812
k Cp. xx. 30. Mt. v. 16.
37. Τοσαῦτα δὲ αὐτοῦ σημεῖα πεποιηκότος Β ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν,
' 15. lili. 1. οὐκ ἐπίστευον εἰς αὐτόν: 38. ἵνα ὁ λόγος ] Ἡσαίου τοῦ προφήτου
πληρωθῇ, ὃν etre, ΄ Κύριε, τίς ἐπίστευσε τῇ ἀκοῇ ἡμῶν; καὶ ὁ
Βραχίων Κυρίου tive ἀπεκαλύφθη ;’
30. Διὰ τοῦτο οὐκ ἠδύναντο
πιστεύειν, ὅτι πάλιν εἶπεν ‘Hoatas, 40. “Τετύφλωκεν αὐτῶν τοὺς
ὀφθαλμοὺς, καὶ πεπώρωκεν }
αὐτῶν τὴν καρδίαν, ἵνα μὴ ἴδωσι τοῖς
- a ~ , - ὀφθαλμοῖς, καὶ νοήσωσι τῇ καρδίᾳ καὶ ἐπιστραφῶσι, καὶ ἰάσωμαι
3 9 αυτους.
A ε 41. Tatra εἶπεν Ἡσαΐας, ὅτε” εἶδε τὴν δόξαν αὐτοῦ, καὶ
πι Here Β κα a
only. _ ἐλάλησε περὶ αὐτοῦ: 42. '' ὅμως ™pévror καὶ ἐκ τῶν " ἀρχόντων Nn iii. 1; Vii.
48. πολλοὶ ἐπίστευσαν eis αὐτόν" ἀλλὰ διὰ τοὺς Φαρισαίους οὐχ ὡμολό-
\ For πεπωρωκεν recent editors read επωρωσεν with ABKL 33; στραφωσιν with NBD* 33, although επιστραφωσι is well supported ; and ιασοµαι with SABDN.
Σοτι in NRABL 33. “‘ because he saw the glory”’.
close connection; see Mt. viii. 12, ix. 15, Mk. iii, 17, Lk. xvi. 8, etc. To be vtot φωτός is to be such as find their truest life in the truth, recognising and delighting in all that Christ reveals. ‘* These words Jesus spoke and departed and was hidden from them.” His warn- ing that the Light would not always be available for them was at once followed by its removal. Where He was hidden is not said.
Vv. 37-43. In the verses which follow, 37-43, Fohn accounts for the unbelief of the Fews. This fact that the very people who had been appointed to accept the Messiah had rejected Jesus needed ex- planation. This explanation is suitably given at the close of that part of the Gospel which has described His mani- festation.—Ver. 37. Τοσαῦτα . . . αὐτόν, The difficulty to be solved is first stated. ‘Although He had done so many signs before them, yet they did not believe on Him.” A larger number of miracles is implied than is narrated, vii. 31, xi. 47, xxl. 25. The quality of the miracles is also alluded to once and again, iii. 2, ix. 32. They had not been done “in a corner,” but ἔμπροσθεν αὐτῶν, cf. ἐνώπιον xx. 30. Yet belief had not resulted. The cause of this unbelief was that the prediction of Is. liii. 1 had to be fulfilled. Certainly this mode of statement conveys the im- pression that it was not the future event which caused the prediction but the pre- diction which caused the event. The form of expression might in some cases be retained although the natural order was perceived. The purpose of God was always in the foreground of the Jewish mind. The prophecy of Isaiah
The words of Isaiah were uttered not only “ when,” but
was relevant; the “‘arm of the Lord” signifying the power manifested in the miracles, and τῇ ἀκοῇ referring to the teaching of Jesus. In the time of Jesus as in that of Isaiah the significance of Divine teaching and Divine action was hidden from the multitude.—Ver. 39. Διὰ τοῦτο seems to have a double reference, first to what precedes, second to the ὅτι following, cf. viii. 47.--οὐκ ἠδύναντο, ‘they were not able,’ irre- spective of will; their inability arose from the fulfilment in them of Isaiah’s words, vi. 10 (ver. 40), Τετύφλωκεν εκ. avtovs. τετύφλωκεν refers to the blinding of the organ for perceiving spiritual truth, ἐπώρωσεν (from πῶρος, a callus) to the hardening of the sensibility to religious and moral impressions. This process prevented them from seeing the significance of the miracles and under- standing with the heart the teaching of Jesus. By abuse of light, nature pro- duces callousness ; and what nature does God does.—Ver. 41. John’s view of prophecy is given in the words Tatra
.. αὐτοῦ. “ The Targum renders the original words of Isaiah ‘I saw the Lord’ by ‘I saw the Lord’s glory’. St. John states the truth to which this expression points, and identifies the Divine Person seen by Isaiah with Christ.”’ Westcott. This involves that the Theophanies of the O.T. were mediated by the pre-existent Logos.—Ver. 42. Although unbelief was so commonly the result of Christ’s manifestation, ὅμως µέντοι, cf. Herodot., i. 189, “' neverthe- less, however, even of the rulers many believed on Him, but on account of the ~ Pharisees they did not confess Him