Charles Ellicott Commentary John 13:6

"So he cometh to Simon Peter. He saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet?" — John 13:6 (ASV)

Then cometh he to Simon Peter.—Men who have come to these words with minds full of opinions regarding the position of St. Peter have, of course, understood them to express that he had precedence over the other Apostles, while others have formed the opinion that Judas Iscariot was first. It is a point of no importance, and cannot be determined. The natural impression from this verse, however, is that St. Peter’s turn came after that of at least one other, and the impression from John 13:24-25 is that St. John himself, being nearest to his Master, was that other.

Lord, dost thou wash my feet?—For the title, compare Matthew 16:22. The word “Thou” is to be strongly emphasized, but the common error of reading “my” as an emphatic word is to be avoided. The act is in itself natural; perhaps it is even one that he had expected from some of the less prominent in the apostolic band. What he cannot understand is that his Master should do it. “Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?” Compare this feeling of the Apostle at the close of our Lord’s life with that of John the Baptist at its beginning (Matthew 3:14–15).