返回Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Jn. 8:1. And Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Jn. 8:2. And in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came unto Him. He sat down and taught them.
Jn. 8:3. The scribes and Pharisees then brought to Him a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst,
Jn. 8:4. They said to Him: Teacher! this woman was caught in adultery;
Jn. 8:5. Now Moses in the law commanded us to stone such women: what do You say?
Jn. 8:6. They said this, testing Him, that they might find something to accuse Him of. But Jesus, stooping down, wrote with His finger on the ground, paying no attention to them.
Jn. 8:7. When they continued asking Him, He straightened up and said to them: let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.
Jn. 8:8. And again, stooping down, He wrote on the ground.
Jn. 8:9. But they, having heard this and being convicted by their conscience, began to go out one by one, beginning from the eldest to the last; and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
Jn. 8:10. Jesus, straightening up and seeing no one except the woman, said to her: Woman! Where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?
Jn. 8:11. She answered: no one, Lord. Jesus said to her: neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.
Jn. 8:12. Again Jesus spoke to the people and said to them: I am the light of the world;
Since they constantly reproached Christ with Galilee and took Him to be one of the prophets, He shows them that He is not one of the prophets. "I," He says, "am the Light of the world, light in the proper sense, not a prophetic light, that is, incomplete and feeble, but the true light, not confined to the boundaries of Galilee or Palestine, but the Light of the world and the Master of all people. I am the One of whom the prophet said: 'I have set Thee for a light of the Gentiles' (Isa. 42:6). This saying you can also use against Nestorius. For the Lord did not say 'in Me is the light of the world,' but 'I am the light of the world.' He who was seen as Man was Himself also the Son of God and the Light of the world, and not as Nestorius idly babbled, that the Son of God dwelt in a mere man. No! The Son of Mary and of God, as has been said, was one.
Jn. 8:12. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
"Whoever follows Me," He says, "will not walk in darkness," that is, will not remain in error, but will be freed from error and darkness. By this He at once commends Nicodemus and the officers, as acting uprightly and therefore being in the light, and hints to the Pharisees that they are in error and darkness, and are secretly plotting schemes.
Jn. 8:13. Then the Pharisees said to Him: You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true.
When He said "I am the light of the world," they accuse Him of bearing witness about Himself. O madness! He constantly brings forth testimonies about Himself from Scripture, yet they accuse Him of bearing witness about Himself.
Jn. 8:14. Jesus answered and said to them: Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true; because I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.
Therefore He also answers them according to their craftiness. Let it be so, that I Myself bear witness of Myself. Although in reality it is not so, but I have three witnesses – My Father, My works, and the Scripture, as was also said above (John 5:33, 5:36, 5:37, 5:39). Let us suppose that I Myself bear witness of Myself. But even if I Myself bear witness of Myself, My witness is true because I know that I am the Son of God, and not a mere man, but One who comes from above, and God. How then is My witness false, when I am God, and therefore worthy of belief? God is undoubtedly worthy of belief even in witness concerning Himself. Moreover, I am also going to the true God. How then, intending to go to the True One, would I lie?
Jn. 8:15. You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.
"I," He says, "as God and the One who has come from above, bear witness concerning Myself the truth; but you look only at what is visible, and, since I am in the flesh, you take Me for mere flesh, and not for God and the One who has come from God."
"You judge according to the flesh," that is, erroneously. Just as one who lives according to the flesh is said to live viciously, so too of one who judges according to the flesh it must be said that he is an unrighteous judge.
Jn. 8:16. And if I judge, My judgment is true, because I am not alone, but I and the Father who sent Me.
Then, as if someone were to say: "If we Jews judge unjustly, then why do You not punish, why do You not condemn?" He says: "I did not come for the purpose of judging. I now judge no one; and if I do judge, My judgment is true, and if I wished to judge, you would be condemned. But now you remain without condemnation not because I supposedly cannot condemn you, but because now is not the time, since the condemnation upon you I am reserving until the Second Coming."
So also in another place He says: "I came not to judge the world, but to save it" (Jn. 12:47). And that He is the Judge of all, hear the truthful lips: "The Father has given all judgment to the Son" (Jn. 5:22). Therefore, when you hear: "I judge no one," understand these words not of the future Coming, but of the first.
Having said "I am not alone, but My Father is with Me," He declared: not I alone condemn you, but the Father also. For I do not judge one way and the Father another, but as I judge, so does He, and as He judges, so do I.
Jn. 8:17. And in your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true.
The Arians and Eunomians, who do not acknowledge the Son as Consubstantial with the Father, let them say here: "If He were not Consubstantial, how would He have dared to say, 'I have testimony and credibility the same as the Father'?"
As two people testify about something and their testimony is true (Deut. 19:15), it is evident that their credibility is also equal. So here too He proves that His own testimony is in no way inferior to the testimony of the Father. For listen with what authority He speaks further:
Jn. 8:18. I bear witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.
Do you see the equality of authority, and how He presents Himself as equally trustworthy as the Father? He would not have dared to say this if He were lower in dignity than the Father and were not equal to Him and Consubstantial. For if He had wanted to show that He is in any way inferior to the Father and less than Him, He would not have numbered Himself with the Father, nor would He have placed His own testimony alongside the testimony of the Father, but, being a slave, as the heretics blasphemously claim, He would have turned to one of His fellow slaves and made him a co-witness — for example, John or Moses; and in general, if He had desired such testimonies, He would have found a multitude of them. But now He wishes to show His Consubstantiality with the Father, and therefore He numbers Himself with the Father. If in other places He brings forward John, Moses, and the prophets as witnesses concerning Himself, do not be surprised at this. He does this in accommodation to the understanding of His listeners. They regarded John and Moses as greater than Him; therefore He brings forward the testimony of those whom they considered glorious and great. They had a lofty conception of God the Father. For what else did they glorify, if not God? Therefore now He also brings forward as witness Him Himself, the God Who is over all. And since He places Himself alongside such an infallible and truthful Witness, it is quite evident that He possesses the same importance and authority as the Father. And those who call Him a slave and in every respect less than the Father should be put to shame.
Jn. 8:19. Then they said to Him: Where is Your Father?
Others think that the Jews said to the Lord "where is Your Father" as an insult and reproach. Since His supposed father Joseph was poor, by the words "where is Your Father" the Jews were saying, as it were: "Your Father is obscure and of low birth, so why do You constantly remind us of Him?"
Jn. 8:19. Jesus answered: you know neither Me, nor My Father;
Since they were asking Him about the Father by way of temptation, and not with the purpose of learning the truth, He does not deem them worthy of an answer, but says: "You know neither Me nor My Father," that is, you cannot know My Father without Me. Although you think that you honor God, since you do not believe that He is Father to Me, His true Son, there is no benefit for you in this. You do not even know Him as He ought to be known. Otherwise you would have known and honored Me as well. But since now you neither know nor honor Me, you do not know Him either, nor do you render Him honor, although you think the opposite. And that you do not know Me — no one else is to blame for this but yourselves.
Jn. 8:19. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.
Do you hear, O impious one who subordinates the Son to the Father? If He were not Consubstantial with the Father, how could He have said that "if you had known Me, you would have known the Father also"? For if, in your opinion, the Son is a creature, how does one who knows a creature also know God? He who knows the nature of an angel does not yet thereby know the Nature of God. But if he who knows the Son also knows the Father, then the Son is truly of one and the same Nature with the Father. Will you maintain that those who know a creature also know God? By no means. For many, and indeed all, see and know the creature, but God no one sees or knows.
Jn. 8:20. These words Jesus spoke at the treasury, when He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.
"These words Jesus spoke at the treasury, when He taught in the temple." Thus He conducted Himself boldly! And yet, those who breathed murder against Him, having Him in their hands, did not dare to take Him. And still they did not understand that it was a deed of truly divine power that He, surrounded by enemies, remained among them unharmed and untouchable, while before Passover they had been seeking Him and lying in wait for Him. The One whom they sought when He was absent, and against whom they raged even in His absence — Him, when He was in the midst of their snares, they could not take. And despite all this, they did not acknowledge His power, because His hour had not yet come, that is, the appointed time of His death had not yet arrived, at which He intended to give Himself over to it. For even then they could have done nothing to Him, had the determined time not come, which He Himself had appointed for Himself. The crucifixion was not an act of powerlessness, but of permission; for He permitted it when He willed. They had long desired to put Him to death, but were restrained by the invisible bonds of His power. For He needed to remain longer alive in the flesh, so as to bring people greater benefit through the working of greater miracles and the delivery of greater teaching.
Jn. 8:21. Again Jesus said to them: I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.
Jn. 8:22. Here the Jews were saying: "Will He kill Himself, that He says: 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?"
