Albert Barnes Commentary John 12:48

"He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day." — John 12:48 (ASV)

He that rejecteth me (Luke 10:16). The word reject means to despise, or to refuse to receive him.

Hath one. That is, he does not need my voice to condemn him. He will carry his own condemnation with him, even if I were silent. His own conscience will condemn him. The words that I have spoken will be remembered and will condemn him, if there were nothing further. From this we learn:

1. That a guilty conscience needs no accuser.
2. That the words of Christ, and the messages of mercy that the sinner has rejected, will be remembered by him.
3. That this will be the source of his condemnation. This will make him miserable, and there will be no possibility of his being happy.
4. That the conscience of the sinner will concur with the sentence of Christ in the great day, and that he will go to eternity self-condemned. It is this that will make the pains of hell so intolerable to the sinner.
5. The word that Christ has spoken, the doctrines of his gospel, and the messages of mercy, will be that by which the sinner will be judged in the last day. Every person will be judged by that message, and the sinner will be punished according to the frequency and clearness with which the rejected message has been presented to his mind (Matthew 12:41).