Chapter XXI
1-14. Appearance of Jesus to the disciples at the Sea of Galilee; the miraculous draught of fish, after which St. John first recognises Jesus, and St. Peter leaps from the boat into the water to come to Him. The breakfast miraculously prepared for the disciples by Jesus.
15-17. Peter's triple confession of his love for his master; he is constituted by Jesus visible head of the whole Church.
18-19. Jesus predicts the manner of Peter's death, as St. John explains.
20-23. He reproves Peter's curiosity regarding the end in store for St. John.
24-25. The conclusion.
The authenticity of this last chapter of our Gospel has been questioned (see Introd. v.), and it has been contended that the chapter was not written by St. John, but by some disciple or disciples of his after his death. Even among those who admit its authenticity, some have held that it was not written at the same time as the rest of the Gospel, but at a later period, and added on as an appendix.138 Both those who deny the authenticity of the chapter, and those who hold it to be an authentic appendix, written at a later date, argue from the last two verses of chapter xx., which, they say, prove that St. John intended to conclude at that point. In addition to this, those who deny the authenticity, contend that the style of this chapter is so different from that of the rest of the Gospel as to compel the belief that both cannot possibly be the work of the same hand.
We may begin by remarking that no Catholic is free to doubt the inspiration of the chapter, so that whoever wrote it must have been inspired. This follows from the decree of Trent, which defined the entire books of the Vulgate with all their parts (and this is certainly a part, not merely a “particula” of this Gospel) to be canonical Scripture. See above on iv. 3, 4.
Hence, the only questions remaining are: (a) whether St. John or some other inspired writer wrote the chapter; and (b) in case St. John wrote it, whether he wrote it at the same time as the rest of the Gospel, or later, and as an appendix.
With Catholic commentators generally, we hold that the chapter was written by St. John and at the same time as the rest of the Gospel. For, since it is read in all the MSS., and quoted by all the fathers, the natural inference is that it stood in the Gospel from the beginning. Against this unanimous testimony of tradition, the arguments for any other view have no weight. For, as to the argument drawn from the last two verses of chapter xx., we have already, with Mald., Tol., and Cornely, given the most probable explanation of those verses, from which it appears that they were not intended as a conclusion of the whole Gospel, but only of that portion of it which deals with the proofs of His Divinity afforded by Christ to the Apostles during His risen life.139
As to the argument from the difference of style, we confidently deny that any such difference exists. Kuinoel, no mean judge on such a point, and certainly not a prejudiced witness, says: “Omnino probari nequit, scribendi genus, in hoc capite, si clausulam140 ejus exceperis, diversum esse a scribendi genere, quod in reliquo Evangelio deprehenditur.”
1. Postea manifestavit se iterum Iesus discipulis ad mare Tiberiadis. Manifestavit autem sic: 1. After this Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias. And he shewed himself after this manner.
1. After this. How many days after Low Sunday (xx. 26) the events now to be recorded occurred, we cannot determine. In the meantime, at all events, the disciples had left Jerusalem and gone to Galilee (Mat. xxviii. 16), in obedience to the express desire of their Divine Master (Mat. xxviii. 7; Mark xvi. 7).
The sea of Tiberias. See above on vi. i.
2. Erant simul Simon Petrus, et Thomas, qui dicitur Didymus, et Nathanael, qui erat a Cana Galilaeae, et filii Zebedaei, et alii ex discipulis eius duo. 2. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas who is called Didymus, and Nathanael who was of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples.
2. Nathanael is most probably the same with Bartholomew, the Apostle. See above on i. 45.
And two others of his disciples. Who they were we cannot tell. Had “the sons of Zebedee” not been already named, it would be quite in the style of our Evangelist to refer to his brother James and himself in this way.
3. Dicit eis Simon Petrus: Vado piscari, Dicunt ei: Venimus et nos tecum. Et exierunt, et ascenderunt in navim: et illa nocte nihil prendiderunt. 3. Simon Peter saith to them: I go a fishing. They say to him: We also come with thee. And they went forth and entered into the ship, and that night they caught nothing.
3. As they had not yet begun to preach the Gospel, and thus to have a right to support from the faithful, they had to provide themselves with the necessaries of life, and so they “go a fishing.”
And they went forth from the house where they were, and entered into the ship (τὸ πλοῖον), which was there, lent or hired for their use; and that night they caught nothing, God having so arranged, no doubt, in order to make the miracle of the following morning more remarkable.
4. Mane autem facto stetit Iesus in littore: non tamen cognoverunt discipuli quia Iesus est. 4. But when the morning was come, Jesus stood on the shore: yet the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.
4. But when the morning was come. The better supported Greek reading (γινομένης not γενομένης) gives the meaning: “When the morning was breaking.” But even if this be the correct reading, and the morning was only breaking, still this fact by itself may not be the whole reason why the disciples failed to recognise Jesus. Even when they had come close to him (verse 12), they knew it was He, rather because of what had happened than from the testimony of their eyes. Comp. Luke xxiv. 16.
5. Dixit ergo eis Iesus: Pueri numquid pulmentarium habetis? Responderunt ei: Non. 5. Jesus therefore said to them: Children, have you any meat? They answered him: No.
5. Jesus called to them from the shore: “Have you any meat?” The Revised Version renders: “Have you aught to eat?” The Hellenistic Greek word (προσφάγιον), which is here used, meant primarily something that was eaten as relish with other food, but it came to mean food generally, and so the meaning here probably is: “have you anything to eat?” See Lidd. and Scott, sub voce.
6. Dicit eis: mittite in dexteram navigii rete: et invenietis. Miserunt ergo: et iam non valebant illud trahere prae multitudine piscium. 6. He saith to them: Cast the net on the right side of the ship; and you shall find. They cast therefore: and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.
6. On the right side of the ship. Jesus directed them to the particular spot (which John, who was present, is careful to record), in order that they might not look upon the draught as a mere accident. Why they so readily obeyed one unknown to them, we cannot say with certainty. Perhaps the minds of some of them reverted to another occasion, in many respects similar to this (Luke v. 4-10), when, after a night of fruitless toil, their Master, then with them in His mortal flesh, blessed their labours with a miraculous draught of fish in the morning. And though they did not now know it was He that spoke to them, yet we cannot help thinking, especially when we remember how they were now come to Galilee in expectation of His appearance to them, that some of them must have suspected that perhaps it was He who now called to them from the shore.
To draw it, i.e., into the boat. In verse 11 we are told that they “drew” it to land. It will be noticed that a different word is used in verse 8 of dragging the net after the boat.
7. Dixit ergo discipulus ille quem diligebat Iesus, Petro: Dominus est. Simon Petrus cum audisset quia Dominus est, tunica succinxit se (erat enim nudus) et misit se in mare. 7. That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved, said to Peter: It is the Lord. Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, girt his coat about him (for he was naked) and cast himself into the sea.
7. The beloved disciple infers from the miraculous draught that it is the Lord who stands upon the shore. Simon Peter (add “therefore,” οὖν) when he heard that it was the Lord, girt his coat about him (for he was naked). The virgin disciple was the first to recognise his master, but Peter as usual was the leader in action. The “coat” was some garment usually worn over another (ἐπενδύτην), perhaps an outer and looser tunic, which Peter had laid aside while fishing. As he was about to swim to his Master, and foresaw that his garments should necessarily be wet, he probably thought it decorous to have some other garment on him besides the tight-fitting inner tunic. We suppose therefore that he was already clothed in the inner tunic. He girded himself in order that the garment might not impede him when swimming. The Greek word, which, in our Version, is rendered “naked,” is used not only of those who are entirely naked, but also of those who are sparingly clad. See Matt. xxv. 36; Acts xix. 16; 1 Kings xix. 24.
