Charles Ellicott Commentary John 15:20

"Remember the word that I said unto you, A servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also." — John 15:20 (ASV)

Remember the word that I said unto you.—Compare John 13:16, where the saying is used in a different sense, and Matthew 10:24, where it is used in the same connection in which we find it here.

If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying . . .—The meaning is exactly what is expressed in the rendering of the English version. The two things are necessarily united, as Christ and His disciples are united. His word is their word. The relation of the world to the one would be what it had been to the other.