19-20. Did not Moses, &c.--that is, In opposing Me ye pretend zeal for Moses, but to the spirit and end of that law which he gave ye are total strangers, and in "going about to kill Me" ye are its greatest enemies.
21-24. I have done one work, &c.--Taking no notice of the popular appeal, as there were those there who knew well enough what He meant, He recalls His cure of the impotent man, and the murderous rage it had kindled ([Joh 5:9], [16, 18]). It may seem strange that He should refer to an event a year and a half old, as if but newly done. But their present attempt "to kill Him" brought up the past scene vividly, not only to Him, but without doubt to them, too, if indeed they had ever forgotten it; and by this fearless reference to it, exposing their hypocrisy and dark designs, He gave His position great moral strength.
25-27. some of them of Jerusalem--the citizens, who, knowing the long-formed purpose of the rulers to put Jesus to death, wondered that they were now letting Him teach openly.
28-29. cried Jesus--in a louder tone, and more solemn, witnessing style than usual.
Ye both, &c.--that is, "Yes, ye know both Myself and My local parentage, and (yet) I am not come of Myself."
but he that sent me is true, &c.--Probably the meaning is, "He that sent Me is the only real Sender of any one."
30-32. sought to take ... none laid hands--their impotence being equal to their malignity.
33-34. Yet a little while, &c.--that is, "Your desire to be rid of Me will be for you all too soon fulfilled. Yet a little while and we part company--for ever; for I go whither ye cannot come: nor, even when ye at length seek Him whom ye now despise, shall ye be able to find Him"--referring not to any penitential, but to purely selfish cries in their time of desperation.
35-36. Whither will he go, &c.--They cannot comprehend Him, but seem awed by the solemn grandeur of His warning. He takes no notice, however, of their questions.
37-39. the last day, that great day of the feast--the eighth ([Le 23:39]). It was a sabbath, the last feast day of the year, and distinguished by very remarkable ceremonies. "The generally joyous character of this feast broke out on this day into loud jubilation, particularly at the solemn moment when the priest, as was done on every day of this festival, brought forth, in golden vessels, water from the stream of Siloah, which flowed under the temple-mountain, and solemnly poured it upon the altar. Then the words of [Is 12:3] were sung, With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of Salvation, and thus the symbolical reference of this act, intimated in [Joh 7:39], was expressed" [Olshausen]. So ecstatic was the joy with which this ceremony was performed--accompanied with sound of trumpets--that it used to be said, "Whoever had not witnessed it had never seen rejoicing at all" [Lightfoot].
Jesus stood--On this high occasion, then, He who had already drawn all eyes upon Him by His supernatural power and unrivalled teaching--"Jesus stood," probably in some elevated position.
and cried--as if making proclamation in the audience of all the people.
If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink!--What an offer! The deepest cravings of the human spirit are here, as in the Old Testament, expressed by the figure of "thirst," and the eternal satisfaction of them by "drinking." To the woman of Samaria He had said almost the same thing, and in the same terms ([Joh 4:13], ). But what to her was simply affirmed to her as a fact, is here turned into a world-wide proclamation; and whereas there, the gift by Him of the living water is the most prominent idea--in contrast with her hesitation to give Him the perishable water of Jacob's well--here, the prominence is given to Himself as the Well spring of all satisfaction. He had in Galilee invited all the WEARY AND HEAVY-LADEN of the human family to come under His wing and they should find REST ([Mt 11:28]), which is just the same deep want, and the same profound relief of it, under another and equally grateful figure. He had in the synagogue of Capernaum ([Joh 6:36]) announced Himself, in every variety of form, as "the Bread of Life," and as both able and authorized to appease the "HUNGER," and quench the "THIRST," of all that apply to Him. There is, and there can be, nothing beyond that here. But what was on all those occasions uttered in private, or addressed to a provincial audience, is here sounded forth in the streets of the great religious metropolis, and in language of surpassing majesty, simplicity, and grace. It is just Jehovah's ancient proclamation now sounding forth through human flesh, "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no Money!" &c. ([Is 55:1]). In this light we have but two alternatives; either to say with Caiaphas of Him that uttered such words, "He is guilty of death," or falling down before Him to exclaim with Thomas, " My Lord AND MY God!"