8. Alii autem discipuli navigio venerunt (non enim longe erant a terra, sed quasi cubitis ducentis), trahentes rete piscium. 8. But the other disciples came in the ship (for they were not far from the land, but as it were two hundred cubits) dragging the net with fishes.
8. In the ship. Rather: “in the boat” (τῷ πλοιαρίω). It may be that the reference is to a small boat that was attached to the larger vessel (τὸ πλοῖον) mentioned in verse 3. As the cubit was eighteen inches, the distance of the boat from the shore was 100 yards.
9. Ut ergo descenderunt in terram, viderunt prunas positas, et piscem superpositum, et panem. 9. As soon then as they came to land, they saw hot coals lying, and a fish laid thereon, and bread.
9. They saw hot coals lying. In the circumstances, the natural view is that the fire, as well as the fish and bread, was provided miraculously. Doubtless one of Christ's objects in preparing this repast was to prove to His disciples that He could and would provide for the temporal as well as the spiritual necessities of His followers.
10. Dicit eis Iesus: Afferte de piscibus, quos prendidistis nunc. 10. Jesus saith to them: Bring hither of the fishes which you have now caught.
10. There are various views as to why He said this. Some say because He wished them to cook some of the fish, as what was on the fire was not enough for all. But, especially on account of the next verse, we believe Christ's object was to give the disciples an occasion of seeing at once the size and number of the fishes, that so they might be the more impressed with the greatness of the miracle.
11. Ascendit Simon Petrus, et traxit rete in terrain, plenum magnis piscibus centum quinquaginta tribus. Et cum tanti essent, non est scissum rete. 11. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land, full of great fishes, one hundred fifty-three. And although there were so many, the net was not broken.
11. Simon Peter went up. Peter went aboard, and drew the net to land. The fact that the net was not broken is evidently mentioned as something extraordinary. If this great draught was intended, as doubtless it was (see Matthew iv. 19; Luke v. 10: “From henceforth thou shalt catch men”), to symbolize the success which was to attend the labours of the Apostles in drawing men into the Church, we may note how fitting it was that Peter led the way in going to fish (verse 3), and landed the net, and brought the fish to his Master on this occasion. For it was he who first preached to the Jews on the day of Pentecost, converting about three thousand (Acts ii. 14-41), and he, too, who opened the Church to the Gentiles (Acts x. 1-48).
12. Dicit eis Iesus: Venite, prendete. Et nemo audebat discumbentium interrogare eum: Tu quis es? scientes quia Dominus est. 12. Jesus saith to them: Come, and dine. And none of them who were at meat, durst ask him: Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.
12. Come, and dine (ἀριστήσατε). The primary meaning of the Greek word used, has reference to breakfast, and since it was early morning (verse 4), that is the meaning here.
And none of them that were at meat durst ask him. The best supported Greek reading has: “And none of the disciples durst ask him.” The words that follow in this verse seem to imply that Christ's appearance on this occasion was not that which was familiar to the disciples; yet that because of the miracles they were convinced that it was He. Some, as Kuinoel, think that ἐτόλμα (durst) is redundant.
13. Et venit Iesus, et accipit panem, et dat eis, et piscem similiter. 13. And Jesus cometh and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish in like manner.
13. Their risen Master is not merely their host, but He condescends also to be their servant. Whether He Himself ate with them, as on another occasion (Luke xxiv. 43), we are not told.
And taketh bread (τὸν ἄρτον). The article points back to the bread mentioned in verse 9, which Christ Himself had provided. So, too, in the case of the fish (τὸ ὀψάριον).
14. Hoc iam tertio manifestatus est Iesus discipulis suis, cum resurrexisset a mortuis. 14. This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to his disciples, after he was risen from the dead.
14. This is now the third time, &c. It was not His third appearance absolutely, for our Evangelist himself has already recorded three before this: that to Magdalen (xx. 14-18), that to the ten Apostles on Easter Sunday (xx. 19-23), and that to the eleven on Low Sunday (xx. 26). The meaning, then, appears to be, that this was the third appearance to any considerable number of the disciples.
Some, as Patrizzi, suppose this appearance at the sea of Galilee to have been absolutely the seventh, after the resurrection, mentioned in the Gospels. Others make it the eighth, and suppose the one upon the mountain of Galilee (Matt. xxviii. 16) to have been the seventh. We rather incline to the view that it was the seventh; and, perhaps, at this seventh appearance Jesus named to the Apostles the mountain on which His eighth appearance would take place (Matt. xxviii. 16). For the other appearances of the Lord during the forty days of His risen life, see Mark xvi. 14-20; Acts i. 4-9; 1 Cor. xv. 5-7.
15. Cum ergo prandissent, dicit Simoni Petro Iesus: Simon Ioannis, diligis me plus his? Dicit ei: Etiam Domine, tu scis quia amote. Dicit ei: Pasce agnos meos. 15. When therefore they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter: Simon son of John, lovest thou me more than these? He saith to him: Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs.
15. When, therefore. When they had breakfasted, and were, therefore, free from distractions, so that they could attend to what was said, Jesus addressed Peter.
Simon, son of John (see above on i. 42). It was certainly not without a reason that Jesus here addressed Peter by his former name of Simon. Though the Apostle's name had been already changed into Peter (Mark iii. 10), still he had not yet begun to be what that new name indicated, the rock or foundation of the Church, its Pope and supreme head on earth. Our Lord was now about to confer that dignity upon him, and the mention of his former name, now that he was accustomed to the name of Peter, was calculated to remind him of the change of name, and still more of the promised authority and pre-eminence (Matt. xvi. 17, 19), which that change implied.
More than these. It is supremely ridiculous to suppose, as some Protestants have done, that Christ merely meant to ask, if Peter loved Him more than he loved these fish. Surely that would be but a poor proof of his love for his Master! It is equally improbable, though not quite so absurd, to suppose that Christ meant: Lovest thou Me more than thou lovest these companions of thine? For Peter knew and believed Jesus to be God (Matt. xvi. 16), had declared before now his readiness to die with Him (Luke xxii. 33), and on this very morning had proved the intensity of his love for his Master by leaping from the boat and quitting the Apostles to come to Him. Surely, then, it is wholly improbable that Christ merely meant to ask if Peter loved Him more than he loved his fellow-Apostles.
The meaning, then, plainly is: lovest thou Me more than these love Me? Peter replies, humbly avoiding any comparison between his own love and that of his companions, and appealing to Jesus, whom he knew to be the Searcher of Hearts, in confirmation of the love that he avows: Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. It is worthy of note that the word which Peter uses to express his love, is not that which Christ had just used in His question. Christ had asked: Lovest thou (ἀγαπᾷς) Me? Peter replies: Yea, Lord, Thou knowest that I love (φιλῶ) Thee. Many commentators think the distinction is not to be pressed, but we cannot believe that Peter changed the word without a reason, especially as he does so again in his second reply (verse 16), and Christ, in His third question, adopts the word that Peter insists upon using. Whatever the distinction be, it is lost in our English version; but the reader will see that an effort is made to preserve it in the Vulgate, which in each case renders ἀγαπάω, by “diligo,” and φιλέω by “amo.” We think that Trench properly appreciates the difference between the two words. “On occasion,” he says, “of that threefold Lovest thou Me,” which the risen Lord addresses to Peter, He asks him first, ἀγαπᾷ με. At that moment, when all the pulses in the heart of the now penitent Apostle are beating with an earnest affection towards his Lord, this word on that Lord's lips sounds too cold; not sufficiently expressing the warmth of his personal affection toward Him. Besides the question itself, which grieves and hurts Peter (verse 17), there is an additional pang in the form which the question takes, sounding as though it were intended to put him at a comparative distance from his Lord, and to keep him there; or at least as not permitting him to approach so near to Him as he fain would. He, therefore, in his answer substitutes for it the word of a more personal love, φιλῶ σε (verse 15). When Christ repeats the question in the same words as at the first, Peter in his reply again substitutes his φιλῶ for the ἀγαπᾷς of his Lord (verse 16). And now at length he has conquered; for when for the third time his Master puts the question to him, He does it with the word which Peter feels will alone express all that is in his heart, and instead of the twice-repeated ἀγαπαᾷς, His word is φιλεῖς, now (verse 17). (Trench, Syn. of the New Testament, pp. 48, 49).141
16. Dicit ei iterum: Simon Ioannis, diligis me? Ait illi: Etiam, Domine, tu scis quia amo te. Dicit ei: Pasce agnos meos. 16. He saith to him again: Simon son of John, lovest thou me? He saith to him: Yea Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. He saith to him: Feed my lambs.
