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He was not the light, but was sent that he might testify about the light.
Verse Takeaways
1
A Reflector, Not the Source
Commentators stress the vital distinction made in this verse. John the Baptist was a powerful prophet, a "burning and shining light" (Source 8), but he was not the ultimate source of light. His role was like that of the moon, reflecting the sun's glory. The Gospel writer makes this clarification because many people at the time wondered if John himself was the Messiah (Source 3). John's greatness lay in pointing away from himself to Jesus, the true Light.
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John
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10
18th Century
Presbyterian
For a witness. To give testimony. He came to prepare the minds of the people to receive him (Matthew 3; Luke 3); to…
He (εκεινος). "That one," i.e. John. He was a light (John 5:35) as all believers are (Matthew 5:14), but n…
19th Century
Anglican
He was not that Light, but was sent.—It is necessary to repeat the statement of John’s position and work in an emphatic f…
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Baptist
The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear …
“Witness” (GK 3456) is distinctly a Johannine word. It is especially pertinent in this gospel, which attempts to establish by adequate testimony th…
17th Century
Reformed Baptist
He was not that light He was a light; he was the forerunner of the sun of righteousness, the "phosphorus" of the Gos…
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John the Baptist came to bear witness concerning Jesus. Nothing more fully shows the darkness of human minds than the fact that when the Light had …
13th Century
Catholic
Previously, the Evangelist considered the divinity of the Word; here he begins to consider the incarnation of the Word.
In this, h…