The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 1 — Section 256

""hither it went. We might not. k"tlow 1,rcsum11bly acquainted with the tenching "how," bnt we should know "when" nnd of the Soriptnroa, need not have been in ",-•henC'C'" the spiritnnl chnnge toc,k pince. such doubt and a1nazement at the searching But thie knowledge is distinctly uegntived words of J esns. bv Christ, who herein declares the moment Ver. 11.-Verily, verily, I say to thee, of the spiritnnl birth to be lost or bidden in We apea.k thl\t whioh we know, and testify God. Physical birth is a deep mystery, that whioh we have seen, Liioke and both wlienoe the "spirit" comes and Meyer think tlmt our Lord here morely whither it goes; tho signs of the presence uses the pluralia mcrjcstaticus-uses it as of life nre abundnnt, but there is an infinite St. Pnul does, whcu clearly ho wns referring differ<'nce between the stillborn or dead child to himself alone. It is difficult to boliove nnd the li\·ing one. Similnrly, the com- this in the curious and impressive chnnge mencement of the Spirit's crention within of person hero ndopted, ond tho return to our nah1re is lost in mystei·y. We discern the first person singulnr in ver. 12. '!'hero its presence by its effects, by consciousness ~ms some reason why Jesus, in making this of a new life and sense of a new world all pnrticula.r saying, uses the plurnl. (I) around the newly born, but the Spirit-birth, Luthordt says, "Chrisb e.nd the Ihiptist." like ell the other operations of the Spirit, is (2) Luther and Tboluck, "Christ and the hidden in God. whole prophetic company." (3) Stier, "The Ver. 9.-Nioodemus answered a.nd said to Three Persons of the blessed Trinity" (see him, How can these things come to pe.ss t Chrysostom, etc.). (4) Hengstenberg, Godet, He takes the position now of a le9.J'Der, and Westcott, Moulton, have in various ways does not by his query repudiate regeneration recognized the fact tho.t the company of the ru; absolutely impossible, but be asks the disciples olready cnlled iuto the spiritual questions " why" and "how." He mny kingdom, and alive to the mighty power of reveal his continued ignorance of the sub- the Spirit in recreating humanity, were ject-lilll.tter, but he is willing to be taught. present at this interview. They stood there '.rhe ides. we form of our Lord's reply is to affirm the reality of the truth of which regnla.tcd by the strict meaning we assign their Lord was speaking. Nothing iu this to the question-(r.~s;) "bow?" tcf. Rom. sentence is incongruous with the experience ii. 19, 29, and note on ver. 12). and practice of those who he.d appreciated Ver. 10.---J'eSUB &.I1BWered and said to him, and were already speaking of the necessity Art thou the teacher of Ismel, a.nd peroeivest of radical change or spi..rituol regeneration thou not these things t The term "Israel " and of genuine repentance. John in his is used four times by John (eh. i. 31, 49; First Epistle (i. 1-4) uses some of the very xii. 13; and here). In each place the high phraseology of this solemn verse, 8 ~o,pJ.teaµ,11 dignity, calling, and glory of the nation ... µa.pTvpouµ,11. Our Lord, on this occasion, chosen for the loftiest privilege and destiny gave him permission to do ·so. The know- are involved. Notice the article," the Israel" ledge which he spake of, the vision to which of God. The article before ~,8&..-,caAo·s gives he testified, was in ita way and to a. degree a high distinction to Nicodemus. Schiittgen within the compass of any disciple who bacl and Liicke BUppose some special office to be been waked up by tl\e Lo1·d's words to crnve l1ere referred to, either the president of the an entirely new beginning of his life, a Sanhedrin, or the 1wl:im, or ehalcam, "the birth of the Spirit. And ye· receive not _our wise man." who eat on his left in the publie testimony. This melancholy assertion proves sessions, or the " father of the house of that from the very first (as John said in his judgment," who sat on hie right; but it may ''prologue" conceming nil the ministry of simply mean the teacher of IsraeL who has the Logos, and oil the testimony of the come to me in representative fashion, and prophetic Spirit to the reality of the light) who is reminded that he should have been "the darkness receiveth it not." The firet more intimately acquainted with the teach- demand which the Divine Lo1·d made was ing of his own sacred books (Farrar, 'Life of rejected, the first "testimony" was dis- Christ,' p. 153). Without doubt, the fa.et believed. From the beginning the· dark of hnmo.n corruption, end the power of the shadow of death fell on his path. Nicodemus, Spirit of God to renovate, to change utterly or those whom he represented, may have clown to the very core and heart of human had their curiosity excited, but their entire natnre, is a great dogma of the Old Testa- attitude was non-admission of the funda- ment (of. Dent. L 16; xxx. 6; I Sam. x. 9, mental principle, viz. the inward illumina- where God gave Saul another heart; I Sam. tion and life he came to supply.j xvi. 13, the effect upon David; David's own Ver. 12.-If I told you earthly things a.nd prayer, Pe. Ii, 10; o.nd the great l)romisee ye believe not, how will ye believe if I tell of God by Ezekiel, xi. 19; niii. 31 ; you of heavenly things t Our Lord here xxxvi. 26: Jer. iv. 4; mi. 33). Nicodemus, drops the plural form of adclrcss, and returns au iUn9trious rnau, a tellcher of others, to the singular. He is about to refer to ott, Ilr, 1-38,] TUE GOSPEL ACCORbING TO ST. JOHN. lHI