16. In the second question our Lord drops the comparison between Peter's love and that of the other Apostles, and, according to the Greek text, uses different words in giving Peter his commission. Before, it was: Feed My lambs (Βόσκε τὰ ἀρνία μου): now it is: Tend (or rule) My sheep (ποίμανε τὰ πρόβατά μου). Among Uncial MSS., B and C read προβάτια (little sheep) here. But A, D, X, and nearly all others read πρόβατά; and while the Vulg. (agnos) favours the former, the Vetus Itala (oves) supports the latter. It is difficult, then, to decide between the two readings.
Whether Christ intended to signify one portion of His Church by the lambs, the remaining portion by the sheep, or merely used two different terms to indicate, in each case, the whole flock, matters little as to the sense of the passage; for in either case the whole flock of Christ is committed to Peter's care.
17. Dicit ei tertio: Simon Ioannis, amas me? Contristatus est Petrus, quia dixit ei tertio, Amas me? et dixit ei: Domine, tu omnia nosti: tu scis quia amo te. Dixit ei: Pasce oves meas. 17. He said to him the third time: Simon son of John, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved, because he had said to him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said to him: Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee. He said to him: Feed my sheep.
17. Again, a third time, Jesus puts the question, but now changing His word to the stronger word of Peter's choice. This threefold repetition of the question, provoking the threefold confession of Peter's love, was probably intended, not only to make amends for Peter's threefold denial, but also to indicate the solemn importance of the trust that was now committed to him. Peter was grieved at the repetition of the question, because it seemed as if his Lord suspected the sincerity of his love, or, perhaps, he feared that the repeated questioning foreboded another fall.
He said to him: Feed my sheep. Here, too, as in the preceding verse it is doubtful whether “little sheep” or “sheep” is the true reading. In favour of the former we have here not only B and C but also A. On the other hand, the Vulgate in this verse (oves) supports the latter. The diminutive, as a term of endearment, would not be out of place in this verse or the preceding.
The Vatican Council has interpreted this passage, verses 15-17, of the bestowal of the primacy on Peter—a primacy not merely of honour, but also of jurisdiction—so that no Catholic is free to interpret the passage in any sense other than this. “Docemus itaque et declaramus, Juxta Evangelii testimonia primatum jurisdictionis in universam Dei Ecclesiam immediate et directe beato Petro Apostolo promissum atque collatum a Christo Domino fuisse.... Atque uni Simoni Petro contulit Jesus post suam resurrectionem summi pastoris et rectoris jurisdictionem in totum suum ovile, dicendo: Pasce agnos meos: Pasce oves meas” (Decr. Vat., cap. 1, De Apost. Prim. Instit.) And, indeed, the passage cannot reasonably be interpreted in any other sense. For Peter alone is addressed, and his love for his master singled out for comparison with that of his companions, to show that to him individually, and not to them with him, the commission here given was entrusted.
What that commission was the Vatican Council tells us in the passage already quoted, and the words of Christ prove. Peter was appointed to feed the whole flock of Christ, to rule it as a shepherd rules his sheep. Now, the shepherd not merely feeds his sheep, but he directs and controls them, tends them, guards them from harm (see above on x. 1), and in various other ways promotes their good. “Wherefore the primacy conferred upon Peter in this metaphor is an ordinary142, immediate143, universal, supreme, power to teach men the doctrine of Christ, to furnish them with the pastures of salvation, through the Sacraments, evangelical counsels, &c.; to make laws by which the sheep may be directed to the eternal pastures; to appoint subordinate pastors; to secure that the laws be observed; to punish disobedient sheep, and to bring back erring sheep to the fold. It is, therefore, the fullest power of Episcopal jurisdiction. Wherefore St. Peter himself (1 Peter ii. 25) calls Christ ‘the shepherd and bishop of souls’ ” (Corl.).
This wonderful power, then, which as visible head of the Church, and in behalf of its invisible Head Jesus Christ, Peter was to exercise through himself and his successors over all the flock of Christ, whether bishops, priests, or people, was given to him on the shore of the sea of Galilee, on the present occasion.
18. Amen, amen dico tibi: cum esses iunior, cingebas te, et ambulabas ubi volebas: cum autem senueris, extendes manus tuas, et alius te cinget, et ducet quo tu non vis. 18. Amen, amen, I say to thee: when thou wast younger, thou didst gird thyself, and didst walk where thou wouldst. But when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and lead thee whither thou wouldst not.
18. We are told by St. John in the following verse that, in the words recorded in this, Christ signified by what kind (ποὶῳ) of death Peter should glorify God. Why the Lord chose this particular time, immediately after he had appointed Peter supreme head of the Church, to foretell for the Apostle a martyr's death by crucifixion, we cannot say with certainty. Probably it was to console Peter, now grieved by the thrice-repeated question, and to assure him that, though he had denied his Lord and had just now been closely questioned as to his love, yet his final perseverance was secure.
When thou wast younger, opposed here to: “When thou shalt be old,” probably includes Peter's life up to the time to which the prediction refers. It is as if Christ had said: Whilst thou art young; for as Kuinoel on this verse says: “Praeterita de re praesente in oraculis adhibentur.” At all events, Peter was still young in the sense of the word here, for we know from verse 7 that on this very morning he had girded himself. Thou didst gird thyself, &c. The meaning is: Throughout your life, as on this morning before you swam to Me, you gird yourself when you will to do what you will, and go where you will; but the day shall come when your hands shall no longer be free to gird yourself, but you shall stretch them forth to have them bound to the transverse beam of a cross,144 and another shall gird you (with a cloth round your loins), and shall lead you away to death—to death, from which human nature naturally recoils.
19. Hoc autem dixit, significans qua morte clarificaturus esset Deum. Et cum hoc dixisset, dicit ei: Sequere me. 19. And this he said, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had said this, he saith to him: Follow me.
19. And this he said, signifying by what death he should glorify God. When St. John wrote this, St. Peter's death had thrown light on Christ's words, if, indeed, our Evangelist did not understand their meaning at the time they were spoken. That Peter understood it, we may rest assured. According to tradition, Peter, at his own request, was crucified with his head downwards, declining, in his humility, to be crucified like his Lord.
Follow me. Most of the fathers take these words to mean, not so much that Peter was now to walk after Jesus, as that he was to follow Him through the death of the cross to the glory of the Father. Compare xiii. 36, 37.
20. Conversus Petrus vidit illum discipulum, quem diligebat Iesus, sequentem, qui et recubuit in coena super pectus eius, et dixit: Domine quis est qui tradet te? 20. Peter turning about, saw that disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also leaned on his breast at supper, and said: Lord, who is he that shall betray thee?
20. Peter turning about, saw that disciple whom Jesus loved following. From these words it would appear that Christ had begun to move away and Peter to follow, as if to symbolize the higher sense in which Peter was one day to tread in His footsteps.
