John 12

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:40

There are several illustrations in this verse that the diction of the evangelist differs from that which he uses when recording the words of Christ. Thus ὅμως μέντοι is peculiar to John himself, and thus is an ἅπαξ λεγόμενον ; but μέντοι occurs five times in the style of John himself (see John 4:27 ; John 7:13 ; John 12:42 ; John 20:5 ; John 21:4 ), not once by our Lord. ὁμολογεῖν again is used four times by the evangelist, and seven times in the Epistles and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:41

These things said Isaiah, because £ he saw his glory, and he spake of him. By this reference to the theophany of Isaiah 6:1 , Isaiah 6:2 the evangelist here identifies Christ with the Adonai whom the prophet saw in his vision, and thus expresses his conception of the Christ. Because the prophet saw the glory of Christ, the unutterable majesty of the "Word of God," he delivered, as we know, this tremendous burden. Few utterances of the New Testament convey in more startling form the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:42-43

A movement Christward among the chief rulers. The unbelief of the Jews was neither total nor final. I. THE ADHESION OF MANY CHIEF RULERS . "Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him." 1. Some of them, like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathaea, were true believers . 2. Others, probably, were inwardly persuaded that he was the Messiah, but could not bring themselves to an open discipleship. The causes were twofold. (a) This proves at once the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:42-43

Believing yet not confessing. Here we have one of the mighty hindrances, one that explains a very great deal indeed, to the full acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Christ. Between the bold believers and the open unbelievers there is a very large class, which cannot but believe, yet will by no means avow its belief. Human beings are not so stupid and insensible in the presence of Jesus as they often seem to be. None can see better the fallacies and follies of unbelief, but they lack the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:43

The generalization is given as a reason, For they loved the glory ( δόξα , very nearly in the original Greek use of the word," opinion," "good reputation") of men, very much more than the glory of God . The form of the expressions, "of God' and "of men," is different from the παρὰ τοῦ μόνου θεοῦ and παρὰ ἀλλήλων of John 5:44 , and the statement is apparently inconsistent with the declaration that those in such a state of mind "could not believe." Moulton suggests that... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:44-45

Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me; and he that beholdeth me, beholdeth him that sent me . These words do not occur before, but in every form our Lord had exalted "him that sent him." His doctrine or teaching, his purpose in manifestation, the secret food that sustained him, the Divine presence that never left him alone, the entire background of the mission of his human will and life into the world, the object of faith to men as... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:44-45

The knowledge of the Eternal through Christ. The world's great want is to believe in God. Men believe in power, in wealth, in pleasure, in prosperity, in science; that is to say, they believe that such things are desirable and attainable, and worth trying and toiling and suffering for. These are prized, and therefore sought. They are more or less good. Yet they cannot satisfy, they cannot bless, man; for he has a spiritual and imperishable nature, for which all earthly things are not... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:44-50

7. The summation of the supreme conflict between our Lord and the world . The portion of the chapter which follows is regarded by most commentators, Lucke, Meyer, Godet, Olshausen, and Westcott, as a summary of our Lord's teaching, as a reiteration by the evangelist of those salient points of the Lord's ministry which, while they are the life of the world, are nevertheless the grounds on which blinded eyes and hardened hearts rejected him. John 12:44-46 characterize the believer; John... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:44-50

The responsibilities attaching to Jewish unbelief. The evangelist now takes a retrospective glance at the unbelief of Judaism. What follows is but a summary of our Lord's past teaching. I. MARK BY CONTRAST THE POSITION OF THE BELIEVER . "He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me." 1. The believer recognizes Jesus as the Messiah sent by the Father, as the Revelation of the Father's love and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - John 12:44-50

Christ's farewell sermon to the public, Notice— I. THE MISSION OF CHRIST IN RELATION TO FAITH . 1. Faith in the Son involves faith in the Father . "He that believeth on me, believeth not on me [only]." 2. A spiritual vision of Christ involves a spiritual vision of the Father . "He that seeth me," etc. 3. Faith in Christ alone made full faith in the Father possible . II. THE MISSION OF CHRIST IN ' RELATION ' TO UNBELIEF . 1. ... read more

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