made no reply, for Jefus having conveyed himself away from the multitude, that they might not lay violent hands upon him, neither the man that was cured, nor the multitude knew who had performed the miracle. 13. And be that was healed wift not who it was, for Jefus bad * conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.

Some time after this, Jefus happening to be in the temple, found the man whom he had cured at Bethesda. Wherefore, to render the favour he had done him complete, he took that opportunity to put him in mind of his having brought the distemper upon himself by his wicked courfes; for he defired him to abstain from finning for the future, left fome heavier judgment fhould be inflicted on him. John v. 14. Afterward Jefus findeth him in the temple, and faid unto him, Bebold thou art made whole, fin no more, left a worse thing come unto thee.-15. The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jefus which had made bim whole Overjoyed to have discovered the author of his cure, he went away and innocently informed the Jews of it; perhaps because he thought it his duty to give his benefactor the honour of the miracle, and believed the Jews would have been glad to see so great a prophet. But instead of that, they attacked Jefus tumultuously in the temple, and it may be, tried him before the fanhedrim with a view to kill him, because, as they imagined, he had profaned the Sabbath by performing a cure upon it, and by ordering the perfon cured to carry away his bed. 16. And therefore did the Jews perfecute Jefus, and fought to flay him, because he had done these things on the fabbath day By the fews here, we are to understand the rulers. This I think plain from ver. 33. where Jefus fpeaking to the perfons who fought to kill him, (ver. 18.) fays unto them, "Ye fent unto John, and he bare witnefs unto the truth." But the meffengers that were sent to John, we are told were priests and Levites, (John i. 19.) perfons of character, who would not have undertaken the office, unless by the appointment of the rulers, called on that occafion as well as here, the Jews, (John i. 19.) Moreover, the apology which Jefus now made for himself, is fuch as was proper to be pronounced before the most capable judges, the chief priests, the fcribes, and the elders. For it is the most regular defence of his character and miffion that is any where to be found in the gofpels, comprehending the principal arguments in behalf of both, and fetting them forth with the greatest ftrength of reason, clearness of method, and concifeness of expreffion.

Jefus

*Ver. 13. Conveyed himself away.] Cafaubon obferves, that the word , by which the evangelift expreffes Chrift's efcape, being a meta. phor borrowed from fwimming, fignifies, that he glided through the mutitude, leaving no trace behind him of the way he had taken.

Jefus began his defence with fhewing the rulers the unreasonableness of their displeasure with him, because he had reftored the infirm man to health on the Sabbath day. He told them, that in performing cures on the Sabbath, he only imitated his Father, who wrought every day of the week in doing good to men by his unwearied providence. For on the Sabbaths, as on other days, through the invifible operation of his power, Almighty God fupports the whole frame of nature, and carries on the motions of the heavens, upon which the viciffitudes of day and night, and of the feasons depend, fo neceffary to the production of food, with the other means of life. John v. 17. But Jefus anfwered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. As the Jews built their observation of the Sabbath upon God's having refted thereon from the works of creation, this argument was decifive. Nevertheless, the apology offended them exceeedingly; for they thought he claimed a peculiar and proper relation to God, and by afferting that he acted like God, set himself on a level with God. 18. Therefore the Jews fought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the Sabbath, but faid alfo that God was his Father, making himself equal with God. This conclufion Jefus did not deny, but shewed, that in all things he acted agreeably to the will of God, and that he was equal in power to God, doing whatever he saw the Father do, an honour which flowed to him from the immenfe love of the Father, and which was a clear, certain, convincing proof of the Father's love. 19. Then answered Jefus, and faid unto them, Verily, verily, I fay unto you, the Son can do nothing of bimfelf, but what he feeth the Father do; for what things foever he doeth, these alfo doeth the Son likewife. 20. For the Father loveth the Son, and fheweth him all things that himself doeth ;-and he will fhew him greater works than thefe, that ye may marvel: will enable him to do greater miracles than any he has done hitherto, and which, though they may not convince, will certainly astonish you, and make it impoffible for you to gainfay him, at least with any fhew of reafon. 21. For as the Father raifeth up the dead, and quickeneth them, even fo the Son quickeneth whom he will: the Son has power, not only to heal the fick, but to raise the dead. Nay, he affured them that the power of judging the world, that is, of executing judgments temporal and eternal on his enemies, was committed unto him, in order that all men fhould honour the Son even as they honour the Father; honour him as the Maker and Governor of the world, by yielding to him the homage of faith, and love, and obedience; and that they might be rewarded therefore with everlasting life. So that being appointed of the Father, judge univerfal, they who did not honour him, did not honour the Father. John v. 22. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son : 23. That all