Who also leaned. Rather, “who also leaned back” (ἀνέπεσεν). The reference is to the incident recorded in xiii. 25, not to the position John occupied at table.
21. Hunc ergo cum vidisset Petrus, dixit Iesu: Domine hic autem quid? 21. Him therefore when Peter had seen, he saith to Jesus: Lord, and what shall this man do?
21. Peter, having learned what his own end was to be, was now anxious to know the end that awaited our Evangelist, who was so dear to Jesus and to himself. He therefore asked: “And what shall this man do?” or rather as the Greek has it; “And this man, what?” that is to say, what end awaits him?
22. Dicit ei Iesus: Sic eum volo manere donec veniam, quid ad te? tu me sequere. 22. Jesus saith to him: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? follow thou me.
22. So I will, &c. “So” translates the Vulgate “sic,” which is a misprint for si (ἐαν). Hence the true reading is: If I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? Follow thou Me. Our Lord here reproves Peter's curiosity and bids him see to himself, nor wish to know more than his Master was pleased to communicate.
Follow thou me. “Thou” is emphatic. Peter's question regarding the end that awaited John; and our Lord's reply, contrasting as it does the two Apostles (“If I will have him”... Follow thou), justifies us in taking the words “Follow thou me” in reference to Peter's death by crucifixion.
23. Exiit ergo sermo iste inter fratres quia discipulus ille non moritur. Et non dixit ei Iesus: Non moritur: sed: Sic eum volo manere donec veniam, quid ad te? 23. This saying therefore went abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die. And Jesus did not say to him: He should not die; but, So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee?
23. Our Evangelist tells us here what was not the meaning of the Lord's words; what their meaning was, he does not say. He merely wished to show that the words afforded no ground for the belief which prevailed among the faithful, and which his own very advanced age at the time when this Gospel was written tended to confirm, that he was not to die at all, or at least not until the day of judgment. Those who deny the authenticity of this last chapter appeal triumphantly to this verse. It was written, they say, after St. John died, when it become necessary to explain away the meaning that had been put upon our Lord's words. But, from what we have said already, the reader will have seen that there is not the slightest reason why this verse may not have been written by St. John himself.
There is a difference of opinion as to what our Lord meant by the words: “If I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee?” Some have taken the meaning to be: If I will have him to remain till I come for him in a natural death, what is it to thee? But this is not probable; Christ comes for the martyr just as much as for him who dies a natural death.
Others thus: If I will have him to remain till My coming at the destruction of Jerusalem, what is it to thee?
But it is most likely that Christ's coming when spoken of absolutely, as here, refers to His coming at the day of judgment. Hence the most probable view seems to be: If I were to will him to remain living even till the day of judgment, what were that to thee? Thus our Lord makes a purely hypothetical case, and conveys no information to Peter, thereby reproving still more his curiosity.
| 24. Hic est discipulus ille qui testimonium perhibet de his, et scripsit haec: et scimus quia verum est testimonium eius. | 24. This is that disciple who giveth testimony of these things, and hath written these things: and we know that his testimony is true. |
| 25. Sunt autem et alia multa quae fecit Iesus: quae si scribantur per singula, nec ipsum arbitror mundum capere posse eos, qui scribendi sunt, libros. | 25. But there are also many other things which Jesus did: which if they were written every one, the world itself, I think, would not be able to contain the books that should be written. |
24, 25. The authenticity of these verses has been questioned more than that of the rest of the chapter, both because it is not in St. John's manner to speak of himself in the plural number (as here in verse 24: “we know”), and because of the hyperbole in verse 25. For these reasons, some Catholic writers have denied their authenticity, though no Catholic, as far as we are aware, has denied their inspiration. Those Catholics who deny their authenticity, hold that they were probably written by the bishops of Asia Minor, at whose request St. John wrote the Gospel. See Introd. iii., note. This view is not without some probability. Still, we prefer the common opinion of Catholic commentators, that the verses were written by St. John himself; for without them the conclusion of the Gospel would be extremely abrupt.
As to the reasons for the opposite view, though we admit that St. John does not usually employ the first person plural, still it is not unnatural that in closing his Gospel he should wish to confirm his own testimony by an appeal to the consenting voice of his contemporaries. Besides, he does use the same form of expression in i. 14: “And we saw his glory.” See also 1 Ep. i. 3. As to the argument drawn from the alleged extravagance of the hyperbole in verse 25, it has no weight. For, there is no reason why St. John may not have used this striking hyperbole to signify the inexhaustible treasury of instruction contained in our Divine Lord's life and works, and to suggest the deep truth that a full account (“every one”) of Christ's human life would be practically infinite. “Hunc loquendi modum,” says St. Aug. on this passage, “Graeco nomine hyperbolem vocant: qui modus, sicut hoc loco, ita in nonnullis aliis divinis Literis invenitur... et multa hujusmodi, sicut alii tropi, Scripturis S. non desunt.”
Footnotes
1. Vie de Jesus, ed. xiii., pp. 10, 11. 2. See Lamy, vol. ii., pp. 246-270; Cornely, Introd. iii., pp. 216-260. 3. See, e.g., Cornely, iii., pp. 222, 223. 4. Eusebius, Hist. Eccl., iii. 39. 5. St. Ephrem († 373) wrote a Commentary, in Syriac, on the Diatessaron, and this Commentary is still extant in an Armenian translation, which is probably as old as the fifth century. 6. It is important to note this, because the Rationalist arguments against the Johannine authorship prove nothing against St. John that they do not prove also against all his contemporaries. 7. See notes on chronology of the Acts. 8. St. Jerome, referring to this, writes: “Refert Tertullianus quod Romae missus in ferventis olei dolium purior et vegetior exierit quam intraverit.” (Advers. Jovin, i. 26.) 9. “Joannes quum esset in Asia, et jam tunc haereticorum semina pullularent Cerinthi et Ebionis et ceterorum qui negant Christum in carne venisse... coactus est ab omnibus tunc pene Asiae Episcopis et multarum ecclesiarum legationibus de divinitate Salvatoris altius scribere.”—Prol. in Matthew. 10. Iren., Haer. iii. 1: “Joannes volens per evangelii annunciationem auferre, eum qui a Cerintho inseminatus erat hominibus errorem et multo prius ab his qui dicuntur Nicolaitae... sic inchoavit evangelium.” 11. “Joannes discipulus Domini... et ipse edidit evangelium Ephesi Asiae commorans.”—Haer. iii. 1. 12. Corluy, indeed, supposes the heads of doctrine to be reported in precisely the exact words of our Lord: “Eas propositiones quae quasi capita doctrinae apparent... ad verbum referri admittendum putamus,” are his words. But the fact that the words of institution of the Blessed Eucharist are differently reported by the Synoptic Evangelists seems to us to refute this view. 13. “Joannes novissime omnium scripsit evangelium, rogatus ab Asiae episcopis, adversus Cerinthum aliosque haereticos et maxime tunc Ebionitarum dogma consurgens, qui asserunt Christum ante Mariam non fuisse.”