1‐4. *Christ points out the violence of the persecutions which
await the Apostles, and His object in forewarning them.*
5‐7. *He again consoles them, and tries to reconcile them to His
departure, by telling them that it is necessary, in order that the
Holy Ghost may come to them.*
8‐15. *He points out that the Holy Ghost will convince the world
vv. (8‐11), instruct them in what they were not yet able to learn
(vv. 12‐13), and give glory to Christ Himself (vv. 14‐15). Hence
they ought to desire the Holy Ghost’s coming.*
16‐22. *He promises that after a brief absence, during which they
shall have bitter sorrow, He will return to them, and their sorrow
shall give place to joy.*
23, 24. *He bids them to pray to the Father in His name, and
promises that such prayer will be heard.*
25‐28. *Though He has spoken obscurely to them in this last
discourse, the time is at hand when He will speak plainly—a time
when they will ask the Father in His name.*
1. Haec locutus sum vobis, ut 1. These things have I spoken
non scandalizemini. to you, that you may not be
scandalized.
1. His object in foretelling *these things* was that the Apostles might
not be scandalized; _i.e._, might not waver in the faith amid the trials
that were before them. But what are “these things” to which He refers?
Some, as St. Aug., understand the reference to be to the promise of the
Comforter (xv. 26, 27). Others, as Mald., to the persecutions that awaited
the Apostles, because the prediction of those persecutions now would
prepare the Apostles for them; nay, when those persecutions should come,
they would be another proof of the omniscience, and, therefore, of the
Divinity of Christ. Others, as A Lap., combine both the preceding
opinions. This appears to us the correct view, for Christ has spoken
towards the end of the preceding chapter, both of the persecutions that
the Apostles were to endure, and of the Comforter, who was to come to
them; and the prediction of both facts was calculated to sustain them when
trials should come. On the one hand, they would not become disspirited by
_unexpected_ reverses; on the other, they would trust in the Comforter,
who had been promised.
2. Absque synagogis facient 2. They will put you out of
vos: sed venit hora, ut omnis the synagogues: yea, the hour
qui interficit vos, arbitretur cometh, that whosoever killeth
obsequium se praestare Deo: you, will think that he doth a
service to God.
2. *They will put you out of the synagogues* (or rather, synagogue) _i.e._
excommunicate you. Compare ix. 22; xii. 42. Yea, He continues, the time is
approaching when persecution will be so violent that your countrymen will
think that they do a service to God by putting you to death. The mention
of the synagogue proves that the reference is to _Jewish_ persecutions. No
doubt many of the Jews thought, like St. Paul (Acts xxvi. 9; 1 Tim. i.
13), that they were pleasing God by persecuting Christians. Their
ignorance, however, while it extenuated, did not wholly excuse, their sin,
for it was culpable. They ought to have known from Christ’s words and
works, and from the fulfilment of prophecy in Him, that He was the
Messias, to whom, therefore, they were bound to hearken (Deut. xviii. 19),
and whose religion was to perfect and supplant their own.
3. Et haec facient vobis, quia 3. And these things will they
non noverunt Patrem neque me. do to you, because they have
not known the Father, nor me.
3. See above on xv. 21.
4. Sed haec locutus sum vobis: 4. But these things I have
ut, cum venerit hora eorum, told you, that when the hour
reminiscamini quia ego dixi shall come, you may remember
vobis. that I told you of them.
4. “Eorum” of the Vulgate is to be connected with “reminiscamini,” on
which it depends. The comma ought to be before “eorum;” the Greek text
makes this clear. As we said above on verse 1, the fact that Christ had
foretold these persecutions, would be another proof of His Divinity.
Moreover, since He knew that these persecutions were in store, and did not
avert them, the Apostles ought to learn from this to bear them with
resignation, inasmuch as they were not merely endured for Him, but
permitted by Him.
5. Haec autem vobis ab initio 5. But I told you not these
non dixi, quia vobiscum eram. things from the beginning,
Et nunc vado ad eum, qui misit because I was with you. And
me: et nemo ex vobis now I go to him that sent me,
interrogat me, Quo vadis? and none of you asketh me:
Whither goest thou?
