another, as I [have] loved you. 13 m Greater love hath
no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his
friends. 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever
command you. 15 p Henceforth I call you not servants;
for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I
have called you friends; for all things that I have heard
of my Father I have made known unto you.
16 p Yes have
not chosen me, but I t have chosen you, and
that ye should go and bring forth fruit,

o

ro

explained (see ch. xiii. 34) to be, mutual
love, and that, after His example of
Love to them. 13.] A difficulty has
been unnecessarily found in this verse,
because St. Paul, Rom. v. 6 ff., cites it as
a nobler instance of love, that Christ died
for us when we were enemies. But mani-
festly here the example is from common
life, in which if a man did lay down his
life, it would naturally be for his friends;
and would be, and is cited as, the greatest
example of love. Nor again is there any
doctrinal difficulty: our Lord does not
assert of himself, that He laid down his
life only for his friends (as defined in the
next verse), but puts forward this side of
his Love as a great and a practical exam-
ple for his followers. His own great
Sacrifice of Himself lies in the back-
ground of this verse; but only in the
background, and with but one side of it
seen, viz. his Love to them. See 1 Tim.
iv. 10, and compare 1 John iii. 16.
14.] parallel to ver. 10,-and like it,
guarded, in vv. 15, 16, 17, from legal
misinterpretation. 15.] Spoken, by
anticipation, of the state in which He
would place them under the Spirit. Nor
is there any discrepancy with ch. xiii. 13,
16, and ver. 20 here, which are also
spoken of their future condition: for in
that sense both relations subsist together.
It is the lower sense of the word rendered
servant (signifying both servant and slave),
which is brought out in this verse.
anticipatory character of the saying is
clearly shewn in the words, "Knoweth not
what his lord doeth;" for this was pre-
cisely their present condition, but was
after His Ascension changed into light and

The

mch.x. 11, 15.

Rom. v. 7, 8.
Eph. v. 2.

John iii. Inch. xiv. 15,

16.

23. Matt. xii. 50.

trender, chose.

I render, bear.

see Gen.

xviii. 17.
ch. xvii. 26.

Acts xx. 27.

p ch. vi. 70 :

xiii. 18.

1 John iv.

ordained you, and that your

Prender, No more do I call you.

a

૧

10, 19.

Matt. xxviii. xvi. 15. Col.

19. Mark

1.6.

。 omit.

4 render, because.

render, because I made known unto you all things that I heard from my Father.

render, did not choose.
render, appointed.

knowledge. I made known unto you] Here again the allusion must be (see ch. xvi. 12) to their future state under the dispensation of the Spirit: nay, even to the fulness and completion of it, as Augustine remarks; compare the confession of one of the greatest Apostles, 1 Cor. xiii. 10. "As we look for immortality of the flesh and salvation of the soul in the future, although, having received the pledge of both, we are said to be already saved: so we should hope for in the future the knowledge of all things which the Onlybegotten has heard from the Father, although Christ says He has already made them known to us." Augustine.

16.] See 1 John iv. 10, 19. Further proof
of His love, in his choosing His, when they
had not chosen Him. appointed] See
Acts xiii. 47: 1 Thess. v. 9, and reff.
Chrysostom and others explain it as mean-
ing "planted," in reference to the simili-
tude of the vine. But the parable seems
to be no further returned to than in the
allusion implied in bearing fruit.
"Or-
dained," in A. V., is objectionable, as con-
veying a wrong idea, that of appointing to
the Ministry, which is not here present.
that ye should go and bear fruit]
The word go probably merely expresses
(see Matt. xviii. 15; xix. 21, and Luke
viii. 14) the activity of living and de-
veloping principle; not the missionary
journeys of the Apostles, as some have
explained it. The fruit is not the Church,
to be founded by the Apostles, and en-
dure; this is evident, for here the fruit
is spoken of with reference to themselves,
and their ripening into the full stature of
Christ. Much of their fruit will be neces-

I

rver. 7. ch. fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye [ shall] ask of

xiv. 13.

$

s ver. 12.