—Jer. de Vir. Illust., 9. 14. The words of Irenæus are:—“Et Cerinthus autem quidam in Asia, non a primo Deo factum esse mundum docuit, sed a Virtute quadam valde separata, et distante ab ea principalitate, quae est super universa, et ignorante eum, qui est super omnia, Deum. Jesum autem subjecit non ex Virgine natum (impossibile enim hoc ei visum est); fuisse autem Joseph et Mariae filium similiter ut reliqui omnes homines.... Et post baptismum descendisse in eum ab ea principalitate quae est super omnia (ἐκ τῆς ὑπὲρ τὰ ὄλα αὐθεντίας) Christum figura columbae, et tunc annuntiasse incognitum Patrem, et virtutes perfecisse, in fine autem revolasse iterum Christum de Jesu, et Jesum passum esse et resurrexisse, Christum autem impassibilem perseverasse, existentem spiritalem.”—Iren., Adv. Haer., i. xxvi. 15. “Ebionaei autem consentiunt quidem mundum ab eo, qui revera Deus est, factum esse; quae autem ad Christum pertinent, consimiliter Cerintho fabulantur. Moribus Judaicis utuntur secundum legem; quapropter et Christum Dei vocatum esse Jesum, quum nemo ex reliquis observaret legem. Etenim si quis alius fecisset quae in lege praescripta sunt, ille evasisset Christus. Posse autem etiam ipsos, si similiter egerint, Christos evadere; etenim illum quoque hominem aeque ac reliquos fuisse dicunt.”—Philosophumena, vii. 16, 3342 (Migne). 16. Referring to this sublime prologue, St. Augustine says: “Ceteri tres evangelistae tanquam cum homine Domino in terra ambulant, et de divinitate ejus pauca dixerunt, istum autem quasi piguerit in terra ambulare, sicut in ipso exordio sui sermonis intonuit, erexit se non solum super terram et super omnem ambitum aeris et coeli, sed super omnem etiam exercitum angelorum, omnemque constitutionem invisibilium potestatum; et pervenit ad eum per quem facta sunt omnia, dicendo: ‘In principio erat verbum.’ Huic tantae sublimitati principii etiam caetera congrua praedicavit,” etc.—Tract 36 on St. John. 17. Compare also 1 John i. 1, where our Vulgate should have translated by “erat” instead of “fuit.” 18. According to many, Heb. iv. 12 affords another instance in the New Testament. 19. “Huic nomini seligendo occasionem forte dederunt tunc jam grassantes doctrinae Gnosticorum, qui ita post Philonem vocabant ens aliquod sublimius quod dicebant Jesu fuisse unitum. Sic etiam nomina ἀρχή, ζωή, χάρις, ἀλήθεια, μονογενής, a Gnosticis tribuuntur aeonibus suis, quae omnia Joannes in suo prologo sensu genuino exponit.”—Corl., Comm. in S. Joan., Quaer. 3, p. 26. 20. Sometimes (with πρός) the import of the accusative is apparently lost, πρός signifying with, particularly in connection with names of persons (John i. 1); but here πρός indicates (ideal) annexation, implying rather the active notion of intercourse than a mere passive idea.—Winer, Gr. Gram. N. T., 8th Eng. ed., p. 504, h. and note 4. 21. “The omission of the article before the predicate, when the predicate stands before the copula is the usage of the New Testament.”—Alford, on this verse. 22. See Patrizzi, iii. Diss. viii. 21. 23. Patriz. 24. The R. V. has “apprehended it not,” with marginal alternative: “overcame it not.” 25. “Pluralis adhibetur ratione habita utrusque parentis.”—Beel, Gr. Gram. § 273, note. 26. St. Thomas seems to prefer St. Augustine's peculiar view, that the woman is here meant by “caro.” The other opinion given above is given by him only in the second place as an alternative. 27. Compare our expression: he acted like a man. 28. Verba “a Patre” aeque jungi possunt nomini sive “unigeniti,” sive “gloriam.” Si primum, sensus erit unigeniti, qui est ex Patre, neque enim Verbum γεννάσθαι, quod continetur in μονογενοῦς constructum reperitur cum praepositione παρά.—Patriz. 29. Patrizzi, following Kuinoel, contends that ἐμπρόσθεν (before) is never used of priority in dignity; but see Alford, who cites Gen. xlviii. 20, as well as Plato and Demosthenes, for this meaning. 30. Thus far, the prologue of our Gospel, of which Franzelin truly says:—“Singula doctrinae capita de J. Christo vero Deo, Deique Filio in unum quodamodo collecta verticem conspiciuntur. Hoc enim loco is qui in tempore caro factus est, docetur esse Deus, Deus aeternus, Deus creator universi, Deus auctor gratiae et ordinis supernaturalis, Deus cui supremus cultus debetur.”—De Verbo Incarn., Th. 8. 31. Simon, vel Symeon (Act xv. 14 sine var. lect. in Gr. codd., 2 Pet. i. 1, א, A, K, L, P, &c.) שׂמעון (exauditio, Gen. xxix. 33). “Nomen Patris aut Jonas, Ἰωνᾶ (Matt. xvi. 17), aut Ἰωάνες vel Ἰωάννες (Joan xxi. 15) legitur; Joan i. 43 codd. graeci alii Ἰωνᾶ alii Ἰωάνου vel Ἰωάννου; unde prius nomen non essi nisi alterius corruptionem nec quidquam cum nomine prophetae Jonae habere commune elucet.”—Corn. iii. § 212, note 1. 32. Publ. Life of our Lord, vol. i., p. 185. 33. Consult also, as almost exactly the same, 2 Kings xvi. 10; Josue xxii. 24; Matthew viii. 29; Matthew xxvii. 29; Mark i. 2. 34. See M'Carthy, Gospels of the Sundays, p. 72. 35. Nisan, the first month of the sacred year of the Jews, corresponded to the latter half of March and the first half of April. 36. “Additus ibi voci διδάσκαλος articulus Nicodemum exhibet tanquam ex Israelis doctoribus excellentibus unum.”—Beel., Gr. Gram., § 17, 4, adnot 3. 37. Smith's Dictionary of the Bible, 2nd edition, 1893. 38. Trench, Studies in the Gospels, p. 84. 39. The name Sichar is derived by some from shikkor (שׂכר), a drunkard; by others sheqquer (שׂקר), a liar; the city of liars, perhaps of false worship. 40. “Venit mulier ad puteum et fontem quem non speravit invenit.”—St. Aug. 41. Massillon, in a beautiful Lenten Sermon on this subject, says: “Nouvelle artifice, dont elle s'avise pour détourner la question de ses mœurs, qui lui déplait, et qui l'embarasse, elle se jette habiliment sur une question de doctrine.” 42. Compare Acts xvii. 23, where the true reading is ὃ οὖν, agreeing with the Vulgate. 43. Compare the saying, common in parts of Ireland: “It is long till Hallow-day.” 44. Our Lord was probably baptized by John between the middle of October and the 25th December: “Quae quum ita sint, dies baptismi fuerit oportet inter medium Octobrem interque viii. Kal., Januar,” Patrizzi, Diss. xlvii., c. i. 11. 45. It is not certain which is the correct reading, whether ἑορτὴ or ἡ ἑορτὴ (a feast, or the feast). Nearly all the critics are against reading the article. So Lachmann, Tisch, Westc., and Hort; and, so too, the Protestant Revised Version. Still, there are a great many ancient authorities, among them the Codex א (Sinait.) in favour of reading the article. But even if the reading were certain, it would still be doubtful what feast is meant. 46. The passage is regarded as spurious by Tisch., Tregell., Westc., and Hort, and by the Rev. Vers. 47. “δίωκειν haud raro est verbum forense, atque significat accusare.”—Kuin. 48. “Unde secundum Augustinum, demonstrare Patrem Filio, nihil aliud est quam Patrem generare Filium. Et Filium videre quae Pater facit, nihil aliud est quam Filium esse et naturam a Patre recipere.”—St. Thom. on verse 20. 49. “Est argumentum ab humano modo sumptum, respectu hominum illorum, qui se amant, hi enim mutuo sibi omnia communicant, nihil sibi occultant, et cum revera Pater summe diligat Filium, utitur hoc argumento ut signo, et probatione propter nos, non autem quod causa sit cur omnia demonstret,”—Tolet. For other explanations, Corl., page 118, may be consulted. 50. Mald. thinks that the principal reference in verses 21 and 25 is to the general resurrection. 