Bede — Commentary on Scripture

John 16:21

A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.

Just as a woman is glad when a human being has been born into the world, so the church is filled with fitting exultation when a multitude of the faithful are born into the life to come. [The church] labors and groans greatly at the present [time] over their birth, and it sorrows like [a woman] in travail. It should not seem odd to anyone that a person’s departure from this life is said to be his birth. Just as it is customary to say that a person “is born” when he comes forth from his mother’s womb and emerges into the light here [on earth], so also can someone be perfectly appropriately referred to as “born” when he is released from the bonds of the flesh and raised up to eternal light. Hence church practice has been that the day on which blessed martyrs or confessors of Christ departed from the world we call their birthday, and their solemn festival is not spoken of as their “funeral” but as their “birthday.”

John 16:23

And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.

It can disturb hearers with weak [faith] that, at the beginning of this reading from the Gospel, the Savior promises his disciples, “If you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.” Not only do people like us not receive many things we seek to ask of the Father in Christ’s name, but even the apostle Paul himself asked the Lord three times that the angel of Satan with which he was tormented might depart from him, and he was not able to obtain what he asked. But the perplexity caused by this question has already been resolved by the old explanation of the Fathers. They understood truthfully that those people alone ask in the name of the Savior who ask for those things that pertain to eternal salvation. They understood, therefore, that the apostle did not ask in the Savior’s name [when he asked] to be relieved of the temptation that he had received as a protection for his humility. If he had been relieved of it, he could not have been saved.… Whenever we are not listened to when we ask, it happens either because we are asking [for something] contrary to what would…

It can disturb hearers with weak [faith] that, at the beginning of this reading from the Gospel, the Savior promises his disciples, “If you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.” Not only do people like us not receive many things we seek to ask of the Father in Christ’s name, but even the apostle Paul himself asked the Lord three times that the angel of Satan with which he was tormented might depart from him, and he was not able to obtain what he asked. But the perplexity caused by this question has already been resolved by the old explanation of the Fathers. They understood truthfully that those people alone ask in the name of the Savior who ask for those things that pertain to eternal salvation. They understood, therefore, that the apostle did not ask in the Savior’s name [when he asked] to be relieved of the temptation that he had received as a protection for his humility. If he had been relieved of it, he could not have been saved.… Whenever we are not listened to when we ask, it happens either because we are asking [for something] contrary to what would aid our salvation, and for this reason the grace of his kindness is denied us by our merciful Father because we are unsuitably asking … or [it happens because] we are asking for things that are indeed useful for and connected with true salvation, but we ourselves by our evil lives divert away from us the voice of the just Judge, falling into what was said by Solomon, “The person who turns away his ear from hearing the law, his prayer will be an abomination.” Or [it happens because] when we pray for certain sinners, that they may recover their senses and return to themselves, that although we are asking [for something] pertaining to salvation, and we deserve to be heard for our own merit, yet their obstinacy stands in the way of our obtaining what we ask.

John 16:28

I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.

He came forth from the Father and came into the world because he made himself visible to the world in his humanity, who in his divinity was invisible along with the Father. He came forth from the Father, because he appeared not in that form in which he is equal to the Father but in the lesser one of a created being that he took on himself. And he came into the world because, in the form of a servant that he accepted, he offered himself to be seen even by those who love this world. Again, he left the world behind and returned to the Father because he removed from the sight of those who love the world what they had seen, and he taught to those who love him that he should be believed to be equal to the Father. He left the world behind and returned to the Father because by his ascension he brought the humanity that he had put on to the place of invisible realities.

John 16:29-32

His disciples said unto him, Lo, now speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb.

Which can be understood in two ways, either as reproaching, or affirming. If the former, the meaning is, Ye have awaked somewhat late to belief, for behold the hour cometh, yea is now come, that ye shall be scattered every man to his home. If the latter, it is, That which ye believe is true, but behold the hour cometh, &c.

John 17:1

These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:

These things spake Jesus, those things that He had said at the supper, partly sitting as far as the words, Arise, let us go hence; (c. 14:31.) and thence standing, up to the end of the hymn which now commences, And lifted up His eyes and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify Thy Son.