13.

a

u 1 John iv. 5. x ch. xvii. 14.

the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17 These t1 John iii. 1, things I command you, that ye love one another. 18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before [ it hated] you. 19 u If ye were of the world, the world Would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, y c The servant is not greater than his lord. If they [have] persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they [y have] kept my d saying, they will keep your's 21 But all these things will they do unto you for

y Matt. x. 24. Luke vi. 40.

ch. xiii. 16. z Ezek. iii. 7. xxiv. 9. ch. also.

a Matt. x. 22:

xvi. 3.

sarily the winning of others to Christ: but that is not the prominent idea here. that your fruit should remain] See 2 John 8; Rev. xiv. 13. that whatsoever ye ask...] This second that is parallel with the former one, not the result of it; the two, the bringing forth of fruit and the obtaining answer to prayer, being co-ordinate with each other; but (vv. 7, 8) the bearing fruit to God's glory is of these the greater, being the result and aim of the other. 17.] The expression these things refers (as almost always in John, see verses 11, 21; xvi. 1, 25, 33; xvii. 1; xviii. 1 al.) back to what has gone before. The object of my enjoining these things on you is (for all since ver. 12 has been an expansion of the words "as I loved you") that ye love one another' (see 1 John iv. 11). Then from the indefiniteness of this term, one another, our Lord takes occasion to forewarn them that however wide their love to one another, they cannot bring all within this category; there will be still the world outside, which will hate them.

Z render, hateth.
b render, hath hated.
d render, word.

18-27.] Their relation to the world: and vv. 18-21, ground of the world's hatred. On the connexion, see above. 18.] See ch. vii. 7. The verb rendered in the A. V. "ye know," is most likely imperative, know ye. The assertion of their knowledge of the fact would in all likelihood have been otherwise expressed in the original. See more in the note in my Greek Test. The great proof of this hatred to Him was yet to come, but is viewed as past. This knowledge brings comfort, 1 Pet. iv. 12, 13. 19.] not only ex

C

plains this hatred, but derives additional
comfort from it, as a sign that they were
not (any longer) of the world; but chosen
out of it by Him, and endued with a new
life from above. By the result being
expressed in the words, would love his
(its) own, not "would love you," we have
the true practice of the world hinted at,
and the false character of the world's love,
as a mere self-love, set forth. In this
loving their own,' the children of this
world fall into hating one another.
Meyer remarks the solemnity of the world
thus repeated five times. 20.] Our
Lord had said it to them in ch. xiii. 16,
but with a different reference: the sense
here being, Remember the saying, for it
is true in this matter also;' see Matt. x.
24, where it is used in the same sense.
They, i. e. the world-the persons consti-
tuting it. A difficulty has been raised
on the latter clause of this verse, because
"they did not in any sense "keep"
Christ's word, whereas they did persecute
Him and an attempt has been made
to give to the word "keep" the sense of
watching with a hostile intent, which it
will not bear. Nor is irony (Lampe, Stier)
in this latter clause at all in keeping with
the solemnity of the discourse. There is
no real difficulty: the words simply mean,
'the keeping My word and the keeping
yours are intimately joined, and when you
find the world or any part of the world do
the first, you may infer the other.' The
issue of the condition, " If they kept My
saying," was to be proved by their rejec
tion and killing of the Lord Jesus.
21.] Howbeit stronger than merely

f

James iv. 17.

my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me. 22 b If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had b ch. ix. 41. not had sin: but now they have no g cloke for their sin. Rom. i. 20. 23 d He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 24 If I d 1 John ii. 23. had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 25 But [h this cometh to pass,] that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause. 268 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [ even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall i testify of

frender, would not have.
h not expressed in the original.

you.