51. “Deus eam (potestatem judiciariam) communicare noluit nec congrue potuit puro homini, sed Christo soli, qui Deus est et homo. Ipse enim ut Deus, summam habet auctoritatem judicandi; ut homo vero habet facultatem judicium hoc visibiliter coram hominibus salvandis et damnandis exercendi.”—A Lap. 52. “Nam ipse, qua Deus, idem numero habet judicium, eandem numero mentem et voluntatem divinam quam habet Pater; qua homo vero, totus regitur a deitate et verbo inhabitante, ut aliud judicare et velle nequeat quam id quod ejus deitas, quasi praeses, judicat et vult.”—A Lap. 53. The inspiration of the prophets, though usually attributed to the Holy Ghost, is, like every work that is not terminated in God Himself, common to the three divine Persons, and is here referred to the Father, since Christ is addressing the Jews, who knew nothing of the Holy Ghost, and would not value His testimony. 54. From Juvenal we learn that in Rome the cophinus was carried about with them by the Jews: “Judaeis Quorum cophinus foenumque supellex.”—Sat. iii. 14. 55. Calvin retained Baptism, Eucharist, and Holy Orders; Zwingli, Baptism, Eucharist, and Matrimony; Luther, in the Confession of Augsburg, Baptism, Eucharist, and Penance; and the Anglican Church, in the 25th of the Thirty-nine Articles, Baptism and the Eucharist. 56. Though it is not defined that there is reference to the Blessed Eucharist in any part of the 6th chapter of St. John, still, since the Council of Trent understood the passage (52-59) in this sense (Sess. xiii., cap. 2), as did nearly all the fathers who commented on the chapter, it would be rash for a Catholic to deny that the Blessed Eucharist is promised in the passage 52-59. 57. “De hac significatione inter philologos nulla est dubitatio, confer Psal. xxvi. (Hebr. 27) 2; Job xix. 22; Mich. iii. 3.”—Franz., De Euch., Thes. iii., p. 22, note. 58. Though Franz. holds that the discourse from verse 35-47 regards faith in Christ, yet he holds that the Blessed Eucharist is referred to in verse 27.—De Euch. Thes., iii., p. 15. 59. “Noli te cogitare invitum trahi; trahitur animus et amore... Ramum viridem ostendis ovi, et trahis illam. Nuces puero demonstrantur et trahitur.”—St. August. 60. See, e.g., above iii. 6: What is born of the spirit is spirit; i.e., spiritual. 61. Even Renan, who had held this view in the Vie de Jesus abandoned it in a later work: Les Evangiles, Appendix, page 542. 62. That James the brother of the Lord was an Apostle, is proved from Gal. i. 19. See also Acts ix. 27, 28. Now Jude, the author of the short Epistle which bears his name, who is commonly referred to as identical with Jude the Apostle, calls himself a brother of James (only James the Less, the brother of the Lord, and well-known bishop of Jerusalem can be meant). Jude 1; hence, two at least, of the brothers of the Lord mentioned by Matthew (xiii. 55), Mark (vi. 3), were Apostles: and since the Apostle Simon is mentioned side by side with them in the four lists of the Apostles, it is fairly concluded that he was their brother Simon; hence three of these brethren of the Lord were Apostles. 63. Evangelistaries are selections from the Gospels for the purpose of liturgical reading. 64. “Relate ad stylum haec praesertim notantur; pro particala οὖν quam amat Joannes, semper adhibetur δέ; deinde occurunt vocabula (vel phrases), quibus Joannes nullibi utitur: ὄρθρον, πᾶς ὁ λαός, καθίσας ἐδίδασκεν αὐτούς, οἱ γραμματεῖς καὶ οἱ φαρισαίοι, ἐπιμενεῖν, ἀναμάρτητος, καταλείπεσθαι, κατακρίνειν, et πλήν.”—Corn., Introd., iii., p. 235, n. 3. 65. e.g., ix. 21-28, ἡλικίαν ἕχειν; συντίθεσθαι; λοιδορείν. 66. “Rien dans le morceau ne fait disparate avec le style du quatrième Evangile.”—Renan, Vie de Jesus, ed. 18, page 500. 67. Theiner, i., pp. 71-77. 68. So the Protestant Revised Version, which in the margin gives as an alternative: How is it that I even speak to you at all? 69. It is hardly necessary to remind the reader that the present of this verb means to place, and hence the perfect means, I have placed myself, or stand. 70. Besides the Pharisees believed that only the good souls passed into other bodies. See Josephus, Ant., viii. 1, 3; B. Jud., ii. 8, 14. 71. That προσκύνεω is often used of merely civil worship in the Old Testament is not denied by anyone; and that it is so used in the New Testament also, see Matt. xviii. 26, where it is far more probable that προσεκύνει (“adorabat,” not “orabat,” as Vulg.) is the correct reading. 72. “Significat enim haec phrasis primo securitatem, secundo fiduciam, tertio libertatem conversandi ubilibet, suo munere fungendi, et quaelibet negotia peragendi pro Christo et per Christum.”—A Lap. 73. “Patres omnes... intelligunt de uno pastore in terris existente qui visibiliter pascat et regat.”—Suarez, De Fide, Tract. 1, Disp. 9, Sect. 6, n. 3. 74. “Lectio Vulgatae ita foret exponenda: Pater quod dedit mihi, divinam naturam secum identicam, id majus est rebus omnibus, adeoque omnibus creaturis potentius; ideoque nemo potest oves rapere de manu mea, sicut nec de manu Patris, nam Ego et Pater unum sumus.... Ceterum si duo versiculi in Vulgata complexive sumuntur, exprimunt quum Patris omnipotentiam tum Filii cum Patre consubstantialitem; quae duo dogmata etiam in originali textu habentur, licet alio modo. Ergo duae lectiones dogmatice concordant substantialiter.”—Corl. 75. “Praesens adhibetur ad significandum id quod jam jam eventurum est, aut quod quis jam in eo est ut faciat.”—Beel., G. G., 41, 2, a. 76. The bodies of the wicked also shall be raised on the last day, but, as A Lap. says: “Quia resurgent ad tormenta Gehennae, hinc vita eorum potius mors dicenda est, quam vita.” 77. The Perfect here has a Present signification. “Praesentis temporis loco Perfectum adhibetur eatenus tantum quatenus verbo perfecti temporis significatur actio quaepiam aut conditio, quae praeterito tempore incepta nunc perdurat quaeque adeo sui initium tantum praeterito tempore habeat.”—Beel., Gr. Gram., § 41, 4 a. 78. By its original institution, the office of High-priest was to be held for life; but we know from Josephus that the High-priest was frequently deposed by the Romans. “Praetor in Judaeam missus est Valerius Gratus; qui Ananum Pontificatu privavit, et eum Ismaeli Phabi filio tribuit, atque hunc non multo post abdicavit, et id munus Eleazaro Anani Pontificis filio commisit. Uno autem anno post sacerdotium huic ademtum Simoni Camithi filio tradidit; cumque is dignitatem non ultra anni spatium tenuisset, Josephus, cui etiam Caiphae nomen fuit, ei successit.”—Josephus, Antiq., xviii. 2, 2. 79. “Dubium non est, quin Matthaeus et Marcus, ut explicent quo modo Judas ad traditionem pervenerit, narrationem hanc parenthetico modo illis, quae de Pharisaeorum et sacerdotum consilio tradunt, inseruerint.”—Corn., iii., p. 296, note n. So too Coleridge, Life of our Life, vol. ii., p. 46: “The two earlier Evangelists give their accounts of that supper out of its place, and in immediate connection with the Passion of our Lord, for the obvious reason that it was an incident of that supper, which finally determined Judas to betray our Lord to His enemies, and thus to bring about His death.” 80. So Lachm., Tisch., Treg., West & Hort. The R. V. has: Suffer her to keep it against the day of my burying, and in margin: Let her alone; it was that she might keep it. 81. It is frequently mentioned as a proof of our Lord's humility that He condescended in this hour of triumph to ride upon an ass; and the context in the prophecy of Zachary quoted above seems to favour this view. Still there is good reason for supposing that the ass was commonly used by nobles in the East (see, e.g., Judg. v. 10, x. 4; 3 Kings i. 33), and that for this reason, Christ may have used it in the hour of His triumph. 