_CHRIST DELIVERETH THE WOMAN TAKEN IN ADULTERY: HE PREACHETH HIMSELF THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD, AND JUSTIFIETH HIS DOCTRINE; ANSWERETH THE JEWS, WHO BOASTED OF ABRAHAM, AND CONVEYETH HIMSELF FROM THEIR CRUELTY._ _Anno Domini 32._... [ Continue Reading ]
NOW MOSES IN THE LAW COMMANDED— The law, Leviticus 20:10. Deuteronomy 22:22 required in the general, that adultery should be punished with death, but did not determine the kind of it: only because it is ordered, Deuteronomy 22:23 that the betrothed damsel guilty of adultery should be stoned, it is s... [ Continue Reading ]
THIS THEY SAID, TEMPTING HIM, &C.— The reason upon which they grounded their insidious intention was, that had he declared against stoning the adulterers, they certainly would have represented him to the people, as contradicting Moses, and favouringadultery; hoping by that means to have lessened his... [ Continue Reading ]
HE THAT IS WITHOUT SIN AMONG YOU, &C.— Alluding to the law, Deuteronomy 17:7 which ordered that the hands of the witnesses, by whose testimony an idolater was convicted, should be first upon him, and afterwards the hands of all the people. We learn from the _Mischna,_ that the first stone, which was... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THEY WHICH HEARD IT, &C.— "And as all their consciences were struck with horror by a secret power which set these words home upon them, and they thereupon could not but accuse themselves of one heinous crime or another, they were ashamed to plead innocence, or to proceed in a demand of justice a... [ Continue Reading ]
HATH NO MAN CONDEMNED THEE?— Hath no man _punished thee,_ in casting the first stone at thee? For the critics observe, that the words κρινω and κατακρινω are frequently used in the sense of _chastising_ and _punishing. "Neither do I condemn thee:_ I do not order that thou shouldst be now punished; _... [ Continue Reading ]
I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD:— In the transaction above related, Jesus appears unspeakably great, having displayed on the occasion a degree of wisdom, knowledge,goodness,andpower,evidentlymorethanhuman—_wisdom,_indefending himself against the malicious attacks of his enemies; _knowledge,_ in discover... [ Continue Reading ]
THOUGH I BEAR RECORD OF MYSELF,— "Though I call myself _the Light of the world,_ ye are not to imagine that I do it from a spirit of pride and falsehood. I give myself the title for no other reason but because it truly belongs to me: and that it does so, you yourselves would acknowledge, if you knew... [ Continue Reading ]
AND YET IF I JUDGE,— At the same time our Lord told them, that if he should condemn any person for unbelief, such condemnation would be just, because his divine mission was true; being confirmed, not by his own testimony only, but by the Father's also; and because every sentence of that kind which h... [ Continue Reading ]
IF YE HAD KNOWN ME, &C.— "If you had any just notions of _me,_ you would know who it is that I call _my Father;_ that is to say, if you knew me to be the Messiah, you would know that my Father is God.... [ Continue Reading ]
THESE WORDS SPAKE JESUS IN THE TREASURY,— The _treasury_ was that part of the women's court, where the chests were placed for receiving the offerings of those who came to worship, (see Mark 12:41.) and consequently was a place of great concourse, being resorted unto even by the priests and rulers. W... [ Continue Reading ]
I GO MY WAY, AND YE SHALL SEEK ME, &C.— Our Lord had said this to them in a former discourse, Ch. John 7:34 and repeated it now, that it might make the deeper impression upon them: his meaning here seems to be, that "after his ascension into heaven, when the Roman armieswere spreading desolation and... [ Continue Reading ]
WILL HE KILL HIMSELF, &C.— Our Lord's answer to this question is, _Ye are from beneath:_ "Such a vile insinuation evidently shews what sort of persons you are, and whence you have derived your original: being from the earth, you are the slaves of earth and heirs of hell, obnoxious to all the evil pa... [ Continue Reading ]
IF YE BELIEVE NOT THAT I AM HE, &C.— That is, "The person whom I have represented myself to be." There is evidently in the original an ellipsis here to be supplied by comparing the passage with John 8:12. See Ch. John 13:19. Mark 13:6. Acts 13:25. "If ye do not believe that I am the bread of life, t... [ Continue Reading ]
EVEN THE SAME THAT I SAID UNTO YOU, &C.— On supposition that this is the proper translation of the passage, our Lord's meaning was, "I am that which I said to you at the beginning of this discourse, namely, _the Light of the world."_ But Raphelius, who is followed by Doddridge and many others, propo... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEN YE HAVE LIFTED UP THE SON OF MAN,— "When you have crucified me, you shall know both who I am, and who my Father is. The miracles accompanying my death, my resurrection from the dead, the effusion of the Spirit on my disciples, and the destruction of your nation, shall demonstrate that I am the... [ Continue Reading ]
AS HE SPAKE THESE WORDS, MANY BELIEVED ON HIM.— It seems probable, that by the phrase of _lifting up,_ the Jews did not understand our Lord's crucifixion, but his exaltation to the throne and kingdom of David. Hearing him, therefore, speak of a temporal kingdom, as they supposed, they began now to t... [ Continue Reading ]
IF YE CONTINUE IN MY WORD, &C.— "If you persevere in the belief and practice of my word, you are really my _disciples,_ and have a just title to that honourable appellation. Moreover, you shall be fully instructed in every doctrine of the gospel, called here and elsewhere, by way of eminence, _Truth... [ Continue Reading ]
WE BE ABRAHAM'S SEED, &C.— "Then some of those who had professed to believe in him taking it as a high affront, that he should speak as if he thought them to be slaves, said to him in a vaunting manner, We are the descendants of the celebrated patriarch Abraham, who, being a sovereign prince, and a... [ Continue Reading ]