John 17:6-7

I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

And they have kept Thy word. He calls Himself the Word of the Father, because the Father by Him created all things, and because He contains in Himself all words: as if to say, They have committed Me to memory so well, that they never will forget Me. Or, They have kept Thy word, i. e. in that they have believed in Me: as it follows, Now they have known that all things whatsoever Thou hast given Me, are of Thee. Some read, Now I have known, &c. But this cannot be correct. For how could the Son be ignorant of what was the Father's? It is the disciples He is speaking of; as if to say, They have learnt that there is nothing in Me alien from Thee, and that whatever I teach cometh from Thee.

John 17:15

I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.

As if to say, The time is now at hand, when I shall be taken out of the world; and therefore it is necessary that they should be still left in the world, in order to preach Me and Thee to the world. But that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil; every evil, but especially the evil of schism.

John 17:24

Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.

That which He calls glory then is the love wherewith He was loved with the Father before the foundation of the world. And in that glory He loved us too before the foundation of the world.

John 18:13-14

And led him away to Annas first; for he was father in law to Caiaphas, which was the high priest that same year.

In order that, while our Lord was condemned by his colleague, he might not be guiltless, though his crime was less. Or perhaps his house lay in the way, and they were obliged to pass by it. Or it was the design of Providence, that they who were allied in blood, should be associated in guilt. That Caiaphas however was high priest for that year sounds contrary to the law, which ordained that there be only one high priest, and made the office hereditary. But the pontificate had now been abandoned to ambitious men.

John 18:24

Now Annas had sent him bound unto Caiaphas the high priest.

Sent Him bound, not that He was bound now for the first time, for they bound Him when they took Him. They sent Him bound as they had brought Him. Or perhaps He may have been loosed from His bonds for that hour, in order to be examined, after which He was bound again, and sent to Caiaphas.

John 18:25-27

And Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. They said therefore unto him, Art not thou also one of his disciples? He denied it, and said, I am not.

Mystically, by the first denial of Peter are denoted those who before our Lord's Passion denied that He was God, by the second, those who did so after His resurrection. So by the first crowing of the cock His resurrection is signified; by the second, the general resurrection at the end of the world. By the first damsel, who obliged Peter to deny, is denoted lust, by the second, carnal delight: by one or more servants, the devils who persuade men to deny Christ.

John 18:28

Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover.

The praetorium is the place where the praetor sat. Praetors were called prefects and preceptors, because they issue decrees.

It was the custom of the Jews when they condemned any one to death, to notify it to the governor, by delivering the man bound.

John 18:39

But ye have a custom, that I should release unto you one at the passover: will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews?

This custom was not commanded in the law, but had been handed down by tradition from the old fathers, viz. that in remembrance of their deliverance out of Egypt, they should release a prisoner at the passover. Pilate tries to persuade them: Will ye therefore that I release unto you the King of the Jews.

John 18:40

Then cried they all again, saying, Not this man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber.

Inasmuch then as they abandoned the Saviour, and sought out a robber, to this day the devil practises his robberies upon them.

John 19:2

And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe,

For instead of a diadem, they put upon Him a crown of thorns, and a purple robe to represent the purple robe which kings wear. Matthew says, a scarlet robe, (Mat. 27:28) but scarleta and purple are different names for the same colour. And though the soldiers did this in mockery, yet to us their acts have a meaning. For by the crown of thorns is signified the taking of our sins upon Him, the thorns which the earth of our body brings forth. And the purple robe signifies the flesh crucified. For our Lord is robed in purple, wherever He is glorified by the triumphs of holy martyrs.

John 19:8

When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid;

It was not the law that he was afraid of, as he was a stranger: but he was more afraid, lest he should slay the Son of God.

John 19:13

When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha.

Lithostraton, i. e. laid with stone; the word signifies pavement. It was an elevated place.

John 19:14

And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!

And it was the preparation of the Passover.

John 19:19

And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Wherein was shown that His kingdom was not, as they thought, destroyed, but rather strengthened.

John 19:26

When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!

Beyond the others, Jesus loved the one who, being a virgin when chosen by him, remained forever a virgin. Now stories handed down say the [Christ] called [John] from his marriage ceremony when he wished to marry, and on that account he granted the more desirable sweetness of his own love to one whom he had withdrawn from fleshly pleasures. Accordingly, when [Christ] was about to die on the cross, he commended his mother to [John], so that virgin might watch over virgin, and when he himself ascended to heaven after his death and resurrection, a son would not be lacking to his mother, whose chaste life would be protected by his chaste services.