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John 6:39

in John 6

And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And this is the will of him that sent me, that of all that which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.

KJV

And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.

This verse in John 6

Commentary

23 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jerome

AGAINST JOHN OF JERUSALEM 34 · Written before 420.

Christ speaks here of the whole of his humanity, which he had taken on him in its entirety at his birth. Then shall the sheep that was lost and was wandering in the lower world be carried healthy on the Savior's shoulders. And the sheep that was sick with sin shall be taken care of by the mercy of the Judge.

This site's exposition

the will of Him who sent Me

on John 6:38-40

He has come down from heaven to do the will of the One who sent Him. That will is stated twice, that He lose none of those the Father has given Him and raise them up at the last day. It narrows to each one who looks to the Son.

This site's exposition

I shall lose none

The will of Him who sent Me is that He lose none, and Barnes says the Father's will and the Son's faithfulness make it sure. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown say those given are both kept and raised up at the last day. Jerome sees the lost sheep carried home.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers5 voices

A commentator

Augustine of Hippo

ON REBUKE AND GRACE 23 · Written before 430.

proposed

They therefore who by God's unerring providence are foreknown and predestined, called, justified, glorified, even before their new birth, or before they are born at all, are already the children of God and absolutely cannot perish. These truly come to Christ.… By him there is given also perseverance in good even to the end. For it is not given except to those who will not perish since those who do not persevere will perish.

A commentator

Augustine of Hippo

Catena Aurea by Aquinas · Written before 430.

proposed

(Tr. xxv in Joan. 16) For this very reason therefore, I will not cast out Him that cometh to Me; because I came not to do Mine own will. I came to teach humility, by being humble Myself. He that cometh to Me, is made a member of Me, and necessarily humble, because He will not do His own will, but the will of God; and therefore is not cast out. He was cast out, as proud; he returns to Me humble, he is not sent away, except for pride again; he who keeps his humility, falleth not from the truth. And further, that He does not cast out such, because He came not to do His will, He shows when He says, And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me, I should lose nothing. (Mat. 18:14) Every one of an humble mind is given to Him: It is not the will of your Father, that one of these little ones should perish. The swelling ones may perish; of the little ones none can; for except ye be as a little child, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Mat. 18:3, 5) (de Cor. et Gratia, c. ix) They therefore who by God's unerring providence are foreknown, and predestined, called, justified, glorified, even before their new birth, or before they are born at all, are already the sons of God, and cannot possibly perish; these are they who truly come to Christ. By Him there is given also perseverance in good unto the end; which is given only to those who will not perish. Those who do not persevere will perish.

A commentator

Tertullian

On the Resurrection of the Flesh · Written before 220.

proposed

He affirms, lastly, that "the very hairs of our head are all numbered," and in the affirmation He of course includes the promise of their safety; for if they were to be lost, where would be the use of having taken such a numerical care of them? Surely the only use lies (in this truth): "That of all which the Father hath given to me, I should lose none," -not even a hair, as also not an eye nor a tooth.

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 45 · Written before 407.

proposed

"I came down from heaven not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me." What sayest Thou? Why, is Thy will one, and His another? That none may suspect this, He explaineth it by what follows, saying; "And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life." Is not then this Thy will? And how sayest Thou, "I am come to send fire upon the earth, and what have I desired to see, if that be already kindled"? For if Thou also desirest this, it is very clear that Thy will and the Father's is one.

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 45 · Written before 407.

proposed

In another place also He saith, "For as the Father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom He will." But what is the will of the Father? Is it not, that not so much as one of them should perish? This Thou willest also. So that the will of the One differeth not from the will of the Other. So in another place He is seen establishing yet more firmly His equality with the Father, saying, "I and My Father will come, and will make Our abode with him." What He saith then is this; "I came not to do anything other than that which the Father willeth, I have no will of Mine own different from that of the Father, for all that is the Father's is Mine, and all that is Mine is the Father's."
15 more voices on this verse

The Church Fathers3 voices

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 45 · Written before 407.

proposed

"And I will raise him up at the last day." Why doth He continually dwell upon the Resurrection? Is it that men may not judge of God's providence by present things alone; that if they enjoy not results here, they become not on that account desponding, but wait for the things that are to come, and that they may not, because their sins are not punished for the present, despise Him, but look for another life.

