in with this, as indicating the spiritual influence of the divine Agent rather than His personality.
34. | saw (éépaxa). Rey., more strictly, according to the perfect tense, J have seen. See on ver. 32, and note the dif- ferent verb for seeing, on which see on ver. 18.
Bare record (ueuapripna). Rev., have borne witness. Also the perfect tense.
The Son of God. This is the proper reading, but one very important manuscript reads 6 é«Aexrtds, the chosen. By the phrase John means the Messiah. It has the same sense as in the Synoptic Gospels. Compare Matt. xi. 27; xxvili.19. For the sense in which it was understood by the Jews of Christ’s day, see v. 18,19; x. 29, 30-36. The phrase occurs in the Old Testament only in Daniel iii. 25. Compare Ps. ii. 12. On vids, son, as distinguished from téxvov, chald, see on ver. 12.
35. Stood (cictrxe). Rev., more correctly, was standing, since the imperfect tense denotes something in progress. Here, therefore, with the idea of wacting ; was standing in expecta- tion. Compare vii. 37; xviii. 5, 6, 18.
Two of his disciples. The one was Andrew (ver. 41), the other the Evangelist himself, who studiously refrains from mentioning his own name throughout the narrative. The name of James the elder also does not appear, nor that of Salome, the Evangelist’s mother, who is mentioned by name in Mark’s Gospel (xv. 40; xvi. 1). The omission of his own name is the more significant from the fact that he is habitually ex- act in defining the names in his narrative. Compare the sim- ple designation Simon (i. 42) with subsequent occurrences of his name after his call, as i. 42; xiii. 6; xxi. 15, etc. Also Thomas (xi. 16; xx. 24; xxi. 2); Judas Iscariot Gg ber@ Ph > oblye ar xiii. 2, 26); the other Judas (xiv. 22). Note also that he never speaks of the Baptist as John the Baptist, like the other three Evangelists, but always as John.