John 18:25

_NOW ANNAS HAD SENT HIM BOUND UNTO CAIAPHAS THE HIGH PRIEST._ No JFB commentary on these verses....

25._He denied it. _How shocking the stupidity of Peter, who, after having denied his Master, not only has no feeling of repentance, but hardens himself by the very indulgence he takes in sinning! If each of them in his turn had asked him, he would not have hesitated to deny his Master a thousand times. Such is the manner in which Satan hurries along wretched men, after having degraded them. We must also attend to the circumstance which is related by the other Evangelists, (Matthew 26:74; Mark 14:71,) that _he began to curse and to swear, saying, that he did not know Christ. _Thus it happens to many persons every day. At first, the fault will not be very great; next, it becomes habitual, and at length, after that conscience has been laid asleep, he who has accustomed himself to despise God will think nothing unlawful fo

13-27 Simon Peter denied his Master. The particulars have been noticed in the remarks on the other Gospels. The beginning of sin is as the letting forth of water. The sin of lying is a fruitful sin; one lie needs another to support it, and that another. If a call to expose ourselves to danger be clear, we may hope God will enable us to honour him; if it be not, we may fear that God will leave us to shame ourselves. They said nothing concerning the miracles of Jesus, by which he had done so much good, and which proved his doctrine. Thus the enemies of Christ, whilst they quarrel with his truth, wilfully shut their eyes against it. He appeals to those who heard him. The doctrine of Christ may safely appeal to all that know it, and those who judge in truth bear witness to it. Our resentment of injuries must never be passionate. He reasoned with the man that did him the injury, and so may we...

See the notes at Matthew 26:72....

EXPOSITION B. THE HOUR HAS COME. JOHN 18:1 John 19:42.—1. _The outer glorification of Christ in his Passion_. JOHN 18:1 (1) The _betrayal_,_ the majesty of his bearing_,_ accompanied by hints of the bitter cup_. JOHN 18:1 WHEN JESUS HAD SPOKEN THESE WORDS—_i.e._ had offered the prayer, and communed with his Father touching himself, his disciples, and his whole Church—he went forth

AND SIMON PETER STOOD AND WARMED HIMSELF,.... This is repeated from John 18:18 to connect the history, and carry on the thread of the account of Peter's denial of Christ, which is interrupted by inserting the examination of Christ before the high priest, which was made at the same time. Peter stood among, and continued with the servants and officers of the high priest, warming himself by a fire they had made, it being a cold night; and this proved of bad consequence to him. The company and conversation of wicked men should be abstained from; no good is got thereby; continuance among such is very dangerous; men are too often more concerned for their bodies than their souls; Satan baits his temptations for the fleshly and sensitive part; and that which is thought to be for good, is the occasion of hurt. THEY SAID THEREFORE UNTO HIM; the servants and officers, among whom he stoo

John 18:1. _When Jesus had spoken these words, he went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron, where was a garden, into the which he entered, and his disciples._ From our Lord's example, we should learn, when trouble is near, to meet it with composure. Our Saviour did not sit still; but, as the hour approached for his betrayal and death, «he went forth with his disciples.» The passing over the black brook of Cedron, through which flowed the filth of the temple, was very significant. King David had crossed that brook long before when he had been driven from his home by Absalom's rebellion, and now the greater David went «over the brook Cedron, where was a garden.» He specially wanted solitude just then, for one of the best preparations for suffering is to get alone with God. Learn this lesson also from your Lord's example, and as he put Gethsemane before Calvary, if you can put a...

JOHN 18:13-27 _order of verses_ {A} Because the usual sequence of these verses involves difficulties (in ver. John 18:13 Jesus is brought before Annas first and what follows is apparently before him, whereas the Synoptists say nothing of the part played by Annas; ver. John 18:24, in its present position, leaves the reader wondering what happened at the trial before Caiaphas), several witnesses seek to ease the sense by rearranging the order. Thus 225 (copied A.D. 1192) interpolates ver. John 18:24 into the mid...

III. “I LAY DOWN MY LIFE, THAT I MIGHT TAKE IT AGAIN.” Chapter s 18-21 CHAPTER 18 _ 1. The Arrest in the Garden. (John 18:1 .)_ 2. Before Annas and Caiaphas; Peter's Denial. (John 18:12 .) 3. Before Pilate. (John 18:28 .) 4. Not this Man, But Barabbas. (John 18:39 .) The hour of His suffering had now come. With His disciples He went across the brook Cedron into the garden. It is the Kidron mentioned frequently in Old Testament history. When David fled from his own son Absalom, he passed weeping over this brook. (2

THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION. PETER'S DENIAL. Jesus is brought to Annas, the father-in-law of the actual High Priest of that year (John 11:51). This preliminary stage, known only to our author, is not in itself improbable. Peter and another disciple, generally and naturally identified with the Beloved Disciple, follow. The latter has acquaintances in the household and gains admission at once. When he tries to gain the same for Peter, the portress is doubtful what to do, and asks Peter if he is a follower of the accused. Apparently his denial gains him admission, and he seeks obscurity among the crowd of servants. It must be noticed that this account of the first denial rises quite naturally out of the circumstances. In the Synoptic account it is unexplained. The High Priest (a term which is not confined to the actual holder of the chief office) examines Jesus as to His disciples and teach...