isaiah 6:13, where it says: ...a tenth of it will remain...), which leaves the door of hope open for individuals; for anyone can say: “Why cannot I belong to this remnant?”

Finally, having quoted this prophecy, the evangelist notes (v. 41) that it looked beyond the prophet’s own days and related mainly to the time of the earthly life of the Messiah: These things said Isaiah, when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

1. We read in this prophecy that it was spoken to Isaiah, Isa. 6:8,9. And here we are told that this was spoken through him. For, as a prophet, he did not say anything that had not been previously announced to him, just as he did not subsequently fail to say anything that was announced to him to those to whom he was sent. See also Isaiah 21:10.

2. Of the vision of the glory of God which the prophet saw, it is here said that it was a vision of the glory of Jesus Christ: he saw His glory. Jesus Christ is equal to the Father in power and glory, and He is glorified equally with Him. Christ had glory before the foundation of the world, and Isaiah saw it.

3. It is said that the prophet spoke about Him. All the prophets said about Him that for many His coming would not only be useless, but also fatal, a smell of death unto death. One could object to His teaching as follows: “If it was from heaven, why then did not the Jews accept it?” But here is the answer to this objection: they did not believe His teaching, not because of its insufficient evidence, but because the hearts of this people had become coarse and their ears had difficulty hearing. It was said of Christ that He would be glorified both in the destruction of the unbelieving multitude and in the salvation of the remnant separated from it.

Verses 42-43. The rulers also gave some honor to Christ, for they believed in Him, were convinced that God had sent Him, and accepted His teaching as Divine; however, they did not give Him due honor, since they did not have the courage to openly declare their faith in Him. Many professed a love for Christ greater than what they really had; These same ones had a love for Him greater than that which they were ready to profess. Look at the inner struggle these leaders experienced, the struggle between new beliefs and old nature.

I. Notice what power the word had in convincing many of those who stubbornly closed their eyes from the light. They believed in Him, like Nicodemus, accepting Him as a teacher who came from God.

Note. The truth of the gospel can have a greater impact on people's consciences than we realize. Many cannot but approve in their hearts that which they hesitate to support openly. It is possible that these leaders were true believers, although very weak, and their faith was like smoking flax.

Note. There may be more good people in the world than we think. Elijah thought that he was the only one left, when in reality God had seven thousand faithful worshipers left in Israel. Some people are actually better than they seem. Their misdeeds are known, but their repentance is unknown; human kindness may be invisible due to weakness, deserving blame, but at the same time forgivable, for which the person himself sincerely repents. The Kingdom of God does not come in the same noticeable way to everyone; nor do all good people have the same ability to manifest themselves as such.

II. Look at the power this world had to drown out these beliefs. They believed in Christ, but for the sake of the Pharisees, in whose power it was to cause them harm, they did not dare to confess Him, fearing to be excommunicated. Please note:

1. In what they failed and were found wanting, they did not confess Christ.

Note. There is every reason to doubt the sincerity of that faith that is either afraid or ashamed to reveal itself; for those who believe with their heart must confess with their mouth, Rom. 10:9.

2. What they feared was being excommunicated from the synagogue, which, in their opinion, would disgrace and harm them; as if expulsion from that synagogue, which made itself the synagogue of Satan and from which God was leaving, could in any way harm them.

3. On what was this fear based - they loved human glory more than the glory of God, chose it as a more valuable good and pursued it as a more desirable goal; it was a hidden form of idolatry, like worshiping and serving the creature instead of the Creator, Rom. 1:25. Having placed both on the scales and weighed them, they acted accordingly.

(1.) They put human glory on one side of the scale, imagining how good it was to give glory to men, to consider the opinion of the Pharisees and receive glory from men, to earn the praise of the high priests and the approval of the people, and to be known as good sons of the church, the Jewish church; they did not want to confess Christ openly, so as not to hurt the reputation of the Pharisees and not to damage their own reputation and, thus, not to interfere with their promotion. In addition, the followers of Christ were slandered and looked upon with contempt, and this is intolerable for those who are accustomed to being surrounded by glory. If they knew each other's thoughts, they would perhaps be more courageous, but each thought that if he openly declared his commitment to Christ, he would find himself alone and no one would support him; whereas if one of them had decided to do this first, he would have found more like-minded people than he had hoped to have.

(2) They put the glory of God on the other side of the scale. They realized that by confessing Christ, they thereby give glory to God and receive glory from God, that He will be pleased with them and will say to them: Good. However:

(3) They gave preference to human glory, and it tipped the balance; feelings took precedence over faith, and they decided that it was better to adhere to the opinion of the Pharisees than to be pleasing to God.

Note. The love of human glory is an extremely serious obstacle to the power of piety and the manifestation of faith in practice. Many fall short of the glory of God because they strive to earn the approval of people and value it highly. The love of human glory as a secondary goal in good deeds turns a person into a hypocrite when religion comes into fashion and the opportunity arises to make a good name for oneself through it. And the same love for human glory as the root cause of atrocities makes a person an apostate when religion is desecrated and a good name is lost because of it, as can be seen in the example we are considering. See also Rom 2:29.

Verses 44-50. Here we are talking about how Christ defended (and did not appropriate to Himself) His honor, reporting on His messenger into this world and His commission to it. Probably this speech was not delivered at the same time as the previous one (for He departed from them, v. 36), but after some time, when He again appeared before the people. As the evangelist describes, this speech of Christ was His farewell sermon to the Jews, His last public speech; everything that followed happened in a narrow circle of His disciples. Notice how our Lord Jesus spoke this farewell word: He cried and said. Does not wisdom cry (Prov. 8:1), proclaim in the street (Prov. 1:20)? This raising of His voice means:

1. The boldness with which He spoke. Although they did not find the courage to openly confess their faith in His teaching, nevertheless He had the courage to openly affirm it; if they were ashamed of him, he was not ashamed, but set his face like a flint, Isaiah 50:7.

2. The seriousness with which He spoke. He exclaimed, conscious of the seriousness of His words and trying with all perseverance and sincerity to convey to His listeners what He was saying; He wanted to convey to them not only the Gospel of God, but also His very soul.

3. His desire to attract everyone's attention to His words. Since Christ personally proclaimed His Gospel for the last time, He proclaims: “Whoever hears Me, let him now come to Me.” What conclusion can be drawn from all of the above, what is the final result of all the speeches of Christ? It is very similar to the conclusion drawn by Moses (Deut. 30:15): “Behold, I have set before you life and death.” So Christ, leaving the temple, solemnly proclaims three truths:

I. Of the privileges and virtues of believers; they greatly encourage us to believe in Christ and to practice that faith. We should never be ashamed to do this or admit it openly before people, for:

1. Faith in Christ brings us into an honorable acquaintance with God (v. 44, 45): "He that believeth in Me, and thus seeth Me, believeth in Him that sent Me, and thus seeth Him."

(1.) The believer in Christ does not believe in the mere mortal whom He appeared to be, and for whom He was usually taken, but in Him who is the Son of God, equal in power and glory to the Father. Or:

(2.) His faith does not end in Christ, but reaches through Him to the Father who sent Him, Him who is our goal and to whom we come through Christ, our way to it. The teachings of Christ are accepted on faith as the truth of God. The rest of the believing soul is found in God through Christ as Mediator, for it places itself in the hands of Christ so that He may present it to God. Christianity does not consist of philosophy or politics, but is purely Divine in nature. This truth is explained in v. 45. He who sees Me (which means the same thing as he who believes in Him, for faith is the eye of the soul) sees Him who sent Me; By knowing Christ, we come to know God. For:

God is revealed to us in the face of Christ (2 Cor. 4:6), who is the perfect image of His hypostasis, Heb. 1:3.

He leads all who look at Christ with the eye of faith to the knowledge of God, whom Christ revealed to us through His word and Spirit. As God, Christ was the image of the hypostasis of His Father, but as the Mediator He was the representative of His Father in His relations with man, the Divine light, law and love, which were transmitted to us in Him and through Him; so that seeing Him (that is, looking upon Him as our Savior, Prince and Lord, Whom He is to us by right of redemption), we see the Father, and look upon Him as our Owner, Principal and Benefactor, Whom He is to us by right of creation; for God is pleased to deal with fallen man through His proxy.

2. By faith we enter into a state of comforting contentment (v. 46): “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in Me, whether Jew or Gentile, should not remain in darkness.” Please note:

(1) Characteristics of Christ: I am light come into the world to be its light. This means that He existed, existed as light, even before He came into this world, like the sun existing before its rising; the prophets and apostles were the lamps of this world, but Christ alone came into this world as a light, having first been a glorious light in the world above, John 3:19.

(2) The comfort of Christians: they will not remain in darkness.

They will not remain in the state of darkness in which they were by nature; they are light in the Lord. They did not have true consolation, joy and hope, but they will not remain in this state, the light will shine on them.

Whatever darkness of suffering, worry, or fear they might subsequently find themselves in, God made sure that they did not remain in it long.

They are delivered from the darkness that endures forever, from that utter darkness into which not the slightest ray of light falls and in which there is no hope that it will ever shine.

II. Of the disastrous and dangerous condition of unbelievers, which honestly warns them not to persist in their unbelief (vv. 47, 48): “If anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him, neither do I alone judge, nor am I judging now; so that I will not be considered an unjust judge in my own case; nevertheless, unbelief cannot hope to remain unpunished, for, although I do not judge it, it still has a judge for itself.” So we read here a verdict of unbelief. Please note:

1. Those whose unbelief is here condemned are those who hear the words of Christ, and yet do not believe them. Those who never had, or could not have, the Gospel will not be condemned for unbelief; everyone will be judged according to the light that was given to him: those who, not having the law, sinned, are outside the law and will be condemned. And those who heard or could have heard, but did not want to, are subject to this condemnation.

2. What is their destructive unbelief - that they do not accept the word of Christ, which is interpreted (v. 48) as a rejection of Christ Himself - o& aqetwn eme. This phrase indicates rejection with ridicule and contempt. Where the banner of the Gospel is displayed, neutrality is impossible; Every person turns out to be either a friend or an enemy.

3. The wonderful long-suffering and forbearance of our Lord Jesus toward those who neglected Him while He was on earth: “I judge him not; I judge him not now.”