Why does He so often say to them, "I am going away, and you will seek Me"? In order to shake and terrify their souls. For see what concern they immediately fell into. In perplexity they say, "Will He kill Himself?" Although they wanted to be rid of Him, asked Him to depart from them, and even wanted to kill Him, nevertheless they regarded the present circumstance as so important that they were thrown into perplexity by it.
"I am going away." He says this often, also in order to show that He knows beforehand about His death, and that the Cross is a matter not of their power, but of His own will. "I," He says, "am going away": you are not leading Me, but I go voluntarily.
"Where I go, you cannot come." By these words He shows that He will truly rise in glory and sit at the right hand of God, while they will die in their sins. What then do they say to this? "Will He kill Himself?"
Jn. 8:23. He said to them: you are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.
Rejecting such a supposition of theirs and showing that suicide is a criminal act, the Lord says: "You are from beneath, and cannot conceive of anything divine, therefore it is natural for you to think this way; but I am not of this world, that is, I care for nothing worldly and earthly, and therefore I can never reach such madness as to kill Myself. For this is a demonic act, not a divine one."
Here Apollinarius, seizing upon this saying, says after the Manichaeans: "Do you see, the body of the Lord was not of this world, but from above, from heaven; as Paul also says, 'The second Man is the Lord from heaven' (1 Cor. 15:47)." What then must be said? One should ask him how he understands the Lord's words to the apostles: "You are not of the world" (John 15:19) — does he really mean that they too had bodies from heaven, and not from this creation? Or did the Lord say this because they did not care about the goods of this world? In the same way one must understand these words, "I am not of this world," that is, I am not what you are, you who care about worldly things.
In a similar manner, Paul also says to some: "You are not in the flesh" (Rom. 8:9), saying this not because they are bodiless, but testifying to their love of wisdom and freedom from fleshly passions.
Jn. 8:24. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.
What then does the Lord say to them again? "If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." If He came in order to take away "the sin of the world" (Jn. 1:29), and it is not possible to receive forgiveness of sins other than through baptism, and it is impossible to be baptized without first believing, then the unbeliever will inevitably die in his sin, for not having received baptism, he has not put off the old man. Therefore the Lord also says in another place that "he who does not believe is already condemned" (Jn. 3:18), not only because he did not believe, but also because he dies with his former sins.
Jn. 8:25. Then they said to Him: who then are You? Jesus said to them: from the beginning the One who I also tell you.
After so much time, after so many miracles had been performed, they still ask Him: "Who are You?" So senseless, unjust, and mocking were they.
The Lord says: "I tell you that which I have been telling you from the beginning."
Jn. 8:26. I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you; but He who sent Me is true, and what I heard from Him, these things I speak to the world.
"You," He says, "are unworthy to fully hear My words, nor to know Who I am; for you all speak with the purpose of tempting, and do not wish to heed anything from My teaching. I could also expose you in this, and not only expose you, but also punish you." For this is what He hints at when He says: "I have many things to say about you and to judge." By the word "say" He indicates exposure, and by the word "judge," condemnation and punishment.
"But," He says, "He who sent Me sent Me not to judge and convict. For God did not send His Son to judge the world, but to save the world (John 3:17). And since My Father sent Me to save, and He is true, for this very reason I now judge no one, but only speak what I have heard from My Father, that is, what serves for salvation, and not for condemnation."
He said this so that they would not think that He does not punish them because of His powerlessness. He shows that He is not powerless, but does not wish to punish them, since He came not to punish, but to save.
Some understand these words "He who sent Me is true" in this way: I could judge you even now, but I leave this for the age to come. Yet you do not believe and pay no attention to the time of recompense. But even if you do not believe, My Father is true, who has both appointed a day for your recompense and sent Me to proclaim this and revealed to the world His righteousness and power.
Jn. 8:27. They did not understand that He was speaking to them about the Father.
When He said this, they were so foolish that they did not understand that He was speaking to them about His Father. How often and how much He had already spoken to them about the Father! But truly "their foolish heart was darkened" (Rom. 1:21).
Jn. 8:28. Then Jesus said to them: when you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that it is I, and that I do nothing of Myself, but as My Father has taught Me, so I speak.
Jesus performed many miracles, and yet did not attract the Jews to Himself. Now He speaks to them about the Cross. "You," He says, "think that when you crucify Me, you will be free from all concern and will be rid of Me. But I say that you will know that it is I, that is, Christ, the Son of God, who upholds and sustains all things (Heb. 1:3), and that I am not opposed to the Father, nor do I act or speak of Myself, for I do not have a will of My own, distinct from the will of the Father."
How then will they recognize Him on the cross? From the signs of that time, from His resurrection and their captivity. For all of this could reveal His power. So when you crucify Me, you will know both My power and My unity of mind with the Father. For the Father would not have delivered your city to the Romans in vengeance for Me, nor would He have performed signs on the cross, if I were not His Son and of one mind with Him, rather than opposed to God. Then you will know that whatever I teach and whatever I say is from Him, is undoubtedly divine, and is not Mine, but of Him who sent Me.
Jn. 8:29. He who sent Me is with Me; the Father has not left Me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to Him.
Then, lest they think that the sending and the embassy imply subordination, He says that My Father is "with Me." Although He sent Me as a Man, I am inseparable from Him, and He is with Me, as God with God.
After this He again descends to humble speech and says: "He has not left Me alone," because I do what is pleasing to Him. He speaks so humbly for the sake of the Jews. They said that He was not from God because He did not keep the Sabbath. But He says: "I do what is pleasing to Him," so that even if I break the Sabbath, I do what is pleasing to Him. However, by such humble speech He in no way harms His own glory, but brought benefit to the listeners, and through this also strengthened His own glory. For the listeners, hearing that He refers everything to the Father, more readily attached themselves to Him and believed in Him, so that humility exalted Him all the more. Do you see the worth of blessed humility? And that this is so, listen to what follows.
Jn. 8:30. When He spoke these things, many believed in Him.
I said that the listeners were more captivated by humble speech. The evangelist hints at this as well. "As He was saying these things," he notes, "many believed in Him." He was saying "these things," that is, words that were humble and seemingly unworthy of His glory. Therefore, when you hear Him say something small and imperfect about Himself, do not be troubled in any way, for He says this for the sake of His listeners, who cannot comprehend anything loftier and immediately fly into a rage. What would have happened to them, unable to grasp the depths of the theological mystery, when the height of His glory remained incomprehensible even to Christians who had come to know His power and were saved by Him?
When you hear that "many believed," understand it this way: they believed simply and as it happened, not as they should have; they believed because they were pleased by the humility in His words.
Jn. 8:31. Then Jesus said to the Jews who believed in Him: if you abide in My word, then you are truly My disciples,
And that they were not believers in the precise sense is obvious. For He said to the Jews who had believed: "If you abide in My word." By this He shows that although they believed, it was superficially, and therefore they would not remain in the faith. And by exposing them in this, He shows that He knows their hearts and is God.
Jn. 8:32. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
And since some of His former supposed disciples had departed, He therefore says to those who have now believed: "Although those have departed, yet if you abide in My word and faith, you 'will know the truth,' that is, Me, for 'I am the Truth' (John 14:6). But now you do not know the truth, because the law, whose guardians you consider yourselves, is not the truth, but a figure and a shadow. If you come to know Me, Who am true, then 'the truth will set you free,' that is, I will free you from sins."
For whoever believes in Him who takes away the sin of the world is undoubtedly free from sins. Just as He said to the unbelieving, "you will die in your sins" (John 8:21), so to those who abide in faith He promises freedom from sins. For the sacrifices and sprinklings of the Law, being mere shadows, did not free from sins, but the spiritual and true sacrifice through faith and knowledge frees from sins us who no longer remain slaves but are made sons of God.
Jn. 8:33. They answered Him: We are Abraham's seed and have never been slaves to anyone; how then do You say: you will be made free?
The proud Jews again cling to vain nobility and say with fury: "We are Abraham's seed." If they needed to be indignant, it should have been about something else. He said to them: "You shall know the truth." Therefore they should have said: "What then, do we not know the truth now? Are all the prescriptions of the law and our knowledge false?" But they cared about none of such things: they are concerned with worldly matters, thinking that He reproaches them for slavery and low birth.
"We are Abraham's seed." Nowhere do they mention their own merits, but appeal to the fathers. Therefore John also says to them: "Do not begin to say that we have Abraham as our father" (Matt. 3:9).
In saying that they were never slaves to anyone, they were clearly lying. For every time they were taken captive, they were in bondage: to the Egyptians, the Babylonians, and many other nations.
