Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the feast.

“Greeks--Not Grecian Jews, but Greek proselytes to the Jewish faith, who were wont to attend the annual festivals, particularly this primary one, the Passover.”

But Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

“The middle wall of partition that keeps them out from the commonwealth of Israel is on the eve of breaking down, "and I, if I be lifted up from the earth, shall draw all men unto Me"; I see them "flying as a cloud, and…”

Truly, truly, I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a seed; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

“Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit--The necessity of His death is here brightly expressed, and its proper operation and fruit--life springing forth out of death--imaged forth by a…”

Whoever loves his life will lose it, but whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

“On the contrary, as He became Man to exemplify this fundamental law of the Kingdom of God in its most sublime form, so the very utterance of it on this occasion served to sustain His own Spirit in the double prospect to which He had…”

Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? No, it is for this purpose that I have come to this hour.

“What He recoils from is not subjection to His Father's will: but to show how tremendous a self-sacrifice that obedience involved, He first asks the Father to save Him from it, and then signifies how perfectly He knows that He is there for the very…”

Father, glorify Your name!” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”

“I have both glorified it--referring specially to the voice from heaven at His baptism, and again at His transfiguration.”

In response, Jesus said, “This voice was not for My benefit, but yours.

“Jesus . . . said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes--that is, probably, to correct the unfavorable impressions which His momentary agitation and mysterious prayer for deliverance may have produced on the by-standers.”

And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw everyone to Myself.”

“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me--The "I" here is emphatic--I, taking the place of the world's ejected prince.”

This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: “Lord, who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

“That the saying of Esaias . . . might be fulfilled--This unbelief did not at all set aside the purposes of God, but, on the contrary, fulfilled them.”

Isaiah said these things because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about Him.

“"THE SON is the King Jehovah who rules in the Old Testament and appears to the elect, as in the New Testament THE SPIRIT, the invisible Minister of the Son, is the Director of the Church and the Revealer in the sanctuary of the heart"…”

He came to Simon Peter, who asked Him, “Lord, are You going to wash my feet?”

“Lord, dost thou wash my feet?--Our language cannot bring out the intensely vivid contrast between the "Thou" and the "my," which, by bringing them together, the original expresses, for it is not good English to say, "Lord, Thou my feet dost wash?"”

Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”

“Jesus answered and said . . . What I do thou knowest not now--that is, Such condescension does need explanation; it is fitted to astonish.”

“Never shall You wash my feet!” Peter told Him. Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with Me.”

“It is not humility to refuse what the Lord deigns to do for us, or to deny what He has done, but it is self-willed presumption--not rare, however, in those inner circles of lofty religious profession and traditional spirituality, which are found wherever Christian truth…”

Jesus told him, “Whoever has already bathed needs only to wash his feet, and he will be completely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.”

“This sentence is singularly instructive. Of the two cleansings, the one points to that which takes place at the commencement of the Christian life, embracing complete absolution from sin as a guilty state, and entire deliverance from it as a polluted life (Re 1:5; 1Co…”

You call Me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, because I am.

“Ye call me Master--Teacher. and Lord--learning of Him in the one capacity, obeying Him in the other. and ye say well, for so I am--The conscious dignity with which this claim is made is remarkable, following immediately on His laying aside the towel of service.”

Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever receives the one I send receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives the One who sent Me.”

“He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me, &c.--(See on Mt 10:40). The connection here seems to be that despite the dishonor done to Him by Judas, and similar treatment awaiting themselves, they were to be cheered by the assurance that their office, even as…”

After Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit and testified, “Truly, truly, I tell you, one of you will betray Me.”

“When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, One of you shall betray me--The announcement of Joh 13:18 seems not to have been plain enough to be quite apprehended, save by the traitor…”

And when Judas had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus said to Judas, “What you are about to do, do quickly.”

“But already "Satan has entered into him," and though the Saviour's act might seem enough to recall him even yet, hell is now in his bosom, and he says within himself, "The die is cast; now let me go through with it; fear, begone!"”

As soon as he had received the morsel, Judas went out into the night.

“He then, having received the sop, went immediately out--severing himself for ever from that holy society with which he never had any spiritual sympathy. and it was night--but far blacker night in the soul of Judas than in the sky over his head.”

When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.

“And what is very remarkable, in five brief clauses He repeats this word "glorify" five times, as if to His view a coruscation of glories played at that moment about the Cross.”

Little children, I am with you only a little while longer.

“Little children--From the height of His own glory He now descends, with sweet pity, to His "little children," all now His own.”

A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.

“Christ's love to His people in giving His life a ransom for them was altogether new, and consequently as a Model and Standard for theirs to one another.”

By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”

“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples--the disciples of Him who laid down His life for those He loved.”

“Lord, where are You going?” Simon Peter asked. Jesus answered, “Where I am going, you cannot follow Me now, but you will follow later.”

“Peter said--seeing plainly in these directions how to behave themselves, that He was indeed going from them. Lord, whither goest thou?--having hardly a glimmer of the real truth. Jesus answered, . . .”

“Lord,” said Peter, “why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You.”

“I will lay down my life for thy sake--He seems now to see that it was death Christ referred to as what would sever Him from them, but is not staggered at following Him thither.”