Note. Christ was in no hurry to repay those who rejected the first offers of His grace, but remained merciful to them. He did not defeat those who opposed Him, He never interceded against Israel, as Elijah did; although He had the power to judge, He nevertheless temporarily refrained from using it, because first He had to do a work of the opposite nature - to save the world.

(1) To save those who were given to Him before He came to judge corrupt humanity.

(2) Offer salvation to the whole world and save as many people as possible, so that if anyone remains unsaved, it is only through his own fault. He had to destroy sin through His sacrifice. The use of the judge's power was not consistent with this enterprise.

4. Imminent and inevitable judgment on unbelievers on the day of the Great Judgment, the day of revelation of God's righteous judgment; unbelief, of course, is a fatal sin. Some have suggested that when Christ says, “I do not judge him,” He means that such a person is already condemned. There is no need for a trial: such people have condemned themselves; there is no need to enforce the court decision: they destroyed themselves; judgment is done upon them in its natural way, Heb. 2:3. Christ need not come against them as their accuser; unless He speaks up for them as their advocate, they will perish. However, He clearly tells them where and when the score will be settled with them.

(1) There is a Judge. There is nothing more terrible than offended patience and trampled grace; although for some time mercy will be exalted over judgment, nevertheless there will be judgment without mercy.

(2) Their final judgment is reserved for the last day; On this day of judgment, Christ obliges all unbelievers to appear, so that they will answer for all their contempt once expressed to Him. Divine justice has already appointed a day and postpones the execution of the sentence until that day, see Matthew 26:64.

(3) Then the word of Christ will judge them: The word that I have spoken, however much you despise it, it will judge the unbeliever at the last day; since it is said about the apostles (Luke 22:30), preachers of the word of Christ, that they will judge. The Word of Christ will judge unbelievers in two ways:

As proof of their atrocities, it will expose them. Every word Christ spoke, every sermon, every logical argument, every good suggestion, will be spoken as a testimony against those who neglected all that He said.

As a sentence to their destruction, it will condemn them; they will be judged according to the terms of that covenant which Christ has decreed and declared. The Word of Christ, whoever does not believe will be condemned, will condemn all unbelievers to eternal destruction; and besides this there are many more words similar to this.

III. Christ's solemn declaration that He had power to require of us faith and acceptance of His doctrine, under pain of eternal damnation, v. 49, 50. Note:

1. The commission to convey to the world the doctrine which our Lord Jesus received from the Father (v. 49): “I did not speak of Myself, as a mere man, an ordinary man, speaks, but the Father gave Me a commandment, what to say and what to say.” He repeats what he had said before, John 7:16.

(1) “My teaching is not Mine, for I did not speak from Myself.” As the Son of Man, Christ did not say anything that was a human invention or creation; as the Son of God, Christ did not act independently or of Himself, but everything He said was the result of the counsels of the world; as a Mediator, He came into this world voluntarily and with full consent, but not by His own will and not by the decision of His own mind. But:

(2) His teaching was the teaching of Him who sent Him. God the Father gave Him:

Your order. God sent Him as His agent and plenipotentiary representative in order to settle the relationship between Himself and man, to initiate the conclusion of a peace treaty and to stipulate its terms.

His instructions are here called commandments, for they were like instructions to an ambassador, determining not only what he could say, but also what he should say. The Messenger of the covenant was entrusted with the task of delivering what was entrusted to Him.

Note. Our Lord Jesus, although He was the Son, He Himself learned obedience before He taught it to us. The Lord God commanded the first Adam, and he destroyed us with his disobedience; He commanded the second Adam, and He saved us by His obedience. God commanded Him what He was to say and what He was to speak; these two words, meaning the same thing, indicate that every word of Christ was Divine. The Old Testament prophets sometimes spoke on their own, but Christ spoke by the Spirit at all times. Some make this distinction: He was told what He was to say in His prepared sermons and what He was to say in His family conversations. Others make a different kind of distinction: He was commanded what He was to say in His preaching at this time, and what He was to say in the day of the Great Judgment; for He had commission and direction concerning both.

2. The scope and purpose of this commission: “I know that His commandment is eternal life” (v. 50). The commission given to Christ had to do with the eternal state of the sons of men, and aimed at their eternal life and happiness in that state; as a prophet, Christ was commissioned to reveal eternal life (1 John 5:11); as a king, he was given the power to give eternal life, John 17:2. So the commandment given to Him was eternal life. Christ says that He knew it: “I know that it is so.” This indicates how joyfully and how confidently Christ carried out His work, knowing very well that He was fulfilling a good commission, that it would bear fruit for eternal life. This also indicates that the destruction of those who reject Christ and His word will be completely just. He who does not obey Christ despises eternal life and renounces it; so that such will be judged not only by the words of Christ, but also by their own; their lot will be eternal destruction, because they themselves have chosen it; who can object to this?

3. The exact fulfillment by Christ of the instructions and instructions given to Him and His decisive actions in carrying them out: “...what I say, I say, as the Father told Me.” Christ was very well acquainted with the counsels of God, and faithfully revealed them to the sons of men to the extent that they ought to be revealed, without omitting anything useful. Just as a faithful witness saves souls, so He saved them by speaking the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Note.

(1.) This is a great encouragement to faith, that we may well rest our souls upon the words of Christ, rightly understood by us.

(2) This is a great example for our obedience. Christ spoke as He was commanded, so we must do exactly the same; He reported what the Father told Him, so we must do the same. See also Acts 4:20. Among all the honor that was shown to Him, He considered it His honor that He spoke what His Father had said to Him, and spoke as He was commanded. His glory as a Son was that He was faithful to Him who appointed Him; and we must give Him the glory worthy of His name by unfeigned faith in His every word and by the perfect submission of our souls to Him.

12:1,2 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was dead, whom He raised from the dead. The village of Bethany was located almost three kilometers from Jerusalem on the eastern side of the Mount of Olives. In the house of Lazarus, Jesus was always welcome.

There they prepared a supper for Him, and Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those who reclined with Him.
As we see, after the resurrection Lazarus continued to lead the usual lifestyle of a person, which he led until his death.
If we remember that through his example Jesus showed how the resurrection of the dead would take place for God's new world order, it is worth thinking about this:
In order for our behavior after the resurrection not to shock God and so that the resurrected one can live forever in God’s world, we must learn to live righteously and get used to a God-pleasing way of life even in this century, before death. Because THERE, in God’s world after the resurrection, there will be no second chance for a “draft” of life. And the “second death” - without hope of resurrection, will visit those who sin in God’s world (Rev. 20:6,14,15)

12:3 Mary, taking a pound of pure precious ointment, anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the world.
The incident with the anointing of Jesus Christ before burial differs in detail from that described by other evangelists (for more details, see Matthew 26:7; Mark 14:3; Luke 7:36-38). But the main action is reflected in the same way: Mary gave Jesus her “two mites”, ALL the most valuable things she had, without counting her personal losses and what people would say about her:a woman was not afraid to appear in a public place with her hair down, in a circle of men strangers to her, doing for Christ what her faith and loving heart prompted her to do (washing the feet of a stranger in a public place with expensive perfume and wiping them with her hair - for a Jewish woman or girls was an extraordinary and immodest phenomenon).

12:4-6 Then one of His disciples, Judas Simon Iscariot, who wanted to betray Him, said:
5 Why not sell this ointment for three hundred denarii and give it to the poor?
6 He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief.8212 He had [a cash] box with him and carried that they put it there .
Of all the evangelists who described the general indignation of the disciples at the inappropriate squandering of material values, the Apostle John, moved by the holy spirit when writing the gospel and therefore cannot be mistaken, is the only one who pointed out the instigator of the indignation and mentioned the secret inner passion of Judas Iscariot to steal from the donation box.

The word thief in this text means, according to Strong's:
kle/pthv 8212
thief, thief; this word speaks of a person who commits secret, secretive theft.

There is also the word "thief" with a number 3027 (lh`sth/v); , for example from Matthew 21:13 about those who turned the House of Prayer into a den of thieves.
It indicates someone who is committing open robbery.

So, Judas was a secret thief, stealing from the donation box.
Let us note that in other respects, Judas did not outwardly stand out as anything so unclean from the background of all the apostles, he was like everyone else, and therefore they could not figure out at the evening who would turn out to be a traitor to Christ.
Through this petty greedy “prank,” Judas gave a place to the devil in himself: the devil is the owner of everyone who begins to play with his “toys.”

In order for the devil to find a place for himself in a Christian, he does not have to lead an ungodly lifestyle in everything.
The example of Judas shows: it is enough to give in to one thing and begin to consciously violate God’s standards, and at the right moment the devil will “pull the string.”
Note that Judas successfully combined theft and apostleship for quite a long time (three whole years) until the devil needed a “service” from him.

12:7 Jesus said: Leave her alone; she saved it for the day of my burial Jesus encouraged Mary so that she would not be upset and confused because of the indignation of Christ’s disciples, so that she would not decide that she had committed a great stupidity: who knows how and how they plan to dispose of her values? She herself is the owner of them and no one can blame her for how she disposes of them, even if she throws them away, no one should reproach her for this.

The motives for such a wish have already been said; Judas had unclean motives. However, even if you have good motives, you should not take power over someone else’s faith and decide for someone what good deeds they should do. Everyone has the right to decide this question for themselves.

12:8 You always have the poor with you, but not always Me.
So, by supporting Mary’s action, Jesus took care of her feelings and, by saying this, did NOT mean that there is no need to spend your wealth on the poor, because this generation will not die out anyway, so it is useless to feed them.

He said that in this century there will always be an opportunity to support the poor financially, but to prepare Christ for burial is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. And Mary took advantage of it, not even suspecting what she was doing for Christ, anointing him with fragrant myrrh before his execution.

12:9-11 Many of the Jews knew that He was there and came not only to see Jesus, but to see Lazarus as well.
L curiosity motivates people to many feats, and if not everyone was interested in listening to the word of Jesus, for example, then many Jews wanted to see the former dead man. Only one, as it turned out - to believe in Christ, and the other - to again make a dead man out of Lazarus, and also out of Christ. The different motives of looking at the same thing are well shown.

One can imagine what kind of pilgrimage was made to Bethany for the sake of the resurrected Lazarus.

