John 7:48

Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him? HAVE ANY OF THE RULERS OR OF THE PHARISEES BELIEVED ON HIM? We are expressly told that "many of them" did, including Nicodemus and Joseph, but not one of these had openly "confessed Him" (); and this appeal must have stung such of them as heard it to the quick....

48._Has any of the rulers, or of the Pharisees, believed in him? _“He has none on his side,” they say, “but low and ignorant men; _the rulers, _and every person of distinction, are opposed to him.” They expressly name _the Pharisees, _because they had a reputation above others, both for knowledge and holiness, so that they might be said to be the princes of the people. This objection appears to have some plausibility; for if the rulers and governors of the Church do not retain their authority, it is impossible that any thing shall ever be properly done, or that the good order of the Church shall long continue. We know what are the fierce passions of the common people; in consequence of which the most frightful disorder must follow, when every man is allowed to do what he pleases. The authority of those who rule is therefore a necessary bridle for preserving the good order of the Church;...

40-53 The malice of Christ's enemies is always against reason, and sometimes the staying of it cannot be accounted for. Never any man spake with that wisdom, and power, and grace, that convincing clearness, and that sweetness, wherewith Christ spake. Alas, that many, who are for a time restrained, and who speak highly of the word of Jesus, speedily lose their convictions, and go on in their sins! People are foolishly swayed by outward motives in matters of eternal moment, are willing even to be damned for fashion's sake. As the wisdom of God often chooses things which men despise, so the folly of men commonly despises those whom God has chosen. The Lord brings forward his weak and timid disciples, and sometimes uses them to defeat the designs of his enemies....

Verse 48. _HAVE ANY OF THE RULERS - BELIEVED ON HIM?_] Very few. But is this a proof that he is not of God? No, truly. If he were of the _world_, the world would _love_ its own. The religion of Christ has been in general rejected by the rulers of this world. A life of mortification, self-denial, and humility, does not comport with the views of those who _will_ have their portion in this life. It has ever been a mark of the truth of God that the great, the mighty, and the wise have in general rejected it. They are too much occupied with _this_ world to attend to the concerns of the _next_....

THE RULERS - The members of the Sanhedrin, who were supposed to have control over the religious rites and doctrines of the nation. THE PHARISEES - The sect possessing wealth, and office, and power. The name Pharisees sometimes denotes those who were high in honor and authority. BELIEVED ON HIM - Is there any instance in which those who are high in rank or in office have embraced him as the Messiah? This shows the rule by which they judged of religion: * They claimed the right of regulating the doctrines and rites of religion. * They repressed the liberty of private judgment, stifled investigation, assumed that a new doctrine must be heresy, and labored to keep the people within inglorious bondage. * They treated the new doctrine of Jesus with contempt, and thus attempted to put it down, not by argument, but by contempt, and especially b

EXPOSITION Ch. 7-10. contain the record of the conflict between faith and unbelief in the metropolis. At first the narrative indicates a vast amount of critical inquiry, of unsettled opinion, of angry disappointment and a certain readiness to be convinced on the part of one section or another. The secrecy of the Galilean village is contrasted with the broad arena of the temple courts. "The Jews," or leaders of opinion and authority in Judaea and Jerusalem, who were hostile, are seen in contrast with "the Jews who believed on him" (John 8:31). There are multitudes and multitudes (John 10:12, John 10:30, John 10:31), priests and Pharisees ...

HAVE ANY OF THE RULERS,.... In the sanhedrim, or of the synagogues; or the civil magistrates, the noble, rich, and wealthy: OR OF THE PHARISEES, BELIEVED ON HIM; men famous for wisdom, learning, and holiness. It must be owned, there were but very few of this sort, and perhaps not an instance of this kind had as yet occurred to them; there was Nicodemus, who is mentioned in the context, who was both a ruler and a Pharisee; and Joseph of Arimathea, a rich counsellor; but they neither of them openly showed themselves to be the disciples of Christ till his death: and besides these, there were some women, as Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, Susanna, and some other women, who ministered to him of their substance; but the far greater part of his followers were poor and illiterate: and this has been the common case of those that have believed in Jesus, for the most part, ever since,...

John 7:14. _Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught._ He was no coward, so he boldly showed himself in the midst of the throng in the temple. John 7:15. _And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?_ Or, «How knoweth he the Scriptures? How has he come to be an instructed man, having never learned of the Rabbis? He has never passed through our schools of learning, so what can he know?» John 7:16. _Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me._ «I am not the inventor of what I say; I am but a messenger, delivering the message of him that sent me.»...

CHAPTER 7 _ 1. My Time is not Yet Come. (John 7:1 .)_ 2. Departure from Galilee; Sought by the Jews. (John 7:10 .) 3. In the Temple Teaching. (John 7:14 .) 4. Opposition to Him. (John 7:30 .) 5. The Indwelling Spirit Promised. (John 7:37 .) 6. The Division Among the People Because of Him. (John 7:40 .) 7. The Returning Officers and the Defense of Nicodemus. (John 7:45 .)

THE LAST DAY OF THE FEAST. The Feast of Tabernacles, the feast of the ingathering at the end of summer, lasted seven days in early times (Deuteronomy 16:13). An eighth day was added later (Leviticus 23:36). The custom of bringing water from Siloah each day and only pouring it out before the altar, is known certainly for later times, but probably existed in Christ's time. It was held to commemorate the gift of water in the wilderness (Exodus 17:6), and was accompanied by the recitation of Isaiah 12:3; John 7:37 f. is best interpreted by taking He that bel