5. *But I told you not these things from the beginning.* “These things,”
we again understand, as in verse 1, both of the persecutions which were
before them, and of the coming of the Holy Ghost to take Christ’s place,
and console the Apostles.
But had He not already predicted that the Apostles were to be persecuted?
Had He not said: “But beware of men. For they will deliver you up in
councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. And you shall be
brought before governors and before kings for My sake, for a testimony to
them and to the Gentiles”? (Matt. x. 17, 18). To this we may reply, with
Mald., that He had never predicted persecution until now, and that St.
Matthew, in recording, in the passage cited, the prediction of
persecution, does not follow the order of time, but inserts, in connection
with the mission of the Apostles to the Jews what was spoken long after,
probably immediately before, Christ’s ascension, when they were receiving
their mission to the whole world. (Matt. xxviii. 19, 20). Or we may
reply—and this answer we prefer—that although He had before predicted the
persecution of the Apostles, yet He had not till now told them what He
told them on this occasion; namely, that they should be excommunicated by
the Jews, and that men would think they were actually honouring God in
persecuting them. So that although He had before predicted persecution,
still it was only now He predicted its terrible violence.
*And* (Gr. δε = _but_) *now I go to him that sent me*. These words are to
be connected closely with the preceding. Before, He had not told them
these things, _but_ now He is about to leave them, and there is,
therefore, a special reason for His referring to the future.
*And none of you asketh me: Whither goest thou?* Or: “And does none of you
ask Me: Whither goest thou”? Our Lord probably remained silent for a few
moments after announcing His departure, in order to see if anyone would
question Him further about it. Since no one did, He mildly reminds them in
the words before us, that they are not sufficiently solicitous to learn
the things that concerned Him; but, as He goes on to say in verse 6, are
too much occupied with their own sorrows. No doubt, Peter had already
asked Him: “Lord, whither goest Thou?” (John xiii. 36); and Thomas had
said: “Lord, we know not whither Thou goest; and how can we know the way?”
(John xiv. 5), but they had not persevered in asking; and at present, when
He is just about to depart, they put Him no questions about the glory that
was before Him, or the nature of the kingdom that awaited Him.
6. Sed quia haec locutus sum 6. But because I have spoken
vobis: tristitia implevit cor these things to you sorrow
vestrum. hath filled your heart.
6. *These things* we again take, as in verses 1 and 5, to refer to the
persecutions which He had predicted, and to the coming of the Holy Ghost
_after His departure_. That there is not question merely of persecutions
predicted, is proved by the next verse, in which He goes on, in immediate
connection with this (_But_ I tell you the truth, it is expedient to you
that I go) to reconcile them to His departure. For the same reason, there
is not question merely of the coming of the Holy Ghost, since that was no
cause for sorrow, but of His coming _in Christ’s place_. The prediction of
persecution, and of the coming of the Holy Ghost as _implying the
departure of Christ_, was what filled their hearts with sorrow.
7. Sed ego veritatem dico 7. But I tell you the truth:
vobis: expedit vobis ut ego it is expedient to you that I
vadam: si enim non abiero, go: for if I go not, the
Paraclitus non veniet ad vos: Paraclete will not come to
si autem abiero, mittam eum ad you: but if I go, I will send
vos. him to you.
7. *But.* The meaning is: notwithstanding your silence (verse 5), or:
notwithstanding your sorrow (verse 6), *I tell you the truth: it is
expedient to you that I go*. This expediency arose from the free
disposition of the Divine economy that the Son of God should remove from
among men His visible presence before the Holy Ghost should come. Nothing
in the nature of things necessarily required this; but God freely decreed
it so.
8. Et cum venerit ille, arguet 8. And when he is come he will
mundum de peccato, et de convince the world of sin, and
iustitia, et de iudicio. of justice, and of judgment.
9. De peccato quidem, quia non 9. Of sin: because they
crediderunt in me: believed not in me.
10. De iustitia vero, quia ad 10. And of justice: because I
Patrem vado, et iam non go to the Father; and you
videbitis me: shall see me no longer.