The high priests decided to kill Lazarus too, because for his sake many of the Jews came and believed in Jesus.
This interest in Lazarus did not please the authorities among God's people.
However, the high priests of Jehovah’s people have a funny approach to solving the problem: since interest in Christ is also fueled by the desire to look at the resurrected Lazarus, then Lazarus must also be captured, everyone must be kept away from interest in Christ, and for this you need to destroy the reason for the interest.
It is quite understandable why Jesus considered the leaders of God’s people in the 1st century not to be lost, but already lost sheep of the house of Israel: their methods in solving problems by that time were not God’s at all.

12:12-15 The next day, a multitude of people... took up palm branches, came out to meet Him and exclaimed: Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!
All the circumstances of this event were predicted by Zechariah (9:9).
Jesus did not forbid the people to praise himself as the king of Israel, but gave him the opportunity to show his sincere feelings at that moment. He was, in fact, the king of Israel.

Hosanna!See Ps. 117.25. Means: “Help” or “give happiness.”

What does the entry of the king of Israel on the colt of a donkey, on the “son of the yoke”, mean, and not on the donkey itself - see the analysis of Matt. 21:4,5.

12: 16 His disciples did not understand this at first; but when Jesus became glorified, then they remembered that it was written about Him, and they did this to Him .
As we see, Christ’s disciples are not always able to understand the fulfillment of some prophecy at the moment of its fulfillment or to correctly understand the occurrence of some event predicted in Scripture.

Does this mean that they are THEREFORE not disciples of Christ?
No. There is a time for everything: God reveals the meaning of His intentions when He Himself sees fit. And if something in the people of God has not yet been revealed or it turns out that it is openly wrong, then this is not necessarily because the disciples of Christ apostatized from God. Maybe it’s just not the time for the prediction to be revealed. As it happened with the fulfillment of the prophecy about Christ on the colt.

However, if you do not stay awake to the events in the people of God, then you can miss the moment that explains the fulfillment of some prophecies. And sometimes, out of ignorance, an event can be misinterpreted: observers from the outside, for example, not understanding what was really happening, could attribute immodesty to Jesus receiving the shouts of the people; the desire to become famous at least among the common people, if it fails among the leaders; the desire to indulge one’s ambitions, etc.
That is why, if we do not understand something about what is happening, we should not rush to attribute bad motives to the participants in events whose meaning we do not understand.

12:17,18 The people who were with Him before testified that He called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead. That is why the people met Him, because they heard that He had performed this miracle.
The people themselves, it turns out, also did not understand that they were fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy. He greeted Christ only because he learned about the miracle of the resurrection of Lazarus.
As we see, in order to interpret the meaning of some event and see in it the fulfillment of some prophecy from Scripture, you must, firstly, know Scripture well. Secondly, carefully observe events and analyze them. Thirdly, you need to be among God's people in order to be able to observe the fulfillment of the prophecies written for them.

12:19 The Pharisees said to each other: Do you see that you do not have time to do anything? the whole world follows Him.
The Pharisees were annoyed that popular love passed them by and went to Christ at that moment, that these people did not follow them, but followed Christ, despite the fact that every effort was made to present Jesus Christ as an apostate from God.
There is such a vanity on earth: some people strive for public recognition and, having not received it for themselves, try with all their might to take it away from those who have it. They don't even hesitate to kill.

12:20-22 Some Greeks who came to worship in Jerusalem wanted to see Christ.
By Greeks in Scripture are meant:
1) the Greeks themselves, so called in contrast to other peoples, whom they call barbarians;
2) pagans in general, both Greeks and other peoples, because many of them spoke Greek at that time;
3) those of the Jews who lived among the pagans (Hellenists);
4) those of the pagans who converted to the Jewish faith;
5) Christians from pagans who believed in Christ.

However, Jesus did not have the opportunity to pay attention to absolutely everyone who wanted to meet him. The time of his earthly life was running out, and he still had a lot to do. Therefore, Jesus did not rush to invite the Greeks to an audience with him, but explained something to his disciples:

12:23 Jesus answered and said to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” If earlier Jesus spoke about the fact that his hour was not yet, now he spoke about his hour to be glorified.
What could you think about the coming glory of Christ? Certainly not about his death with the robbers. Namely, it was she who was supposed to glorify Jesus as the son of God.
As we see, sometimes the meaning of the expression “to be glorified” from the point of view of man can be very different from the meaning from the point of view of God.

12:24,25 If a grain of wheat falls into the ground and does not die, then only one grain will remain; and if it dies, it will bear much fruit.
Using the example of the “death” of grain, Jesus showed the meaning of his glorification: his upcoming death will certainly be beneficial for humanity, his selfless act will certainly have good fruit.

It also shows the principle of rebirth to new life, which the Apostle Paul later mentioned: if a corruptible person does not die (the “grain” is not sown into the ground), then he will not come to life (is not resurrected as an incorruptible, new “grain”) -1 Cor.15 :36.42.

He who loves his life will destroy it; But he who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.
Whoever tries in this century to preserve his life at the cost of violating God’s commandments, accepting the conditions of this century, shows that he loves his life in this century and tries to preserve it at any cost.

However, it turns out that by preserving your life to extract from it the joys of this age, you can lose it for God’s eternal age.
The way of Christ is incompatible with the way of this world.

12:26 Whoever serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there will my servant also be. And whoever serves Me, My Father will honor him.
For many, the word “servant” evokes unpleasant associations. However, it turns out that the Heavenly Father can only honor the servants of Christ, regardless of whether we like this word or not.
But what does “servant of Christ” mean? This is one who wants to come to God in the footsteps of Christ, exactly following all his instructions, just as a faithful servant follows the instructions of his master.
If someone considers himself a minister (servant) of Christ, he will strive to have the same approach to life in this century: there is nothing valuable in this life that can interfere with fulfilling the will of Jehovah, the main Master of humanity. And there is nothing lasting that one can cling to forever, except the hope of the future with God.

12:27 My soul is now indignant; and what should I say? Father! deliver Me from this hour! But for this hour I have come.
In Jesus, a man and a messenger of God are struggling: he is very worried about the upcoming test prepared for him by the Father for the opportunity to free humanity from sin and death by ransom through self-sacrifice and complete renunciation of himself. The feelings of Jesus struggle with the mind, which realizes that this cup cannot be avoided, for it was for the sake of atonement and the sacrifice of propitiation before the Father for humanity that Jesus came to Earth as a man.

Waiting is one of the most difficult human occupations; Jesus, too, was tired of waiting for the end of the fulfillment of his Father’s work.

12:28 Father! glorify Your name. Then a voice came from heaven: I have glorified and will glorify again .
Jesus does not ask for help for himself personally, but asks the Father to glorify Himself through him: it is the fulfillment of Christ’s mission that can glorify God by the fact that He has sons, faithful to death, for whom death is not the worst thing. And the worst thing for them is not to fulfill the will of their Father.
The devil managed to show the earth that the way of God brings suffering instead of joy in this age. Therefore, many choose to disobey God, giving the devil reason to think that God does not have His sons, that he has subjugated everyone to himself and keeps everyone in the slavery of sin under his control.
Jesus had to glorify God by his obedience to Him and thus snatch people from the slavery of the devil.

God supports His son with a voice from heaven, and this appearance was heard by many.

12:29 The people who stood and heard [it] said: it is thunder; and others said: The angel spoke to him .
As we see, we perceived the clear voice of God in different ways.
What does a person’s perception depend on? From a spiritual mood.

If people began to interpret the clear words of God, spoken by Him live, in different ways, then what can we expect from the interpretation of the voice of God sounding today from the pages of the Bible?
Only Jesus clearly understood what God said from heaven. Therefore, only those of Christ who have reached the age of Christ’s spirituality will be able to hear the voice of God from the pages of Scripture in order to correctly interpret it to people. That's why it is said " Spirit and Bride(Christ's) they say “Come!”"(to God) - Rev. 22:17, for only the bride of Christ is able to perceive the meaning of the spirit of God.

12:30 Jesus said to this, “This voice was not for me, but for the people.” .
So, this voice was supposed to become an “indicator” for the people: either those who heard it would guess that the miracle of the Lord’s voice from heaven should prompt them to believe in the messenger of God, or they would not guess.

12:31 N now is the judgment of this world, now the prince of this world will be cast out
Do these words mean that now (on the day of Christ’s death) the world will be judged in the literal sense and the devil (the prince of this world - 2 Cor. 4:4, Eph. 2:2) with the slavery of sin and death will disappear from the world forever?
No, for even after the death of Christ, death rules over man in this age, and the devil continues to mislead people with his dominion on earth (this is noticeable at least by the number of those living in evil, but still prospering)

What could these words of Christ mean?
That, firstly, Jesus will not submit to the authority of the prince of this world and THIS will disarm him and the world in principle, for those who follow in the footsteps of Christ will also not submit to either his authority or the authority of this world. And depriving the devil of power over the followers of Christ, who will not violate God’s will even to save their lives, means his spiritual expulsion.
Secondly, from the moment of the death of Christ, a period of making fateful decisions will begin for the world: either God will have mercy and forgive them, or condemn them to eternal death - depending on what way of life they choose after the proposed acceptance of God’s grace for salvation through Christ.

12:32,33 And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to Me.
Do these words mean that from the moment of Christ’s ascension into heaven, all people on earth will also, after death, climb into heaven in the literal sense? (this is what some Christian denominations teach, basing the ascension of people to heaven after death - on this text).
It doesn’t mean, because before this Jesus said, for example, this: “ the meek shall inherit the earth"(Matt. 5:5). And about the process of the resurrection of the dead in Christ (those who accepted Christ, and not everyone in a row) is written as about the period of sounding the 7th (last) trumpet of God - 1 Thessalon. 4:16,17), which will happen just before Armageddon, and not on the day of Christ’s death - Rev. 10:7,11:15.

What could these words of Christ mean?
Firstly, speaking about the ascension, he meant the upcoming crucifixion (raising above the ground), and not the ascension to heaven, for he himself immediately explained:
He said this, making it clear by what kind of death He would die.

Secondly, after ascending to the crucifixion, he will have the opportunity to help all people take the path of Christ and thus attract them to himself.

12:34 The people answered Him: We have heard from the law that Christ abides forever; How then do You say that the Son of Man must be lifted up?
The Jews were surprised precisely by the fact that he spoke about his ascension to crucifixion as an impending death: after all, if he is the Christ promised by the prophets, then Christ should not die (the Jews knew the Scriptures well and expected an ever-living Messiah in the literal sense, relying on Daniel 7: 14, for example).
How then can they believe that Jesus, who says about himself that he will die, can be the Christ of God? (the prophets call him the Son of Man)
That's why they asked him: Who is this Son of Man?

