Thomas Aquinas Commentary John 12:42-50

"Nevertheless even of the rulers many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess [it], lest they should be put out of the synagogue: for they loved the glory [that is] of men more than the glory [that is] of God. And Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him that sent me. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me may not abide in the darkness. And if any man hear my sayings, and keep them not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day. For I spake not from myself; but the Father that sent me, he hath given me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is life eternal: the things therefore which I speak, even as the Father hath said unto me, so I speak." — John 12:42-50 (ASV)

Previously, the Evangelist described the failure of those who did not believe at all. Here he explains the failure of those who believed in secret because they were timid and faint-hearted.

He addresses this in three parts:

1. He mentions their dignity.
2. He describes their failure: but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him.
3. He suggests the root of this failure: for they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God.

The dignity of these secret believers was great, for they were authorities. On this point, the Evangelist says, many of the chief men also believed in him. He is saying, in effect, that although he had just stated that Jesus had done so many signs, still they did not believe in him, this was only true for the majority. There were, in fact, some who did believe in him, because many of the chief men also, from among the people, believed in him.

One of these was Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night, as was said in John 3:1. Thus the words of the Psalm were fulfilled: the princes of the peoples gather as their people of the God of Abraham (Psalms 47:9). This also proves the statement of the Pharisees to be false: has any one of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in him? (John 7:48).

The failure of these authorities was timidity and faint-heartedness; thus, he says, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him. For as stated earlier, the Pharisees agreed . . . that if any one should confess him to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue (John 9:22). So, although they believed with their hearts, they did not profess him with their lips. Their faith, therefore, was insufficient: for a man believes with his heart and so is justified, and he confesses with his lips and so is saved (Romans 10:10). Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, of him will the Son of man be ashamed (Luke 9:26).

The root of their failure is vanity, or vainglory, so he says, for they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God. By confessing Christ publicly they would have lost the glory of men but won the glory of God. But they chose to be deprived of God's glory rather than men's glory: how are you able to believe who receive glory from one another; and the glory which is from God alone you do not seek? (John 5:44). If I were still pleasing men, I should not be a servant of Christ (Galatians 1:10).

Now he shows how Christ rebuked the Jews for their unbelief:

1. He shows their duty to believe.
2. He mentions the fruit of faith: I have come a light into the world.
3. He warns the unbelievers about punishment: and if any man hear my words, and does not keep them, I do not judge him (John 12:47).

But because vision comes after faith, he first treats faith, and second, vision: and he who sees me, sees him who sent me.

As to the first point, he says, but Jesus cried out. He cried out both because of the importance of what he intended to say and because of their free will, in order to charge them with their sins: cry aloud, spare not, lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression (Isaiah 58:1).

And he said, he who believes in me, does not believe in me but in him who sent me. This seems to contain a contradiction, for he says, he who believes in me, does not believe in me. To understand this, we should first note, according to Augustine, that our Lord said this to distinguish his divine and human natures. Since the proper object of faith is God, we can indeed believe that a creature exists, but we should not believe in a creature, but in God alone. Now, in Christ there is a created nature and the uncreated nature. Therefore, the truth of faith requires that our faith be in Christ as having an uncreated nature. And so he says, he who believes in me—that is, in my person—does not believe in me as a mere human being, but in him who sent me. In other words, he believes in me as sent from the Father: my doctrine is not mine, but his who sent me (John 7:16).

According to Chrysostom, however, our Lord says this to suggest his origin. It is a way of speaking similar to a person drawing water from a stream and saying that the water is not from the stream but from the spring, for it does not originate from the stream. So our Lord says, he who believes in me, does not believe in me, but in him who sent me, as if to say: "I am not the source of myself, but my divinity is from another, that is, from my Father. So, he who believes in me does not believe in me, except insofar as I am from the Father."

Then when he says, and he who sees me, sees him who sent me, he discusses vision. In regard to this, we should note that just as the Father sent the Son to convert the Jews, so Christ also sent his disciples: as the Father has sent me, I also send you (John 20:21). But none of the disciples dared to say, nor should they, that one should believe in him, although they could say that one should believe him. For this could not happen without detracting from the One who sent them, because if someone believed in the disciple, they would cease to believe in the master.

The Jews could therefore argue on the same basis that since Christ was sent from the Father, anyone who believes in him ceases to believe in the Father. Our Lord argues against this, showing that one who does not believe in him also does not believe in the Father. This is his meaning when he says, he who sees me, sees him who sent me.

The "seeing" referred to here is not physical vision, but a consideration of the truth by the mind. The reason one who sees the Son also sees the Father is that the Father is in the Son by a unity of essence. One thing is said to be seen in another either because they are the same or because they are entirely conformed to one another. The Father and the Son are the same in nature and entirely conformed, because the Son is the image of the Father and is unlike him in nothing, for he is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15); he reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature (Hebrews 1:3). And so, just as one believes in the Father, so also he believes in me: Philip, he who sees me sees the Father . . . do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? (John 14:9–10). This was like saying: "The reason he who sees me also sees the Father is because the Father is in me, and I am in him."

