The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 221

repreeentativos, lhe world will ho convinced, fore him slmll bo gathered o.11 nations;" nr nml not ap11rt from them. Beoanse it seeth whether this coming be simply his rcsnr- him not (o..,pEi)-docs not behold him in his rection witli I,is transitory appenronccs in tho externnl revolutions-and knoweth him not fl~sh ; for b::ith of these represonte.tions woal, I by personal experience, "is not le1uning to foil of the full consollltion which woul<l termi· know him" 11S those disciples oven liitherto ne.te their orphanhood. Suroly ho speaks of have boon ablo to do in Christ. The world his own spiritual coming in the be,towment f,f hu proved by its rnjccUon of Cliri,t that it the oth1'1' Adcocate, who, by being with them cannot behold llio Divine energy in him, and in them, would provo to them, notwith- uor perceive by nny inw11rd experience hie ate.nding his own appo.rent dopo.rture, that nnture or the rcnl n11ture of God ; but ye, he had come agnin in his glorious fulnese of eo.icl Christ, are now learning to know him ; love. In the thought of the early Church for he nbidcth with you, Ho ho.a begun liis the Lord was the Spirit: Lhc glorified Lord, o.biding presence with yon, and shall be in the Christ, who ho.d "all power in heaven ,ou; o.nd tliis etnto of things will con- and earth," was mnnil'estecl, was veritably tinue to the cud of time. " 'fhe future present, in o.11 the work of the Spirit of God shows that the whole rno.tter belongs to Lhe in his Church. The Spirit was not only the downin of futw·ity" (Hcngetenberg). The Unity of the Father nnd the Son, the one world co.nnot "receive," bcco.use it is depen- Self-coneciowmcse of both, but the one Con- dent on visible things, and it co.nnot know sciousness of the Son of God ancl Son of because it cnnnot behold; You have no man, the uniting Energy which represents need to behold, and can o.nd do know by the one Per-,ono.lity of the Christ, the another process. Tho pnssnge is very diffi- Spirit-power which blends all the members cult, because, if the world co.unot receive the of the mystical body with the Head. Spirit by reo.son of itd own unspi.ritunlity Throughout the Acts of the Apostles we see and ignoro.nce, how is the threefold con- that nil the great operations of the Holy viction to be realized? May Ad{Jetv be re- Spirit are bnt the energies of the living, garded in the sense of 1<11.Ta.>,,d.;,.{Ja.veiv, ~ to reigning Lord. seize hold of"? Rost and Po.Im give the Ver. 19.-Yet a little while-a few hours following insto.nces of this use of A11.µ{Ja.11ii,, only-and the world-which co.nnot to.ke from in Horner: • Od.,' vi. 81; viii. 116; • II.,' v. you (or even appreciate or receive) the Holy 273; Herod., iv. 130, etc. (cf. eh. xix. 1; Spirit-beheldeth me no more. Their power Rev. viii. 5). If so, tho whole of this of beholding me will be gone by their own pasao.ge would read, "He will give yon o.ct, they will ha~e cursed ancl driven me another Helper or Ad\·ocate, tho.t he may be away with the hellish cry, "Crucify him!" with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth they will have slain o.nd buried me out of whom the world cannot seize (or to.ke from their sight; but, notwithstanding this, you, you), bcco.use it beholdeth him not, neither by my coming to you in the power of the knoweth him; but ye are learning to know Spirit, will vcritnbly behold me, Even more him, becnuse he, according to the eternal the.n this, because I live though I die, ya laws of his being, dwelleth with you, and ah.all live e.lso, in your intense spiritual apper- will be in you, 1md be altogether beyond ception of my continuity of life, of which the me.lice of the world." you will have ocular aud spirituo.l guarantee. Vcl', 18.-I will not leave you behind as J osus here passed over lhe concrete fact of orphans, bereft of my paternal guardillDship. the Resurrection, to return to it aftcrwo.rds. Thongh the disciples were hie brethren, We know that the resurrection of hie body yet, as we have seen, he calls them (eh. xiii. and his victory over death beco.me (1) the 33) TEJ<vfa hie ".littlo children;" and (Heb. condition of his sending the Spirit, (2) ii. 11) the apostles reckoned him as Arthur the proof of his being the living One whom (in • Guinevere') clocs when he speo.ks of cleath could not hol<l, and (3) the gro1llld of "our fair Fo.ther Christ." His cleparture the higher npprcciation of the relo.tion they might bo the signal for the most utter sense sustained to hitn. But he fixed their o.tten- of desertion, exposure, o.nil peril; nnd even tion on his continnous life (in spite of the promise of another .A.dvocutua would cloath), and their consequent life uncler the hardly console them before tho time would shadow of his Divine protection. without arrive wheu he would receive them unto speci.fieally mentioning the Resurrection, of himself; but, says he, I ain ooming to you. which he he.d (in synoptic no.rn\tivo) given Much unneces~o.ry comment ho.a here arisen thom explicit but misapprehended pro- ns to whether this coming was the lust phecies. This version seems to be prefer- triumphant ..-11.pouala of which he speo.ks in able to making the Inst clause 3T,. etc., 11, po.rt in ver. 3,-this would be incomputible reason of the 6ea,pE'i-rl µe--a view advocated with the assuro.nces that then the world ns possible by ll:leyer 1111d LuthlUtlt; or than -would nnd will soo him : '"Every eye shl\ll '' the Yiow which limits the o-r, ,., to the -thon be prophetic 11ud " see him," e.nd " bo- eo,pE'i-rt: "Ye see me because I live, IIIld  228 TIIE GOSPEL ACCOUDING TO ST. JOHN. [arr. xrv. 1-31.