12:35,36 Instead of answering this question, Jesus clarified the mission of the Son of Man: walk while there is light, lest darkness overtake you: but he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.
He who walks in darkness is not enlightened by Jesus Christ, DOES NOT KNOW the path to God and does not know where his path actually goes, so-so - he floats with the flow of the path of the whole earth and that’s it, without thinking about the consequences of the chosen direction.

believe in the light so that you may be sons of light Jesus offered them the way to God and becoming His sons through faith that Jesus is the messenger from God.

Having said this, Jesus went away and hid from them. It seems that Jesus no longer saw the point of being in the company of these people and answering their endless repeated questions - the same thing: if they kept asking the same question, it means that they simply did not listen to Christ’s answers to it.

12:37 He performed so many miracles before them, and they did not believe in Him
But they not only did not listen to Christ’s answers. They also strangely did not notice the obvious miracles of Christ. They became deaf and blind. When it became unprofitable to see and hear. That’s why they didn’t believe that Jesus was God’s.
Miracles themselves, as we see, do not contribute to the emergence of faith that the one sent is from God.

12:38-40 However, this state of affairs for the first coming of Christ was predicted by the prophet Isaiah. Only he explained the reason for such strange blindness and deafness: these people themselves hardened their hearts and themselves decided not to pay attention to everything connected with Christ.
Of course, the teachers of the law helped these people to become blind and deaf a lot, but responsibility for their blindness is not removed from them.

The problem of unbelief, as we see, is in the fossilization and insensitivity of hearts, and not in the fact that few miracles were shown to the Jews from God.
That’s why there is no point in expecting any more literal miracles from God after Christ: can anyone really show more than Christ showed?

12:41 This is what Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke about Him.
Interesting text. Many Christians say that Isaiah saw the glory of Christ when he spoke about the hardness of hearts (Isaiah 6:1-10).
And since Isaiah saw the glory of God, then Christ and God turn out to be one and the same person (in their opinion).

But what does Isaiah write and about whom? Isaiah writes this:
Who will go for US? –Isa.6:8.
This means that Jehovah God was not alone at that moment, but with Christ before his coming to Earth and even, perhaps, with his other heavenly servants. The fact that Isaiah saw HIS glory in the sense of the glory of Christ, who was present with God at that moment - therefore, there is nothing surprising. And this does not mean that Jehovah God and Christ BEFORE coming to earth as a man are the same spiritual person.

12:42,43 However, many of the rulers believed in Him; but for the sake of the Pharisees they did not confess, lest they should be excommunicated from the synagogue, The reason for the petrification of hearts and not perceiving the works of Jesus Christ is shown: fear of the leaders of Jehovah’s people, who have the authority to expel people from synagogues for faith in Christ. Those in charge have little choice: either accept Christ and be saved, receiving blessings in the distant future, or remain in the attached and familiar present, rejecting Christ.

for they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God.
Why did you choose an attached life in the present? Because they preferred obedience to human superiors rather than to God’s “ruler” over humanity.

This is exactly the case when the rulers loved their own souls in this world (12:25), that is, they were more concerned about their seat built under the sun (about human glory) than about doing the work of God.
The one who hated his soul was not afraid to lose the comfort under the wing of the authorities in the Jewish community, but took risks (for example, Joseph and Nicodemus), trusting Christ and Jehovah. Those who confessed Christ and did not value their place in the synagogue were, of course, expelled from the synagogues, and it was difficult to live as outcasts in Judea.
But the apostles, for example, consciously went for it, having confidence in the support of God in this century, and in the next - for eternal life.

12:44-46 He who believes in Me does not believe in Me, but in Him who sent Me.
Jesus makes it clear that, in fact, to believe in him means to believe that the Father sent him. That is, automatically, a believer in Christ must believe in Jehovah and in the fulfillment of all His plans.
And if he does not believe in Jehovah, then it turns out that he does not know the full picture about Christ, that he came from God, and not on his own.

And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me . Through knowledge of Jesus Christ one can gain an understanding of his Father, who sent his son to earth.

I have come as light into the world, so that whoever believes in Me will not remain in darkness.
The job of light is to illuminate the path. The task of Christ is to illuminate the path to God, to indicate where to go, how and why. Without knowledge of what the path to God looks like (in the dark) it is impossible to find it. This means that it is impossible to come to God without this knowledge.

12:47 And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. Jesus admits that not everyone will believe his word, but this is not so important to him at this historical stage, when his goal is to redeem humanity and give them a chance to be saved from sin and death.

12: 48 He who rejects Me and does not accept My words has a judge for himself: the word that I have spoken will judge him at the last day.
An important stage in accepting his word will be in the future - at the moment when his word will judge people at some point. last day(see explanation of the “last day” in 6:37-40), that is, in the Millennium, not now.
How word Can Christ judge someone? Very simple.
In relation to the teaching of Christ, to his instructions: whoever accepts the word of Christ as a guide to life, whoever tries to live according to his commandments, it will be good for him. Those who don’t are on their own this- and the judge will sign his sentence (to himself)

God, through the word brought by Christ, has already shown the basis for God's judgment. Let's say I broke the law of the country in which I live and stole something.
Do I absolutely need to be caught and officially convicted so that I can understand what I deserve?
No. It is enough for me to look at the criminal code myself and, knowing all the circumstances of my crime, understand what I deserve according to
law of the country.

The same is the case with God’s judgment: Christ has already shown those who wish to be subjects of God’s “country” - the law of His country in the word that he brought from God.
In most cases, Christians already know what to do so as not to violate the law of God’s Kingdom, what needs to be done to correct violations, and what violators will deserve if they do not want to correct themselves.

12:49,50 For I did not speak from Myself; but the Father who sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what to say and what to say.
Why will the attitude to the word of Christ be decisive for determining a person’s future? Because Jesus actually did not speak HIS word, he did not feed people on earth with ad libs. And he conveyed exactly the word of his Father, Jehovah God.
It is Jehovah, not Christ, who is able to give eternal life to humanity and has instructed to transmit this commandment from heaven to earth - to his son Jesus Christ.

12:1-11 The anointing of Jesus by a sinful woman, described in Luke (7:36-50), is a different episode from the anointing of Jesus by Mary, also described by Matthew (26:6-13) and Mark (14:3-9).

12:3 precious ointment. See art. 5, where Judas estimates the value of this world at an amount equal to a year's wages of a hired hand and almost three times greater than what Judas himself received for betraying Jesus.

feet of Jesus. Matthew and Mark indicate that Mary poured perfume on His head.

12:7 Leave her alone. These words of Jesus are more likely to concern Mary’s feelings than to reproach Judas.

12:8 always... not always. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is eternal; Jesus of Nazareth lived on earth for less than thirty-three years (see 2 Cor. 5:16).

12:11 For his sake... they believed. Many of the Jews believed in Jesus because they saw Lazarus raised by Him. They, in essence, did not so much believe as state a fact. Faith is “the certainty of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1).

12:13 Hosanna! See Ps. 117.25. “Help” or “give me happiness.”

12:14-15 All the circumstances of this event were predicted by Zechariah (9.9).

12:20 some Greeks. These, apparently, were not the Jews of the dispersion (Greek-speaking Jews are called differently in Acts 6:1). Rather, we are talking about proselytes or “God-fearing” Gentiles who attended synagogue services but did not receive circumcision (Acts 8:27; 13:26).

we want to see Jesus. The coming of the Greeks to Jesus foreshadowed the coming of the pagans to faith in Jesus (10:16; 12:32).

12:23 the hour has come. In contrast to Jesus' earlier statements that His hour had not yet come (2.4; 7.6.8.30; 8.20), this statement is the first of a number of ones that speak of the approaching hour of His death and resurrection (12.27; 13.1; 16.32; 17.1). The death of Jesus is spoken of as His glorification (although elsewhere in Scripture the cross and burial are clearly seen as His humiliation, Phil. 2:8). See com. by 13.31.

12:24 wheat grain. A grain thrown into the ground dies when it germinates, but an ear grows out of it.

12:25 He who loves his soul. In Scripture the word "soul" is often used to mean "life." The following interpretation of this verse is possible: he who loves this worldly life will destroy his soul, but he who does not love the world, “nor the things in the world,” will preserve his soul for eternal life.

12:27 Now my soul is troubled. Jesus was extremely excited to see the wrath of His Father, reserved for sinners, fall upon Him. Nevertheless, He accepts the mission of the high priest, offering prayer for the sins of all people, and once again expresses His determination to fulfill it to the end.

12:28 A voice came from heaven. There were three occasions during Jesus' earthly ministry when the Father spoke from heaven: at His baptism (Matt. 3:17), at the transfiguration (Matt. 17:5), and now. Here, for the sake of the disciples (v. 30), the Father seals the mediatorial work of Jesus with the seal of His approval.

12:29 The people... heard it. The situation described is similar to that which arose at the time of Paul's conversion, when the people accompanying him heard some sound, but could not distinguish individual words (Acts 9:7; 22:9).

12:31 Now is the judgment of this world. Those. a decisive moment in human history has arrived. Depending on their behavior, people will face either a sentence of condemnation or forgiveness.

prince of this world. This refers to Satan (cf. 14:30; 16:11; 1 John 4:4; 5:19; 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:2).

12:32 exalted. This is an allusion to execution by crucifixion (v. 33), but at the same time it is also a statement that Christ, as the Reconciler, will be exalted and take his place at the right hand of the Father (see 3:14N).

I will attract everyone. These words do not indicate that salvation will be universal, but they emphasize that the cross of Christ draws everyone to itself and that through the cross people of all nationalities, pagans and Jews, will be saved who allow Jesus to draw them.

12:34 from the law. The word "law", in its broad sense, applied to the entire OT (10.34; 15.25).

Son of Man. The Jews perceived this title as a claim to messianism.

I will be lifted up. The Jews understood this as an allusion to hanging or crucifixion and, based on Scripture (Ps. 89:36.37), could not reconcile the death of Christ with their ideas about the Messiah.

12:35 light. Jesus identifies Himself with the light (1:4-9; 8:12; 9:5; 12:46). His impending death also contained the idea of ​​​​the onset of darkness, but He entrusts the enlightenment of human souls to His disciples, whom He calls “sons of light” (v. 36).