11. De iudicio autem, quia 11. And of judgment: because
princeps huius mundi iam the prince of this world is
iudicatus est. already judged.
8‐11. We may take these four verses together, as the three last explain
the first. Christ goes on to show why it is expedient for the Apostles
that He should leave them, and that the Holy Ghost should come. *And when
he is come, he will convince*, &c. The Greek word for “will convince” is
ἐλένξει, which may mean either—(_a_) to rebuke, or (_b_) to prove a thing
clearly so that it must be admitted. It is not absolutely necessary that
the word be used in the same sense throughout these verses; but since
there is nothing to indicate that it is used in different senses, we take
it in the same sense throughout. This sense we believe to be the second
just indicated, for this alone suits verses 10 and 11.
The meaning of the whole passage, then, we take to be the following:—And
when the Holy Ghost is come, He will clearly prove to the _unbelieving_
world, principally through your preaching and miracles, its own sin, My
justice, and its own condemnation. Its own sin of incredulity, which is
proved by the fact that the children of this wicked world did not believe
in Me (verse 9); My justice, which is proved by the fact that I go to God
to reign with Him for ever, so that men shall see Me no more; its own
condemnation, which is shown to be certain by the fact that its prince,
the devil, is already condemned. Christ’s victory over the devil at His
death implied the condemnation of the devil’s kingdom, the world. And as
Christ’s death was so near, the devil might be said to be already
condemned.
If it be objected to our interpretation that, since there is question in
verses 9 and 11 of the _world’s_ sin and condemnation, so there must be
question of the world’s justice in verse 10, we reply that Christ makes it
sufficiently clear that He is speaking in verse 10 of His own justice by
the words He adds: “Because I go to the Father, and you shall see Me no
longer.”
If it be objected that the Holy Ghost did not prove to the world its own
sin, nor Christ’s justice, nor its own condemnation, we reply that He did,
though the world in many of its children closed its eyes to the proof;
_Oculos habent et non videbunt_. (Ps. cxiii. 5.) The world saw in the
sanctity of the Christian religion, in the miracles wrought by Christ’s
followers, in the power of the Apostles and their successors over devils
and those possessed by devils, what ought to have convinced it of Christ’s
Divinity, and of its own sin and inevitable condemnation.
12. Adhuc multa habeo vobis 12. I have yet many things to
dicere: sed non potestis say to you: but you cannot
portare modo. hear them now.
12. *I have yet many things.* Among these many things which they were not
yet able to bear were, probably, the nature of His earthly kingdom, and
the abrogation of the Jewish Law, in as far as it was judicial and
ceremonial. As Jews who had grown up imbued with deepest reverence for the
Mosaic Law, the Apostles were naturally slow to believe that it was to be
abrogated; and immediately before St. Peter received Cornelius into the
Church as the first‐fruits of the Gentile world, he had to be taught by a
vision from heaven that the Jewish distinction between clean and unclean
meats was no longer to exist. (Acts x. 10‐16.) And as to the nature of
Christ’s earthly kingdom, the Apostles in common with the rest of their
race still hoped that the Messias would establish a mighty Jewish empire,
and restore Israel to a foremost place among the nations. Even on
Ascension day they still cherished this hope, as we learn from the Acts:
“Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts
i. 6).
13. Cum autem venerit ille 13. But when he, the Spirit of
Spiritus veritatis, docebit truth, is come, he will teach
vos omnem veritatem: non enim you all truth. For he shall
loquetur a semetipso: sed not speak of himself: but what
quaecumque audiet loquetur, et things soever he shall hear,
quae ventura sunt annuntiabit he shall speak: and the things
vobis. that are to come he shall shew
you.