82. See, e.g., John xviii. 28, where we are told that the Jews, on the morning of the crucifixion, abstained from entering the hall of Pilate, “that they might not be defiled, but that they might eat the pasch.” 83. Matt. xxvi. 17-20; Mark xiv. 12-17; Luke xxii. 7-14. 84. See Coleridge, Passiontide, Part ii., p. 33. 85. Passiontide, Part ii., pp. 40-42. 86. Since the Jews removed all leaven from their houses on the 14th Nisan, that day seems to have been called the first day of Azymes. It was during that day that the last supper was prepared, but it was during the following night (Exod. xii. 8), and therefore when the next Jewish day had already commenced, that it was eaten. 87. The following are the passages from which the objections are drawn:—John xiii. 1; xiii. 29; xviii. 28; xix. 14, 31. 88. See the able article, by Dr. Molloy, in I. E. Record, vol. ix., pp. 445-464. 89. The reader may consult with profit I. E. Record, vol. x., pp. 110-114. 90. “Adhuc coenabatur quum Dominus surrexit et pedes lavit discipulis suis.”—St. Aug. 91. Anyone who desires fuller information on the rites of the Paschal Supper will find it in Maclean's account given by Dr. Walsh in the note referred to above. 92. “Quam enim Romani togam aut pallium, id est summan vestem, Graeci, ui ex Plutarcho discimus, το ἱμάτίον appellabant.”—Mald, in loco. 93. Matt. xxvi. 25: “And Judas that betrayed him, answering said: Is it I, Rabbi? He saith to him: Thou hast said it,” presents considerable difficulty, as Judas appears to be there distinctly pointed out. Some have held that only the traitor himself heard Christ's reply; but it is difficult to see how some of the others close to Jesus should not also hear it. Hence we prefer to hold that these words, though recorded by St. Matt. before his account of the institution of the Blessed Eucharist were in reality not spoken till after the dipped bread had been given to the traitor. 94. Dr. Walsh, Harmony of the Gospel Narratives, pp. 137, 138. 95. It is read by Lachm., Tisch., Tregel., Westc., and Hort, and by the Revised Version as well as the Vulgate. 96. The quantity of the third syllable in this word varies. Strictly it ought to be long, the word being derived from the Greek παράκλητος; but in ecclesiastical Latin it is generally short, and spelled with i instead of e, as in the Veni Creator: Qui diceris Paraclitus. 97. “Ex dictis colligitur duo ad missionem proprie dictam concurrere, alterum, sempiternam processionem personae, quae mittitur; alterum, externam aliquam efficientiam, sive sub sensus incidat, ut cum, homine suscepto. Verbum hominibus apparuit, aut sub columbae specie Spiritus Sanctus, sive interius sit nec aspectabile quod agitur, ut cum Spiritus S. ad fidelium quemque demittitur.”—Perrone, De Trin., cap. vi., Scholion 4, note 3. 98. See also A Lap. in loco. Some who hold that this was spoken on the way to Gethsemane, think that the mention of the vine was suggested by the sight of a vine as Christ and the Apostles passed along. 99. See Less. of Thir. Noct. Comm. Marty. (Temp. Pasch.) 100. “Non eo modo illi in ipso, sicut ipse in illis. Utrumque autem prodest, non ipsi, sed illis. Ita quippe in vite sunt palmites, ut viti non conferant, sed inde accipiant unde vivant, ita vero vitis est in palmitibus, ut vitale alimentum subministret eis, non sumat ab eis. Ac per hoc, et manentem in se habere Christum et manere in Christo, discipulis prodest utrumque, non Christo. Nam praeciso palmite potest de viva radice alius pullulare; qui autem praecisus est, sine radice non potest vivere.”—St. Aug. in loc. 101. “Non utique ipso die Pentecostes, sed tempore adventus Spiritus Sancti paulatim, ac per gradus inducti sunt in omnem veritatem, ut ex manifestis factis et ex ipsis verbis constat: inducet in omnem veritatem ὀδηγήσει ὑμᾶς.”—Franz. De Trad., p. 267. note 1. 102. See Franz., De Div. Trad. Thes., xxii. 11. 103. “Semper itaque audit Spiritus Sanctus quia semper scit: ergo et scivit, et scit, et sciet; ac per hoc et audivit, et audit, et audiet: quia sicut jam diximus, hoc est illi audire quod scire, et scire illi hoc est quod esse. Ab illo igitur audivit, audit, et audiet a quo est: ab illo est a quo procedit.”—St. Aug. on this verse, Tract. 99. 104. “Uno verbo: Spiritus Sanctus aeternaliter audit et accipit a Filio cum respectu ad effectum in tempore, qui tum quando Christus loquebatur, promittebatur adhuc futurus; ideo auditio et acceptio quae aeternaliter et ideo etiam tunc est, quando existit effectus, potuit propter hanc operationem et propter effectum futurum ad extra enuntiari in forma temporis futuri.”—Franz., De Trin. Thes., xxxii. i. 4 c. 105. “Igitur in significatione formali illud meum, quod Spiritus veritatis dicitur accipere communicatum a Filio, est absoluta sapientia cum respectu ad extra, ad doctrinam scilicet inspirandam et annuntiandam. At profecto sapientia absoluta identice ac realiter est ipsamet essentia divina.”—Franz., Thes., xxxii. i. 4 b. 106. There is a clear and important difference between the two words for asking used in this verse. ᾽Ερωτάω always in classical, and generally in Hellenistic Greek, means to interrogate, to question. In Hellenistic Greek it sometimes means to request, to petition, as in verse 26 below; but even then there is a distinction which is carefully observed throughout the New Testament between it and αἰτέω. ᾽Ερωτάω is used of the request of an equal, or at least of a familiar friend, αἰτέω of the supplication of an inferior. Hence Christ never once uses the latter word in reference to His own asking of the Father. 107. “Resuscita me, ut innotescas toti orbi per me.”—St. Aug. 108. All theologians admit that the happiness of the blessed consists radically in the vision of God; but while many Thomists hold that it consists essentially in this, other theologians hold that it consists in acts of the will, as of love and joy, as well as of the intellect. 109. Christ's human soul enjoyed the beatific vision from the first moment of the incarnation; but the connatural effects of this upon His body were suspended during His mortal life. 110. “Aoristus... indicat peractam rem esse aut nunc aut olim, hoc est, aliqua praeteriti temporis parte, quae indefinita relinquitur. Perfectum sicut in classica graecitate, ita et in graecitate N. Testamenti adhiberi solet ad significandam actionem plane praeteritam, quae aut nunc finita est, aut per effectus suos durat.”—Beel., G. G., § 41. 111. So Griesb., Lachm., Tisch., Treg., Westc., Hort, and the Revised Version. 112. Or more correctly: “for we all partake of one bread.” 113. Fourth Edition, London, 1859. 114. “Est autem in Graeco sensus hujus sententiae apertior: non enim habetur particula copulativa, sed illativa, et non est praeteritum, sed aoristus primus qui saepe plusquam perfecti significationem habet. Sensus ergo est: Miserat igitur eum Annas ligatum ad Caipham Pontificem, est enim locutio revertentis ad narrationem praetermissam, et particula illativa indicat quae relata sunt, fuisse facta postquam missus est Christus ab Anna ad Caipham.”—Tol., in loc. 115. We shall not be far from the truth, if we say that the Paschal Supper began about 7 p.m.; that Jesus retired to Gethsemani about 10; that He was arrested between 11 and 12; that the midnight trial was over about 2 a.m.; and that day dawned about 4.30. 116. Maimonides, De Pasch., vi. 1, says: “Qui cadaver reptilis tetigit, aut reptile, aut quid aliud simile die decima quarta, is lavatur, et postquam lotus est, pro eo pascha mactant, et sub vesperam, quum sol ei occubuit, pascha comedit.” 