men

men fhould bonour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that bonoureth not the Son, honoureth not the Father which bath Sent bim. 24. Verily, verily, I fay unto you, He that beareth my word, and believeth on him that fent me, bath everlasting life, and fball not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. Such a person hath a right to everlasting life, and shall not be condemned by me the judge at the last day. Nay, he is fo fure of escaping condemnation, and of obtaining eternal life, that he may be faid to have paffed already from death to life. But to convince them that he was able to quicken whom he would, he bade them confider the effects of his power, which they had already seen in the refurrection of two dead persons to life, viz. Jairus's daughter, and the widow of Nain's fon; and which they were yet to fee in the refurrection of Lazarus, and perhaps of others not mentioned in the hiftory. 25. Verily, verily, I fay unto you, the bour is coming, and now is; the time is now, as you yourfelves well know, when the dead shall bear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live. For you cannot but have heard, that I have raised two perfons from the dead already. 26. For as the Father bath life in himself, fo hath be given to the Son to bave life in himself: hath bestowed this honour upon him, to quicken or raise (fee ver. 21.) what dead perfon foever he pleases, and that by his own power; in which respect our Lord differed from the prophets, and all the other meffengers of God who raised the dead, neither at their own pleasure, nor by their own power. 27. And bath given him authority to execute judgment alfo, because he is the Son of man; hath conferred on him, not only the honour of giving life to the dead by his own power, but authority alfo to punish the living with death, and that because he has humbled himself so low as to become the Son of man, Philip. ii. 9,-11. The power of giving life to the dead, our Lord frequently made ufe of while on earth, but never the power of punishing men with death. The apoftles indeed exercifed it fometimes. But he seems now to have had the deftruction of Jerufalem more particularly in his eye, an exercise of judgment which he constantly ascribed to himself. 28. Marvel not at this, for the bour is coming in the which all that are in the graves fhall bear bis voice; 29. And shall come forth, they that bave done good unto the refurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the refurrection of damnation. Be not surprised at my faying that the Son has power to raise few particular perfons

a

*

*Ver. 27. To execute judgment alfo.] The Syriac verfion, Chryfoftom, Theophilact, and Euthymius, put a full ftop after the words gIY MOLELY, and join the claufe, because he is the Son of man, to the next verle, thus, Becaufe be is the Son of man, marvel not at this. And Chryfoftom in particular affirms, that Paul of Samofatena contrived the pointing now in ufe. Yet it feems to be the true pointing, the other making a very harsh ungram-matical conftruction,

1ons from the dead, and authority to inflict punishment on a few particular offenders. There is a far greater power committed to him, even that of raifing all men at the last day, and of judging and rewarding them according to their works. Now in this judgment I will not act abfolutely or arbitrarily, but according to the laws of equity, unalterably established by my Father, fo that I fhall not act therein fo properly by my own, as by my Father's authority. 30. I can of mine ownfelf do nothing; as I hear I judge in allufion to human courts, where the judges found their fentences upon the teftimony of witneffes, and the laws of the country. Yet the expreffion by no means implies, that our Lord at the great day fhall receive information from any one whatfoever, concerning the perfons he is to judge. Having been himfelf privy to their actions, he needs no evidence, but knows all things that ever were thought, faid, or done by mankind, from the beginning to the end of time, fully and certainly. And my judgment is just; not only because it is thus a judgment according to truth and equity, but likewife, because I feek not mine oyn will, but the will of my Father who hath sent me ; I have no intereft to pursue, no inclination to fulfil, different from that of my Father.