13. *But when he, the Spirit of truth, is come.* Though you are now unable
to bear these truths, you shall be taught them all by the Holy Ghost. The
Greek for *will teach* (docebit) is ὀδηγήσει, which means to lead on the
way, to conduct; and the sense, therefore, is: He shall _guide_ you into
_all the truth_ (which I have still to tell you, but which you are now
unable to bear). We are not to suppose that the Apostles were taught all
the truth on the day of Pentecost; the revelation was vouchsafed
gradually, and at their death the deposit of faith was complete.(101)
Since the Apostles’ time, doctrines and dogmas have, indeed, been more
fully drawn out and developed, but no new doctrines have been revealed.
This follows clearly from the words we are considering; for it was to the
Apostles, to those same men who were now unable to bear it, that the Holy
Ghost was to teach the _whole_ truth.
The promise here made to the Apostles, that they should be taught the
whole truth by the Holy Ghost, while it regarded them _directly_, regarded
the whole Church indirectly; for it is to them as Apostles, appointed to
teach the whole Church, that Christ speaks: “I have chosen you, and have
appointed you, that you should go, and should bring forth fruit, and your
fruit should remain” (John xv. 16). And in the solemn prayer to the
Father, with which this discourse concludes, He prays the Father:
“Sanctify them (the Apostles) in (the) truth.... And not for them only do
I pray, but for them also who, through their word, shall believe in me.”
So that the Apostles first, and through them the Church of Christ,
received the whole truth from the Holy Ghost.(102)
*For he shall not speak of himself.* These words give a reason why the
Holy Ghost shall teach the truth. No other reason than His own Divinity
and essential truthfulness was necessary; but, as the Apostles did not yet
understand that this new Comforter was Divine, Jesus vouchsafes another
reason to convince them of His truthfulness. This other reason is, that
the Holy Ghost shall speak to them, not what has been excogitated or
invented by Himself, but what he received from the Son of God in His
eternal procession. Doubtless the Apostles did not yet know much about the
mystery of the Divine procession; still they could gather from these words
that the new Comforter was to announce to them the truth, as Christ’s
legate, and this was enough.
*But what things soever he shall hear, he shall speak.* A Divine Person
(unless He were possessed of two natures, like Jesus Christ) cannot be
conceived to acquire anything except in His procession; for once He is a
Divine Person He is infinite, and can receive nothing that He does not
already possess. Hence whatever the Holy Ghost _heard_, He heard from all
eternity, in proceeding from the Father and the Son.(103) Yet, though the
Holy Ghost heard and hears from all eternity, the _future_ tense “shall
hear” is used because there is question of knowledge _to be manifested in
the future_.(104)
*And the things that are to come he shall shew you.* Hence the Holy Ghost
was to confer the gift of prophecy on the Apostles. As evidence that He
conferred this gift upon them, see Acts xx. 29; St. Jude 17, 18, and The
Apocalypse.
14. Ille me clarificabit: quia 14. He shall glorify me;
de meo accipiet, et because he shall receive of
annuntiabit vobis. mine, and shall shew _it_ to
you.
14. *He shall glorify me. because he shall receive of mine* (ἐκ τοῦ ἐμοῦ),
*and shall shew it to you*.
The Holy Ghost gave glory to Christ before men by showing that Christ was
the Messias and Saviour of the world. This He did principally through the
Apostles, by imparting to them (in so far it was necessary or useful for
them) the knowledge which He had received from the Son, and especially, as
the context here (verse 16) proves, the knowledge of future things. In the
words, “He shall receive of mine,” we refer “mine” to the Son’s knowledge,
which, however, _in reality_ does not differ in a Divine Person from His
essence.(105)
As we remarked already on verse 13, a Divine Person (having no other
nature than the Divine), cannot be conceived to receive anything except in
His procession; and hence when the Holy Ghost is here said to receive from
the Son, we have a convincing proof that _He proceeds from the Son_.
The schismatical Greeks attempted in two ways to get rid of the argument
that is thus afforded for the procession of the Holy Ghost from the Son.