Jn. 8:34. Jesus answered them: Truly, truly, I say to you: everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
The Lord does not convict them of lying. His purpose is to prove not that they are slaves of men, but that they are slaves of sin. And this slavery is the most grievous of all, and from it God alone can deliver. For to forgive sins is the work of God alone. Therefore He says: "Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin," and therefore you too, inasmuch as you are sinful, are also slaves. To this they could say that although we are subject to such slavery, we have sacrifices, we have priests who cleanse us from sins. He says that they too are slaves, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). However, your priests, being themselves slaves, have no authority to forgive the sins of others.
The Apostle Paul speaks more clearly about this, namely: "The priest must offer sacrifice both for himself, as for the people, because he himself also is compassed with infirmities" (Heb. 5:2–3).
Jn. 8:35. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.
"The servant," He says, "does not abide in the house," that is, does not have the authority to bestow anything, since he is not the master of the house, but the son is the master of the house and abides in the house. He calls authority a "house," just as in another place He calls dominion a "house," saying that "in My Father's house there are many mansions" (John 14:2).
Jn. 8:36. If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.
So then, those priests of yours, being slaves, had no authority to forgive sins. But I, the Son, abiding in the house, that is, having authority and independent sovereignty, the Master of the house, shall grant you freedom, because all things are Mine, and I am of equal power and equal authority with the Father. When I set you free, then you will be honored with true freedom. Now you claim for yourselves a false freedom, but through Me you shall be freed essentially and truly.
Jn. 8:37. I know that you are Abraham's seed; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.
"You," He says, "consider yourselves the seed of Abraham. I agree that you preserve a fleshly kinship with this saint, but you have no kinship with him in spirit. He is righteous, compassionate, and hospitable, while you (I will pass over the other aspects of your life and point out the most obvious thing you are now doing) breathe murder and hatred toward people. For you seek to kill Me and plot against Me. How then are you his true children, when you are so far from the qualities of your father? If you boast of your kinship, then you should also imitate his virtue."
So that they would not say, "We are justified in seeking to kill You," He puts forward the reason. "You," He says, "rage against Me for no other reason than that My word surpasses your understanding and does not fit within you. Yet for this you ought not to kill, but to respect and honor, and to desire all the more that I teach the loftiness of the doctrines."
Jn. 8:38. I speak that which I have seen with My Father; and you do that which you have seen with your father.
Lest they should say to Him again that we justly hate You even for Your word, because You speak to us not from God but from Yourself, and therefore we cannot accept Your teaching, He adds: "I speak not of Myself, but I speak what I have seen with My Father; and you do what you have seen with your father."
"I," He says, "proclaim what is divine and heavenly, and thereby reveal My Father, while you by your deeds reveal your father, that is, the devil." When you hear these words, "I speak what I have seen," do not think of bodily vision, but understand it as natural, true, and most certain knowledge. Just as eyes that see soundly behold reality and truth, seeing truly and without deception, so also I truly speak what I have learned from the Father.
Jn. 8:39. They answered and said to Him: Our father is Abraham. Jesus said to them: If you were children of Abraham, you would do the works of Abraham.
He presents the devil as their father, because in their deeds he sees them resembling him; but they constantly present Abraham. The Lord frequently reminds them of their criminal intention and denies their kinship with the righteous one in order to cut off their excessive boasting and to convince them that hope must be placed not in the vain pride of fleshly kinship, but in the likeness of free will. Truly, as the Physician of souls, He calms in them the inflammation arising from the delusion of kinship with Abraham, which prevents them from coming to Christ, for they considered this kinship sufficient for their salvation.
Jn. 8:40. But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God: Abraham did not do this.
So then, you who breathe murder and seek to kill Me are not children of Abraham. Then, lest someone say that they justly seek to kill You, He says: "I am a Man who does not rise up against God, who does not seek His own glory, but who speaks what I have heard from My Father and tells the truth."
What then was this truth? That He is equal to the Father and not a servant, like one of the prophets, but the Son, who does nothing and says nothing of Himself, but all things from the Father. For it was because of this that they sought to kill Him.
Jn. 8:41. You do the deeds of your father. Then they said to Him: We are not born of fornication; we have one Father, God.
And they again say: "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, God." See what arrogance! The Lord denies their kinship even with Abraham, yet they are so vainglorious that in their madness they call themselves children of God Himself. They boast of divine sonship, probably because they had heard the words "Israel is My firstborn son" (Ex. 4:22). But they should have known that God also said in another place: "I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me" (Is. 1:2).
The Lord could have exposed them for the fact that many of them were born of fornication, since contrary to the law, Hebrew wives entered into relations with pagans, and pagan wives with Jews; however, He does not do this. For He was not concerned with proving the ignobility of their body, but primarily wanted to prove that they were base in soul.
Jn. 8:42. Jesus said to them: if God were your Father, you would love Me, because I came forth from God and have come; for I did not come of Myself, but He sent Me.
Since He excluded them from kinship with Abraham, they rose even higher, calling God their Father. He reproached them as murderers, but they, defending themselves, say that they are avenging God, and for this reason they form a counsel against Him. Therefore the Lord, showing that they are not championing God's cause, but by their very design wish to kill Him, and are not children of God, as they supposed, but rather opponents of God, says: "If God were your Father, you would love Me." For I came down from God into the world, that is, I appeared in the flesh. I am not an opponent of God. I came from Him. Therefore, by rising up against Me, you are enemies of God.
Jn. 8:43. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you cannot hear My word.
Why do you not understand My speech, do not comprehend and do not grasp what I am saying? Without doubt, for no other reason than that you cannot hear My word, that is, you do not want to. For "cannot" is used in place of "do not want to." As long as envy and murderous intent dwell in you, how can you listen to what I am saying?
Jn. 8:44. Your father is the devil, and you desire to carry out the lusts of your father.
He said "you cannot hear My word" instead of "you do not want to." Then He gives the reason why they did not want to hear: that they have their own father, namely the devil. Although you madly ascribe yourselves as children to God, as your father, your deeds testify that the devil is a more natural father to you. "You want to carry out his desires." He did not say "deeds," but "desires," showing that they are very inclined toward lying and murder, two kinds of evil which are very characteristic of the devil.
Jn. 8:44. He was a murderer from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him.
"He was a murderer from the beginning." Therefore you also, seeking to kill Me, liken yourselves to him who murdered Adam. "He did not stand in the truth," but is the father of lies. And you, when you lie about Me and say that I am not from God, do not stand in the truth, do not abide in My word; you are children of him who begot the lie. For he slandered God to men as well, when he told Eve that He had forbidden them the tree of the knowledge of good and evil out of envy. Likewise he slandered men to God, for example Job, saying that Job did not honor God for nothing.
Jn. 8:44. When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
People, when they lie, make use of what is, as it were, another's falsehood. But the devil employs falsehood as his own property, for it is his offspring; and the liar in the proper sense and the father of lies is he himself. He said to Eve: "In the day that ye eat thereof, ye shall be as gods" (Gen. 3:5). But they (Adam and Eve) received death.
Jn. 8:45. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.
But you do not believe Me, because I speak the truth. Having nothing to accuse Me of other than the truth, you rise up against Me for this very reason, as sons of the father of lies.
Jn. 8:46. Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I speak the truth, why do you not believe Me?
They themselves called themselves sons of God. He says: "If you are sons of God, you certainly ought to hate the sinner. If you can convict Me, whom you hate, of sin, then obviously you hate Me justly. But if no one can convict Me openly, you hate Me for the truth." For what truth? Without doubt, for the fact that He called Himself the Son of God, which is completely true.
Jn. 8:47. He that is of God heareth God's words. Ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.
"He who is of God hears the words of God." Therefore, if you too were sons of God, you would not turn away from Me, the Son of God, who came down from heaven and exalts the words of God.
Jn. 8:48. The Jews answered and said to Him: Do we not speak rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?
So meekly does the Lord speak to them, yet they permit themselves insolence. They say: "Do we not speak rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon in You?" They called Him a Samaritan as a violator of Jewish customs, for example, the Sabbath rest, since the Samaritans did not strictly observe the Jewish law. And they call Him demon-possessed, perhaps in the same way as they said that "He casts out demons by the prince of demons" (Luke 11:15). For all who slandered Him by saying that He cast out demons by the power of Beelzebub were saying that He had in Himself the demon of Beelzebub, by which He also performed miracles. And since He revealed their thoughts and desires, they perhaps considered Him demon-possessed also because they thought that the secrets of their hearts were disclosed to Him by demons.
When did they call Him a Samaritan? The Evangelist nowhere mentioned this. From this it is evident that the Evangelists did not write down everything, but omitted much, as we ourselves have noted about this very thing in another place.
Jn. 8:49. Jesus answered: There is no demon in Me; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.
