pray for them.

The apostles. The prayer from verse. to verse 19 is for these.

I pray not for the world.

Not at this time; he came into the world to save it, and we are not to conclude that he would never pray for its conversion and welfare. Now, however, his petition is confined to the apostles, the little band who are hanging upon his words. He even bids us to pray for our enemies (Matthew 5:44), yet some rigid Calvinists have insisted that Christ would only pray for his chosen ones. Paul bids us pray for all men.

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