The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 1 — Section 400

both by Po.ul o.nd John, need for tho nafore snid one thing, nnd others sni<I nnothel'. of man ne o. oreo.ture-ite toto.lity regnrderl The "Jews" hnrl not yet come to n nnani- on ite cnrthly side, the entire "humo.nity" mous opinion thnt this wonderfnl Being was which Obrist o.ssumcd, the common 11nti- talking sheer heresy ol' incomprehcnsiblo theeis to "spirit" viewed ns the Divine su- mystery. They knew his hnbit of metn- perno.tuml gift to mo.n. Ho wns (1 Tim. iii. phoric speech, nnd tha.t undernenth common 16) " mo.nifest in the flesh," in " the lilreness im11gery he was in the habit of conveyin;; of sinful neeh" (Rom. viii. 3)-in o. flesh free doctrines the full purport of which was not from nil sin. He cnme "rn the flesh" (1 nt once apparent. Some denounced him a., John ii. 1G; iv. 2). 'J.'hie humnnity of his he uttering on intolerable riddle. Some saw. gives, or ro.ther, when he spako these words, in n measure, through it, and hated th~ he would give, fo be eaten, to be nssimilnted doctrine that WCIS thereby con.eyed. How by foith; nnd, ho.ving renchcd this point, he could he be so essential to the life of the added (i.e. ifwe retain the questioned clo.use, world? o.nd how, eaicl the pure mnterialist, whieh,with Meyer and Godet, we eec no su.ffi- "how can he give us his flesh to eat?" A oient renson fordiscarding),whichflesh,which question of great interest arises. He has humanity of his, he will further give to be already identified, in ver. 35, "coming to slain and sacrificed for the snke of, or on him," "reaching him" under the drawinr; behnlfof, the world. This clause, which the of the Father, with the transcendent hies,. Vntican Oodex, etc., reject, proceeds clearly ing of life eternal, of victory over death, anrl on the supposition that Christ o.dvnuces here resurrection. In ver. 40 " beholding" ancl to the prediction and promise of his death. "believing" nre cognate or equivalent con- It is so worded as nll the more to justify the ditions of life and resurrection. In ver. 4i, cmphnsis he subsequently la.ye upon the a.gain, " believing," per se, ia the essentia I death itself o.s essentie1l to II full participa- o.nd all-comprehensive condition. Now, ho.a tion in himself. In this verse and closing Christ added, in this verse, anything fresh utterance he prepares for further disclosures, to the fundo.mentnl ideas? Let it be pon- and the flesh of Christ receives explanation dered that he hns nlreudy equated "believ- from the rich and varied reference to it in ing" with eating o. bread that endureth to the :final words of the discourse, where the everlasting life (vers. 27-29). He has de- flesh is the grent metaphor of his Divine clared himself to be the "Bread of life," and humanity, nnd the blood is the expressive to be nppropriated by" coming" and'' believ- description of his awful sacrifice. He, the ing." He hos spoken of himself 11s "living Life-giver, the Living One, the Bread of Dread," which, coming for the life of the life, the living Brend, will give himself to world from heaven itself, is offered as food. what men call death, that they, apprehend- Now, whot more than this has he sa,d when ing fully, o.daquately accepting the great- he declared that he will offer his "flesh " aa ness of the Divine gil't, may, like himself, heavenly food? The Jews undoubtedly tronsform death (so-callee! death) into the show, by their mutua.l contest, that he hnd portnl of eternal life. These words are the put some po.rt of the previous oracle in o. new starting-point for this great disclosure. still more enigmaticnl, if not offensive, form. The very inner thought of Jesus seems to So for the imagery \'\"as not nltogether be- shape itself os we read. The Pnschnl sncri- yond them. Here it tnkes on e. form which :fice, en ten at that season as the sign th11t the excites nngry controversy. If they under- theocratic nation had been chosen to cove- stood him to mean "doctrine," "truth." nant o.nd etemnl relation with Jehovah, "cause," even "office," 11s Head of a spiri- must have been present to his mind. His tual school-ns one providing by his gracious own npproochina death e.nd sncrifice, by will ample nutriment for o.ll who woulJ eat of which he would 'bind those who receive him the rich banquet of his words-they \'\"OU!d, into an eternal covenant with himself, his to some extent, follow him. The outing of rellltion to the whole world, the gift of the the tree of life wns a well-known figure in Father to him, the gift of himsolf to the 1 Hebrew Scripture (Prov. iv. 17; ix. 5); cf. world by the Father,-all are presented to the language of Isaiah (lv. 2), the a.ction of him, and the movemonts of his grent heart Ezekiel (iii. 1-3), and the imagery of Hosea reveal themselves as he proceeds. (x. 13). In the' Midrash on Eccl. ii. 2-l; Vere. 52-59.-(d) The conflict among the iii. 12; viii. 15,' "en.ting and drinking" is Jetoa leads <Jhrist to insist further on sepamte said o.lways to refer to the Law (Edcrsheim participation of his flesh aud blood as the o.nd Wiinsche). But when he spoke of oon.-1,ition of life. giving his "ftes11" for the life of the world, he Ver. 52.-The J'ewa therefore strove one passed beyond tho limits of their interpreting with another (iµ.d.xoll'ro represents more power. Thoy did not see through his imagery; vigorous demonstration of their difficulties nor clid Jesus exactly answer the angry query the.n tl1e i-y&,,.yu(ov of ver. 41). They were which they were putting one to another. not unanimous in their judgment. Some Vers. 53, ~i. -1es1lll sa.id to them,  '.:GS THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. [ou. v1. 1-71.