Thus they insult Him, yet He accepts their insults without malice. However, when they call themselves sons of God, He strongly rebukes them, standing up for the truth; but when He Himself is insulted, He does not defend Himself. By this He teaches us also to stand up for the glory of God and to bear meekly the insults that concern ourselves, just as He Himself meekly says: "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father."
How does He honor the Father? By defending Him and not allowing murderers and liars to call themselves sons of the Savior and the Truth. "You," He says, "dishonor Me because I honor My Father, whom you revile, since you falsely claim that He is your father. But even if I do not avenge Myself and endure the insults, do not think that this insult will remain unavenged. There is a Father who will punish for such an insult inflicted upon Me because I defend Him and do not allow you to call yourselves His sons."
Jn. 8:50. Yet I do not seek My own glory: there is One who seeks and judges.
There is One who seeks My glory, and not only seeks it, but is also able to judge and punish those who offend Me without cause. Often someone seeks redress for an offense, but cannot himself judge. But the Father both seeks the glory of the Son and is able to judge. Therefore He also said: "There is One who seeks and judges."
What love for mankind! He is offended, yet leaving the seeking of His own glory and vengeance to the Father, He turns to exhortation and teaching, and in this way does good to those who insult Him. So too must we repay our enemies.
Jn. 8:51. Truly, truly, I say to you: whoever keeps My word will never see death.
"What then did He say to them? 'If anyone keeps My word,' that is, joins to faith a pure life as well (for only he truly keeps the Lord's teaching who also has a pure life), such a person shall not see the death by which sinners die, being delivered in the age to come to endless torment and falling away from the true life."
At the same time, He lets them know that if the one who keeps My word does not die, then all the more so do I not die. Why then do you want to kill Me, over Whom death has so little power that I even grant true life to others? For although believers die bodily, they are alive in God.
Jn. 8:52. The Jews said to Him: now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets, yet You say: whoever keeps My word shall never taste death.
What then do the Jews say to this? They consider Him to be demon-possessed, as if He were speaking some strange things due to a derangement of mind. Abraham and the prophets, who heard the words of God, died, so how will Your listeners not die? "Now," they say, "we truly know, that is, fully and firmly, that You, in saying this, are demon-possessed."
Jn. 8:53. Are You greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died:
The foolish ones, not understanding what kind of death the Lord was speaking of — that it would not touch those who believe in Him — say something senseless and foolish to Him. See how they answer: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?" They should have said: "Are You greater than God? Those who heard the word of God died, yet those who hear Yours will not die?" But they do not say this. Wishing to show that He is less even than Abraham, they say: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?"
The Lord Himself does not reveal to them what kind of death He spoke of. And that He is greater than Abraham, He demonstrates shortly after.
Jn. 8:53. "what do You make Yourself out to be?"
They say this as an insult. You, unworthy of a single word, Son of a carpenter, Galilean, whom do You make Yourself? Neither deeds, nor truth, nor the Scriptures, but You Yourself—whom do You make Yourself? For You Yourself appropriate glory to Yourself.
Jn. 8:54. Jesus answered: If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of Whom you say that He is your God.
The Lord says to this: "If I glorify Myself, then My glory is nothing, as you also think. But the One who now glorifies Me is another, namely My Father."
The Father glorified Him in every way, both through prophecies about Him, and through testimony from heaven, and through countless and immeasurable miracles. Of this Father you say that He is your God. But you acknowledge Him neither as My Father nor as your God. If you acknowledged Him as Father, you would honor His Son. But now you do not honor His Son. It is evident that you do not acknowledge Him as My Father. But you do not acknowledge Him simply as God either. Otherwise you would fear His words as God's. But now you utterly disregard Him. He established as law: "Thou shalt not kill." You seek to kill Me, and that when you cannot convict Me of sin.
Jn. 8:55. And you have not known Him, but I know Him;
From this it is clear that you do not know Him at all. But I know Him by nature, I have perfect knowledge of Him. For, as I am, so also is the Father. And as I know Myself, so I also know Him.
Jn. 8:55. And if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you.
"For you lie, boasting that you know Him; but I would deny the truth if, knowing Him, I said that I do not know."
Jn. 8:55. But I know Him and keep His word.
How then will You prove that You know Him? "By this," He says, "that I keep His word, that is, His commandments." For I am not an adversary to Him, otherwise I would boast as one who opposes God, nor do I break His commandments. But you, transgressors of His commandments, are held captive, giving yourselves over to evil desires, you thirst for murder, and many other things forbidden by the law you commit with passion, and thereby you clearly reveal that you do not know Him. For if you knew Him, you would keep His word, that is, His commandments.
Others understand the words "I keep His word" thus: I know Him because I have within Myself the unchanging image of His Essence, that is, of His being, and whatever image of Nature the Father has, the same is also in Me. For the Father and the Son have one and the same Nature and one and the same mode of being. Therefore I know the Father, for I keep the unchanging image of His Essence.
Such a turn of speech is customary in Scripture. For example, in Slavonic it says, "Give us help from trouble: and vain is the salvation of man" (Ps. 59:13). Here the particle "and" is used instead of "for," and the meaning is: give us help, for salvation from man is unreliable. So also in these words, "I know Him, and keep His word," the particle "and" is placed instead of "for." "For," He says, "I keep His word."
Jn. 8:56. Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see My day; and he saw it and was glad.
Here He affirms that He is greater than Abraham. Above they were saying to Him: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?" Here He answers: "Yes, I am greater."
He "was glad to see My day," that is, he considered it pleasant, desirable, and joy-creating, as a day most beneficial and as the day not of someone small, not of an ordinary man, but of the Great One. By "day" He means the Cross, for Abraham prefigured it in the offering of Isaac and in the slaying of the ram. As Isaac carried the wood, so the Lord carried the cross, and as Isaac was spared while the ram was slain, so He, as God, remained beyond suffering, yet suffered in His Humanity and flesh. Foreseeing this day of the Cross as the day of universal salvation, Abraham rejoiced. He also shows that He goes to His sufferings voluntarily, since He praises the one who rejoiced over the Cross, for through it is the salvation of the world.
Others understand "day" to mean the entire time of Christ's appearance in the flesh, which Abraham foresaw and rejoiced that from him and his descendants the Savior would come. And perhaps not Abraham alone rejoiced, but all, as David says: "This is the day which the Lord has made: let us rejoice and be glad in it!" (Ps. 118:24).
Jn. 8:57. Then the Jews said to Him: You are not yet fifty years old – and You have seen Abraham?
The Jews, being unable to rise to the meaning of His words, instead of asking and learning about which day He speaks of that Abraham saw, mock Him even more, as though He were saying something senseless. "You are not yet fifty years old," they say, "and You have seen Abraham?" They said this, thinking that the Lord was close to fifty years old, when in fact He was about thirty-three years old.
Why did they not say "You are not yet forty years old," but "fifty"? It would be superfluous even to ask about this. Perhaps they mentioned fifty years without any definite thought. However, some say that they spoke this way because the fiftieth year was especially honored among them, that is, the jubilee year, in which slaves were set free, buyers relinquished their acquisitions, and they did everything else that pertained to that honor.
Jn. 8:58. Jesus said to them: Truly, truly, I say to you: before Abraham was, I am.
What then does the Lord say? "Before Abraham was, I am." See, He did not say "before Abraham was, I was," but "I am." For this expression "am" is more proper to God, because it signifies continuous and eternal existence. So too His Father in the Old Testament said of Himself: "I am He Who Is" (Ex. 3:14). Of Abraham, as one subject to corruption, He fittingly said "was." For that which received existence is also subject to dissolution. But the word "am" points to freedom from all corruption and to divine eternity.
Jn. 8:59. Then they took up stones to cast at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, passing through the midst of them, and so passed by.
Therefore they too accepted this saying as befitting God alone, took it for blasphemy, and picked up stones against Him. But He again hides Himself with humility, so as not to die before the time appointed for His death.
How then does He hide? He did not conceal Himself in a corner of the temple, did not run off into a house, did not lean against a wall or behind a pillar, but by divine power He made Himself invisible to the plotters, even though He went out through the midst of them. "And passed by," that is, He went along simply, for a certain time.
Look, if you will, how He fulfilled everything on His part: He sufficiently taught them both about Himself and about the Father, and pointed out true nobility and freedom in freedom from sins; He explained that the only shameful slavery is slavery to sin — and in general He omitted nothing that was needed. But they throw stones at Him. This is precisely why He leaves them, as people no longer capable of correction.
Note that the stones are thrown by those about whom the Evangelist said that they believed in Him (Jn. 8:30–31). This means their faith was not faith, but a kind of temporary and lukewarm disposition toward the words of Christ.
