Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary John 17
Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary
John 17
Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary
John 17
"These things spake Jesus; and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that the son may glorify thee:" — John 17:1 (ASV)
John records even the gesture of Jesus: “He lifted up his eyes” (lit. tr.). This was a typical Jewish gesture of prayer, whether offered to God or to idols (Psalms 121:1; Psalms 123:1; Ezekiel 33:25; Daniel 4:34). The prayer begins with the announcement “The time has come.” Jesus’ consciousness of living by a “calendar” has been manifest from the beginning of the gospel (7:8; 7:30; 8:20); but now he acknowledges that the time of crisis has arrived (cf. 12:23; 13:1). This announcement enhances the significance of the prayer because it becomes Jesus’ evaluation of the purpose of his life, death, resurrection, and ascension.
Jesus petitions the Father to glorify him. The word “glorify” (GK 1519) should be applied to the total complex of these events as the climax of the Incarnation. The Son glorified the Father by revealing God’s sovereignty over evil, his compassion for humans, and the finality of redemption for believers. His entire career was focused on fulfilling the Father’s purpose and on delivering the Father’s message (see also v.5).
"even as thou gavest him authority over all flesh, that to all whom thou hast given him, he should give eternal life." — John 17:2 (ASV)
The two sentences following the initial petition are parenthetical and explanatory. The first (v.2) indicates the scope of the authority Christ exercised in his incarnate state. He was empowered to impart eternal life to those who had been given to him. This gospel is replete with assertions that life is in Christ (3:15–16; 4:14; 5:21, 26; 6:33, 54; 10:10; 11:25; 14:6). These words emphatically express the central purpose of Jesus: to glorify the Father by imparting life to humans.
The second sentence (v.3) defines the nature of eternal life. It is not described in chronological terms but by a relationship. Life is active involvement with environment. The highest kind of life is involvement with the highest kind of environment. A worm is content to live in soil; we need not only the wider environment of earth, sea, and sky but also contact with other human beings. For the complete fulfillment of our being, we must know God. This, said Jesus, constitutes eternal life. Not only is it endless, since the knowledge of God requires an eternity to develop fully, but qualitatively it must exist in an eternal dimension. As Jesus said further on in this prayer, eternal life will ultimately bring his disciples to a lasting association with him in his divine glory (v.24).
"And this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and him whom thou didst send, [even] Jesus Christ." — John 17:3 (ASV)
The two sentences following the initial petition are parenthetical and explanatory. The first (v.2) indicates the scope of the authority Christ exercised in his incarnate state. He was empowered to impart eternal life to those who had been given to him. This gospel is replete with assertions that life is in Christ (3:15–16; 4:14; 5:21, 26; 6:33, 54; 10:10; 11:25; 14:6). These words emphatically express the central purpose of Jesus: to glorify the Father by imparting life to humans.
The second sentence (v.3) defines the nature of eternal life. It is not described in chronological terms but by a relationship. Life is active involvement with environment. The highest kind of life is involvement with the highest kind of environment. A worm is content to live in soil; we need not only the wider environment of earth, sea, and sky but also contact with other human beings. For the complete fulfillment of our being, we must know God. This, said Jesus, constitutes eternal life. Not only is it endless, since the knowledge of God requires an eternity to develop fully, but qualitatively it must exist in an eternal dimension. As Jesus said further on in this prayer, eternal life will ultimately bring his disciples to a lasting association with him in his divine glory (v.24).
"I glorified thee on the earth, having accomplished the work which thou hast given me to do." — John 17:4 (ASV)
Although the final act of his career remains to be performed, Jesus asserts that he has completed his task. He takes for granted that the last step will be taken (cf. 12:27–28). Though aware that he has the option of refusing the Cross and so escaping death, he has resolved irrevocably to complete the work for which he has been sent. To all intents and purposes it is already done. In spite of many obstacles, Jesus never once faltered from doing the Father’s will. He now has one main petition: that the Father will receive him back to the glory he relinquished to accomplish his task . This petition for a return to his pristine glory implies unmistakably his preexistence and equality with the Father, confirming 10:30.
"And now, Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." — John 17:5 (ASV)
Although the final act of his career remains to be performed, Jesus asserts that he has completed his task. He takes for granted that the last step will be taken (cf. 12:27–28). Though aware that he has the option of refusing the Cross and so escaping death, he has resolved irrevocably to complete the work for which he has been sent. To all intents and purposes it is already done. In spite of many obstacles, Jesus never once faltered from doing the Father’s will. He now has one main petition: that the Father will receive him back to the glory he relinquished to accomplish his task . This petition for a return to his pristine glory implies unmistakably his preexistence and equality with the Father, confirming 10:30.
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