(_a_) First, they supplied πατρός after τοῦ ἐμοῦ, and thus represented
Christ as saying that the Holy Ghost should receive from the Father. Hence
they concluded that He proceeds only from the Father. But we say in
reply—(1) that it is against the rules of Greek syntax that the possessive
pronoun τοῦ ἐμοῦ should refer to a word not expressed in the phrase. (2)
That all the fathers, Greek as well as Latin, referred τοῦ ἐμοῦ to _what
is in the Son_ and not to the Father. (3) The context here Proves that τοῦ
ἐμοῦ does not refer to the Father. For in verse 15 we have the pronoun
repeated in the plural: “All things whatsoever the Father hath _are mine_
(ἐμά ἐστιν). Therefore I said, he shall receive of _mine_,” and it is
plain that in both instances _mine_ refers to the same thing; hence not to
the Father, but to what is in the Son, communicated from the Father.
(_b_) Equally inadmissible is the other interpretation by which it was
attempted to explain away this text. According to this second view,
Christ’s words would mean: The Holy Ghost shall glorify Me because He
shall receive of Mine _from My Father_, and shall show it to you. But
there is nothing to justify this insertion of the words “from My Father;”
on the contrary, the whole context points to the fact that the Holy Ghost
is to receive what is the Son’s (of mine) _from the Son Himself_. For
since the Holy Ghost in reality glorified the Father and Himself as well
as the Son, when we find it here stated that He shall glorify the Son,
_because_ He shall receive of Him, the natural inference is, that He
receives from Him directly, and not merely through the Father. Besides,
when the text distinctly states that the Holy Ghost shall receive of the
Son, it is wholly arbitrary and really not an interpretation of the words
at all to say that He receives of the Son _through the Father_, and not
directly of the Son Himself.
Hence the words of this verse plainly mean that the Holy Ghost receives
from the Son, and consequently, as we saw above on verse 13, afford a
proof that He proceeds from the Son, just as those of xv. 26 prove that He
proceeds from the Father. He proceeds, therefore, as our faith professes,
Ex Patre _Filioque_.
15. Omnia quaecumque habet 15. All things whatsoever the
Pater, mea sunt. Propterea Father hath, are mine.
dixi: quia de meo accipiet, et Therefore I said, he shall
annuntiabit vobis. receive of mine, and show _it_
to you.
15. *Therefore I said, he shall receive*, &c. The present (λαμβάνει) is
the more probable reading, but it is used for the future, so that the
Vulgate gives the meaning. This verse is variously connected with the
preceding, even by Catholic commentators. We believe that Christ is here
proving what He has just said, namely, that the Holy Ghost should receive
of Him. The proof is this: All whatsoever the Father hath (except, of
course, the relation of Paternity) is the Son’s; but the Father has
_spiratio activa_: in other words, the Holy Ghost proceeds from Him,
therefore He proceeds from the Son also: “All things whatsoever the Father
hath are mine; _therefore_ I said, He shall receive of mine, and shew it
to you.” Note that this verse, too, furnishes a clear proof of the
procession of the Holy Ghost from the Son, since the Son has all that the
Father hath.
16. Modicum, et iam non 16. A little while, and now
videbitis me: et iterum you shall not see me: and
modicum, et videbitis me: quia again a little while, and you
vado ad Patrem? shall see me: because I go to
the Father.
16. Instead of ού the best supported Greek text reads οὐκέτι (no longer),
and omits the words “because I go to the Father.” We are not, however,
convinced that the Vulgate is wrong in retaining the words, for the next
verse, where they are certainly genuine, makes it clear that our Lord must
have used the words here; though, of course, it is possible that St. John
did not record them.
*A little while.* There are two probable interpretations of the two
“little whiles.” According to one, the first “little while” is the short
time until Christ’s death, and _after_ that they should not see Him; then
another “little while,” namely the three days that His body was in the
grave, and _after_ that they should see Him risen to a glorious and
immortal life. According to the other, the first “little while” is the
time until the ascension, and _after_ that they should see Him no longer
among them on earth; the second “little while” is the time from the
ascension until the day of general judgment, and _after_ that they should
see Him for ever, their joy no man should take from them (verse 22), and
they would require to ask Him no questions (verse 23), because all would
be clear in the light of the beatific vision.