Jn. 8:1. And Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Jn. 8:2. And in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came unto Him. He sat down and taught them.
Jn. 8:3. The scribes and Pharisees then brought to Him a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst,
Jn. 8:4. They said to Him: Teacher! this woman was caught in adultery;
Jn. 8:5. Now Moses in the law commanded us to stone such women: what do You say?
Jn. 8:6. They said this, testing Him, that they might find something to accuse Him of. But Jesus, stooping down, wrote with His finger on the ground, paying no attention to them.
Jn. 8:7. When they continued asking Him, He straightened up and said to them: let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.
Jn. 8:8. And again, stooping down, He wrote on the ground.
Jn. 8:9. But they, having heard this and being convicted by their conscience, began to go out one by one, beginning from the eldest to the last; and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
Jn. 8:10. Jesus, straightening up and seeing no one except the woman, said to her: Woman! Where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?
Jn. 8:11. She answered: no one, Lord. Jesus said to her: neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.
Jn. 8:12. Again Jesus spoke to the people and said to them: I am the light of the world;
Since they constantly reproached Christ with Galilee and took Him to be one of the prophets, He shows them that He is not one of the prophets. "I," He says, "am the Light of the world, light in the proper sense, not a prophetic light, that is, incomplete and feeble, but the true light, not confined to the boundaries of Galilee or Palestine, but the Light of the world and the Master of all people. I am the One of whom the prophet said: 'I have set Thee for a light of the Gentiles' (Isa. 42:6). This saying you can also use against Nestorius. For the Lord did not say 'in Me is the light of the world,' but 'I am the light of the world.' He who was seen as Man was Himself also the Son of God and the Light of the world, and not as Nestorius idly babbled, that the Son of God dwelt in a mere man. No! The Son of Mary and of God, as has been said, was one.
Jn. 8:12. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
"Whoever follows Me," He says, "will not walk in darkness," that is, will not remain in error, but will be freed from error and darkness. By this He at once commends Nicodemus and the officers, as acting uprightly and therefore being in the light, and hints to the Pharisees that they are in error and darkness, and are secretly plotting schemes.
Jn. 8:13. Then the Pharisees said to Him: You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true.
When He said "I am the light of the world," they accuse Him of bearing witness about Himself. O madness! He constantly brings forth testimonies about Himself from Scripture, yet they accuse Him of bearing witness about Himself.
Jn. 8:14. Jesus answered and said to them: Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true; because I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.
Therefore He also answers them according to their craftiness. Let it be so, that I Myself bear witness of Myself. Although in reality it is not so, but I have three witnesses – My Father, My works, and the Scripture, as was also said above (John 5:33, 5:36, 5:37, 5:39). Let us suppose that I Myself bear witness of Myself. But even if I Myself bear witness of Myself, My witness is true because I know that I am the Son of God, and not a mere man, but One who comes from above, and God. How then is My witness false, when I am God, and therefore worthy of belief? God is undoubtedly worthy of belief even in witness concerning Himself. Moreover, I am also going to the true God. How then, intending to go to the True One, would I lie?
Jn. 8:15. You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.
"I," He says, "as God and the One who has come from above, bear witness concerning Myself the truth; but you look only at what is visible, and, since I am in the flesh, you take Me for mere flesh, and not for God and the One who has come from God."
"You judge according to the flesh," that is, erroneously. Just as one who lives according to the flesh is said to live viciously, so too of one who judges according to the flesh it must be said that he is an unrighteous judge.
Jn. 8:16. And if I judge, My judgment is true, because I am not alone, but I and the Father who sent Me.
Then, as if someone were to say: "If we Jews judge unjustly, then why do You not punish, why do You not condemn?" He says: "I did not come for the purpose of judging. I now judge no one; and if I do judge, My judgment is true, and if I wished to judge, you would be condemned. But now you remain without condemnation not because I supposedly cannot condemn you, but because now is not the time, since the condemnation upon you I am reserving until the Second Coming."
So also in another place He says: "I came not to judge the world, but to save it" (Jn. 12:47). And that He is the Judge of all, hear the truthful lips: "The Father has given all judgment to the Son" (Jn. 5:22). Therefore, when you hear: "I judge no one," understand these words not of the future Coming, but of the first.
Having said "I am not alone, but My Father is with Me," He declared: not I alone condemn you, but the Father also. For I do not judge one way and the Father another, but as I judge, so does He, and as He judges, so do I.
Jn. 8:17. And in your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true.
The Arians and Eunomians, who do not acknowledge the Son as Consubstantial with the Father, let them say here: "If He were not Consubstantial, how would He have dared to say, 'I have testimony and credibility the same as the Father'?"
As two people testify about something and their testimony is true (Deut. 19:15), it is evident that their credibility is also equal. So here too He proves that His own testimony is in no way inferior to the testimony of the Father. For listen with what authority He speaks further:
Jn. 8:18. I bear witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.
Do you see the equality of authority, and how He presents Himself as equally trustworthy as the Father? He would not have dared to say this if He were lower in dignity than the Father and were not equal to Him and Consubstantial. For if He had wanted to show that He is in any way inferior to the Father and less than Him, He would not have numbered Himself with the Father, nor would He have placed His own testimony alongside the testimony of the Father, but, being a slave, as the heretics blasphemously claim, He would have turned to one of His fellow slaves and made him a co-witness — for example, John or Moses; and in general, if He had desired such testimonies, He would have found a multitude of them. But now He wishes to show His Consubstantiality with the Father, and therefore He numbers Himself with the Father. If in other places He brings forward John, Moses, and the prophets as witnesses concerning Himself, do not be surprised at this. He does this in accommodation to the understanding of His listeners. They regarded John and Moses as greater than Him; therefore He brings forward the testimony of those whom they considered glorious and great. They had a lofty conception of God the Father. For what else did they glorify, if not God? Therefore now He also brings forward as witness Him Himself, the God Who is over all. And since He places Himself alongside such an infallible and truthful Witness, it is quite evident that He possesses the same importance and authority as the Father. And those who call Him a slave and in every respect less than the Father should be put to shame.
Jn. 8:19. Then they said to Him: Where is Your Father?
Others think that the Jews said to the Lord "where is Your Father" as an insult and reproach. Since His supposed father Joseph was poor, by the words "where is Your Father" the Jews were saying, as it were: "Your Father is obscure and of low birth, so why do You constantly remind us of Him?"
Jn. 8:19. Jesus answered: you know neither Me, nor My Father;
Since they were asking Him about the Father by way of temptation, and not with the purpose of learning the truth, He does not deem them worthy of an answer, but says: "You know neither Me nor My Father," that is, you cannot know My Father without Me. Although you think that you honor God, since you do not believe that He is Father to Me, His true Son, there is no benefit for you in this. You do not even know Him as He ought to be known. Otherwise you would have known and honored Me as well. But since now you neither know nor honor Me, you do not know Him either, nor do you render Him honor, although you think the opposite. And that you do not know Me — no one else is to blame for this but yourselves.
Jn. 8:19. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.
Do you hear, O impious one who subordinates the Son to the Father? If He were not Consubstantial with the Father, how could He have said that "if you had known Me, you would have known the Father also"? For if, in your opinion, the Son is a creature, how does one who knows a creature also know God? He who knows the nature of an angel does not yet thereby know the Nature of God. But if he who knows the Son also knows the Father, then the Son is truly of one and the same Nature with the Father. Will you maintain that those who know a creature also know God? By no means. For many, and indeed all, see and know the creature, but God no one sees or knows.
Jn. 8:20. These words Jesus spoke at the treasury, when He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.
"These words Jesus spoke at the treasury, when He taught in the temple." Thus He conducted Himself boldly! And yet, those who breathed murder against Him, having Him in their hands, did not dare to take Him. And still they did not understand that it was a deed of truly divine power that He, surrounded by enemies, remained among them unharmed and untouchable, while before Passover they had been seeking Him and lying in wait for Him. The One whom they sought when He was absent, and against whom they raged even in His absence — Him, when He was in the midst of their snares, they could not take. And despite all this, they did not acknowledge His power, because His hour had not yet come, that is, the appointed time of His death had not yet arrived, at which He intended to give Himself over to it. For even then they could have done nothing to Him, had the determined time not come, which He Himself had appointed for Himself. The crucifixion was not an act of powerlessness, but of permission; for He permitted it when He willed. They had long desired to put Him to death, but were restrained by the invisible bonds of His power. For He needed to remain longer alive in the flesh, so as to bring people greater benefit through the working of greater miracles and the delivery of greater teaching.
Jn. 8:21. Again Jesus said to them: I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.
Jn. 8:22. Here the Jews were saying: "Will He kill Himself, that He says: 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?"
