Church Fathers Commentary John 3:32-36

"What he hath seen and heard, of that he beareth witness; and no man receiveth his witness. He that hath received his witness hath set his seal to [this], that God is true. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for he giveth not the Spirit by measure. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand. He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life; but he that obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him." — John 3:32-36 (ASV)

St. John Chrysostom: After saying, And what he has seen and heard, that he testifies, to prevent anyone from supposing that what he said was false because only a few believed at the time, he adds, And no man receives his testimony; that is, only a few, for he had disciples who received his testimony. John is alluding to the unbelief of his own disciples and to the unresponsiveness of the Jews, of whom we read in the beginning of the Gospel, He came to His own, and His own received Him not.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Or, to put it another way, there is a people reserved for the wrath of God, to be condemned with the devil, none of whom receives the testimony of Christ. And there are others who are ordained to eternal life. Notice how humanity is divided spiritually, even though people are mixed together. John separated them by the thoughts of their hearts, though they were not yet divided by location, and viewed them as two classes: the unbelievers and the believers.

Looking at the unbelievers, he said, No man receives his testimony. Then, turning to those on the right hand, he said, He that has received his testimony, has set to his seal that God is true.

St. John Chrysostom: That is, he has shown that God is true. This is to alarm them, for this is the same as saying that no one can disbelieve Christ without convicting God, who sent Him, of falsehood, since He speaks nothing except what is from the Father. For it follows, He whom God has sent speaks the words of God.

Alcuin of York: Or, "has set to his seal" means he has put a seal on his heart as a unique and special sign that this is the true God, who suffered for the salvation of humanity.

St. Augustine of Hippo: What does it mean that "God is true," except that God is true, and every man a liar? (Romans 3:4). For no one can say what truth is until he is enlightened by Him who cannot lie. Therefore, God is true, and Christ is God. Do you want proof? Hear His testimony, and you will find it is so. But if you do not yet understand God, you have not yet received His testimony.

Christ Himself, then, is the true God, and God has sent Him. God has sent God—join them together, and they are one God. For John said, Whom God has sent, to distinguish Christ from himself. What then? Was John not sent by God? Yes, but notice what follows: For God does not give the Spirit by measure.

To men He gives by measure, but to His only Son He does not give by measure. To one man is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge; one has one thing, another has another, for "measure" implies a kind of division of gifts. But Christ, who gave by measure, did not receive by measure.

St. John Chrysostom: Here, "Spirit" means the working of the Holy Spirit. He wishes to show that all of us have received the working of the Spirit by measure, but that Christ contains within Himself the entire working of the Spirit. How then can He be doubted, who said nothing that was not from God and the Spirit? For He does not yet mention God the Word, but rests His doctrine on the authority of the Father and the Spirit. For people knew that there was a God and a Spirit (although they did not have a right belief about His nature), but they did not know that there was a Son.

St. Augustine of Hippo: After saying of the Son, God does not give the Spirit by measure, he adds, The Father loves the Son, and further adds, and has given all things into His hand (John 3:34-35), in order to show that the Father loves the Son in a unique sense. For the Father loves John and Paul, and yet has not given all things into their hands. But the Father loves the Son as a Son, not as a master loves a servant; as an only Son, not as an adopted son. Therefore, He has given all things into His hand, so that as great as the Father is, so great is the Son. Let us not think, then, that because He condescended to send the Son, someone inferior to the Father was sent.

Theophylact of Ohrid: The Father, then, has given all things to the Son in respect to His divinity—by right, not by grace. Alternatively, He has given all things into His hand in respect to His humanity, since He is made Lord of all things that are in heaven and on earth.

Alcuin of York: And because all things are in His hand, everlasting life is also. Therefore, it follows, He that believes on the Son has everlasting life.

The Venerable Bede: We must understand this not as a faith in words only, but as a faith that is demonstrated by works.

St. John Chrysostom: He does not mean here that believing in the Son is sufficient to gain everlasting life, for elsewhere He says, Not every one that says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 7:21). And the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is by itself sufficient to send one to hell.

We must not think that even a correct belief in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is sufficient for salvation, for we also need a righteous life and conduct. Knowing, then, that most people are not moved as much by the promise of good things as by the threat of punishment, he concludes, But he that believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides on him.

Notice how he refers to the Father again when he speaks of punishment. He did not say, "the wrath of the Son," though the Son is the judge, but makes the Father the judge in order to alarm people more. And he does not say the wrath is "in him," but "on him," meaning that it will never depart from him. For the same reason, he says, shall not see life, to show that he did not mean only a temporary death.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Nor does he say, "The wrath of God comes to him," but "abides on him." For all who are born are under the wrath of God, which the first Adam incurred. The Son of God came without sin and was clothed in mortality; He died so that you might live. Whoever, then, will not believe in the Son, on him abides the wrath of God, of which the Apostle speaks: We were by nature the children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3).