The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 1 — Section 435

hostility whloh kept him eo long from Jeru- possible epe.ce, on we.lie e.nd housetops in salem wns ciroulating in angry vibrations to courtyards, and even in we.ggons and on the the very borders of Go.lilee. The hour for the be.eke of camels. The people carried their fine.I oonlliot wae in abeyance until he hnd palm bre.nches and citrons in their hands, pree.chod more explicitly the Di vine goapol e.nd gree.t_ merriment, almost suggestive of of lovo and redemption, o.nd he.d left the in- hen.then ntes, prevailed. It probably ga- destructible seed in human hearts. 'fhere thered up about it, e.s some Christian festive.le wo.s malice in Galilee e.s well o.s in Judme., have done, other ancient or surrounding hut it took e. different form. Thome. regards customs. The numl:ier of bullocks sacrificed the sixth chapter as the ideal treatment by during the seven days-one fewer on each the fourth evangelist of the events recorded de.y, beginning with thirteen-amounted in in the synoptic ne.rre.tive, e.nd, stre.ngely e.ll to seventy (13+ 12+ ll + 10+9+8+7= enough, treats tho wonders on the see. e.ncl on 70). This the rabbis regarded as refer- the le.nd o.s pe.rallels to tho synoptic account ring to the seventy nations of heathendom. of the tempte.tion I The objection to this is Additional peculiarities were conspicuous in not so much the underlying dissimile.rity of the immense number of priests who were 1dee. e.s the chronological positiou assigned by required to take part in the sacrifices. Matthew and Luke to the temptation before The blasts of priests' trumpets which regu- John was imprisoned, whereas these events lated the ceremonial, the great musical occur after his execution. Further, the procession employed in bringing water from synoptists record these two mire.oles in their the Pool of Siloarn, then within the city proper plo.ce in the biography as well as we.II, added another noticeable feature. desoribe the temptation. The.t the deep The water was brought in e. golden goblet, inner meaning and teaching of eh. vi. corre- e.nd poured into a silver funnel, which sponds with that of the le.et Supper, no conveyed it by pipes to the Kedron, and reader can miss ; nor the.t this confession of we.e thns supposed to bless the thirsty land. Peter is the highest point of the ee.rlier e.nd This e.ct we.s e.ccompe.nied by singing the later ne.rratives we do not question; but great Hallel, e.nd the shouts e.nd songs of their striking resemblance to each other, Zion were heard far over hill e.nd ve.lley. instead of transforming this Gospel into e. .A.t night-time universe.I illumination pre- philosophiee.l e.llegory, appears tons to prove vailed, e.nd huge candelabra in the temple- that we have the same historio Christ in court shed e. re.die.nee over the whole city. both IllllT&tives. The Fee.et of Tabernacles.' These peculia.rities of the fee.et. rendered it the <Tf<'IIVO'll"l/'Yla, or tent-pitching, called by the most popular, if not the most sacred, of Philo <Tf<'llvu{, we.a the last greo.t feast of ell the feasts (' Ant.,' viii. 4. 1, 'Eop-r¾ a.;,,- the se.ored year. It had its relation to the ,,mfr11 ,cal µ<;,l<TTTJ). It we.a e. time when nature.I e.nd providentie.l goodness of God. the national sentiment often bnr•t into Jnst o.s the Passover commemorated the fierce fie.me. Ve.rious historio glories of opening of the harvest e.nd the :6.rstfrnits of the pe.st were called to remembrance, and the grain, and as Pentecost celebrated the epiritue.l privileges were symbolized in the completion of the harvest, so the "Taber- ritual. The fact that the fee.et held this nacles" implied the ingathe1ing of the fruit important place in the affections and enthu- of the vine e.nd of the olive, e.nd summed up siasm of the people explains the anxiety of the joyful eclmowledgments for the whole the family of Jeans that, whatever his cle.inls year. Age.in, e.e the " Passover ·• recorded really were, they should be canvassed in the deliverance from Egyptian bondage by the metropolis e.ud decided by the only the destroying angel who spa.red the blood- authorities adequate to the task. sprinkled home, e.nd the" Pentecost" prob- Ver. 3.-llis brethren therefore (pointing ably (Me.i.monides) commemorated the to the high signi.fice.nce of this national and giving of the Le.w, so the "Te.berne.oles" triumphant fea.st) said unto him. These reoe.lled in e. festive form the time of Israel's brethren were (Matt. xiii. 55) Jo.mes, Josee, wandering in the wilderness, when they Simon, and Jude.a, e.nd, without entering dwelt in te.berne.oles. Joyfulness e.nd once more on the much-debated question of astonishing ceremonial ohe.racterized the their aotue.l relation to Jesus (see oh. ii 12, festive.I. The oity of po.laces broke out and notes), it may be said that this passage into booths of trees and leaves in every in e. very mo.rked manner discriminates them from the apostles or disciples, and 1 Bee Edershei.m's 'The Temple and its pre.ctioe.lly negatives the " cousin " theory Services,' and 'Life of Jesus,' ii. 148; The derived from the supposed identification of Talmud (translated by Barole.y), Treatises Alphl!lus with Cleophe.s, e.nd consequenUy of 'Mishno.h,' with illustre.tiou from the of the sons of Alphmns (Jamee, Judas, and Gemare.s, vi. " on Te.berue.oles ; " Ewe.Id, Simon) with the e.postles of the same ne.me"- ' Alterthum,' p. 481; Smith, 'Diaaonary of The lack of sympathy shown by these men. the Bible,' vol, iii. 1431, and the positive e.esertion of their non-belief  S04 ·rIIE GOSPEL AOCORDING TO 81'. JOHN. [on. v11. 