Why does He so often say to them, "I am going away, and you will seek Me"? In order to shake and terrify their souls. For see what concern they immediately fell into. In perplexity they say, "Will He kill Himself?" Although they wanted to be rid of Him, asked Him to depart from them, and even wanted to kill Him, nevertheless they regarded the present circumstance as so important that they were thrown into perplexity by it.
"I am going away." He says this often, also in order to show that He knows beforehand about His death, and that the Cross is a matter not of their power, but of His own will. "I," He says, "am going away": you are not leading Me, but I go voluntarily.
"Where I go, you cannot come." By these words He shows that He will truly rise in glory and sit at the right hand of God, while they will die in their sins. What then do they say to this? "Will He kill Himself?"
Jn. 8:23. He said to them: you are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.
Rejecting such a supposition of theirs and showing that suicide is a criminal act, the Lord says: "You are from beneath, and cannot conceive of anything divine, therefore it is natural for you to think this way; but I am not of this world, that is, I care for nothing worldly and earthly, and therefore I can never reach such madness as to kill Myself. For this is a demonic act, not a divine one."
Here Apollinarius, seizing upon this saying, says after the Manichaeans: "Do you see, the body of the Lord was not of this world, but from above, from heaven; as Paul also says, 'The second Man is the Lord from heaven' (1 Cor. 15:47)." What then must be said? One should ask him how he understands the Lord's words to the apostles: "You are not of the world" (John 15:19) — does he really mean that they too had bodies from heaven, and not from this creation? Or did the Lord say this because they did not care about the goods of this world? In the same way one must understand these words, "I am not of this world," that is, I am not what you are, you who care about worldly things.
In a similar manner, Paul also says to some: "You are not in the flesh" (Rom. 8:9), saying this not because they are bodiless, but testifying to their love of wisdom and freedom from fleshly passions.
Jn. 8:24. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.
What then does the Lord say to them again? "If you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." If He came in order to take away "the sin of the world" (Jn. 1:29), and it is not possible to receive forgiveness of sins other than through baptism, and it is impossible to be baptized without first believing, then the unbeliever will inevitably die in his sin, for not having received baptism, he has not put off the old man. Therefore the Lord also says in another place that "he who does not believe is already condemned" (Jn. 3:18), not only because he did not believe, but also because he dies with his former sins.
Jn. 8:25. Then they said to Him: who then are You? Jesus said to them: from the beginning the One who I also tell you.
After so much time, after so many miracles had been performed, they still ask Him: "Who are You?" So senseless, unjust, and mocking were they.
The Lord says: "I tell you that which I have been telling you from the beginning."
Jn. 8:26. I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you; but He who sent Me is true, and what I heard from Him, these things I speak to the world.
"You," He says, "are unworthy to fully hear My words, nor to know Who I am; for you all speak with the purpose of tempting, and do not wish to heed anything from My teaching. I could also expose you in this, and not only expose you, but also punish you." For this is what He hints at when He says: "I have many things to say about you and to judge." By the word "say" He indicates exposure, and by the word "judge," condemnation and punishment.
"But," He says, "He who sent Me sent Me not to judge and convict. For God did not send His Son to judge the world, but to save the world (John 3:17). And since My Father sent Me to save, and He is true, for this very reason I now judge no one, but only speak what I have heard from My Father, that is, what serves for salvation, and not for condemnation."
He said this so that they would not think that He does not punish them because of His powerlessness. He shows that He is not powerless, but does not wish to punish them, since He came not to punish, but to save.
Some understand these words "He who sent Me is true" in this way: I could judge you even now, but I leave this for the age to come. Yet you do not believe and pay no attention to the time of recompense. But even if you do not believe, My Father is true, who has both appointed a day for your recompense and sent Me to proclaim this and revealed to the world His righteousness and power.
Jn. 8:27. They did not understand that He was speaking to them about the Father.
When He said this, they were so foolish that they did not understand that He was speaking to them about His Father. How often and how much He had already spoken to them about the Father! But truly "their foolish heart was darkened" (Rom. 1:21).
Jn. 8:28. Then Jesus said to them: when you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that it is I, and that I do nothing of Myself, but as My Father has taught Me, so I speak.
Jesus performed many miracles, and yet did not attract the Jews to Himself. Now He speaks to them about the Cross. "You," He says, "think that when you crucify Me, you will be free from all concern and will be rid of Me. But I say that you will know that it is I, that is, Christ, the Son of God, who upholds and sustains all things (Heb. 1:3), and that I am not opposed to the Father, nor do I act or speak of Myself, for I do not have a will of My own, distinct from the will of the Father."
How then will they recognize Him on the cross? From the signs of that time, from His resurrection and their captivity. For all of this could reveal His power. So when you crucify Me, you will know both My power and My unity of mind with the Father. For the Father would not have delivered your city to the Romans in vengeance for Me, nor would He have performed signs on the cross, if I were not His Son and of one mind with Him, rather than opposed to God. Then you will know that whatever I teach and whatever I say is from Him, is undoubtedly divine, and is not Mine, but of Him who sent Me.
Jn. 8:29. He who sent Me is with Me; the Father has not left Me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to Him.
Then, lest they think that the sending and the embassy imply subordination, He says that My Father is "with Me." Although He sent Me as a Man, I am inseparable from Him, and He is with Me, as God with God.
After this He again descends to humble speech and says: "He has not left Me alone," because I do what is pleasing to Him. He speaks so humbly for the sake of the Jews. They said that He was not from God because He did not keep the Sabbath. But He says: "I do what is pleasing to Him," so that even if I break the Sabbath, I do what is pleasing to Him. However, by such humble speech He in no way harms His own glory, but brought benefit to the listeners, and through this also strengthened His own glory. For the listeners, hearing that He refers everything to the Father, more readily attached themselves to Him and believed in Him, so that humility exalted Him all the more. Do you see the worth of blessed humility? And that this is so, listen to what follows.
Jn. 8:30. When He spoke these things, many believed in Him.
I said that the listeners were more captivated by humble speech. The evangelist hints at this as well. "As He was saying these things," he notes, "many believed in Him." He was saying "these things," that is, words that were humble and seemingly unworthy of His glory. Therefore, when you hear Him say something small and imperfect about Himself, do not be troubled in any way, for He says this for the sake of His listeners, who cannot comprehend anything loftier and immediately fly into a rage. What would have happened to them, unable to grasp the depths of the theological mystery, when the height of His glory remained incomprehensible even to Christians who had come to know His power and were saved by Him?
When you hear that "many believed," understand it this way: they believed simply and as it happened, not as they should have; they believed because they were pleased by the humility in His words.
Jn. 8:31. Then Jesus said to the Jews who believed in Him: if you abide in My word, then you are truly My disciples,
And that they were not believers in the precise sense is obvious. For He said to the Jews who had believed: "If you abide in My word." By this He shows that although they believed, it was superficially, and therefore they would not remain in the faith. And by exposing them in this, He shows that He knows their hearts and is God.
Jn. 8:32. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
And since some of His former supposed disciples had departed, He therefore says to those who have now believed: "Although those have departed, yet if you abide in My word and faith, you 'will know the truth,' that is, Me, for 'I am the Truth' (John 14:6). But now you do not know the truth, because the law, whose guardians you consider yourselves, is not the truth, but a figure and a shadow. If you come to know Me, Who am true, then 'the truth will set you free,' that is, I will free you from sins."
For whoever believes in Him who takes away the sin of the world is undoubtedly free from sins. Just as He said to the unbelieving, "you will die in your sins" (John 8:21), so to those who abide in faith He promises freedom from sins. For the sacrifices and sprinklings of the Law, being mere shadows, did not free from sins, but the spiritual and true sacrifice through faith and knowledge frees from sins us who no longer remain slaves but are made sons of God.
Jn. 8:33. They answered Him: We are Abraham's seed and have never been slaves to anyone; how then do You say: you will be made free?
The proud Jews again cling to vain nobility and say with fury: "We are Abraham's seed." If they needed to be indignant, it should have been about something else. He said to them: "You shall know the truth." Therefore they should have said: "What then, do we not know the truth now? Are all the prescriptions of the law and our knowledge false?" But they cared about none of such things: they are concerned with worldly matters, thinking that He reproaches them for slavery and low birth.
"We are Abraham's seed." Nowhere do they mention their own merits, but appeal to the fathers. Therefore John also says to them: "Do not begin to say that we have Abraham as our father" (Matt. 3:9).
In saying that they were never slaves to anyone, they were clearly lying. For every time they were taken captive, they were in bondage: to the Egyptians, the Babylonians, and many other nations.
