Albert Barnes Commentary John 13:18

"I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled: He that eateth my bread lifted up his heel against me." — John 13:18 (ASV)

I speak not of you all. That is, in addressing you as clean, I do not mean to say that you all possess this character.

I know whom I have chosen. He evidently means here that he had not chosen them all, implying that Judas had not been chosen. However, since this word is applied to Judas in one place (John 6:70), Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil? it must have a different meaning here from what it has there.

There it evidently refers to the apostleship. Jesus had chosen him to be an apostle and had treated him as such. Here it refers to purity of heart, and Jesus implies that, though Judas had been chosen for the office of apostleship, he had not been chosen for purity of heart and life.

The remaining eleven had been, and would be saved. It was not, however, Jesus' fault that Judas was not saved, for he was admitted to the same teaching, the same familiarity, and the same office; but his detestable love of gold gained the ascendancy and rendered vain all the means used for his conversion.

But that the scripture... These things have occurred so that the prophecies might be fulfilled. It does not mean that Judas was compelled to this course of action for the Scripture to be fulfilled, but rather that this was foretold, and that by this the prophecy was indeed fulfilled.

The scripture. This is written in Psalm 41:9. It is commonly understood to refer to Ahithophel and to the enemies of David who had been admitted to his friendship and who had now proved ungrateful to him.

May be fulfilled. (See Barnes on Matthew 1:22).

It is difficult to tell whether this prophecy had a primary reference to Judas, or whether it is meant that it received a more complete fulfillment in his case than in the time of David. The cases were similar; the same words would describe both events, for there was an exhibition of similar ingratitude and baseness in both cases, so that the same words would aptly describe both events.

He that eateth bread with me. To eat with someone was a proof of friendship (see 2 Samuel 9:11; Matthew 9:11; Genesis 43:32).

This means that Judas had been admitted to all the privileges of friendship and had partaken of the usual evidences of affection. It was this which greatly aggravated his offence. It was base ingratitude as well as murder.

Hath lifted up his heel. Suidas says that this figure is taken from those who are running in a race, when one attempts to trip the other up and make him fall. It was a base and ungrateful return for kindness to which the Lord Jesus referred, and it means that he who had been admitted to the intimacies of friendship had ungratefully and maliciously injured him.

Some suppose the expression means to lay snares for one; others, to kick or injure a man after he is cast down . It is clear that it denotes great injury, an injury aggravated by the fact of professed friendship. It was not merely the common people, the open enemies, or the Jewish nation that did this, but one who had received all the usual proofs of kindness. It was this which greatly aggravated our Saviour's sufferings.