We prefer the latter view; for when Christ goes on in the following verses
to explain, His words, especially in verses 22 and 23, are not easily or
naturally understood in the first interpretation. For, though the Apostles
did rejoice after His resurrection (John xx. 20), and though that glorious
event with all that it implied must have been to them a source of lasting
joy, still they had very many occasions for sorrowing subsequently.
Besides, we know that after His resurrection they put Him questions (Acts
i. 6). Hence, we prefer to hold that the second “little while” (with the
Lord a thousand years are as one day, 2 Peter iii. 8) shall terminate with
the day of judgment, for then only shall they require to put Him no
questions, and both body and soul shall be for ever happy.
*Because I go to the Father.* Some connect with both the preceding
members. Others, as Mald., only with the first member—you shall not see
Me, because I go to the Father.
17. Dixerunt ergo ex 17. Then some of his disciples
discipulis eius ad invicem: said one to another: What is
Quid est hoc quod dicit nobis: this that he saith to us: A
Modicum, et non videbitis me: little while, and you shall
et iterum modicum: et not see me: and again a little
videbitis me, et quia vado ad while, and you shall see me,
Patrem? and because I go to the
Father?
18. Dicebant ergo: Quid est 18. They said therefore: What
hoc quod dicit Modicum: is this that he saith, A
nescimus quid loquitur. little while? we know not what
he speaketh.
17, 18. The Apostles were perplexed, and did not understand. Doubtless
their sorrow at the thought of His departure confused them, and in any
case the meaning was not clear.
19. Cognovit autem Iesus quia 19. And Jesus knew that they
volebant cum interrogare et had a mind to ask him: and he
dixit eis: De hoc quaeritis said to them: Of this do you
inter vos quia dixi, Modicum? inquire among yourselves,
et non videbitis me: et iterum because I said: A little
modicum, et videbitis me. while, and you shall not see
me: and again a little while,
and you shall see me?
19. Though they had spoken only among themselves, Jesus knew their
thoughts, and was aware of their perplexity.
20. Amen, amen dico vobis: 20. Amen, amen, I say to you,
quia plorabitis et flebitis that you shall lament and
vos, mundus autem gaudebit: weep, but the world shall
vos autem contristabimini, sed rejoice: and you shall be made
tristitia vestra vertetur in sorrowful, but your sorrow
gaudium. shall be turned into joy.
21. Mulier cum parit, 21. A woman, when she is in
tristitiam habet, quia labour, hath sorrow, because
venithora eius: cum autem her hour is come: but when she
pepererit puerum, iam non hath brought forth the child,
meminit pressurae propter she remembereth no more the
gaudium, quia natus est homo anguish, for joy that a man is
in mundum. born into the world.
20, 21. He compares their brief sorrow here below to that of a woman in
labour, and their lasting joy to that of a mother when she has brought
forth her child.
22. Et vosigitur nunc quidem 22. So also you now indeed
tristitiam habetis, iterum have sorrow, but I will see
autem videbo vos, et gaudebit you again, and your heart
cor vestrum: et gaudium shall rejoice; and your joy no
vestrum nemo toilet a vobis? man shall take from you.
22. Applying the preceding comparison, He says: You too now in this life,
the period of your travail, have sorrow; but I will see you again at the
day of general judgment (or, perhaps, when their souls should enter
heaven), and then your joy shall be lasting.
23. Et in illo die me non 23. And in that day you shall
rogabitis quidquam. Amen, amen not ask me anything. Amen,
dico vobis: si quid petieritis amen, I say to you: if you ask
Patrem in nomine nemo dabit the Father anything in my
vobis. name, he will give it you.
23. In that time, when you shall enjoy the vision of God, you shall not
require to put me any questions(106) (οὐκ ἐρωτήσετε) as just now you
wished to do (verse 19), because you shall know all that you can desire to
know. Thus in the interpretation that we have adopted, Christ, after
promising the Apostles the knowledge of future things while they are here
on earth (verses 13‐15), goes on in the following verses (16‐23) to
promise them His own. society, eternal joy, and perfect knowledge in the
life to come.
*Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask* (αἰτήσητε) *the Father anything*,
&c. These words ought to begin a new verse, for a new subject, the
efficacy of prayer, is begun. The correct Greek reading is ἄν τι (not ὅτι
ὅσα ἄν), and agrees with the Vulgate, “si quid.” Most critics of the Greek
text read the latter part of this verse thus: “If you ask the Father
anything, He will give it you in my name.” Still we are inclined to
believe that the Vulgate reading, which connects “in my name” with “ask”
and not with “will give,” is correct; for immediately after (in verses 24
and 26) we have question of asking in the name of Christ. Moreover, the
connection between verses 23 and 24, with the apparent antithesis: “if you
ask the Father anything in my name, He will give it you. Hitherto you have
not asked anything in my name,” confirms the Vulgate reading. We prefer
the Vulgate reading therefore, and the sense is, that if they ask the
Father anything in the name, through the merits, of Christ, He will give
it; provided, of course, as St. John says in his First Epistle (v. 14)
they ask according to the will of God. Hence the Church always asks
through the merits of Christ: “Per Christum Dominum nostrum,” or “Per
Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum,” &c.
There could be no clearer proof than this verse affords of the wondrous
efficacy of prayer.
24. Usque modo non petistis 24. Hitherto you have not
quidquam in nomine meo: asked anything in my name.
petite, et accipietis, ut Ask, and you shall receive:
gaudium vestrum sit plenum. that your joy may be full.
24. They had already indeed asked of Christ Himself; they had also asked
the Father; but not in the name of Christ, as they are now bid to do. This
was a new form of prayer. The Jews, when praying, begged of God to
remember their Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; Christians appeal
through the name and merits of Jesus Christ.
25. Haec in proverbiis locutus 25. These things I have spoken
sum vobis. Venit hora, cum iam to you in proverbs. The hour
non in proverbiis loquar cometh when I will no more
vobis, sed palam de Patre speak to you in proverbs, but
annuntiabo vobis. will show you plainly of the
Father.
25. *In proverbs.* The word translated “proverbs” is παροιμίαις, which
signifies not merely proverbial, but also obscure or figurative language;
and this is the sense here, as is proved by the antithesis between
speaking “in proverbs” and speaking “plainly.” “These things,” then,
concerning His death, His resurrection, His return to the Father, the
“little whiles,” &c., He had spoken obscurely. We must hold that the words
of institution of the Blessed Eucharist are not included in “these
things.” They did not belong to this discourse _after_ the Last Supper,
but were spoken during the supper. Moreover, had they been obscure, surely
three Evangelists and St. Paul would not have narrated them without some
explanation.
*The hour cometh when I will no more speak to you in proverbs.* “Hour” is
the ordinary Hebraism for time. Some refer this to the next life, some to
the forty days of Christ’s risen life, and some to the time after
Pentecost. With St. Aug. and Mald. we prefer this latter view, for the
first opinion seems excluded by the next verse, where it is said they will
ask of the Father during the time in question, and we know they shall not
require to ask in heaven. The second opinion too (unless it be joined with
the third) is improbable, for it was not till the day of Pentecost, when
they were “endued with power from on high” (Luke xxvi. 49), that they were
able to bear plain speaking, or that Christ _through the Holy Ghost_ spoke
plainly to them.
26. In illo die in nomine meo 26. In that day you shall ask
petetis: et non dico vobis in my name: and I say not to
quia ego rogabo Patrem de you, that I will ask the
vobis: Father for you:
26. *I say not to you, that I will ask the Father for you.* The sense is:
I need not say, I do not need to tell you, that I will ask the Father for
you. This form of expression is what is called “praeteritio,” not
“exclusio,” for we know that Christ is “always living to intercede for us”
(Heb. vii. 25). The connection in the following verse: “For the Father
Himself,” &c., shows that Christ also wished to intimate that such
intercession on His part would not be necessary, because the Father
Himself would be prompt to hear and answer their prayers. Thus they should
understand that, though Christ, their advocate, was leaving them, yet they
had no reason to be disheartened, since the Father unsolicited would love
them and hear their prayers, because they had loved Christ, and believed
Him to be the Messias sent by God.