Jn. 8:34. Jesus answered them: Truly, truly, I say to you: everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
The Lord does not convict them of lying. His purpose is to prove not that they are slaves of men, but that they are slaves of sin. And this slavery is the most grievous of all, and from it God alone can deliver. For to forgive sins is the work of God alone. Therefore He says: "Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin," and therefore you too, inasmuch as you are sinful, are also slaves. To this they could say that although we are subject to such slavery, we have sacrifices, we have priests who cleanse us from sins. He says that they too are slaves, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). However, your priests, being themselves slaves, have no authority to forgive the sins of others.
The Apostle Paul speaks more clearly about this, namely: "The priest must offer sacrifice both for himself, as for the people, because he himself also is compassed with infirmities" (Heb. 5:2–3).
Jn. 8:35. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.
"The servant," He says, "does not abide in the house," that is, does not have the authority to bestow anything, since he is not the master of the house, but the son is the master of the house and abides in the house. He calls authority a "house," just as in another place He calls dominion a "house," saying that "in My Father's house there are many mansions" (John 14:2).
Jn. 8:36. If therefore the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.
So then, those priests of yours, being slaves, had no authority to forgive sins. But I, the Son, abiding in the house, that is, having authority and independent sovereignty, the Master of the house, shall grant you freedom, because all things are Mine, and I am of equal power and equal authority with the Father. When I set you free, then you will be honored with true freedom. Now you claim for yourselves a false freedom, but through Me you shall be freed essentially and truly.
Jn. 8:37. I know that you are Abraham's seed; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.
"You," He says, "consider yourselves the seed of Abraham. I agree that you preserve a fleshly kinship with this saint, but you have no kinship with him in spirit. He is righteous, compassionate, and hospitable, while you (I will pass over the other aspects of your life and point out the most obvious thing you are now doing) breathe murder and hatred toward people. For you seek to kill Me and plot against Me. How then are you his true children, when you are so far from the qualities of your father? If you boast of your kinship, then you should also imitate his virtue."
So that they would not say, "We are justified in seeking to kill You," He puts forward the reason. "You," He says, "rage against Me for no other reason than that My word surpasses your understanding and does not fit within you. Yet for this you ought not to kill, but to respect and honor, and to desire all the more that I teach the loftiness of the doctrines."
Jn. 8:38. I speak that which I have seen with My Father; and you do that which you have seen with your father.
Lest they should say to Him again that we justly hate You even for Your word, because You speak to us not from God but from Yourself, and therefore we cannot accept Your teaching, He adds: "I speak not of Myself, but I speak what I have seen with My Father; and you do what you have seen with your father."
"I," He says, "proclaim what is divine and heavenly, and thereby reveal My Father, while you by your deeds reveal your father, that is, the devil." When you hear these words, "I speak what I have seen," do not think of bodily vision, but understand it as natural, true, and most certain knowledge. Just as eyes that see soundly behold reality and truth, seeing truly and without deception, so also I truly speak what I have learned from the Father.
Jn. 8:39. They answered and said to Him: Our father is Abraham. Jesus said to them: If you were children of Abraham, you would do the works of Abraham.
He presents the devil as their father, because in their deeds he sees them resembling him; but they constantly present Abraham. The Lord frequently reminds them of their criminal intention and denies their kinship with the righteous one in order to cut off their excessive boasting and to convince them that hope must be placed not in the vain pride of fleshly kinship, but in the likeness of free will. Truly, as the Physician of souls, He calms in them the inflammation arising from the delusion of kinship with Abraham, which prevents them from coming to Christ, for they considered this kinship sufficient for their salvation.
Jn. 8:40. But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God: Abraham did not do this.
So then, you who breathe murder and seek to kill Me are not children of Abraham. Then, lest someone say that they justly seek to kill You, He says: "I am a Man who does not rise up against God, who does not seek His own glory, but who speaks what I have heard from My Father and tells the truth."
What then was this truth? That He is equal to the Father and not a servant, like one of the prophets, but the Son, who does nothing and says nothing of Himself, but all things from the Father. For it was because of this that they sought to kill Him.
Jn. 8:41. You do the deeds of your father. Then they said to Him: We are not born of fornication; we have one Father, God.
And they again say: "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, God." See what arrogance! The Lord denies their kinship even with Abraham, yet they are so vainglorious that in their madness they call themselves children of God Himself. They boast of divine sonship, probably because they had heard the words "Israel is My firstborn son" (Ex. 4:22). But they should have known that God also said in another place: "I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me" (Is. 1:2).
The Lord could have exposed them for the fact that many of them were born of fornication, since contrary to the law, Hebrew wives entered into relations with pagans, and pagan wives with Jews; however, He does not do this. For He was not concerned with proving the ignobility of their body, but primarily wanted to prove that they were base in soul.
Jn. 8:42. Jesus said to them: if God were your Father, you would love Me, because I came forth from God and have come; for I did not come of Myself, but He sent Me.
Since He excluded them from kinship with Abraham, they rose even higher, calling God their Father. He reproached them as murderers, but they, defending themselves, say that they are avenging God, and for this reason they form a counsel against Him. Therefore the Lord, showing that they are not championing God's cause, but by their very design wish to kill Him, and are not children of God, as they supposed, but rather opponents of God, says: "If God were your Father, you would love Me." For I came down from God into the world, that is, I appeared in the flesh. I am not an opponent of God. I came from Him. Therefore, by rising up against Me, you are enemies of God.
Jn. 8:43. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you cannot hear My word.
Why do you not understand My speech, do not comprehend and do not grasp what I am saying? Without doubt, for no other reason than that you cannot hear My word, that is, you do not want to. For "cannot" is used in place of "do not want to." As long as envy and murderous intent dwell in you, how can you listen to what I am saying?
Jn. 8:44. Your father is the devil, and you desire to carry out the lusts of your father.
He said "you cannot hear My word" instead of "you do not want to." Then He gives the reason why they did not want to hear: that they have their own father, namely the devil. Although you madly ascribe yourselves as children to God, as your father, your deeds testify that the devil is a more natural father to you. "You want to carry out his desires." He did not say "deeds," but "desires," showing that they are very inclined toward lying and murder, two kinds of evil which are very characteristic of the devil.
Jn. 8:44. He was a murderer from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him.
"He was a murderer from the beginning." Therefore you also, seeking to kill Me, liken yourselves to him who murdered Adam. "He did not stand in the truth," but is the father of lies. And you, when you lie about Me and say that I am not from God, do not stand in the truth, do not abide in My word; you are children of him who begot the lie. For he slandered God to men as well, when he told Eve that He had forbidden them the tree of the knowledge of good and evil out of envy. Likewise he slandered men to God, for example Job, saying that Job did not honor God for nothing.
Jn. 8:44. When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
People, when they lie, make use of what is, as it were, another's falsehood. But the devil employs falsehood as his own property, for it is his offspring; and the liar in the proper sense and the father of lies is he himself. He said to Eve: "In the day that ye eat thereof, ye shall be as gods" (Gen. 3:5). But they (Adam and Eve) received death.
Jn. 8:45. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.
But you do not believe Me, because I speak the truth. Having nothing to accuse Me of other than the truth, you rise up against Me for this very reason, as sons of the father of lies.
Jn. 8:46. Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I speak the truth, why do you not believe Me?
They themselves called themselves sons of God. He says: "If you are sons of God, you certainly ought to hate the sinner. If you can convict Me, whom you hate, of sin, then obviously you hate Me justly. But if no one can convict Me openly, you hate Me for the truth." For what truth? Without doubt, for the fact that He called Himself the Son of God, which is completely true.
Jn. 8:47. He that is of God heareth God's words. Ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.
"He who is of God hears the words of God." Therefore, if you too were sons of God, you would not turn away from Me, the Son of God, who came down from heaven and exalts the words of God.
Jn. 8:48. The Jews answered and said to Him: Do we not speak rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?
So meekly does the Lord speak to them, yet they permit themselves insolence. They say: "Do we not speak rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon in You?" They called Him a Samaritan as a violator of Jewish customs, for example, the Sabbath rest, since the Samaritans did not strictly observe the Jewish law. And they call Him demon-possessed, perhaps in the same way as they said that "He casts out demons by the prince of demons" (Luke 11:15). For all who slandered Him by saying that He cast out demons by the power of Beelzebub were saying that He had in Himself the demon of Beelzebub, by which He also performed miracles. And since He revealed their thoughts and desires, they perhaps considered Him demon-possessed also because they thought that the secrets of their hearts were disclosed to Him by demons.
When did they call Him a Samaritan? The Evangelist nowhere mentioned this. From this it is evident that the Evangelists did not write down everything, but omitted much, as we ourselves have noted about this very thing in another place.
Jn. 8:49. Jesus answered: There is no demon in Me; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.
