PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Expositor's Bible: The Gospel of St. John, Vol. II
Dods, Marcus · 118,818 words · 159 reading sections
_The Crucifixion._
This distribution of His clothes was also calculated to make Him intensely sensible of the reality and finality of death. Jesus knew He was to rise again; but let us not forget that Jesus was human, liable to the same natural fears, and moved by the same circumstances as ourselves. He knew He was to rise again; but how…
781 wordsSECTION 122_The Crucifixion._
It is not at once obvious what we are to make of the physical sufferings of Christ. Certainly it is very easy to make too much of them. For, in the first place, they were very brief and confined to one part of His life. He was exempt from the prolonged weakness and misery which many persons endure throughout life. Born…
942 wordsSECTION 123_The Crucifixion._
Why, then, does John just at this point of the life of Jesus see so many evidences of the fulfilment of all prophecy? Need we ask? Is not suffering that which is the standing problem of life? Is it not grief and trouble and sorrow which press home upon our minds most convincingly the reality of sin? Is it not death whi…
760 wordsSECTION 124_The Crucifixion._
It is also obvious that such a Person would concern Himself not with art or literature, not with inventions and discoveries, not even with politics and government and social problems, but with that which underlies all these and for which all these exist--with human character and human conduct, with man's relation to Go…
682 wordsSECTION 125_The Resurrection._
"Now on the first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, while it was yet dark, unto the tomb, and seeth the stone taken away from the tomb. She runneth therefore, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we…
811 wordsSECTION 126_The Resurrection._
This simple narrative will be to many minds more convincing than an accumulation of elaborate arguments. The style is that of an eyewitness. Each movement and every particular is before his eye: Mary bursting, breathless, and gasping out the startling news; the hasty springing up of the two men, and their rapid racing …
740 wordsSECTION 127_The Resurrection._
In all this we have the picture of a real and profound grief, and therefore of a real and profound love. We see in Mary the kind of affection which a knowledge of Jesus was fitted to kindle. And to Mary our Lord remembered His promise: "He that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him and will manifes…
939 wordsSECTION 128_The Resurrection._
As Mary answered the angels she heard a step behind or saw the tomb darkened by a shadow, and on turning discerns dimly through her tears a figure which naturally enough she supposes to be the gardener--not because Jesus had assumed the clothes or lifted the tools of the gardener, but because he was the likeliest perso…
683 wordsSECTION 129_The Resurrection._
Mary had no time to reason and doubt. With one quick exclamation of ecstatic recognition and joy she sprang towards Him. The one word "my Master,"[30] uttered all her heart. It is related of George Herbert that when he was inducted into the cure of Bemerton he said to a friend: "I beseech God that my humble and charita…
690 wordsSECTION 130_The Resurrection._
And if these words of Jesus seemed at first chilling and repellent, they were followed by words of unmistakable affection: "Go to my brothers, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God." This is the message of the risen Lord to men. He has become the link between us and all …
301 wordsSECTION 131_Thomas' Test._
[29] See Pusey's sermon on this subject. [30] "Rabboni" had more of reverence in it than would be conveyed by "my Teacher," and it is legitimate here to use "Master" in its wider sense. "When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for …
870 wordsSECTION 132_Thomas' Test._
With this perfect equipment our Lord added the words: "Whosesoever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven unto them; whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained." These words have been the occasion of endless controversy.[31] They certainly convey the ideas that the Apostles were appointed to mediate between Christ and t…
723 wordsSECTION 133_Thomas' Test._
But though he might not be to blame for absenting himself, he was to blame for refusing to accept the testimony of his friends when they assured him they had seen Jesus risen. There is a tone of doggedness that grates upon us in the words, "Except I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, _and put my finger_ int…
824 wordsSECTION 134_Thomas' Test._