Thus it is clear what faith should be: faith should be in Christ as God, just as it is in the Father.

Next, he shows the fruit of faith. First, he shows his own worth and power when he says, I have come a light into the world. It has already been explained how Christ is a light: he was the true light, which enlightens every man coming into this world (John 1:9), and I am the light of the world (John 8:12).

He also shows by this that he has the divine nature. For to be light is proper to God; others may give off light by participating in it, but God is light by his very essence: God is light and in him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). But because he dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has ever seen (1 Timothy 6:16), we were unable to approach him. And so it was necessary that he come to us. This is what he says: I have come a light into the world. That is, I am the unapproachable light who rescues from error and disperses intellectual darkness: I came forth from the Father and have come into the world (John 16:28); he came unto his own (John 1:11).

And although the apostles are called light—you are the light of the world (Matthew 5:14)—they are not light in the same way as Christ. For they are a light whose light has been given to them, even though in some way they also give light through their ministry. Furthermore, none of the apostles could truly say, I have come a light into the world, because when they came into the world they were still darkness and not light: we are wrapped in darkness (Job 37:19).

Second, he continues, that whoever believes in me, may not remain in darkness. To become enlightened, therefore, is an effect of faith: he who follows me does not walk in darkness (John 8:12). May not remain in darkness refers to the darkness of ignorance, of unbelief, and of eternal damnation. This shows that all are born in the darkness of sin—for once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord (Ephesians 5:8)—and in the darkness of ignorance—a man whose way is hidden and God has surrounded him with darkness (Job 3:23). And in the end, unless they turn to Christ, they will be brought to the darkness of eternal damnation. And so, he who does not believe in me remains in darkness: but he who does not believe in the Son will not see life; but the wrath of God rests on him (John 3:36).

Then he discloses the punishment of unbelievers, which they will incur through their condemnation at the judgment: and if any man hear my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him.

First, he states that the judgment will be delayed.

Second, that there will be a judgment in the future: he who despises me, and does not receive my words, has one that judges him.

Third, he shows the cause of the judgment: the word that I have spoken, the same will judge him in the last day.

Regarding the first point, he does two things:

1. He explains the delay of the judgment.
2. He assigns the reason for the delay.

As to the first, he says, and if any man hear my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him. Note that the ones to be blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it, believing it inwardly in their hearts and practicing it outwardly in their actions. But those who hear it and take no care to keep it become more guilty: for it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law will be justified (Romans 2:13); but be doers of the word, and not hearers only (James 1:22). And so, if any man hear my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him.

This seems to conflict with what was said: the Father . . . has given all judgment to the Son (John 5:22). Therefore, we should understand it as, "I do not judge him at this time." It could be considered a weakness in him if he overlooked those who despised him. And so he says that such persons will be judged, although not now; for we read that God will bring every deed into judgment (Ecclesiastes 12:14), and flee from the face of iniquity, for the sword is the avenger of iniquity: and know that there is a judgment (Job 19:29).

He continues with the reason for the delay, saying, for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. The Son of God comes two times: one time he comes as Savior, and the next as Judge. But since all were in sin, if he had come the first time as Judge, he would have saved no one, because all were children of wrath. And so it was fitting that he come first to save believers, and later to judge both believers and sinners. This is what he is saying: I do not judge now, for I came not, at this first coming, to judge the world, but to save the world. As is said above, for God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him (John 3:17).

Then when he says, he who despises me and does not receive my words, has one who judges him, he foretells the judgment to come. It is as if to say: "Although those who do not keep my word are not judged now, they will not go unpunished, whoever they are, because he who despises me and does not receive my words—by believing them and acting according to them—has one who judges him." The reason for this is that if one does not receive the word of Christ, he scorns the word of God, whose Word is Christ, just as one who does not obey the command of his master. Flee from the face of iniquity; and know that there is a judgment (Job 19:29); for God will bring every deed into judgment (Ecclesiastes 12:14); woe to you who scorn. Will not you yourselves also be scorned? (Isaiah 33:1); they who despise me will be despised (1 Samuel 2:30).

Then when he says, the word that I have spoken, the same will judge him in the last day, he assigns the cause of the judgment.

1. First, he mentions the cause of the judgment.
2. Second, he shows the adequacy of this cause: for I have not spoken of myself.

He says: I say that such a person has one that judges him. But who will that judge be? He says, the word that I have spoken, the same will judge him in the last day. According to Augustine, this is the same as saying, "I will judge him on the last day." For Christ revealed himself and announced himself in his sayings. He, therefore, is the word that he spoke, for he spoke about himself: although I give testimony about myself, my testimony is true: for I know from where I came and to where I go (John 8:14). It is like saying: "What I have said to them and what they have despised will judge them." He is the one ordained by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness (Acts 10:42).