Thus they insult Him, yet He accepts their insults without malice. However, when they call themselves sons of God, He strongly rebukes them, standing up for the truth; but when He Himself is insulted, He does not defend Himself. By this He teaches us also to stand up for the glory of God and to bear meekly the insults that concern ourselves, just as He Himself meekly says: "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father."
How does He honor the Father? By defending Him and not allowing murderers and liars to call themselves sons of the Savior and the Truth. "You," He says, "dishonor Me because I honor My Father, whom you revile, since you falsely claim that He is your father. But even if I do not avenge Myself and endure the insults, do not think that this insult will remain unavenged. There is a Father who will punish for such an insult inflicted upon Me because I defend Him and do not allow you to call yourselves His sons."
Jn. 8:50. Yet I do not seek My own glory: there is One who seeks and judges.
There is One who seeks My glory, and not only seeks it, but is also able to judge and punish those who offend Me without cause. Often someone seeks redress for an offense, but cannot himself judge. But the Father both seeks the glory of the Son and is able to judge. Therefore He also said: "There is One who seeks and judges."
What love for mankind! He is offended, yet leaving the seeking of His own glory and vengeance to the Father, He turns to exhortation and teaching, and in this way does good to those who insult Him. So too must we repay our enemies.
Jn. 8:51. Truly, truly, I say to you: whoever keeps My word will never see death.
"What then did He say to them? 'If anyone keeps My word,' that is, joins to faith a pure life as well (for only he truly keeps the Lord's teaching who also has a pure life), such a person shall not see the death by which sinners die, being delivered in the age to come to endless torment and falling away from the true life."
At the same time, He lets them know that if the one who keeps My word does not die, then all the more so do I not die. Why then do you want to kill Me, over Whom death has so little power that I even grant true life to others? For although believers die bodily, they are alive in God.
Jn. 8:52. The Jews said to Him: now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets, yet You say: whoever keeps My word shall never taste death.
What then do the Jews say to this? They consider Him to be demon-possessed, as if He were speaking some strange things due to a derangement of mind. Abraham and the prophets, who heard the words of God, died, so how will Your listeners not die? "Now," they say, "we truly know, that is, fully and firmly, that You, in saying this, are demon-possessed."
Jn. 8:53. Are You greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died:
The foolish ones, not understanding what kind of death the Lord was speaking of — that it would not touch those who believe in Him — say something senseless and foolish to Him. See how they answer: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?" They should have said: "Are You greater than God? Those who heard the word of God died, yet those who hear Yours will not die?" But they do not say this. Wishing to show that He is less even than Abraham, they say: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?"
The Lord Himself does not reveal to them what kind of death He spoke of. And that He is greater than Abraham, He demonstrates shortly after.
Jn. 8:53. "what do You make Yourself out to be?"
They say this as an insult. You, unworthy of a single word, Son of a carpenter, Galilean, whom do You make Yourself? Neither deeds, nor truth, nor the Scriptures, but You Yourself—whom do You make Yourself? For You Yourself appropriate glory to Yourself.
Jn. 8:54. Jesus answered: If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of Whom you say that He is your God.
The Lord says to this: "If I glorify Myself, then My glory is nothing, as you also think. But the One who now glorifies Me is another, namely My Father."
The Father glorified Him in every way, both through prophecies about Him, and through testimony from heaven, and through countless and immeasurable miracles. Of this Father you say that He is your God. But you acknowledge Him neither as My Father nor as your God. If you acknowledged Him as Father, you would honor His Son. But now you do not honor His Son. It is evident that you do not acknowledge Him as My Father. But you do not acknowledge Him simply as God either. Otherwise you would fear His words as God's. But now you utterly disregard Him. He established as law: "Thou shalt not kill." You seek to kill Me, and that when you cannot convict Me of sin.
Jn. 8:55. And you have not known Him, but I know Him;
From this it is clear that you do not know Him at all. But I know Him by nature, I have perfect knowledge of Him. For, as I am, so also is the Father. And as I know Myself, so I also know Him.
Jn. 8:55. And if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you.
"For you lie, boasting that you know Him; but I would deny the truth if, knowing Him, I said that I do not know."
Jn. 8:55. But I know Him and keep His word.
How then will You prove that You know Him? "By this," He says, "that I keep His word, that is, His commandments." For I am not an adversary to Him, otherwise I would boast as one who opposes God, nor do I break His commandments. But you, transgressors of His commandments, are held captive, giving yourselves over to evil desires, you thirst for murder, and many other things forbidden by the law you commit with passion, and thereby you clearly reveal that you do not know Him. For if you knew Him, you would keep His word, that is, His commandments.
Others understand the words "I keep His word" thus: I know Him because I have within Myself the unchanging image of His Essence, that is, of His being, and whatever image of Nature the Father has, the same is also in Me. For the Father and the Son have one and the same Nature and one and the same mode of being. Therefore I know the Father, for I keep the unchanging image of His Essence.
Such a turn of speech is customary in Scripture. For example, in Slavonic it says, "Give us help from trouble: and vain is the salvation of man" (Ps. 59:13). Here the particle "and" is used instead of "for," and the meaning is: give us help, for salvation from man is unreliable. So also in these words, "I know Him, and keep His word," the particle "and" is placed instead of "for." "For," He says, "I keep His word."
Jn. 8:56. Abraham, your father, rejoiced to see My day; and he saw it and was glad.
Here He affirms that He is greater than Abraham. Above they were saying to Him: "Are You greater than our father Abraham?" Here He answers: "Yes, I am greater."
He "was glad to see My day," that is, he considered it pleasant, desirable, and joy-creating, as a day most beneficial and as the day not of someone small, not of an ordinary man, but of the Great One. By "day" He means the Cross, for Abraham prefigured it in the offering of Isaac and in the slaying of the ram. As Isaac carried the wood, so the Lord carried the cross, and as Isaac was spared while the ram was slain, so He, as God, remained beyond suffering, yet suffered in His Humanity and flesh. Foreseeing this day of the Cross as the day of universal salvation, Abraham rejoiced. He also shows that He goes to His sufferings voluntarily, since He praises the one who rejoiced over the Cross, for through it is the salvation of the world.
Others understand "day" to mean the entire time of Christ's appearance in the flesh, which Abraham foresaw and rejoiced that from him and his descendants the Savior would come. And perhaps not Abraham alone rejoiced, but all, as David says: "This is the day which the Lord has made: let us rejoice and be glad in it!" (Ps. 118:24).
Jn. 8:57. Then the Jews said to Him: You are not yet fifty years old – and You have seen Abraham?
The Jews, being unable to rise to the meaning of His words, instead of asking and learning about which day He speaks of that Abraham saw, mock Him even more, as though He were saying something senseless. "You are not yet fifty years old," they say, "and You have seen Abraham?" They said this, thinking that the Lord was close to fifty years old, when in fact He was about thirty-three years old.
Why did they not say "You are not yet forty years old," but "fifty"? It would be superfluous even to ask about this. Perhaps they mentioned fifty years without any definite thought. However, some say that they spoke this way because the fiftieth year was especially honored among them, that is, the jubilee year, in which slaves were set free, buyers relinquished their acquisitions, and they did everything else that pertained to that honor.
Jn. 8:58. Jesus said to them: Truly, truly, I say to you: before Abraham was, I am.
What then does the Lord say? "Before Abraham was, I am." See, He did not say "before Abraham was, I was," but "I am." For this expression "am" is more proper to God, because it signifies continuous and eternal existence. So too His Father in the Old Testament said of Himself: "I am He Who Is" (Ex. 3:14). Of Abraham, as one subject to corruption, He fittingly said "was." For that which received existence is also subject to dissolution. But the word "am" points to freedom from all corruption and to divine eternity.
Jn. 8:59. Then they took up stones to cast at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, passing through the midst of them, and so passed by.
Therefore they too accepted this saying as befitting God alone, took it for blasphemy, and picked up stones against Him. But He again hides Himself with humility, so as not to die before the time appointed for His death.
How then does He hide? He did not conceal Himself in a corner of the temple, did not run off into a house, did not lean against a wall or behind a pillar, but by divine power He made Himself invisible to the plotters, even though He went out through the midst of them. "And passed by," that is, He went along simply, for a certain time.
Look, if you will, how He fulfilled everything on His part: He sufficiently taught them both about Himself and about the Father, and pointed out true nobility and freedom in freedom from sins; He explained that the only shameful slavery is slavery to sin — and in general He omitted nothing that was needed. But they throw stones at Him. This is precisely why He leaves them, as people no longer capable of correction.
Note that the stones are thrown by those about whom the Evangelist said that they believed in Him (Jn. 8:30–31). This means their faith was not faith, but a kind of temporary and lukewarm disposition toward the words of Christ.