by whom this miracle was wrought. A greater marriage feast than that of Cana will one day be held, when Christ Himself will be the bridegroom and believers will be the bride. A greater glory will one day be manifested, when Jesus shall take to Himself His great power and reign. Blessed will they be in that day who are called to the narriage supper of the Lamb ! (Rev. xix. 9.)
Notes. .John H. 1 — 11.
1. — [The third day.} The question naturally arises, " What day was this ? From what day was it the third ?" The most pro- bable answer is, that it was the third day after the last event described in the preceding chapter, the third day after Nathanael was brought to Jesus and became a disciple. The meaning therefore is, " The third day after the conversation between Jesus and Nathanael."
[A marriage in Oana.] Let it be remembered, that we are told elsewhere that Nathanael was an inhabitant of Cana. (John xxi. 2.) This makes it far from improbable, that Nathanael, after he became a disciple, invited our Lord to visit the place where he lived. Cana is a place not mentioned in the Old Testament. Robinson, in his Biblical Researches, says it was a village about three hours' journey from Nazareth.
[The mother of Jesus was there.] We must suppose that the Virgin Mary was in some way connected with the bride or bridegroom, and was therefore present at the marriage and as- sisting in the arrangements of the feast. Without some such supposition it is difficult to understand her speaking to the ser- vants, as she afterwards does.
The absence of Joseph's name, both here and in other places where the mother of our Lord is mentioned in the Gospels and Acts, has induced most commentators to think that Joseph was dead when our Lord began His public ministry. Tlie point is one of which we know nothing except by conjecture. It de- serves notice, however, that the Jews of Capernaum speak of Jesus as " the ?on of Joseph, whose fathei^ and mother we know^ (John vi. 42 ) IP it had been profitable to us to know more about Jo>eph, we should have been told more. The Roman Catholic Church has already given him a superstitious reverence, upon the authority of tradition, and withput the slightest war- rant of Scripture. What would have not been said about Joseph by the Romish Churo,h, if he had been more prominently men- tioned in God's Word ?