we must never forget that true faith admits of gro-wth and de- grees. There is a wide gulf between little and great faith.
Ferus remarks that our Lord does not say " Believe my divin- ity," but. Believe personally in Me.
Toletus observes that our Lord here teaches that Jewish faith was somewhat distinct from Christian faith. The Jew, not seeing clearly the Trinity, dwelt chiefly on the unity of God. The Christian was intended to see three Persons in the God- head.
Wordsworth remarks that the verb " to believe," followed by a preposition and an accusative, is never applied to any but God in the New Testament.
2. — [In my Father's housed This phrase can bear only one mean- ing. It is my Father's house in Heaven : an expression accom- modated to our weakness. God needs no literal house, with walls and roof, as we do. But where He dwells is called His house. (See Deut. xxvi. 15 ; Psalm xxxiii. 14 ; 2 Chron, xxxviii. 27 ; 2 Cor. v. 1.) There is something very touching and comforting in the thought that the heaven we go to is " our Father's house." It is home.
[There are many mansions.'] The word rendered " mansions " means literally " abiding-places." It is only used here, and in the twenty-third verse of this chapter, " abode." We need not doubt that there is an intentional contrast between the un changing, unvarying house in heaven, and the changing, uncer tain, dwellings of this world. Here we are ever moving : there we shall no more go out. (See also Heb. xiii. 14.)
Our Lord's intention seems to be to comfort His disciples by the thought that nothing could cast them out of the heavenly house. They might be left alone by Him on earth ; they might be even cast out of the Jewish Church, and find no resting- place or refuge on earth ; but there would be always room enough for them in heaven, and a house from which they would never be expelled. " Fear not. There is room enough in heaven."
Chrysostom, Augustine, and several other ancient writers think the " many mansions " mean the degrees of glory. But the argument in favor of the idea does not appear to me satis- factory. Bishop Bull, Wordsworth, and some few modern writers take the same view. That there are degrees of glory in heaven is undoubtedly true, but I do not think it is the truth of this text.
The modern idea, that our Lord meant that lieaven was a place for all sorts of creeds and religions, seems utterly unwar- ranted by the text. From the whole context He is evidently speaking for the special comfort of Christians.