12:38 Let the word of Isaiah the prophet be fulfilled. Jesus' earthly ministry and death were predicted by the prophet Isaiah. See Isa., ch. 53.

12:41 I saw His glory. See com. by 12.38.

12:42 Many believed in Him. Despite the severity of Isaiah's judgment, even some religious leaders believed in Jesus. They did not dare to declare this openly for fear of the Pharisees. Perhaps one of those referred to here was Nicodemus, who had the courage to go against the grain (7:50-52; 19:39-40).

12:44 And Jesus cried out. Particular attention is paid here to Jesus' assessment of His ministry. The relationship of Jesus with His Father is considered in three aspects: 1) to believe in Christ means to believe in the Father (v. 44); 2) to see Christ means to see the Father (v. 45); 3) to hear Christ means to hear the Father (v. 50).

The unity of Jesus Christ with the Father will be especially discussed in chap. 17. From the above, the rejection of Christ is a rejection of the Father, as well as a rejection of the salvation He offers and His holy Word. The consequence of this will be judgment, although the immediate purpose of Christ's incarnation and ministry was the salvation of those who belong to Him, and not the condemnation of those who do not believe. This condemnation naturally follows from the rejection of the Gospel (2 Cor. 2:15.16).

(† 05/14/964, Rome; before the election of Pope - Octavian), Pope of Rome (from December 16, 955). Originated from Rome. aristocratic family. Son of Alberich II, Hertz. Spoleto, Rome. senator and consul, from 932 until his death in 954, he ruled the city alone. Information about Octavian's mother is contradictory: most likely it was Alda, the daughter of Cor. Italy Hugo of Arles and the legal wife of gr. Alberich II, however, in the “Chronicle” of Benedict of Soraktos it is stated that Octavian was the son of Alberich II’s concubine (however, this characteristic may also apply to Alda - Mann. 1910. P. 243-244). Octavian born in Rome, most likely at the residence of gr. Alberich II near c. St. Apostles. According to one of the editions of Liber Pontificalis, before being elected pope, Octavian was a cardinal deacon of Rome. diakonia of the Virgin Mary (S. Mariae in Domnica), which, however, is not confirmed by other sources. Elected to the Roman See in fulfillment of the last will of Count. Alberich II. If the hypothesis about the legitimate birth of Octavian is correct, then at the time of his election as pope he was 18 years old. Octavian accepted Christ. the name John, thus becoming the first Pope of Rome to change his name upon election (some researchers believe that Pope John II first changed his name).

Little is known about the first years of I.'s pontificate. According to the Chronicle of Salerno, the pope attempted to expand the territories subordinate to Rome in the south, organizing a campaign against Pandulf of Benevento and Landulf II of Capua, but was forced to return to Rome due to fears that the gr. Gisulf of Salerno will capture the city. In Terracina, I. concluded a peace treaty with Gisulf, the main condition of which, as researchers believe, was the renunciation of the Pope's claims to secular power in Salerno (Fedele. 1905).

To the beginning 60s X century the situation in Italy worsened due to the attempts of the cors who settled in Ravenna. Italy Berengar II and his son and co-ruler Adalbert strengthened their positions in Lombardy and the Center. Italy. In 960, I., being unable to resist them, turned to the Germans for help. cor. Otto I (936-973, emperor from 962). The exiled Archbishop of Milan also approached Otto with a request to come to Italy and punish Berengar. Walpert and Margr. Este Otbert. In the fall of 961, Otto led a campaign to Italy. Having not encountered serious resistance (Berengar II, avoiding battle, fortified himself in the fortress of San Leo (Montefeltro), and Adalbert fled to La Garde-Frenet (modern Var, France) or to Corsica), in the end. Jan. 962 Otto arrived in Rome, where he was solemnly greeted by the pope. On Sunday 2 Feb. 962, on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord, after Otto took an oath to observe and protect the interests of the Romans and the Roman Church (the text of the oath was preserved by Bonizon of Sutri - Bonizonis episcopi Sutrini Liber ad amicum. 4 // MGH. Lib. T. 1. P. 581) the pope assigned to the germ. king and his wife Adelheid imp. crowns After the coronation, a Council was held under the chairmanship of the pope and the emperor, where they probably discussed the issue of creating an archbishopric in Magdeburg and the principles of the relationship between the pope and the emperor (Papstregesten. 1998. N 298, 304). At the Council, the creation of the Archbishop of Magdeburg was approved (the final decision on this issue was made at the Council in Ravenna in 967) and the Bishopric of Merseburg (Jaffé. RPR. N 2832); also based on its results on February 13. 962 imp. Otto I signed a charter with the privilege of the Roman Church (“Privilegium Ottonianum”; preserved copy of the 10th century). The text of the privilege is divided into 2 logical parts: a listing of secular possessions assigned to the Pope (§ 1-14), and provisions regulating the rights of the pope and emperor in Rome (§ 15-19); following W. Ullmann (Ullmann. 1953), the majority of modern researchers believe that the 2nd part of the privilege was absent from the original text of the document and was included in it after the election of Pope Leo VIII in December. 963 “Privilegium Ottonianum” contains few innovations compared to previous charters of this kind: the charter of Louis the Pious “Ludovicianum” (817) and the Roman Code of Pope Eugene II and Emperor. Lothair (“Constitutio romana”, also “Lotharianum”, 824). The Ottonian privilege confirmed the boundaries of the Papal States established by Louis the Pious (without the duchy of Salerno), and also preserved all the rights of the pope and emperor in Rome, stipulated in the Roman Code of 824. The Roman Church was guaranteed the free election of a bishop, but before his consecration, he had to take an oath in the presence of the imperial legates to comply with the terms of the agreement with the emperor. I. and the Romans swore an oath not to enter into an alliance with the emperor’s opponents, primarily with Berengar II and Adalbert.

After Otto I went with an army to northern Italy to lead the siege of the fortress of San Leo, I. entered into negotiations with Adalbert, inviting him to return to Italy and promising to provide support in the conflict with the emperor. Whether I. was the initiator of the negotiations, or he only responded to Adalbert’s requests for help, is unknown. At the same time, the pope tried to conclude an alliance with the Byzantine Empire and the Hungarians, sending messages calling for an attack on Germany. possessions of the emperor in his absence. The ambassadors were intercepted by the emperor. The papal legates accused Otto I of violating his promise to transfer to the Pope the territories assigned to the Papal Throne. The return embassy sent by Otto I in order to remove suspicions of non-fulfillment of promises was received by I. with hostility, while the pope greeted Adalbert in Rome solemnly. Otto I, having learned about the return of his son Berengar II, left the fortress of San Leo and with a small detachment went to Rome, where he ended. Oct. 963 he was met by supporters of I. and Adalbert, who, after a short-term armed confrontation, were forced to flee to Tivoli or, according to the testimony of Liber Pontificalis and Benedict of Soractos, to Campania.

6 Nov 963 imp. Otto I convened a Council, at which the trial of I. was held. The Pope was accused of sacrilege, debauchery, simony, murder and perjury. They sent him a letter inviting him to attend the Council, but I. refused, threatening the Council participants with excommunication. When, despite the threat, the Council accepted the indictment and declared I. deposed, the pope fled. Instead, with the support of the emperor, December 4. 963 Leo VIII was elected to the Roman See. However, anti-imperial sentiment was also strong in Rome, which led to an uprising (Jan. 3, 964). The rebels tried to expel the emperor, who had fortified himself near the Vatican Basilica and the Castle of the Holy Angel, but their performance was suppressed by the army of Otto I. In the middle. Jan. The emperor left Rome for Spoleto, and in February. I returned to Rome, accompanied by the army. February 26. In 964, a new Council was held in the Vatican Basilica, at which the Council of 963 was declared illegal, I. was restored to his rank, and Pope Leo VIII was deposed (MGH. Const. T. 1. P. 532-536). Leo VIII fled to Pavia, where he was respectfully received by the emperor. Otto I, who began to prepare for a new campaign against Rome. However, on May 14, 964, I. died under mysterious circumstances. According to Liutprand of Cremona, the pope, on a date with a certain Roman woman outside the city walls, was struck in the temple by the devil, and 8 days later I. died.

Judging by fragmentary information, I. supported the Cluny movement and church reform in the West Frankish kingdom and in England. The papal letter to Berner, abbot of the Monastery of the Virgin Mary and St. Cunegondes in Omblier: at the request of the West Franc. cor. Lothar's pope freed the monastery from vassalage to Gilbert of Ribemont, emphasizing that the monastery should never be the fief of a secular ruler, and also granted the monastery the Benedictine charter and the right to freely elect an abbot (Jaffé. RPR. N 2822). In England, I. approved St. Dunstan, leader of church reform. Charters and other documents confirming the privileges of monasteries and bishops have been preserved, but their number is small. It is known about the work that was carried out under I. in the Lateran Basilica. In 960, by order of I., the basilica was repaired, and a chapel dedicated to the apostle was built in it. Thomas (oratorium S. Thomae apostoli), subsequent. for a long time served as the papal sacristy. Descriptions of the chapel have been preserved, as well as copies of 2 fragments of wall paintings. Both fragments are images of I.: on one, the deacons help the pope put on the casula, on the other, I. blesses the believers under a canopy.

In the Middle Ages and in modern times, I. was known in historiography as one of the most dissolute popes. This reputation was founded by Ch. arr. on the modern pontificate I. op. "The History of Otto" by Liutprand of Cremona. The pope was accused of simony, of uncanonical actions (I. allegedly ordained a deacon in the stable), of neglect of the poor condition of the churches, of turning the Lateran Palace into a refuge for dissolute women, of fornication, including in churches, of seducing married women, in incestuous relationships, etc. I.’s notoriety was reflected in other contemporary sources: in the Liber Pontificalis, in the “Continuation of the Chronicle of Reginon of Prüm” (Continuatio Reginonis), in the “Chronicle” of Benedict of Soraktos, as well as in later chronicles. In the late Middle Ages. description of the transfer of the relics of St. Kyriak in Bamberg it is reported that I., having become pope, sent to Preziosa, the abbess of the monastery of St. Cyriacus in Rome, an ambassador with a certain proposal, which caused an angry refusal from the abbess. I. harbored a grudge against the abbey, and when Otto I arrived in Rome in 962, the pope removed the relics of St. from the monastery. Kiriak and presented them to the emperor, among other things. relics (ActaSS. Aug. T. 2. P. 338-339). Most researchers tend to treat such information critically; they note imp. the focus of early sources and the dependence on them of later ones.

