John 3:16

John 3:16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that every one that believeth in him may not perish, but have eternal life. In the preceding verses is recorded the first announcement of the Gospel by our Lord, the revelation of the mystery made manifest by Him who came out of heaven. John pauses to set his Master's words in the light in which he himself had afterwards beheld them. Jesus had said ‘must be lifted on high,' but had given no reason. His disciple, whose message to the church was ‘God is love' (1 John 4:16), refers back the necessity to this truth. Whatever remains still hidden, so much as this is certain, that the humiliation and exaltation of Him who came down out of heaven were the expression of God's love to the whole world. The Son of man is the Son of God, the only begotten Son; the one term expresses His fitness for the work, the other points to His dignity and to the greatness of the Father's love. In this love the Father gave the Son: to what He surrendered Him is not here said; our Lord's own words (John 3:14) fill up the meaning. The universality of the blessing is marked with twofold emphasis; designed, not for Israel only, but for the whole world, it is the actual possession of every believer. The words relating to faith are more definite than in John 3:14; for (see chap. John 2:11) to ‘believe in Him' points to a trust which casts itself on Him and presses into union with Him. The Divine purpose is presented under two aspects, not one only (as in John 3:15); it is that the believer may be saved from perdition, and may now possess eternal life.-This verse contains most of the leading terms of John's theology. One only of these requires further comment, on account of the various senses in which it is employed by the Evangelist. The ‘world' does not in this verse designate those who had received and rejected the offer of salvation. It is thought of as at an earlier stage of its history; the light is not yet presented by the acceptance or rejection of which the final state of the world shall be determined.