Book III. THE FIRST YEAR OF OUR BLESSED LORD'S PUBLIC MINISTRY. 16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. 17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. 18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. 19 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? 20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself? 23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. 24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees. 25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet? 26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; 27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose. 28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. 30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. 21 And they asked him, What 31 And I knew him not: but that then? Art thou Elias? And he he should be made manifest to saith, I am not. Art thou that Israel, therefore am I come baptizprophet? And he answered, No.ing with water. 22 Then said they unto him, Who 32 And John bare record, saying, art thou? that we might give an I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God. 35 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; 36 And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God! 3. John i. 37-42. 37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. 38 Then Jesus turned and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou? 39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. It seems quite incomprehensible to us, why these few simple words of our Lord should have had such an extraordinary effect on Nathanael. He receives his brother's report that he had found the Messiah (v. 46) with evident incredulity, quoting the proverb in common use at the time, Can there any good thing," &c. And his reply to the first gracious words addressed to him by the Saviour is blunt, if not uncourteous: "Whence knowest thou me?" (v. 48) i. e. What right have you to speak thus to me? His genuine humility of soul seems to have made him 42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone. 4. John i. 43-51. 43 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me. 44 Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. 46 And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! 48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. 49 Nathanael answered and said unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel, 1 attribute the Stranger's words to flattery; and since there were so many false Christs arising at that time, who gathered together as many followers as they could in vain resistance to their Roman masters, he perhaps suspected that this Man also, of whom his brother seemed to speak so highly, might be only one of these pretenders, who sought to win him over by beguiling words. Yet, as soon as our Lord says, "I saw thee under the fig tree," his reply is, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.” (v.49.) These words of our Lord must have con 50 Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these. 51 And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. 5. John ii. 1-12. 1 And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. 3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. 6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. 7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew:) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. 11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him. 12 After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples: and they continued there not many days. 6. John ii. 13-25. 13 And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, 14 And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: 15 And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; 16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence: make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.2 in peace. Possibly, like Eliezer (Gen. xxiv. 10-14), he had entreated some token which was fulfilled in our Lord's words, or appearance, as he spake. We know not; but something of the kind it surely must have been, that caused so complete and sudden a revulsion in his sentiments, so full an acknowledgment of the obscure Nazarene as the Son of God, and the King of Israel. tained an allusion to some transaction | him, that, like Simeon, he might depart which Nathanael knew to have been hidden from all but God and himself, so that our Lord's reference to it of itself declared his omniscience. Perhaps "under the fig tree" was his own private praying-place, where none but his Maker could see and hear his soul-worship. Perhaps he had been earnestly petitioning that if the Messiah really were come (and the Jews believed from their sacred books that the time of his appearing was fully, and more than, arrived), he might be revealed to 2 It was a very fit and appropriate action for the Lord to commence his public C 17 And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. 18 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in 21 But he spake of the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. 23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. 24 But Jesus did not commit him ministry with, to cleanse "his Father's house" from the desecration which had grown up around it. The buying and selling, the wrangling about prices, the cheating, and all the necessary but most undevout incidents of a market-and especially an eastern market, would make up a whole which the better-minded Israelites themselves must have felt it a sin and a shame to profane the precincts of the Temple with. How such a market came to be permitted to be held there seems a marvel to us: only the sacred writings gave us glimpses of so much corruption among both priests and people, so much greediness of gain, and such a disregard of God's law, when it interfered with either their traditions or their covetousness, that we must suppose it had crept on by degrees; the sellers no doubt doing a thriving business through their convenient nearness to the spot where their wares were wanted for sacrifices, &c., the priests receiving a share of the self unto them, because he knew all men, 25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man. 7. John iii. 1-21. 1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: night, and said unto him, Rabbi, 2 The same came to Jesus by we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. profits, in consideration of the permission to trade there. No mere man, and alone, could have thus forcibly put an end to a custom protected by such powerful interests: the rabble would have risen against, and perhaps murdered any one who attempted so to interfere with them and their moneymaking; and the priests would have stirred them up to resist the audacious person who should dare thus to defy their authority, and deprive them of their gains. But it was not a mere man with whom they had to do: the majesty of the Godhead shone out through the disguise of the poor peasant of Galilee, and they fled before him conscience-stricken and dismayed. And though afterwards some of them gathered together and demanded by what sign or miracle he proved his right from heaven to act as he had done, it is evident they had the answer in their own hearts, and only appeared to attack him to save their authority with the people. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than 7 Marvel not that I said unto light, because their deeds were evil. thee, Ye must be born again. 20 For every one that doeth evil 8 The wind bloweth where it list-hateth the light, neither cometh to eth, and thou hearest the sound the light, lest his deeds should be thereof, but canst not tell whence reproved. it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. 9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? 10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. 8. John iii. 22. 22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judæa; and there he tarried with them, and baptized.3 9. John iii. 23-36. 23 And John also was baptizing 12 If I have told you earthly in Enon near to Salim, because things, and ye believe not, how there was much water there: and shall ye believe, if I tell you of they came, and were baptized. heavenly things? 24 For John was not yet cast into prison. 13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 25 Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying. 26 And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him. 27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven. 28 Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. 29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease. 8 See John iv. 2. |