Source: LP. Vol. 2. P. 246-249; Jaffe. RPR. N 2821-2844; Liudprandus Cremonensis. Historia Ottonis // MGH. Script. Rer. Germ. T. 41. P. 159-175; Benedictus S. Andreae monachus. Chronicon, an. 955-964 // MGH. SS. T. 3. P. 717-719; Continuator Reginonis, an. 961-964 // MGH. SS. T. 1. P. 624-627; Chronicon Salernitanum. 166/Ed. U. Westerbergh. Stockholm, 1956. P. 170; Sickel T., von. Das Privilegium Otto I. für die römische Kirche. Innsbruck, 1883; MGH. Dipl. T. 1: Conradi I. Henrici I. et Ottonis I diplomata. P. 322-327; MGH. Const. T. 1. P. 532-536; Papstregesten, 911-1024 / Bearb. H. Zimmermann. W., 19982. N 254-355. (Regesta Imperii; Tl. 2. Abt. 5).

Lit.: Duchesne L. Les Premiers temps de l"État Pontifical. P., 19042. P. 328-352; Fedele P. Di alcune relazioni fra i conti del Tuscolo ed i principi di Salerno // Archivio della Società Romana di Storia Patria. R., 1905. Vol. 28. P. 5-21; Mann H. K. The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages. L., 1910. Vol. 4. P. 241-272; Wilpert J. Die römischen Mosaiken und Malereien der kirchlichen Bauten vom IV. bis XIII. Jh. Freiburg i. Br., 19172. Bd. 1. S. 212-213; Amann E. Jean XII // DTC. T. 8. Col. 619-626 ; Ladner G. B. I ritratti dei Papi nell "antichità e nel medioevo. Vat., 1941. Vol. 1. P. 163-167; Ullmann W. The Origins of the Ottonianum // CHJ. 1953. Vol. 11. N 1. P. 114-128; Zimmermann H. Die Deposition der Päpste Johannes XII., Leo VIII. u. Benedikt V. // MIÖG. 1960. Bd. 68. S. 209-225; Hehl E. D. Die angeblichen Kanones der römischen Synode vom Februar 962 // DA. 1986. Bd. 42. S. 620-628; Hampe K. Die Berufung Ottos des Grossen nach Rom durch Papst Johann XII. // Historische Aufsätze: K. Zeumer z. 60. Geburtstag: FS. Fr./M., 1987r. S. 153-167; Kreuzer G. Johannes XII. // BBKL. Bd. 3. Sp. 208-210; Gregorovius F. History of the city of Rome in Wed. centuries: From V to XVI centuries. M., 2008. pp. 459-468.

1–8. The Anointing of Christ in Bethany. – 9–19. The solemn entry of the Lord into Jerusalem. – 20–36. Christ's last speech in the temple. – 37–50. Review of the results of the Messianic activity of the Lord Jesus Christ.

John 12:1. Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was dead, whom He raised from the dead.

Since, according to the law, Passover began on the 14th of Nisan in the afternoon, it means that the Lord came to Bethany on the 8th of Nisan (six days before). But on what day did the 8th of Nisan happen? Some say that it was Saturday, since the 14th of Nisan that year happened on Friday. Of course, if we assume that John in the expression “before Easter” understands the “legally” celebrated Passover by the Jews that year and that this “legal” day of Easter fell on Friday that year, then, of course, those who accept such an opinion would be right. But why couldn’t John in this expression mean the Passover that Christ celebrated with His disciples a day earlier, i.e. 13th Nisan, Thursday? Such a count of days for John is very possible. Moreover, it is unlikely that the Lord began to unnecessarily disturb the peace of the Sabbath day by traveling with his disciples. In addition, it undoubtedly took a lot of time to prepare the supper for Christ and His disciples - and who would prepare it on the Sabbath? Finally, what John reports could not have happened on one Saturday evening: the arrival of many Jews in Bethany after they learned about the coming of Christ here, and the determination of the high priests to kill Lazarus (verses 9-10). Thus, it remains to be accepted that the Lord came to Bethany on Friday afternoon, and on Saturday He was offered supper. The Jews in general, it seems, loved to have large suppers on Saturdays (cf. Luke 14:1, 5 et seq.). If the evangelist did not consider it necessary to say that the supper was held on the next day after the Lord’s arrival, then in other cases he does not sometimes consider it necessary to make similar distinctions between days (cf. John 1:39).

The question of whether this supper was the same one that Matthew (Matthew 26 et seq.) and Mark (Mark 14 et seq.) speak about is decided differently by interpreters. Some (for example, Bishop Michael) argue that this was a different supper, and to prove their opinion they refer, firstly, to the fact that the first two evangelists describe a supper celebrated not six, but two days before Easter, secondly, because the name of the woman is named only in John, thirdly, the name of the householder who hosted the supper is named only in the first two evangelists and, fourthly, because the suppers are so different in church hymns for Holy Week . Others see no need to distinguish between these suppers and argue that all three evangelists are talking about the same thing. The latter assumption is more natural, since it seems highly unlikely that the Lord would come to Bethany twice in the course of one week and that the same event—the anointing of Christ—would be repeated under almost identical circumstances by two different women. As for the objections that are raised against the latter opinion, they have no force. First of all, the second and third objections, pointing to the non-designation of names, no longer have any force: one evangelist considered it necessary to name the character, the other did not. As for the first reason, although it seems strong, it is actually not of much importance. The fact is that the evangelists Matthew and Mark speak about the anointing of Christ not at all in the chronological sequence of events, but only remember it on the occasion that after the history of this anointing they report the betrayal of Judas (Matthew 26 et seq.), but, as It can be seen from the Gospel of John that Judas aroused the other disciples to murmur at the pointless waste of the precious world that Mary had done. The Evangelist Matthew, therefore, inserted the story of the anointing into the 26th chapter not at all because it was required by a strict chronological sequence of events, but in order to partly characterize the mood of the disciples in general and Judas in particular, and partly in order to say, that the Lord knew about the fate prepared for Him by His enemies (Matthew 26:12). The story of the anointing in the Gospel of Mark stands in exactly the same connection. As for the evidence of liturgical chants, they never set out to establish a chronological sequence of events. This can be seen, for example, from the fact that Christ’s conversation with the apostles about the preparation of Easter took place according to the sticheron on Saturday Vai, when Christ came to Bethany (“before” the six days of Easter); another stichera of the same day says that Christ came before the six days of Easter “to call out Lazarus who died four days ago.”

Where did the Lord come from this time to Bethany? In all likelihood, from Jericho, where He visited the house of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:5). From Jericho to Bethany the walk was about six hours.

On Bethany, see comments on Mark. 11:1.

John 12:2. There they prepared a supper for Him, and Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those who reclined with Him.

As can be seen from the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, the supper for Christ was prepared “in the house of Simon the leper” (see Matthew 26:6). But Martha was invited by the owner to serve Christ, as a woman from a family to which Christ was disposed. It is remarkable that Lazarus also took part in the feast. Obviously, he felt so good that he did not shy away from the joyful feast

John 12:3. Mary, taking a pound of pure precious ointment of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the world.

The Evangelist again clearly contrasts Mary with Martha (cf. John 11:32). While Martha made sure there was plenty of everything at the table, Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with ointment and wiped them with her hair. She forgets that Jewish propriety prohibits a woman from appearing bareheaded in the company of men; she even unties her hair to wipe Christ’s feet with it, thus repeating what the sinful wife once did to Jesus (Luke 7: 38).

Lb– 337.5 g.

Backgammon- see comments to Mark. 14:3.

John 12:4. Then one of His disciples, Judas Simon Iscariot, who wanted to betray Him, said:

John 12:5. Why not sell this ointment for three hundred denarii and give it to the poor?

In John, only Judas Iscariot protests against Mary’s feat, while in Matthew and Mark all the disciples protest. Obviously, John indicates who actually initiated this protest.

For other things, see Matt. 26; Mk. 14.

John 12:6. He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. He had a cash box with him and wore what was put in there.

Judas not only carried the donated money, but also “carried away”, i.e. secretly took a significant part of them for himself. The verb here (ἐβάσταζεν), translated in Russian by the expression “carried,” is more correctly translated “carried away” (cf. John 20:15). Why was Judas entrusted with a box of money by Christ? It is very likely that with this manifestation of trust Christ wanted to influence Judas, to inspire him with love and devotion to Himself. But such trust did not have favorable consequences for Judas: he was already too attached to money and therefore abused the trust of Christ.

John 12:7. Jesus said: Leave her alone; She saved it for the day of My burial.

See comments on Matt. 26:12; Mk. 14:8.

“Leave it.” The older codices read, “leave,” and this reading is more appropriate here, since John says that it was only Judas who condemned Mary.

"She saved it." The most ancient codes are read here “so that she would preserve” (instead of τετήρηκεν – ἵνα ... τηρήσῃ). The Lord, according to this ancient reading, wants to say that Mary, who has now anointed His feet, should not sell the ointment still remaining in the vessel in order to distribute the money received from the sale to the poor, but save it for the day of His burial, when she can, according to custom, anoint the body of Jesus.

John 12:8. For you always have the poor with you, but not always Me.

(See comments on Matthew 26:11; Mark 14:7).

John 12:9. Many of the Jews knew that He was there and came not only for Jesus, but to see Lazarus, whom He raised from the dead.

From the 9th to the 19th verse there is a story about the entry of the Lord into Jerusalem, which (entry) John generally depicts in accordance with the weather forecasters (cf. Matt. 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19 :29-38). But at the same time, John also contains some deviations from the weather forecasters, explained by the peculiarity of the plan of his narrative.

While the weather forecasters begin with the procession of Christ to Jerusalem from Jericho, and do not talk about Christ entering Bethany, John does not mention Jericho at all and, on the contrary, Bethany is the main stopping point for Christ in this procession. Even Jews rush here to verify the reality of the resurrection of Lazarus. Obviously, John also adds to the narrative of the weather forecasters.

John 12:10. The high priests decided to kill Lazarus too,

John 12:11. because for his sake many of the Jews came and believed in Jesus.