It is this which distinguishes Thomas and all right-minded doubters from thorough-going and depraved unbelievers. The one wishes to believe, would give the world to be free from doubt, will go mourning all his days, will pine in body and sicken of life because he cannot believe: "he _waits_ for light, but behold obscur…
789 wordsSECTION 135_Thomas' Test._
And thus it frequently happens that a man who has vowed that he will not believe except this or that be made plain finds, when he does believe, that something short of his own requirements has convinced him. He finds that though he was once so express in his demands for proof, and so clear and accurate in his declarati…
845 wordsSECTION 136_Thomas' Test._
This was a rare and memorable hour for Thomas, one of those moments that mark a man's spirit permanently. He is carried entirely out of himself, and sees nothing but his Lord. The whole energy of his spirit goes out to Him undoubtingly, unhesitatingly, unrestrained. Everything is before him in the person of Christ; not…
881 wordsSECTION 137_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
[31] See Steitz' article _Schluesselgewalt_ in _Herzog_. [32] In this chapter there are reminiscences of Trench. "After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias; and He manifested Himself on this wise. There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathan…
880 wordsSECTION 138_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
And as we watch their six oars flashing in the setting sun, and Peter steering them to the familiar fishing ground, we cannot but reflect in how precarious a position the whole future of the world is. That boat carries the earthly hope of the Church; and as we weigh the feelings of the men that are in it, what we see c…
660 wordsSECTION 139_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
In every trifling act character betrays itself. It is John who is first to recognise Jesus; it is Peter who casts himself into the sea, just as he had done once before on that same lake, and as he had been first to enter the sepulchre on the morning of the Resurrection. John recognises the Lord, not because he had bett…
820 wordsSECTION 140_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
And this is the reason of this miracle; this is the reason why our Lord so pointedly convinced them that without Him they could not make a livelihood: that they might fish all the night through and resort to every device their experience could contrive and yet could catch nothing, but that He could give them sustenance…
873 wordsSECTION 141_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
This is the miracle which has again and again restored the drooping faith and discouraged spirit of all Christ's followers who endeavour to bring men under His influence, or in any way to spread out this influence over a wider surface. Again and again their hope is disappointed and their labour vain; the persons they w…
795 wordsSECTION 142_Appearance At Sea Of Galilee._
This, then, explains why it was that our Lord appeared only to His friends after His resurrection. It might have been expected that on His rising from the dead He would have shown Himself as openly as before He suffered, and would specially have shown Himself to those who had crucified Him; but this was not the case. T…
548 wordsSECTION 143_Restoration Of Peter._
"So when they had broken their fast, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, lovest thou Me more than these? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; Thou knowest that I love Thee. He saith unto him, Feed My lambs. He saith to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; T…
715 wordsSECTION 144_Restoration Of Peter._
Thus mildly does the Lord rebuke Peter by suggesting that in his recent conduct there were appearances which must prevent these present expressions of his love from being accepted as perfectly genuine and trustworthy. Thus gracefully does He give Peter opportunity to renew the profession of attachment he had so shamefu…
922 wordsSECTION 145_Restoration Of Peter._
The determination of Christ to clear away all misunderstanding and all doubtfulness about the relation His professed followers hold to Him is strikingly exhibited in His subjecting Peter to a second and third interrogation. He invites Peter to search deeply into his spirit and to ascertain the very truth. It is the mos…
756 wordsSECTION 146_Restoration Of Peter._
The significance of this cannot be exaggerated. What is Christianity? It is God's way of getting hold of us, of attaching us to what is good, of making us holy, perfect men. And the method He uses is the presentation of goodness in a personal form. He makes goodness supremely attractive by exhibiting to us its reality …