40-43. Many ... when they heard this ... said, Of a truth, &c.--The only wonder is they did not all say it. "But their minds were blinded."
44-49. would have taken him; but, &c.--(See on [Joh 7:30]).
50-53. Nicodemus--reappearing to us after nearly three years' absence from the history, as a member of the council, probably then sitting.
Chapter 8
Joh 8:1-11. The Woman Taken in Adultery
1-2. Jesus went unto the Mount of Olives--This should have formed the last verse of the foregoing chapter. "The return of the people to the inert quiet and security of their dwellings ([Joh 7:53]), at the close of the feast, is designedly contrasted with our Lord's homeless way, so to speak, of spending the short night, who is early in the morning on the scene again. One cannot well see why what is recorded in [Lu 21:37], may not even thus early have taken place; it might have been the Lord's ordinary custom from the beginning to leave the brilliant misery of the city every night, that so He might compose His sorrowful and interceding heart, and collect His energies for new labors of love; preferring for His resting-place Bethany, and the Mount of Olives, the scene thus consecrated by many preparatory prayers for His final humiliation and exaltation" [Stier].
3-6. scribes and Pharisees--foiled in their yesterday's attempt, and hoping to succeed better in this.
7. He that is without sin--not meaning sinless altogether; nor yet, guiltless of a literal breach of the Seventh Commandment; but probably, he whose conscience acquits him of any such sin.
cast a stone--"the stone," meaning the first one ([De 17:7]).
8. again he stooped down and wrote--The design of this second stooping and writing on the ground was evidently to give her accusers an opportunity to slink away unobserved by Him, and so avoid an exposure to His eye which they could ill have stood. Accordingly it is added.
9. they ... convicted ... went out one by one ... Jesus was left alone--that is, without one of her accusers remaining; for it is added.
the woman in the midst--that is, of the remaining audience. While the trap failed to catch Him for whom it was laid, it caught those who laid it. Stunned by the unexpected home thrust, they immediately made off--which makes the impudence of those impure hypocrites in dragging such a case before the public eye the more disgusting.
10. Woman, &c.--What inimitable tenderness and grace! Conscious of her own guilt, and till now in the hands of men who had talked of stoning her, wondering at the skill with which her accusers had been dispersed, and the grace of the few words addressed to herself, she would be disposed to listen, with a reverence and teachableness before unknown, to our Lord's admonition. "And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more." He pronounces no pardon upon the woman (such as, "Thy sins are forgiven thee" [compare [Lu 5:28]; ]--"Go in peace" [compare [Mr 5:34]; [Lu 7:50]; ]), much less does He say that she had done nothing condemnable; He simply leaves the matter where it was. He meddles not with the magistrate's office, nor acts the Judge in any sense ([Joh 12:47]). But in saying, "Go and sin no more," which had been before said to one who undoubtedly believed ([Joh 5:14]), more is probably implied than expressed. If brought suddenly to conviction of sin, admiration of her Deliverer, and a willingness to be admonished and guided by Him, this call to begin a new life may have carried with it what would ensure and naturally bring about a permanent change. (This whole narrative is wanting in some of the earliest and most valuable manuscripts, and those which have it vary to some extent. The internal evidence in its favor is almost overpowering. It is easy to account for its omission, though genuine; but if not so, it is next to impossible to account for its insertion).