The high priests, noticing the excitement among the people, seeing how, because of Lazarus, resurrected by the Lord, many of the Jews moved away from them (ὑπῆγον, in the Russian translation inaccurately - “came”) and turned to Christ, they decided to kill Lazarus too.

John 12:12. The next day the multitude that came to the feast, hearing that Jesus was going to Jerusalem,

The events mentioned in verses 9-11, of course, could not have happened in just one day, and therefore the expression “on the next day” must be understood in the sense of designating the day following the day of the supper in Bethany, which was on the Sabbath. Thus, the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem falls on the 10th of Nisan (in our opinion, on Sunday).

John 12:13. They took palm branches, came out to meet Him and exclaimed: Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel!

(See comments on Matthew 21:9-11).

"Palm branches." "Branch" in Greek is βαΐον, a word taken from the Egyptian language. In the Old Testament they are mentioned as a symbol of joy. They welcomed kings, conquerors, and heroes (1 Mac. 13:51). They resembled the bouquets (Lulab) with which the Jews went to the Feast of Tabernacles based on Lev. 23:40. If the people now greet Christ with exclamations of “Hosanna,” they do so probably due to some association of thought. It was the branches in the hands that reminded the people of the joyful feast of tabernacles, when the 117th Psalm was sung, and in this psalm the proclamation “Hosanna” is found. The people here thus expressed their joy at the coming of the Messiah-King to them and greeted Him with joyful cries, believing that Christ had come to reveal His Kingdom.

John 12:14. Jesus found a colt and sat on it, as it is written:

The fact that Jesus did not find the donkey Himself is clear from the words of verse 16: “they did it to Him,” i.e. of course, His disciples.

John 12:15. Fear not, daughter of Zion! Behold, your King is coming, sitting on a colt.

John explains the entry of Christ on a donkey in the words of the prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 9:9) as a sign of the meekness of the King Messiah. Now He appears not to punish and judge, but to save His people. However, John, of course, wanted to say that salvation will be given only to the true daughter of Zion, i.e. worthy of this salvation.

The quotation from the book of the prophet Zechariah is given in abbreviated form. In addition, John replaced the expression “rejoice with joy” (Zech. 9:9) with the expression “do not be afraid.” He did this in view of the fact that at that time it was too early for the true Israelis, who understood that the Lord was going to suffer and die. On the contrary, the Lord's entry into Jerusalem for the pious Israelites only served to dispel their worries that the messianic salvation was still not accomplished. And John now calms their worries. The Messiah-Savior is coming!

John 12:16. His disciples did not understand this at first; but when Jesus became glorified, then they remembered that it was written about Him, and they did it to Him.

Just as the disciples did not previously understand Christ’s words about Himself as about the temple, which would first be destroyed and then restored (John 2:19), so in relation to the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem they show a lack of understanding that in this the Old Testament prophecies about Christ. Only after the glorification of Christ did they realize that they themselves had served to fulfill these prophecies, bringing to the Lord a donkey on which He entered Jerusalem (“and they did it to Him”).

John 12:17. The people who were with Him before testified that He called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead.

John 12:18. That is why the people met Him, because they heard that He had performed this miracle.

John 12:19. The Pharisees said to each other: Do you see that you do not have time to do anything? the whole world follows Him.

"People", i.e. the crowd of people (ὁ ὄχλος) that was in Bethany at the resurrection of Lazarus; explained to the “people”, i.e. again to the crowd (ὁ ὄχλος), which met Christ at the gates of Jerusalem, which the Lord did in Bethany. This explains the evangelist’s delight with which Christ was greeted. It then seemed to the Pharisees that “the whole world” or the whole people was already following Christ, and with these considerations they encouraged each other to take more decisive actions against Christ.

John 12:20. Of those who came to worship on the holiday, there were some Greeks.

The Greeks whom John mentions here apparently belonged to the so-called “proselytes of the gate” and came to Jerusalem to worship (cf. Acts 24:11).

The evangelist does not indicate on what day the next incident occurred.

John 12:21. They approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying: Master! we want to see Jesus.

These proselytes saw how the Jewish people met their Messiah, with whose expectation they could not but be acquainted before, and wished to “see Jesus,” i.e. they could get to know Him (“see” Him before). With a request to introduce them to Christ, they turn to the Apostle Philip. John, saying that Philip was from Bethsaida of Galilee (see Luke 9:10), thereby makes it clear that Philip could have been known to these “Greeks,” who, in all likelihood, came from the Decapolis, in relation to which Bethsaida occupied the neighboring place (cf. Matt. 4:25).

There is nothing incredible in the assumption that these proselytes were present when Christ expelled the merchants from the temple, which took place the day after Christ entered Jerusalem. (And John does not say that the Greeks turned to Philip on the very day of the “entry”). After all, the merchants occupied exactly the same courtyard in the temple that was reserved for proselytes to pray, and Christ, having expelled the merchants from here, thereby, as it were, took the proselytes under His protection. Hence, naturally, the proselytes showed sympathy for Him and a desire to get to know Him better.

John 12:22. Philip goes and tells Andrey about this; and then Andrew and Philip tell Jesus about this.

Philip did not dare to report the desire of the Greeks to Christ himself. Firstly, he could be embarrassed by the memory of the commandment given by Christ regarding the pagans (Matthew 10:5), and the word of Christ regarding the request of the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:24), and secondly, Philip saw how enthusiastic Christ was accepted by the Jewish people, and thought that Christ’s conversation, and, moreover, probably in the temple, with the Greeks, would arouse irritation towards Him among the Jews and give rise to the accusation against Christ that He was alien in soul to His people (cf. John 7 :35, 8:48). But Andrew, to whom Philip turned for advice, was more decisive and considered it possible to speak about the desire of the Greeks for Christ. Andrew could also recall incidents of this kind, such as, for example, Christ’s healing of the servant of the Capernaum centurion, Christ’s conversation with the Samaritan woman, and, finally, His word: “him who comes to Me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37).

John 12:23. Jesus answered and said to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”

Christ did not answer anything about the Greeks’ request. His speech, apparently, is addressed to Philip and Andrew (“said in response to them”). In this speech He says that the hour of His departure has come. He now faces death, and the representatives of the pagan world who came to Him seem to remind him that it is time for Him to offer His soul for the good of all mankind. But the accomplishment of atonement, of course, is the highest work of the Messiah, and therefore Christ calls His death His “glorification.” The hour has come for Him to die, but at the same time to “be glorified,” and His glorification so exceeds the humiliation that the Lord will accept in death that He does not even talk about death, but only about glorification. At the same time, He speaks not “to Me,” but to “the Son of Man.” This usual designation of the Messiah in John has a special meaning here. The Lord wants to say by this that He will appear as the redeemer not of just the Israeli people, but of the entire human race: “Son of Man,” He belonged to all humanity.

John 12:24. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; and if it dies, it will bear much fruit.

Since the disciples, under the influence of Christ’s solemn meeting with the people, could interpret Christ’s words about glorifying Him in the sense of promising some new miracles, the Lord with particular force (twice repeated “truly”) rejects such an understanding of His words. No, it is not external glorification that awaits Him now, but, on the contrary, humiliation, death. But this death is a necessary condition for the emergence of a new, richer and more diverse life. He must give His soul or life so that the salvation He brought would go beyond the limited framework of Judaism and become the property of the whole world. This is the meaning of this parable about the grain, which, dying, i.e. decomposing in the ground, it produces a new sprout, on which many grains (fruits) appear. Thus, the idea is expressed here that in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ lies the life of the entire Church, that every believer reflects Christ in himself, lives with Him and in Him.

It should be noted that if the pagans began to listen to the words of Christ, then they too could somewhat understand their meaning, since grain played a big role in their mysteries as a symbol of life.

John 12:25. He who loves his life will destroy it; But he who hates his life in this world will keep it to eternal life.

John 12:26. Whoever serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there will my servant also be. And whoever serves Me, My Father will honor him.

The same readiness for self-sacrifice should characterize the disciples of Christ. See comments on Matt. 10:39, 16:25, and parallel places.

As for the reward that the Lord promises to His followers, John here expresses in a somewhat original way what is indicated in Matt. 10:32, 34 and Mark. 8:38.

John 12:27. My soul is now indignant; and what should I say? Father! deliver Me from this hour! But for this hour I have come.

According to Archbishop Innocent, all this, as the very nature of thoughts and words shows, was uttered with an expression of greatness befitting the Son of God. “But suddenly His bright gaze was covered with a kind of darkness of sadness. It was clear from His divine face that in His soul one feeling was quickly replaced by another and there seemed to be some kind of strong internal movement and struggle taking place.” From the thought of a glorious future, the Lord suddenly moves to the thought of the present, and now the “soul” that should be hated responds to this thought with a terribly painful sensation. In fact, Christ was sinless, and death, meanwhile, is a consequence of sin. It is clear that she was especially hateful, contrary to the “soul” of Christ, His most holy nature. In addition, the very death that Christ suffered was terrible because it was a punishment for sins Total humanity. Christ in this death had to taste all the bitterness of the cup that God’s justice has prepared for sinful humanity.

“And what should I say?” The Lord is so shocked by the thought of death, by the anticipation of its bitterness, that he does not find appropriate words to express His feelings. But this state lasts only for a few moments.

“Father! deliver Me from this hour!” This is not a request, but a question. The Lord seems to be pondering with Himself: “Shall I tell the Father that He will deliver Me? But for this hour I have come. No, I must go to this mortal struggle, I must complete the work for which I came. Let everything be accomplished that God’s righteous judgment has judged Me.” Christ overcame the involuntary fear of death.

It is very likely that John, reporting this short-term “struggle” of Christ with the fear of death, is saying the same thing that the weather forecasters wanted to say with their story about the Gethsemane “struggle” of Christ (Matthew 26:36-46 and parallel passages).

John 12:28. Father! glorify Your name. Then a voice came from heaven: I have glorified it and will glorify it again.

Christ asks for the glorification of the name of God - glorification, of course, by his death and resurrection, which should be followed by the implementation of Christ’s words about the salvation of all mankind (verse 24). To this request, God Himself answered Christ from heaven that just as He had previously fulfilled His intentions through Christ, so through the death of Christ He would soon glorify His name, i.e. will complete His economy for the salvation of the human race (John 9:3, 11:4).