These were very grand affertions of his own dignity. But he did not require his hearers to believe them, merely on the authority of his own teftimony; a circumftance by which Jefus Chrift, the only Son and greatest meffenger of the true God, is diftinguished from Mahomet, and all other impoftors whatever. He told them that he had the teftimony of John, given him in the hearing of their own deputies. But at the fame time he obferved, that the truth of his miffion did not depend merely on human teftimony, though it was given by one who was a burning and fhining light, and in whom they greatly rejoiced, because the prophetic Spirit which had fo long ceafed feemed to be again revived in him. John v 31. If I alone bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. That the word alone is pertinently fupplied here, feems plain from what follows, not to mention that it reconciles this paffage with John viii. 14. § 77. which fee. 32. There is another that beareth witness of me, aud I know that the witnefs which he witneffeth of me is true 33 Ye fent unto John, and be bare witnefs unto the truth. 34. But I receive not teftimony from man only: that is, the truth of my miffion does not depend merely on human teftimony, fee ver 36. But thefe things I fay, that ye may be faved: I fay them to induce you to believe, that ye may be faved 35. He was a burning and a hining light, and ye were willing for a feafon to rejoice in his light. Some from this latter claufe infer, that the Baptift was

now dead Yet he does not seem to have been killed till a little before the third paffover. The reafon is, the miracle of the

loaves performed in the defert of Bethfaida immediately after word was brought of John's death, is faid to have happened a little before that feaft, John vi. 4. If fo, our Lord's meaning is, that John was a burning and a shining light, an illustrious prophet, not while he lay in prifon, but while his miniftry lafted; for during his imprisonment his light may be faid to have been extinguished. Accordingly it is added, And ye were willing to rejoice in his light for a feafon ; ye hearkened to him with great pleasure, till his credit was impaired in your estimation by his imprisonment. Farther, he told them that he had the teftimony of one infinitely greater than John, even the testimony of the Father, who was continually bearing witnefs to him, by the many miracles which he empowered him to perform, and who had given him a peculiar and direct teftimony at his baptim, by declaring from heaven in a grand, audible. articulate voice, that he was his beloved Son; which voice many then living had heard, and no doubt remembered. 36. But I have greater witness than that of John; for the works which the Father bath given me to finish, the fame works that I do bear witness of me that the Father bath fent me. 37 And the Father himself which bath fent me, hath born witness of me. For this latter witnefs he appealed to themfelves, Ουτε φωνην αυτό ακηκόατε πωποτε ετε edes nuts empanure, which in our tranflation runs thus, Ye have neither beard his voice at any time, nor feen his shape. But the proper tranflation feems to be interrogatively, Have ye never at any time beard his voice, or feen his fhape? The word ados, tranflated in this paffage shape, fignifies any thing in a person that appears to the eye, by which he is diftinguifhed from others; and therefore the form of his countenance, as well as the shape of his body. Many of the ancient Jews had heard the voice of God at Sinai, when the law was given, Deut. iv. 12. 33 And though it is faid there that they faw no fimilitude, (LXX. quoswμa) the meaning is not, that they faw no corporeal appearance, for they faw fire and fmoke, ver. 15. but that they faw no refemblance, no figure or likeness of any thing in the heavens above, or in the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth, which the heathens worshipped as God. This fire which the Ifraelites faw on Sinai, was the fymbol of the divine prefence, as was the pillar of fire, and cloud of smoke which attended them in their journeyings through the wildernefs. Hence, becaufe Mofes, was often admitted to a clear and near view of this fire, he is faid to have "beheld the fimilitude of the Lord," and to have “spoken with God mouth to mouth, even apparently," (ed.) Numb. xii. 8. By parity of reafon, as often as God manifefted his prefence in the fymbol of light or fire, as at Chrift's baptifm, that light might be called his shape or fimilitude (ades avre). And all who beheld that glorious appearance, as the multitude did at

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