Joh 8:12-59. Further Discourses of Jesus--Attempt to Stone Him
12. I am the light of the world--As the former references to water ([Joh 4:13], ; [7:37-39]) and to bread ([Joh 6:35]) were occasioned by outward occurrences, so this one to light. In "the treasury" where it was spoken (see on [Joh 8:20]) stood two colossal golden lamp-stands, on which hung a multitude of lamps, lighted after the evening sacrifice (probably every evening during the feast of tabernacles), diffusing their brilliancy, it is said, over all the city. Around these the people danced with great rejoicing. Now, as amidst the festivities of the water from Siloam Jesus cried, saying, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink," so now amidst the blaze and the joyousness of this illumination, He proclaims, "I AM THE Light of the world"--plainly in the most absolute sense. For though He gives His disciples the same title, they are only "light in the Lord" ([Ep 5:8]); and though He calls the Baptist "the burning and shining light" (or "lamp" of his day, [Joh 5:35]), yet "he was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light: that was THE TRUE Light which, coming into the world, lighteth every man" ([Joh 1:8], ). Under this magnificent title Messiah was promised of old ([Is 42:6]; Mal 4:2, &c.).
he that followeth me--as one does a light going before him, and as the Israelites did the pillar of bright cloud in the wilderness.
but shall have the light of life--the light, as of a new world, a newly awakened spiritual and eternal life.
13-19. bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true--How does He meet this specious cavil? Not by disputing the wholesome human maxim that "self-praise is no praise," but by affirming that He was an exception to the rule, or rather, that it had no application to Him.
20. These words spake Jesus in the treasury--a division, so called, of the fore court of the temple, part of the court of the women [Josephus, Antiquities, 19.6.2, &c.], which may confirm the genuineness of [Joh 8:2-11], as the place where the woman was brought.
no man laid hands on him, &c.--(See on [Joh 7:30]). In the dialogue that follows, the conflict waxes sharper on both sides, till rising to its climax, they take up stones to stone him.
21-25. Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, &c.--(See on [Joh 7:33]).
26-27. I have many things to say and to judge of you; but he that sent me is true, &c.--that is, I could, and at the fitting time, will say and judge many things of you (referring perhaps to the work of the Spirit which is for judgment as well as salvation, [Joh 16:8]), but what I do say is just the message My Father hath given Me to deliver.
28-30. When ye have lifted up the Son of man--The plainest intimation He had yet given in public of the manner and the authors of His death.
then shall ye know that I am he, &c.--that is, find out, or have sufficient evidence, how true was all He said, though they would be far from owning it.
31-33. Then said Jesus to those Jews who believed, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed, &c.--The impression produced by the last words of our Lord may have become visible by some decisive movement, and here He takes advantage of it to press on them "continuance" in the faith, since then only were they His real disciples (compare [Joh 15:3-8]), and then should they experimentally "know the truth," and "by the truth be made (spiritually) free."
34-35. Whosoever committeth sin--that is, liveth in the commission of it--(Compare [1Jo 3:8]; [Mt 7:23]).
is the servant of sin--that is, the bond-servant, or slave of it; for the question is not about free service, but who are in bondage. (Compare [2Pe 2:19]; [Re 6:16]). The great truth here expressed was not unknown to heathen moralists; but it was applied only to vice, for they were total strangers to what in revealed religion is called sin. The thought of slaves and freemen in the house suggests to our Lord a wider idea.
37-41. ye seek to kill me--He had said this to their face before: He now repeats it, and they do not deny it; yet are they held back, as by some marvellous spell--it was the awe which His combined dignity, courage, and benignity struck into them.
because my word hath no place in you--When did ever human prophet so speak of His words? They tell us of "the word of the Lord" coming to them. But here is One who holds up "His word" as that which ought to find entrance and abiding room for itself in the souls of all who hear it.
42-43. If God were your Father, ye would love me--"If ye had anything of His moral image, as children have their father's likeness, ye would love Me, for I am immediately of Him and directly from Him." But "My speech" (meaning His peculiar style of expressing Himself on these subjects) is unintelligible to you because ye cannot take in the truth which it conveys.
44. Ye are of your father the devil--"This is one of the most decisive testimonies to the objective (outward) personality of the devil. It is quite impossible to suppose an accommodation to Jewish views, or a metaphorical form of speech, in so solemn an assertion as this" [Alford].
the lusts of your father--his impure, malignant, ungodly propensities, inclinations, desires.