Then he shows the sufficiency of this cause, saying, for I have not spoken of myself. He shows this first from the origin of his sayings, and second, from their dignity or value: and I know that his commandment is life everlasting.

Concerning the first, he does two things:

1. He excludes a false notion.
2. He states the truth.

The false notion, of course, is that the Son works, speaks, or exists merely of himself, and not from another, for this would be to say that the Son is not from the Father. This is what he addresses when he says: I say that the word which I have spoken will judge them, for I have not spoken of myself. As is said above, the Son cannot do anything of himself (John 5:19), and I speak not of myself (John 14:10). For I have not spoken of myself is the same as saying, "I was not born of myself but from the Father." He is saying, in effect, that he will judge on the last day appearing in the form of a servant: he has given him power to do judgment, because he is the Son of Man (John 5:27). Yet he will not judge from human authority—that is, because he is the Son of man—but from divine authority, because he is the Son of God. Therefore, he will not judge of himself, but from the Father from whom he has the authority to judge.

He establishes the truth when he says, but the Father who sent me, he gave me commandment what I should say, and what I should speak. Unless this is understood appropriately, it can be the source of two errors.

The first is that since the one commanding is greater than the one commanded, the Father is greater than the Son. The second is that since what is given to someone was not possessed by him before it was given, it seems that if the Father gave a commandment to the Son, it follows that the Son at some time did not have it and so did not know it. As a result, something would have been added to the Son, and so the Son would not be truly God.

In answer to this, we should note that all the divine commands are in the mind of the Father, since these commands are nothing other than the plans or patterns of things to be done. Just as the patterns of all creatures produced by God are in the mind of the Father and are called ideas, so the patterns of all things to be done by us are in his mind. And just as the patterns of all things pass from the Father to the Son, who is the Wisdom of the Father, so also do the patterns of all things to be done. Therefore, the Son says, the Father who sent me, he gave me, as God, commandment—that is, by an eternal generation he has communicated to me—what I should say inwardly and what I should speak outwardly, just as what we say (if we speak the truth) makes known what is in our minds.

Chrysostom explains all this differently and more clearly. He explains, if any man hear my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him, plainly. One is said to be condemned in two ways: either by a judge or by the reason for the condemnation. For a murderer is condemned to be hanged both by the judge who passes sentence and by the murder he committed, which is the reason for his condemnation. Christ says, I do not judge him, meaning, "I am not the reason for his condemnation, but he himself is." As it is written, your destruction, O Israel is from yourself; your help is only in me (Hosea 13:9). And the reason is: for I did not come to judge the world; that is, I was not sent to condemn but to save.

But will such a person not be judged? He certainly will, because he who despises me and does not receive my words, has one who judges him. Christ shows what that judge is when he says, the word that I have spoken, and you have heard, will be his accuser and the same will judge him in the last day. As said elsewhere, if I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin (John 15:22). He shows that the word he spoke will judge them by saying, for I have not spoken of myself. This phrase is not used to give a cause, but to define the content. The meaning is: You ask what word will judge? It is the word that I have spoken, which is defined by the fact that I have not spoken of myself. It is the word from the Father that I have spoken, and what he gave me to say and speak. Otherwise, if I had spoken something in opposition to the Father, or something I had not received from the Father, and they had not believed me, they would have an excuse. But because I have spoken as I have, it is certain that they have rejected not only me, but also my Father.

According to this explanation, the statement, the Father who sent me, he gave me commandment what I should say and what I should speak, shows the sufficiency of the judgment's basis because of the dignity or value of the word. First, its dignity is given; second, the fact that the word was spoken.

Its dignity is stated when he says, I know that his commandment is life everlasting. This is the true God and eternal life (1 John 5:20). For the Son himself is the commandment of the Father; that is, he is eternal life. If you would enter life, keep the commandments (Matthew 19:17).

Therefore, because the Father has given me a commandment, and this commandment is eternal life, and since I have come to lead people to eternal life, I accomplish the commandment of the Father in all that I do. This is what he is saying: the things therefore that I speak, even as the Father said unto me. According to Chrysostom, whose explanation is clear, the meaning is: the things therefore that I speak, when preaching in public, are spoken even as the Father said unto me, that is, insofar as I have received knowledge from him—understanding this knowledge was received by Christ as man.

But if, with Augustine, we understand this to apply to Christ as God, how can the Father say something to him, since Christ is his Word? The answer is that the Father did not say anything to him as though he spoke by words to his only Word. Rather, the Father spoke to the Son by generating him and giving him life in himself: he said to me: you are my Son (Psalms 2:7).