27. Ipse enim Pater amat vos, 27. For the Father himself
quia vos me amastis, et loveth you, because you have
credidistis quia ego a Deo loved me, and have believed
exivi. that I came out from God.
28. Exivi a Patre, et veni in 28. I came forth from the
mundum: iterum relinquo Father, and am come into the
mundum, et vado ad Patrem. world: again I leave the
world, and I go to the Father.
28. Taking up the closing words of the preceding verse, He insists upon
the truth of what they have believed. For in coming into the world I did
come out from God, who is My Father, and now I return to Him in leaving
the world, Some commentators refer the words: “I came forth from the
Father” to the eternal procession, and the following words to the mission
in time; but we think the view we follow more probable; for what is here
asserted is what the Apostles had already believed, and we doubt if they
yet understood or believed in the eternal procession.
29. Dicunt ei discipuli eius: 29. His disciples say to him:
Ecce nunc palam loqueris, et Behold now thou speakest
proverbium nullum dicis: plainly, and speakest no
proverb.
29. In saying that He was about to leave the world and go to the Father,
He spoke plainly, and explained their doubts of verse 17.
30. Nunc scimus quia scis 30. Now we know that thou
omnia, et non opus est tibi ut knowest all things, and thou
quis te interroget: in hoc needest not that any man
credimus quia a Deo existi. should ask thee. By this we
believe that thou comest forth
from God.
30. Seeing that He had read their thoughts (verse 19), and anticipated
their inquiries, even for this reason they declare their faith in Him as
the Messias and Son of God to be _confirmed_ and made perfect.
31. Respondit eis Iesus: Modo 31. Jesus answered them: Do
creditis? you now believe?
31. Christ’s reply does not deny that they believe; yet insinuates, if we
take it interrogatively with the Vulgate, that He had reason to doubt the
firmness of the faith they boasted, as indeed He goes on to declare
plainly in the following verses.
32. Ecce venit hora, et iam 32. Behold the hour cometh,
venit, ut dispergamini and it is now come, that you
unusquisque in propria, et me shall be scattered every man
solum relinquatis: et non sum to his own, and shall leave me
solus, quia Pater mecum est. alone: and yet I am not alone
because the Father is with me.
32. *Hour* is again a Hebraism for time. This same prediction, or a
similar one, is recorded by St. Matt. (xxvi. 31), and St. Mark (xiv. 27),
and according to both it was made after Christ and the Apostles had left
the supper room to go towards the Mount of Olives. As we observed above on
xiv. 31, we think it highly improbable that this long discourse after the
Last Supper was spoken in the crowded streets of Jerusalem; and if the
words of SS. Matthew or Mark obliged us to hold that the prediction,
recorded by those Evangelists was spoken whilst Christ and the Apostles
passed along the streets, we would hold that this prediction, recorded by
St. John, is a different one, and that Christ referred twice on this night
to the desertion of His Apostles. In reality, however, SS. Matthew and
Mark can be satisfactorily explained on the supposition that the
prediction which they record was spoken outside the house where Christ and
the Apostles had supped, or at some quiet spot on the way to Mount Olivet.
33. Haec locutus sum vobis, ut 33. These things I have spoken
in me pacem habeatis. In mundo to you, that in me you may
pressuram habebitis: sed have peace. In the world you
confidite, ego vici mundum. shall have distress: but have
confidence, I have overcome
the world.
33. These last discourses He had spoken to confirm their faith and afford
them consolation, that so they might have peace of heart, despite the
hatred of the world. Then He closes this beautiful discourse with the
consoling and encouraging assurance that He was just about to conquer the
world (by prolepsis He speaks of His victory as already gained). The
context shows that this assurance implied that they too, through Him,
should triumph over the world. For it is because His victory implied
theirs that He tells them to have confidence. “For whatsoever is born of
God overcometh the world: and this is the victory which overcometh the
world, our faith” (1 John v. 4).
Thus in His last words to His Apostles before His passion, at the very
moment when He knew that His enemies were approaching (xv. 30), Christ
confidently claims the glory of a conqueror.