John 12:29. The people who stood and heard it said: it is thunder; and others said: The angel spoke to him.

Whenever the Son showed His devotion to the Father on any important occasion of His life, the Father answered Him in the presence of certain witnesses. This happened at baptism, during transfiguration, and this happened this time too. Christ, on this solemn final day of His prophetic ministry, consecrates Himself to the high priestly service ahead of Him - finally enters the path leading to death. Now the Father solemnly declares favor to the Son for such a decision. The Father proclaims glorification to the Son, i.e. the imminent advent of a new era of Christ’s activity - His activity as a King (Gode). There is no doubt that the Father’s words were spoken as articulate sounds, this is evident from the fact that some of those present made out them, but considered them to be the words of an Angel.

John 12:30. To this Jesus said: This voice was not for Me, but for the people.

Christ, of course, even without such a sign knew what the Father wanted to tell Him. The voice was for the Jews surrounding the Lord, who should have paid attention to such a wonderful testimony about Christ, but due to their insensitivity (cf. John 5:37) they still did not understand that in this way God Himself was calling them to Christ.

John 12:31. Now is the judgment of this world; now the prince of this world will be cast out.

After this remark made by Christ in relation to the people, the Lord again returns to the speech about what “His hour” will bring to all humanity. Now that judgment (κρίσις), which began with the appearance of Christ for ministry (cf. John 3:19, 5:22, 24, 30), is coming to its end. The world, condemning Christ to death, believes that by doing so it will completely remove Him from any influence on its life, but in fact it is not Christ, but this sinful world most hostile to Christ that is now being condemned. At the same time, the ruler of this world (“prince”) or the devil (Eph. 2:2) will also be cast out of the world (according to some ancient codes, “down” - κάτω). The decision about the devil will be pronounced “today,” i.e. at the hour of Christ’s death, but the fulfillment of this decision will be carried out gradually, with the acquisition of more and more new followers of Christ, which is why Christ does not say “expelled”, but “will be expelled” (cf. John 16:11).

John 12:32. And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to Me.

The Lord uses the expression “I will be lifted up” (ὑψωθῶ) here in the same dual meaning as before (see comments on John 3:14): His ascension on the cross will become for Him a means to ascend to heaven. On the other hand, this ascension is a means to bring all people, including “Greeks” (verse 20), to Christ, under His authority. When Christ is in heaven, He will no longer be confined to the narrow confines of one nationality to which He belonged by birth, but will be Lord of “all” (Rom. 10:12).

John 12:33. He said this, making it clear by what kind of death He would die.

The evangelist himself understands the words of the Lord most closely as a foreshadowing of the very image of His death - the crucifixion, in which the Lord, in fact, was ascended or raised above the earth and, stretching out His hands on the cross, as if he wanted to draw the whole World to Himself.

John 12:34. The people answered Him: We have heard from the law that Christ abides forever; How then do You say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?

It seemed impossible to the crowd of people to reconcile the recent triumphal entry of Christ into Jerusalem as the Messiah and these speeches by Him about His imminent death. Old Testament prophecies said that the Messiah would reign forever (Ps. 109:4; Is. 9:6; Dan. 7:13-14). No, if the Messiah, or the Son of Man, must leave the place of His activity, then this is no longer the Messiah that the Jews expected - this is some kind of special Messiah! Let Christ explain to them who He actually means.

John 12:35. Then Jesus said to them: For a little while yet the light is with you; walk while there is light, lest darkness overtake you: but he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.

John 12:36. As long as the light is with you, believe in the light, that you may be sons of light. Having said this, Jesus walked away and hid from them.

The Lord again encounters misunderstanding on the part of His listeners, but now does not find it possible to enter into any explanations with the crowd on the question of what the Messiah should be like from the point of view of the prophets. He urges his listeners to take advantage of the few days in which the light of the sun - Christ - will still shine for them (cf. John 7:33, 8:12). But, of course, in order to use this Light (walk with it), faith in this Light is needed, and Christ considers it necessary to remind them of this, promising that they can become over time “sons of light” (see comments Luke 16:8). Having said this, Christ retired, probably to Gethsemane, to the Mount of Olives.

From verses 37 to 50, the evangelist glances at the results of the activities of the Lord Jesus Christ among the Jewish people and is surprised at how meager these results were, how few believers in Christ turned out to be. How can we explain this fact? Here, according to the evangelist, God’s threat to the Jewish people, which the prophet Isaiah once uttered, was realized. At the same time, the evangelist briefly summarizes the evidence that is available about Christ in the speeches of Christ to the Jews previously given by John.

John 12:37. He performed so many miracles before them, and they did not believe in Him,

Speaking of many miracles (“so many miracles”), John obviously means the miracles described by the weather forecasters: he himself speaks only of a few miracles of Christ.

John 12:38. may the word of the prophet Isaiah be fulfilled: Lord! who believed what they heard from us? and to whom was the arm of the Lord revealed?

The fact that the Jews did not believe – of course, as a whole – in Christ was not some kind of surprise. The prophet Isaiah already predicted this. (Is. 53:1, the evangelist quotes from the text of the translation of the Seventy). Christ can now say with the apostles (“to what was heard from us”) that there were very few believers of His preaching.

John 12:39. Therefore they could not believe, because, as Isaiah also said,

John 12:40. This people have blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their hearts, and turn, that I might heal them.

What is the reason for such a sad and for many incomprehensible phenomenon as the unbelief of the people, who had long been preparing to receive the Messiah? Therefore, the evangelist answers, they could not (the ancient Greek interpreters replaced the expression “could not” with the expression “did not want,” but such a replacement does not find any basis in the very words of the prophet, which are given below) to believe in Christ, that, as Isaiah said, this is the people extremely persistent in his understanding of the tasks that the Messiah was supposed to accomplish. The Jews stubbornly did not want to understand their spiritual weakness, in which they were due to their sins. They found no need for the Messiah as a spiritual Savior and Healer. That is why they did not turn to Christ.

The Evangelist cites here a place from the book of Isaiah (Isaiah 6:9-10) according to the translation of the Seventy, as this place was already given by the weather forecasters (Matthew 13:14-15 and parallel places). But our Russian translation does not accurately convey the Greek text: instead of “their eyes” it reads “their eyes” and to the verb “blinded” the subject “this people” is added, whereas this expression is not found in the Greek text. The Slavic translation is more correct and closer to the Greek original: “blind, those. blinded their eyes,” etc. According to this translation, the subject of the word “blinded” must be recognized as the word “God” or “Lord”, found in verse 38 (“Lord!”), and the whole verse receives the following meaning: God - in punishment for the fact that the Jews from the very beginning of Christ’s appearance preaching the Gospel in Judea (John 2:13-14), they discovered a reluctance to believe in Christ - it blinded their eyes and petrified their hearts, or, in other words, hardened them, so that they would not understand the meaning of Christ’s works. However, as St. Augustine notes, “God does not harden in such a way as to instill stubbornness, but only by taking away His grace from a person. He makes salvation difficult in the sense that He Himself does not send relief, and blinds us in that it does not enlighten.”

"So that I may heal them." Since we saw that the subject of the verb “blinded” must be the word “God,” it is clear that here by the expression “I” the evangelist could not mean God - then it would be necessary to say, according to the requirement of the construction, “He” healed - and meant Christ the Savior and Healer. Thus, the whole verse takes on the character of a complaint that Christ brings against His people. “This people,” as Christ says, “has angered My Heavenly Father with their stubborn reluctance to listen to Me, and for this My Father has taken from them His gracious help, which is necessary for a person so that he can understand My deeds, consider them as must. If the people had not fallen into such bitterness, they could have received healing or salvation from Me, but now it’s all over!”

John 12:41. This is what Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke about Him.

Here the evangelist explains the reason why he gives such meaning to the above prophecy of Isaiah, referring it to Christ. The prophet saw the “glory of Christ,” i.e. he saw God seated in all His glory and surrounded by Seraphim, but, seeing God, he, according to the evangelist, also saw Christ, because Christ, as the divine Logos, always abided with God (cf. John 1:1). Therefore, we can say that Isaiah, in the above prophecy about the bitterness of the Jews, had Christ in mind (“speaking of Him”). Wed. comments on Isa. 6.

John 12:42. However, many of the rulers believed in Him; but for the sake of the Pharisees they did not confess, lest they should be excommunicated from the synagogue,

John 12:43. for they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God.

To show that the mission of Christ did not pass without a trace for the Jews, the evangelist points out that even some of the leaders - he is no longer talking about ordinary Jews, many of them believed - were believers in Christ, but because of material and other benefits they did not directly profess their faith. Such were Nicodemus (John 7:50) and Joseph of Arimathea (John 19:38).

Greek ancient interpreters believe that from verse 44 a new speech of the Lord begins, but one cannot agree with this opinion, because, according to the evangelist, Christ has already “hidden” from the Jews (verse 36). To whom could He speak this speech? It is better to see here the conclusion that the evangelist himself makes to the history of Christ’s public ministry outlined above. In this conclusion he summarizes the numerous testimonies of Christ about Himself as the Messiah, the Son of God. The connection between this section and the previous one is as follows. The Jews did not believe in Christ, even the leaders who believed in Christ did not openly confess their faith, and yet Christ loudly proclaimed (“proclaimed”, ἔκραξεν - shouted) what great significance faith in Him has and what terrible consequences it entails disbelief.

John 12:44. Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me does not believe in Me, but in Him who sent Me.”

(See John 7ff; John 8:42).

John 12:45. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.

(See John 14:9, 8:19).

John 12:46. I have come as light into the world, so that whoever believes in Me will not remain in darkness.

(See John 8:12, 9:5, 12:35).

John 12:47. And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.

(See John 3:17, 8:15).

John 12:48. He who rejects Me and does not accept My words has a judge for himself: the word that I have spoken will judge him at the last day.

(See John 5:45).

“The Word... will judge.” At the final instance, the judgment will be carried out not by Christ personally, but by the word He proclaimed: people will be judged insofar as they have put faith in the “word of Christ” and His Gospel in its entirety. So the Lord said about the Jews that they are judged by their law (John 7:51).

John 12:49. For I did not speak from Myself; but the Father who sent Me, He gave Me a commandment, what to say and what to say.

(See John 7:17).

John 12:50. And I know that His commandment is eternal life. So what I say, I say as the Father told me.

(See John 3:34, 6:63, 8:47-51).