John 1:42

And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone. AND HE BROUGHT HIM TO JESUS. Happy brothers, thus knit together by a new tie! If Peter soon outstripped not only Andrew but all the rest, he would still remember that his brother "was in Christ before him," and was the blessed instrument of bringing him to Jesus. AND WHEN JESUS BEHELD HIM (SEE THE NOTE AT 36), HE SAID, THOU ART SIMON THE SON OF JONA, or rather, "Jonas," as rendered in John 21:17 - the full name serving, as Tholuck says, to give solemnity to the language (Matthew 16:17; John 21:...

42._Thou art Simon. _Christ gives a name to _Simon, _not as men commonly do, from some past event, or from what is now perceived in them, but because he was to make him Peter, (_a stone_.) First, he says_, Thou art Simon, the son of Jonah. _He repeats the name of his father in an abridged form; which is common enough when names are translated into other languages; for it will plainly appear from the last chapter that he was the son of _Johanna _or _John_. But all this amounts to nothing more than that he will be a very different person from what he now is. For it is not For the sake of honor that he mentions his father; but as he was descended from a family which was obscure, and which was held in no estimation among men, Christ declares that this will not prevent him from making _Simon _a man of unshaken courage. The Evangelist, therefore, mentions this as a prediction, that _Simon _rec...

37-42 The strongest and most prevailing argument with an awakened soul to follow Christ, is, that it is he only who takes away sin. Whatever communion there is between our souls and Christ, it is he who begins the discourse. He asked, What seek ye? The question Jesus put to them, we should all put to ourselves when we begin to follow Him, What do we design and desire? In following Christ, do we seek the favour of God and eternal life? He invites them to come without delay. Now is the accepted time, 2 Corinthians 6:2. It is good for us to be where Christ is, wherever it be. We ought to labour for the spiritual welfare of those related to us, and seek to bring them to Him. Those who come to Christ, must come with a fixed resolution to be firm and constant to him, like a stone, solid and stedfast; and it is by his grace that they are so....

Verse 42. _CEPHAS, WHICH IS BY INTERPRETATION, A STONE._] πετρος signifies a _stone_, or fragment of a rock. The reason why this name was given to Simon, who was ever afterwards called _Peter_, may be seen in the notes on Matthew 16:18, Matthew 16:19, and particularly in Luke, at the end of chap 9. See Clarke on Lu 9:62...

CEPHAS - This is a Syriac word, meaning the same as the Greek word Peter, a stone. See the notes at Matthew 16:17. The stone, or rock, is a symbol of firmness and steadiness of character - a trait in Peter’s character after the ascension of Jesus that was very remarkable. before the death of Jesus he was rash, headlong, variable; and it is one proof of the omniscience of Jesus that he saw that Peter “would” possess a character that would be expressed appropriately by the word “stone” or “rock.” The word “Jonas” is a Hebrew word, whose original signification is a “dove.” It may be that Jesus had respect to that when he gave Simon the name Peter. “You now bear a name emblematic of timidity and inconstancy. You shall be called by a name denoting firmness and constancy.”...

EXPOSITION THE title of the book is differently given in the manuscripts and ancient versions, and the differences are so considerable that they cannot be referred to the original text. The simplest form of the title is found in א, B, D, and is nothing more than "_according to_ John," ΚΑΤΑ ΙΩΑΝΝΗΝ (B gives only one N in John's name, but א two); and this is followed by the vulgate and Syriac as a running title. The immense proportion of the uncials—A, C, E, F, G, L, and eight or nine others—read "Gospel according to John" (Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ιωάννην). This is followed by Tregelles, Lachmann, Alford. The T.R., with a large number of manuscripts, reads, "The Gospel according to John;" and in Stephen's third edition the word "holy" occurs before "Gospel." The cursives 69, 178, 259, read Εὐαγγέλιον ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ Ἰωὰνην. Some cursives read, "Of the (holy) Gospel according to John." The p...

AND HE BROUGHT HIM TO JESUS,.... That is, Andrew brought his brother Simon to Jesus; he persuaded him to go along with him, and showed him where he was; which discovered great zeal for Christ, being desirous of, gaining souls unto him; and great affection to his brother, being heartily concerned that he might know Christ, as well as he; nor did he choose that he should take up with the bare account that he gave of him, but would have him go to him himself, that he might be personally acquainted with him, and instructed by him: and this also shows the readiness and willingness of Simon, to see and hear Christ himself, and not sit down contented with the bare relation his brother gave: no doubt he found his heart stirred up within him, and the desires of his soul going after Christ; and therefore he at once rose up and went with Andrew to him; and thus one person may be the means of bringi...

John 1:19. _And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou ? And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ._ «I am not the One anointed of God to save mankind.» John 1:21. _And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias ?_ «Art thou Elijah come back to earth?» John 1:21. _And he saith, I am not._ For, though indeed he was the true spiritual Elijah who was to come as the forerunner of the Messiah, yet, in the sense in which they asked the question, the only truthful answer was, «I am not.» John 1:21

JOHN 1:42 VIwa,nnou {B} A majority of the Committee regarded VIwna/ (read by A B3 D ¦1 ¦13 and most of the later Greek witnesses) as a scribal assimilation to Bar-Jona of Matthew 16:17. The reading VIwa,n$n%a reflects further scribal confusion with the name of a woman mentioned only by Luke (cf. Luke 8:3; Luke 24:10). See also the comment on...

ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS I. The Only-begotten, the Eternal Word; His Glory and His Manifestation -- Chapter 1:1-2:22 CHAPTER 1 __ 1. The Word: the Creator, the Life and the Light. (John 1:1 .) 2. The Light and the Darkness. The Light not Known. (John 1:5 .) 3. The Word Made Flesh and Its Gracious Results. (John 1:12 .) 4. The Witness of John. (John 1:19 .) 5. Following Him and Dwelling With Him. (John 1:35 .) 6. The Next Day. Nathanael's Unbelief and Confession. ...