28, 29. no man . . . knew for what intent he spake this unto him . . . some thought . . . Jesus . . . said . . . But what we need . . . or, . . . give . . . to the poor—a very important statement, as showing how carefully. Jesus had kept the secret, and Judas his hypocrisy, to the last. read more
A. The Last Supper 13:1-30Jesus concluded each of His prolonged stays and ministries in a district with an important meal."At the first ’Supper,’ [i.e., the feeding of the 5,000, at the end of the Galilean ministry, mainly to Jews] the Jewish guests would fain have proclaimed Him Messiah-King; at the second [i.e., the feeding of the 4,000, at the end of the Decapolis ministry, mainly to Gentiles], as ’the Son of Man,’ He gave food to those Gentile multitudes which having been with Him those... read more
2. Jesus’ announcement of His betrayal 13:21-30 (cf. Matthew 26:21-25; Mark 14:18-21; Luke 22:21-23)Jesus had spoken only briefly about His betrayal until now (cf. John 6:70; John 13:10; John 13:18). Now He gave the Twelve more specific information. read more
No one present knew what Jesus meant when He told Judas to do what he had to do quickly. John must have known that Judas was the betrayer, but even he did not know that Jesus was referring here to Judas’ arrangements to betray Him."There is nothing in the narrative to show that Jesus meant that betrayal was imminent. From all that has been said so far it may well have been far in the future." [Note: Morris, p. 558.] read more
The fact that Judas was the treasurer of the Twelve shows that the other disciples trusted him implicitly. He was a consummate hypocrite. Jesus’ trust of him shows the Savior’s grace.The feast in view (John 13:29) must have been the feast of Unleavened Bread that followed Passover immediately since Jesus and the Twelve were then celebrating the Passover. Giving alms to the poor was a common practice in Jerusalem on Passover evening. [Note: J. Jeremias, The Eucharistic Words of Jesus, p. 54.] read more
The Last Supper1-17. The Supper and the Feet-washing. This supper is identified by almost all modern authorities with the Last Supper, which took place on Thursday night at Jerusalem (Matthew 26:20; Mark 14:17; Luke 22:14). Writing to supplement the synoptists, St. John omits practically all that they have recorded, and this accounts for his omission of the institution of the Holy Communion. The points peculiar to St. John are the feet-washing, the incident of the sop, the details about the... read more
(28) Now no man at the table knew.—This is a comment of the Apostle’s, as he writes in remembrance of the impression made at the time upon all who were present. They heard our Lord say to Judas, “What thou doest, do quickly; “but none of them knew until afterwards that these words referred to the betrayal. read more
(29) Because Judas had the bag.—Comp. Notes on John 12:6.Buy those things that we have need of against the feast.—Here, again, it will be better to postpone the consideration of details in the order of the events of this week, and to deal with the question as a whole. (Comp. Excursus F: The Day of the Crucifixion of our Lord.)That he should give something to the poor.—Such gifts seem to have been made at all festivals. Their thought was probably of gifts to enable the poor to obtain the lamb... read more
The Self-sacrifice of Love John 13:1 It would seem that the washing of the disciples' feet and the institution of the Holy Communion were closely connected. Both of these actions belong to the region, as we should say, of unsupernatural actions; but they are symbolic, they are parables in action, pregnant with deep spiritual meaning, for both are revelations of the selfsacrifice of love. We see the Lord there at the last meal, fortified no doubt beforehand by prayer during those quiet hours of... read more
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Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - John 13:27-30
John 13:27-30. And after the sop, &c.— See the note on John 13:2.—After the account which St. Luke gives us of Christ's delivering the eucharistical bread and wine to his disciples, it is added, But behold, the hand of him that betrayeth me is with me on the table, Luke 22:21. Whence some interpreters have thought that Judas was present likewise at that supper, and partook of it with the rest of the disciples; whereas St. John expressly says, that, having received the sop, he went... read more