1--58, ----- --~----- -------------------------- In Jesus, is inoompatible with the great aeoret, and himeel.f I aeeketh to be known confession •o recently made (oh. vi. 68, 69), openly. Vulgnte, in palam esse. LUc\te and ~11nnol (with Hengslenbel'g e.nd Lange) translates in Lalin," idcmque cnpit celeber be dih~<'<i into imperfect appreciation of esee." The ab.-&s e.nswere to the subject f'laims which they wished in e. seculal' eense of the verb "doeth," who yet is denied to to prc>ss forWRrd to full assertion. They exist by the obll,(s. The lv 1rn~~71rrlt ,Iva,, appeared hel'e to criticize their Brother's says Meyer, is "to be the opposite of a prolonged absence from Jel'usalem, and his shy 1md timid nature," which is very uu- abstention from the Passover and other me1ming. Gl'imm says of the phrase lv national festivals. They wonld, perhaps ..-ap~11rrltf, "Is ee gcrendi modus quo a]i. sin(lt-rely, hnny forward his public dcmon- q uis omnibus conspiouus est," and Justifies stm.tion, and compel him to say to the great it by this passage and by eh. xi. 54; Coss. world what he hnd been saying in Ge.lilroan ii. 15 (cf. Wisd. v. 1, T&.-, rrnfrr,.-a, lv 1rap• villag<'s, in the borders of Tyre, e.nd in the ~71rri<f ..-o>..>,:ff I, lll1<a1os ), So Luthe.rdt: " It cities of Dooapolis. Depa.rt henoe, e.nd go denotes that which ie open, in contrast to into Jndm:i.. " This is the time and place." that which is concealed." Westcott settles Thoma sees in this e.dvioe the same idea the meaning of the word by the remark that which, on the mount of Transfiguration, was "the phrase ( N'OmE>::i) is commonly used by suggested by Moses and Elijah "concerning the rabbinical writers for • in public,' as the departure which the Lord we.s to accom- opposed to 'in secret.''' The man who per- plish in Jerusalem." The Johannist has sists in quiet, secret ways of acting, and clothed the same material insinuation in a strenuously avoids publicity, is not the man dialogue (dial,ogische Verhandlung). It has who seeketh to be illustrious and conspi• been said that this kind of e.dvice is rather cuous. The brethren see a palpable con- in favour of the hypothesis that these tra.diction between the claims which Jesue brethren were older than Jesus, e.nd possibly is me.king and the comparative retirement the children of Joseph by an earlier marriage, to which he is con.fining himself. The who thus took upon themselves the function crowds of the Gu.lilme.n le.ke are blank re• of advisers. Such a hint, however (given tirement when compared with the metropolis by Westcott), seems very shadowy confirma- in the great clime.cterio festival of the year. tion of the theory. Younger brothers would The brethren call on Christ to solve the he jwrt as likely to en in the B.'.l.Ille direction. contradiction. It cannot be concealed that In order that thy disciples also may behold Jesus had (Luke viii. 16; xi. 33; xii. 2) Chy works which thou doest, The words repeatedly said, "No man lighteth a lamp "thy disciples" may (Godet, Luthardt for- e.nd pntteth it under a bushel, but on a 1:1erly) have he.d special reference to the fact candlestick," eto. ; and so the brothers use t.!.e.t our Lord had me.de in J udma " more Christ's words against himself. But the t!lsciplee than had John" (eh. iv. 1), that Lord's idea of needful manifestation, both as there were even members of the Sanhedrin to degree, time, and place, was accurately who had to some extent looked favourably realized and represented in both narratives. upon bim (eh. iii. I), and needed confirme.- If thou doest these things. The ,l is simply tion of their faith. There may also have the logical premise, without necesearily been te.ci t reference to the circw:nstance throwing doubt on the facts. It is not recorded in eh. vi. that bis Gali!JEan dis- equal, however, to the particle l1r<1, "since." ciples had deserted him; but it is more Admitting these works to be real, and these likely (Meyer) that the brethren took it for mighty deeds to be correctly reported, there· granted that those who in numerous places is from the standpoint of the brethren no had received hie word would be gathered other course than that which they suggest : together in JerUBB.lem, and would have &.n Manifest thyself to the world ; i.e. "pro- opportunity of seeing with their own eyes and ceed to the widest arena at once ; ,. " thou in consocie.tion with ea.eh other the works of a.rt compromising thyself by thy retirement;" healing e.nd might which were beingvarionsly "what thou a.rt doing with one hand thou reported, canvassed, and disputed in the art undoing with the other." "All the schools of Gfl.lilee. " Thy disciples " is a Israel world from all lands is crowding to wide word, and may easily refer to all who, the great feast, thy dieoiples amongst them; whether in Jerusalem or Galilee, went by 1 Tregellee, Dale Revisers, W eetcott ~nd his name. It is a designation which, how- ever, does not include the speakers. '' The Hort, aud the Revisers have put into ·their works which thou e.rt doing" is sufficiently margin, with "some ancient authorities," illUBtre.ted from tae group of remarkable ab.-6 in place of a!n-6s. These authorities evenui which had signalized the previons are B, D•, Se.hidio, Coptic (Curetonie.n twelve months of the Ga.lilJean ministry Syrie.c). Le.chme.nn introduced it into the (see on ver. 1). text, which would thus read, "seeketh it to Ver. 4.-For 110 man doeth anythinJ in be known openly." ou. vu. 1-63.J THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 301',