672 wordsSECTION 147_Restoration Of Peter._
But the presence or absence in us of the love of Christ is an index not only to our present state, but a prophecy of all that is to be. The love of Christ was that which enabled and impelled the Apostles to live great and energetic lives. It was this simple affection which made a life of aggression and reformation poss…
792 wordsSECTION 148_Conclusion._
"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. Now this he spake, signifying by what manner of death he should gl…
1,005 wordsSECTION 149_Conclusion._
The contrast drawn by our Lord between the youth and age of Peter is couched in language so general that it throws light on the usual course of human life and the broad characteristics of human experience. In youth attachment to Christ will naturally show itself in such gratuitous and yet most pardonable and even touch…
854 wordsSECTION 150_Conclusion._
Coming to the close of this Gospel, we cannot but most seriously ask ourselves whether in our case it has accomplished its object. We have admired its wonderful compactness and literary symmetry. It is a pleasure to study a writing so perfectly planned and wrought out with such unfailing beauty and finish. No one can r…
761 wordsSECTION 151_Conclusion._
The Evangelist tells us how the incredulous but guileless Nathanael was convinced of the supremacy of Jesus, and how the hesitating Nicodemus was constrained to acknowledge Him a teacher sent by God. And so he cites witness after witness, never garbling their testimony, not making all bear the one uniform testimony whi…
667 wordsSECTION 152_Conclusion._
But in reading this Gospel one cannot but remark that John lays great stress on the miracles which Christ wrought. In fact, in announcing his object in writing it is especially to the miracles he alludes when he says, "These signs are written that ye might believe." In recent years there has been a reaction against the…
912 wordsSECTION 153_Conclusion._
Supposing, then, that Christ came to earth to teach men the fatherhood and fatherliness of God--could He have more effectually taught it than by these miracles of healing? Supposing He wished to lodge in the minds of men the conviction that man, body and soul, was cared for by God; that the diseased, the helpless, the …
673 wordsSECTION 154Fifth Series, 1891-92.
_Printed by Hazell Watson, & Viney, Ld., London and Aylesbury._ _Crown 8vo, cloth, price 7s. 6d. each vol._ Colossians. By A. MACLAREN, D.D. St. Mark. By Very Rev. the Dean of Armagh. Genesis. By Prof. MARCUS DODS, D.D. 1 Samuel. By Prof. W. G. BLAIKIE, D.D. 2 Samuel. By the same Author. Hebrews. By Princi…
296 wordsSECTION 155The Book Of Genesis.
THE BOOK OF GENESIS. Fifth Edition. Crown 8vo, 7s. 6d. THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN. Vol. I. Crown 8vo, 7s. 6d. THE FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. Third Edition. Crown 8vo, 7s. 6d. AN INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW TESTAMENT. Fourth Edition. Crown 8vo, 2s. 6d. THE PARABLES OF OUR LORD. (Matthew.) Seventh Thousand. Crown 8vo,…
405 wordsSECTION 156Erasmus And Other Essays.
_Third Edition. Crown 8vo, price 7s. 6d._ "He shows himself to be thoroughly at home with his subject, and that his exposition is clear, intelligent, and characterised by a sobriety of judgment, a candour, and a sweet reasonableness which are worthy of all praise, is only what might be expected from a writer of Dr…
340 wordsSECTION 157The Parables Of Our Lord.
_Fourth Edition. Fcap. 8vo, price 2s. 6d._ "The compiler has placed in the hands of ordinary readers the results of the latest scholarship respecting the authorship, genuineness, date and place of writing, and circumstances attending the production of all the books of the New Testament. The work is very well done …
384 wordsSECTION 158Isaac, Jacob, And Joseph
Second Series. Parables Recorded by St. Luke. _Sixth Thousand. Crown 8vo, cloth, price 3s. 6d._ "Dr. Dods is a model for all expositors. He is lucid, reverent, and suggestive. Though his style is usually somewhat austere, it frequently blossoms into rare beauty and tenderness."--_Sheffield Independent._ "He offer…
415 wordsSECTION 159*** End Of The Project Gutenberg Ebook The Expositor'S Bible: The Gospel Of St. John, Vol. Ii ***
Sketches from the Period of the Judges. _Sixth Edition. Crown 8vo, cloth, price 3s. 6d._ "The popularity of this volume is richly deserved. The sketches are bright and forcible, and abound in moral teaching and practical lessons for the golden age of Victoria as well as for the iron age of Israel."--_Evangelical M…
432 wordsSource & rights
Public domain in the USA; original historical text digitized by Project Gutenberg.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.