WHOSOEVER COMMITTETH SIN, &C.— Ποιει αμαρτιαν, _doeth,_ or _practiseth sin:_ to _do,_ in the Hebrew dialect, imports not the present act only, but the habit of doing. Hence some render this, _Whosoever practises sin, is the servant,_ Δουλος, _the slave of sin._—There are no greater slaves than those... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE SERVANT ABIDETH NOT IN THE HOUSE FOR EVER:— "As a slave cannot be so assured of his master's favour, as to depend upon it that he shall never be turned out of the family, since he is always his master's property, and in his power, to sell or keep him as he shall think fit; so my Father can,... [ Continue Reading ]
IF THE SON THEREFORE SHALL MAKE YOU FREE,— "The only way to arrive at the relationship above mentioned,—to become _children_ of God, is to believe in and submit to the authority of his Son; in which case the Son will adopt you as co-heirs with himself. _If the Son shall make you free, ye shall be fr... [ Continue Reading ]
I KNOW THAT YE ARE ABRAHAM'S SEED;— "I know that ye are the seed of Abraham by natural descent, as Ishmael also was; but morally ye are the offspring of the devil; and in every respect unlike Abraham in your temper and disposition; as is plain from hence, that many of you are endeavouring to kill me... [ Continue Reading ]
NOW YE SEEK TO KILL ME, &C.— "If ye were the spiritual progeny of Abraham, ye would resemble that great and good man in his righteousness; and therefore instead of seeking to take away the life of any one who is come to you from God with a revelation of his will, much less that of the true Messiah,... [ Continue Reading ]
WE BE NOT BORN OF FORNICATION, &C.— The Jews, it seems, perceived at length that Jesus talked not so much of natural, as of spiritual bondage; and replied, "In that respect undoubtedly we are the children of God, as we are not born of fornication;" alluding to the marriage covenant, which in scriptu... [ Continue Reading ]
I PROCEEDED FORTH AND CAME FROM GOD;— "I originally proceeded from God the Father as his only-begotten Son, partaker of the same nature with him, and am come into the world immediately from him: I did not come merely of myself, like a false prophet, but by commission from him, who sent me, as the Me... [ Continue Reading ]
WHY DO YE NOT UNDERSTAND MY SPEECH, &C.?— The latter clause of this verse may likewise be translated and pointed interrogatively; _Why do ye not understand my speech,_ λαλιαν,— the spiritual stile that I make use of? _Is it because you cannot hear my word?_ cannot give obedience thereto, it being co... [ Continue Reading ]
YE ARE OF YOUR FATHER THE DEVIL,— "You inherit the nature of your father, the devil; and therefore you are determined to gratify the lusts which you have derived from him. He was the enemy and murderer of mankind, and ever since has endeavoured to work their ruin; sometimes by seducing them into sin... [ Continue Reading ]
AND BECAUSE I TELL YOU THE TRUTH,— "True children of your Father, John 8:44 you disbelieve me, because, instead of soothing you in your sins, and flattering you with lies, I tell you the truth; to which, like your father, you are utterly averse.... [ Continue Reading ]
WHICH OF YOU CONVINCETH ME OF SIN?— _Can convict me of sin?_ Heylin. The only reason for refusing assent to a person is, either because he is not deserving of credit, or because what he asserts is improbable. Our Lord shews that they could not object to him for either of these reasons, particularly... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU ART A SAMARITAN, &C.— The Jews and Samaritans bore a mortal hatred to each other on account of religion, as we have frequently observed: hence it came to pass, that in common language, _Couthi,_ or _Samaritan,_ was used to signify not merely a Samaritan, but a bad man by principle and dispositi... [ Continue Reading ]
IF A MAN KEEP MY SAYING,— Our Lord, having before observed that _there is one who seeketh his glory,_ goes on to declare, that God the Father will not only finally glorify him as the Son ofman, but will confer the highest honours and rewards on all his faithful persevering servants. _Verily, verily,... [ Continue Reading ]
NOW WE KNOW THAT THOU HAST A DEVIL.— "We know now for certain that thou art under diabolic influences; for the most righteous persons that ever lived, are dead; even Abraham and the prophets: yet thou hast hardiness enough to say, _If a man keep my saying, he shall never die."_ There is a great emph... [ Continue Reading ]
YET YE HAVE NOT KNOWN HIM, &C.— Though you profess to worship my Father as your God, you are ignorant of him: you neither form right conceptions of him, nor acknowledge him in the manner you ought to do; so that you give a lie to your profession: and though you may think it vain glory, yet I must te... [ Continue Reading ]
YOUR FATHER ABRAHAM REJOICED, &C.— When the figurative word _day_ is used not to express the period of any one's existence, but to denote his peculiar office and employment, it must needs signify that very circumstance in his life which is the characteristic of such office or employment: but Jesus i... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU ART NOT YET FIFTY YEARN OLD,— Understanding what our Lord laid in a natural sense, the Jews thought he affirmed that he lived as man in the days of Abraham; which they considered as ridiculous, he not being yet fifty years of age: for they had no conception of his Divinity, though he had told t... [ Continue Reading ]
BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS, I AM.— _"Before Abraham was born,_ I had a glorious existence with the Father; and _I am_ still invariably the same, and one with him." Our Lord here, in the strongest terms, asserts his proper Divinity, declaring himself to be what St. John more largely expresses, Revelation 1:8... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN TOOK THEY UP STONES— The Jews, thinking the Lord Jesus a blasphemer, because he made himself not only greater than Abraham, but equal with God, Ch. John 5:18 fell into a violent rage, as Dr. Clagett expresses it, reckoning him not worthyto be answered any other way than by an immediate and zeal... [ Continue Reading ]