"

"But:"-nay, so far is this from being so,
that it is on this very account, because ye
belong to Me, that they will thus treat
all these things-all that is im-
plied in hating and persecuting. It
was on account of bearing the Name of
Christ that the Christians were subjected
to persecution in the early ages, and that
they are even now hated by those who
know Him not: but this is to them com-
fort and joy, see Acts v. 41: 2 Cor. xii. 10:
Gal. vi. 17: 1 Pet. iv. 14. they know
not] not, They know Him not as having
sent Me'-but they know not Him who
has sent Me. Ignorance of God (not de-
siring the knowledge of His ways) is the
great cause of hostility to Christ and His
servants.
22. The sinfulness of this
hate. See ch. ix. 41 and note.
If I had not come and spoken unto them,
i. e. discoursed to them, generally not,
acquainted them with their sin. The sin
spoken of is, not the generally sinful state
of the world,-nor the sin of unbelief in
Christ, which they of course could not
have committed, had He never come: but
the sin of hatred to Him and His, which
might have been excused otherwise, but
now that He had come and discoursed
with them, had no excuse, since He had
plainly shewn them the proofs of His mis-
sion from the Father. Thus He shews
that they embraced the side of evil of their
own accord, and had no pretext of self-
justification. 23.] See ch. xiv. 9.
Human regards, whether of love or of
hatred, towards Him who is the only
manifestation of the Father to His crea-
tures, are in fact directed towards the
Father Himself; see Ps. lxix. 9, cited in
Rom. xv. 3. 24.] He refers to the

ech. iii. 2: $2.

g

vii. 31: ix.

Ps. xxxv. 19:

lxix. 4.

Luke xxiv.

49. ch. xiv.

17, 26: xv hiJohn v. 6.

7, 13. Acts 33.

grender, for perspicuity, excuse. i render, bear witness.

testimony of His works among them also, as leaving them again without excuse ;they had had ocular witness of His mission.

25.] But all this not as an accidental thwarting of My word and work among them, but as a matter predicted in Scripture. in their law, ch. x. 34 and note. To suppose any irony in these words, as De Wette does (they are true followersout of their law'), is manifestly against the whole spirit of our Lord's reference to the law. It is called their law,'-"the law which they are ever turning over and vaunting themselves about," as Bengel says, as condemning them, though their boast and pride. without a cause, as answering to "they have no excuse for their sin," ver. 22. The citation is probably from Psalm lxix., which treats of the rejection and sufferings of the Messiah. 26.] This assurance carries on the testimony concerning Christ,-which the world should see and hear, and yet reject and hate Him,-even to the end of time, by means of the Spirit of Truth: so that on the one hand this seeing and hating must not be expected to cease as long as the Spirit bears this witness,-and on the other, He, the Spirit of Truth, will never cease to overcome the hating world by this His testimony. the Comforter (Paraclete)] See ch. xiv. 16 and note. whom I will send] Stier dwells on the accurate division of the clauses here, "the Comforter whom I will send," but "the Spirit of Truth which proceedeth from the Father." The first clause he regards as spoken with reference to the mediatorial dispensation, of the Spirit in His office as Paraclete, sent from the Father by the glorified Son (or, by the Father in the

shall bear witness, because ye have

me:

27 and i ye also

been with me from the beginning.

XVI. 1 These things have I spoken unto you, that ye a should not be offended. 2 b They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, 1 the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he m doeth God service. 3 And these

с

1, 2.

a Matt. xi. 6:

xxiv. 10:

xxvi. 31.

b ch. ix. 22, 34: things will they do [unto you], because they have not

xii. 42.

e Acts viii.1: known the Father nor me. 4eo But these things have I

ix. 1: xxvi.

P told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remem

e ch. xiii. 19: xiv. 29.

k

render, are witnesses.

m better, offereth a service to God.

n omitted by most of the ancient authorities. • render, Nevertheless.

¶ read and render, their hour is come.

15.

ch. vii. 33:

28.

ber that I told you of them. And these things I said see Matt. ix. not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you. 5 But now & I go my way to him that sent me; and none g ver. 10, 16. of you asketh me, Whither goest thou? 68 But because I xiii. 3: xiv. have said these things unto you, h sorrow hath filled your h heart. 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth, It is expedient for you that I t go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, will send him unto you. 8 And when he is come, he will

ver. 22. ch.

xiv. 1.

u