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 45 · Written before 407.

proposed

But what is it that He saith, "All that the Father giveth Me shall come unto Me," and "I will raise it up in the last day"? Wherefore speaketh He of the common resurrection, in which even the ungodly have a part, as though it were the peculiar gift of those who believe on Him? Because He speaketh not simply of resurrection, but of a particular kind of resurrection. For having first said, "I will not cast him out, I shall lose nothing of it," He then speaketh of the resurrection. Since in the resurrection some are cast out, ("Take him, and cast him into outer darkness,") and some are destroyed. ("Rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.") This then, the resurrection to good things, is that which He here designed.

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 45 · Written before 407.

proposed

"For this is the will of Him that sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing." Here He showeth that He needeth not their service, that He came not for His own advantage, but for their salvation; and not to get honor from them. Which indeed He declared in a former address, saying, "I receive not honor from men"; and again, "These things I say that ye may be saved." Since He everywhere laboreth to persuade them that He came for their salvation.

The Medieval Church3 voices

A commentator

Bonaventure

Commentary on John, Chapter 6 · Written in the 13th century.

proposed

"For this is the will of my Father who sent me, that of all that he has given me," through election; Romans 8: "Those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son"; "I should lose nothing of it," …

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on John · Written before 1274.

proposed

Then (v 39), he shows what the Father wills; and next, why he wills it (v 40). He says: I will not cast out those who come to me, because I have taken flesh in order to do the will of the Father: Now it …

A commentator

Theophylact of Ohrid

Commentary on John · Written before 1107.

proposed

He constantly says "The Father has given Me" in order to strike their hearts and so that they would know that they are unworthy of this gift of God. For if the Father gives faith in Christ as something great, and they do not have …

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

And this is the Father's will which hath sent me,....

The Nineteenth Century8 voices

Father’s will - His purpose; desire; intention. As this is the Father’s will, and Jesus came to execute his will, we have the highest security that it will be done. God’s will is always right, and he has power to execute it. Jesus was always faithful, and all power was given to him in heaven and on earth, and he will therefore most certainly accomplish the will of God. Of all which - That is, of every one who believes on him, or of all who become Christians. See Joh 6:
Three of our Lord Jesus Christ's great sayings are strung together, like pearls, in this passage. Each of them ought to be precious to every true Christian. All taken together, they form a mine of truth, into which he that searches need never search in vain. We have, first, in these verses, a saying of Christ about Himself. We read that Jesus said—"I am the bread of life—he that comes to me shall never hunger, and he that believes on me shall never thirst." Our Lord would have us know that He himself is the appointed food of man's soul.
SUCH is our impertinent curiosity that we would gladly peer between the folded leaves of the Divine purposes. The eager thirst of man to discover secrets, to solve mysteries, to draw aside the folded curtains and to ascertain that which is past finding out, tempts him full often to the wildest conjecture and the most adventurous speculation. How many would rush to any part of the earth were it possible to light upon a spot from which they could reconnoiter the times and the seasons to get a sight of the future?

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

This "shall" expresses the glorious certainty of it, the Father being pledged to see to it that the gift be no empty mockery. (2) "AND HIM THAT COMETH TO ME I WILL IN NO WISE CAST OUT." As the former was the divine, this is just the human side of the same thing. True, the "coming" ones of the second clause are just the "given" ones of the first.