117. We read in the Mishna, which is the oldest portion of the Jewish Talmud, and was composed about the beginning of the third century: “Sacrificium festi Chagigah (חגיגה) adducebatur ex grege et jumento, agnis et capris, masculis et feminis; et comedebatur per duos dies et unam noctem.” (Mish., Pesachim, vi. 4.) 118. Jesus till now had been outside, for it is well known the Roman law required that the criminal should be present to hear the charges brought against him. See Acts xxiv. 2. 119. We prefer to render: “Thou sayest it, for (ὅτι) I am a king;” and thus St. John's version of Christ's reply is more like that of the other Evangelists. 120. φραγελλόω indeed belongs to late Greek, and is derived from the Latin flagellum. 121. We know not what kind of thorns was used for the crown. Benedict XIV. says that in his time it could not be decided from any relics of the thorns known to exist to what species they belonged. 122. “Jesus igitur flagellis caesus spinisque coronatus fuit, ante quam Pilatus eum capite damnaret. Non ergo est dubium, ordinem in his referendis a Matthaeo et a Marco minime esse observatum.”—Patriz. 123. See above on xiii. 1. 124. That a division of the night into four watches existed, is proved from the New Testament. See, e.g., Mark xiii. 35: Luke xii. 38. 125. Whether St. John numbers the hours of the day according to the Jewish or modern method it is extremely difficult to decide from his Gospel. In only four passages (i. 39; iv. 6; iv. 52; and xix. 14) does he refer to distinct hours of the day, and to these passages the patrons of both opinions appeal. In John iv. 6 we read that it was “about the sixth hour” when Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well, and if we are right in holding that it was then the month of December (see above on iv. 35), this would go to show that our Evangelist numbers according to the Jewish method. For at 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. it would be dark, and it is wholly improbable that Jesus in the darkness would have held conversation alone with the woman. 126. Dr. Walsh, Harmony of the Gospel Narratives, note 35. We have not mentioned the view of those who hold that the error from transcription occurred in St. Mark and not in St. John, and that we ought to read “sixth” instead of “third” in St. Mark xv. 25. For, as Patrizzi well points out, if St. Mark had written “sixth” in verse 25, he would not, after describing the mocking of Christ upon the cross, say in verse 33: “And when the sixth hour was come there was darkness over the whole earth until the ninth hour.” If error has crept in, then, it is not in St. Mark. 127. Cyrene was “the principal city of that part of Northern Africa, which was anciently called Cyrenaica, and also (from its five chief cities) Pentapolitana. This district was that wide projecting portion of the coast (corresponding to the modern Tripoli) which was separated from the territory of Carthage on the one hand, and that of Egypt on the other.”—Smith's B. D. 128. The following questions also are disputed:—(a) Whether Christ had the crown of thorns upon Him while He hung on the cross; (b) whether He was entirely naked; (c) whether four nails or three were used, that is to say, whether His feet like His hands were nailed separately or were placed one over the other, with one nail piercing both. 129. Darras, Hist. Eccles. vol. v., says that P. Drach was able to trace all the Hebrew characters, and that they agree exactly with St. John's version of the title. 130. The sponge is still preserved in Rome, in St. John Lateran's. 131. Longet, Physiologie, t. ii., p. 701. 132. St. Matt. on this point need create no difficulty, for although he says that an angel rolled back the stone from the mouth of the sepulchre and sat upon it (probably outside the sepulchre), yet he does not say that the women were addressed by the angel while he sat upon the stone, nor even that he was seen by them while he was in that position. That he was seen by the guards, one of whom may have been afterwards converted and have told this incident, is plain from St. Matt.: but we are free to suppose that when the angel addressed the women (Matt. xxviii. 5), he may have been already within the sepulchre, as in St. Mark. 133. The difficulty against this view, from the fact that St. Matt., according to the Vulgate Version, represents these women as coming to the tomb on the evening of the Sabbath (Vespere sabbati), disappears, if we admit that the Vulgate rendering of the Greek phrase, ὀψὲ δὲ σαββάτων is incorrect, or, at least, misleading, and should rather be post sabbatum, as the phrase is explained by Mald., Cornely (iii. p. 301, note S), Kuin., Bloomf., and the majority of commentators. Certainly we are convinced that Magdalen did not visit the tomb on Saturday evening; for had she done so, she must have learned that the tomb was guarded and the stone that closed it sealed, and she and her companions would not come as they did on Sunday morning, saying to one another: “Who shall roll away the stone for us?” Had she been at the tomb on Saturday evening, she could not have hoped to be allowed to roll away the stone, which was sealed and guarded; or, if she hoped for this permission from the soldiers, then there would have been no room for the difficulty as to who should roll away the stone, as the soldiers, if they permitted its removal, might be counted upon to remove it for women. 134. It is the common belief that Jesus appeared first of all to the Blessed Virgin, though the appearance to Magdalen is the first mentioned in the Gospels. Estius and some other great commentators, however, deny that He appeared to the Blessed Virgin, and hold that as he appeared in order to confirm the faith of those to whom he appeared, there was no need that He should appear to the Blessed Virgin. 135. “Unde secundum naturam suam palpabile est corpus gloriosum, sed ex virtute supernaturali hoc ei competit ut cum vult non palpetur a corpore non glorioso.”—St. Thomas, Summ. Theol., Suppl., q. 83, art. 6. 136. “Si quis dixerit verba illa Domini Salvatoris: Accipite Spiritum Sanctum; quorum remiseritis peccata, remittuntur eis; et quorum retinueritis, retenta sunt: non esse intelligenda de potestate remittendi et retinendi peccata in Sacramento Poenitentiae, Sicut Ecclesia Catholica ab initio semper intellexit; detorserit autem, contra institutionem hujus Sacramenti, ad auctoritatem praedicandi evangelium, anathema sit.”—Sess. xiv., Can. 2, De Poen. 137. This reading, however, is not certain, some critics read the perfect ἀφεώνται (remissa sunt). So Tisch., Treg., Westc. & Hort., and Lachm. 138. Some, who admit the authenticity of verses 1-23, deny that of verses 24 and 25. 139. The miraculous draught of fish in chapter xxi. was not intended to confirm the faith of the disciples, which now needed no confirmation, but to typify the fecundity of the Church over which Peter was about to be placed. 140. By “clausulam” he means the last two verses of the chapter. 141. So, too, Hesych. and Lidd. and Scott take φιλέω as stronger than ἀγαπᾷω, so that the two words correspond to “amare” and “diligere” respectively, as the Vulgate makes them. The distinction between the two Latin words is well recognised. Thus Cicero (Ep. Fam. xiii. 47), writing to one friend about another says: “Ut scires illum a me non diligi solum verum etiam amari.” 142. I.e., belonging to him in virtue of his office. 143. I.e., extending directly over all the faithful, and not merely mediately through their several bishops. (See Franz., De. Eccl. Thes., x. iii. 2 c.) 144. “Crux enim solebat ita a cruciariis portari, ut brachia ligno transverso funibus extensa alligarentur.”—Corl.