glory of the God who sent him." In Fhort, it is one mark of a man being a true servant of God, and really commissioned by
our Father in heaven, that he ever seeks his Master's glory more than his own.
The principle here laid down is a very valuable one. By it we may test the pretensious of many false teachers of religion, and prove them to be unsound guides. There is a curious ten- dency in every system of heresy, or unsound religion, to make its ministers magnify themselves, their authority, their im- portance, and their office. It may be seen in Eomanism and Brahminism to a remarkable extent.
Alford's remark, however, is very true, that in the highest and strictest sense, " the latter part of the sentence is only true of the Holy One Himself, and that owing to human infirmity, purity of motive is no sure guarantee for correctness of doc- trine ; " and therefore in the end of the verse it is not said, " he who seeketh God's glory," but "he who seeketh His glory that sent Him " — specially indicating Christ Himself.
Burgon thinks that " true " is a word used intentionally, in contrast with the expression, " He deceiveth the people."
19.— [Did not Moses give you the law?] Our Lord here appeals to the well-known reverence with which all Jews regarded Moses and the law. But it is highly probable that He had in view the practice of publicly reading the law of Moses to the people during the seven days of the feast of tabernacles, which was observed once in every seven years at that feast, (l)eut. xxxi. 10.) If, as is possible, this was one of the seventh years in which the law was so read, there would be a singular significance and aptuess in His appeal. "This very day you have been hearing that law, which you profess to honour so much. But do you honour it in your lives ? "
[None of you keepeth the laiv, etc.] This would be more literally rendered, " none of you doeth the law." It is the same word that is used in the expression, " if any man will do His will," (v. 17.) The meaning seems to be, " You reject me and my doctrine, and profess to be zealous for the honour of Moses and the law. And yet none of you really obey the law in heart and in spirit. For instance : why do you seek to kill me? You are full of hatred of me, and want to put me to death unjustly, in the face of the sixth commandment. This is not keeping the law."
The Greek word rendered " go about," is the same that is rendered " seek" in v. 1 of this chapter, and ch. v. 16, 18.
20.— [The people answered and said, etc.] It seems probable that those who said this were the common people, the multitude of Jews gathered from all parts of the world, to many of whom our Lord was a stranger. We can hardly suppose that the rulers and kf.ders of Jerusalem would have spoken in this way.