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day--The meaning is not, of course, that He is charged to keep the objects entrusted to Him as He received them, so as they should merely suffer nothing in His hands.
Three of our Lord Jesus Christ's great sayings are strung together, like pearls, in this passage. Each of them ought to be precious to every true Christian. All taken together, they form a mine of truth, into which he that searches need never search in vain. We have, first, in these verses, a saying of Christ about Himself. We read that Jesus said—"I am the bread of life—he that comes to me shall never hunger, and he that believes on me shall never thirst." Our Lord would have us know that He himself is the appointed food of man's soul. The soul of every man is naturally starving and famishing through sin. Christ is given by God the Father, to be the Satisfier, the Reliever, and the Physician of man's spiritual need. In Him and His mediatorial office—in Him and His atoning death—in Him and His priesthood—in Him and His grace, love, and power—in Him alone will empty souls find their needs supplied. In Him there is life. He is "the bread of life." With what divine and perfect wisdom this name is chosen! Bread is necessary food. We can manage tolerably well without many things on our table, but not without bread. So is it with Christ. We must have Christ, or die in our own sins. Bread is food that suits all . Some cannot eat meat, and some cannot eat vegetables. But all like bread. It is food both for the Queen and the pauper. So is it with Christ. He is just the Savior that meets the needs of every class. Bread is food that we need daily . Other kinds of food we take, perhaps, only occasionally. But we need bread every morning and evening in our lives. So is it with Christ. There is no day in our lives but we need His blood, His righteousness, His intercession, and His grace. Well may He be called, "The bread of life!" Do we know anything of spiritual hunger? Do we feel anything of craving and emptiness in conscience, heart, and affections?
SUCH is our impertinent curiosity that we would gladly peer between the folded leaves of the Divine purposes. The eager thirst of man to discover secrets, to solve mysteries, to draw aside the folded curtains and to ascertain that which is past finding out, tempts him full often to the wildest conjecture and the most adventurous speculation. How many would rush to any part of the earth were it possible to light upon a spot from which they could reconnoiter the times and the seasons to get a sight of the future? To know that which God conceals seems to be one of the depraved desires of the human heart. This presumptuous enquiry is both foolish and sinful. What have you to do, O man, with God's councils? To obey Him is your work, not to attempt to know what He does not please to reveal. But let us understand that the Gospel is an extract from the will of God and such an extract that it contains the very essence thereof. Certainly there is nothing in the will of God contrary to the Gospel. Among the unrevealed things there cannot be anything in conflict with the revealed things. None of the secrets can possibly contradict those Truths of God which He has seen fit to unfold. O then, you that want to know the will of God, here is something of it for you closely to observe and diligently to study! If you want to read that will, here it is given to you in two forms—"This is the Father's will, (the will of Him which has sent Jesus, His only-begotten Son, to be our Savior), that of all which He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day." And here is that same will, again, opened up before you, if you have but hearts to receive it—"This is the will of Him that sent Me, that everyone which sees the Son, and believes on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." The will of God is our salvation.

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

I should lose nothing - It is the will of God that every soul who believes should continue in the faith, and have a resurrection unto life eternal. But he wills this continuance in salvation, without purposing to force the persons so to continue. God may will a thing to be, without willing that it shall be. Judas was given to Christ by the Father, Joh 17:12. The Father willed that this Judas should continue in the faith, and have a resurrection unto life eternal: but Judas sinned and perished. Now it is evident that God willed that Judas might be saved, without willing that he must be saved infallibly and unconditionally. When a man is a worker together with the grace of God, he is saved; when he receives that grace of God in vain, he is lost - not through a lack of will or mercy in God, but through lack of his co-operation with Divine grace. God saves no man as a stock or a stone, but as a reasonable being and free agent. “That which thou hast heard, thou mayest hold fast, and persevere in, if thou wilt,” Says St. Augustin. In eo quod audieras, et tenueras, perseverares, si velles. De Correct. & Grat. c. 7. See Calmet. Raise it up again at the last day - The Jews believed that the wicked should have no resurrection; and that the principle that led to the resurrection of the body, in the righteous, was the indwelling Spirit of God. This is positively asserted in the Shir Hashirim Rabba. See Schoettgen.

The words behind it

24 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    John 17:12

    While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture…

    it leads to

    • Psalms 109:6–19

      Set over him a wicked man; let an accuser stand at his right hand.

    • John 10:27–28

      My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.

    • John 18:9

      This was to fulfill the word He had spoken: “I have not lost one of those You have given Me.”

    • John 13:18

      I am not speaking about all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the Scripture: ‘The one who shares My bread has lifted up his heel against Me.’

  • Through

    John 18:9

    This was to fulfill the word He had spoken: “I have not lost one of those You have given Me.”

    it leads to

    • John 17:12

      While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture…

  • Through

    John 6:40

    For it is My Father’s will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

    it leads to

    • John 5:24

      Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life.

    • Romans 6:23

      For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

    • John 6:54

      Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

Where this verse is studied

About John

The Feeding of the Multitude — Gustave Doré (engraving), public domain
The Feeding of the Multitude — Gustave Doré (engraving), public domain
This page draws on 16 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Gospels; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, ON REBUKE AND GRACE 23; Augustine of Hippo, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Bonaventure, Commentary on John, Chapter 6; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 1117: “The Father's Will” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, AGAINST JOHN OF JERUSALEM 34; John Chrysostom, Homily on the Gospel of John 45; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Tertullian, On the Resurrection of the Flesh; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on John and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on John.