The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 370

nro epokun of In the plurnl, rnpa."11"Yoi, """ have occurred as the first answer to hie l,pov, The Jewish guarrl was nnder the summons. And aaith unto them, Whom custody of one offloor, 6 ,,.,,.P"-T1J"'f&,, nnd he seek yel wnen mnn of high mnlrnndrlignity(,Joeephue, Vera. 5, 6.-They answered him; Jesus 'Ant.,' :u:. 6. 2: •Boll.Juel.,' ii. 17. 2)-nnt the Nazarene. 1eaue eaith unto them, two, but one; the reference to more thnn one I am he, Then, in all probnbility, the nrnet therefore point to the Rom1m military miscre11nt, the son of perdition, so.id," Hail, officio.I RB woll, thus nnconsoiously sustainingMnster I" and kiascd him; rmcl there followed tho moro definite information given by John. before and after his act the sublime replie,a Judns with bis band cometh thither with lan- given, "Companion, wherefore nrt thon terns and torohe■ and weapons; for, though it come?" and" J ndas, betrayeat thou the Son wns the Pnscbal full moon, they were intent of man with e. kiss?" John, however, over- on finding an individual, whom Judo.s would whelmed with the majesty and spontaneous identify for them, amid the depths of the self-devotion of the Lord, rails attention to olive shades. (l\.a.µ.1rd, is in its primary sense the language he addressed to the " band " n torch, or even meteorio light, but it is used which aurwunded him. In some royal for a lamp or lantern; and tf>a.v&, also is emphe.sis of tone he sai,1, "I am (he)," and used for" torch" primarily, with secondary the so.me kind of effect followed as on meaning of" lantern.") Matthew o.nd Mark various occasions had proved how powerless, mention "swords " o.nd " staves," but so.y without bis permission, the machinations of nothing of the flaring torches which so his foes really were. In the temple courts, arrested the eye of John. Thoma sees e. and on the precipice of Nazareth, the mur- reference to the frequent deolaration of derous J ewe and Go.Wreo.ns were foiled Christ, that he was the "Light of the (compare the murderers of Marius and of world," and to the contrast between that Coligny) by the moral grandeur of his bear- light nnd the power of darkness. ing ; and when he said, I am he, they went Ver. 4.---Jes118 then-the o~v implies that be.okwo.rd, and fell to the ground (xa.i,a.i for our Lord discerned the approach of the ;ic:a.i,d:{,). Whether this was a supernatural hostile band-knowing all the things that event, or allied to the sublime force of moral were coming upon him-in fnll conscious- greatness flashing in his eye or echoing in the ness of his position, and in voluntary sacri- tone of his voice, we cannot say, but associat- fice of himself to the will of God and the ing it with other events in his history, the purpose of his mission-went forth ; 1 i.e. supernatural in his case becomes perfectly from the garden enclosure-see ver.1-(say natural. It was so that he whose "I am Meyer and Godet); from the recesses of the he" had hushed the waves and cast ont the garden or the garden-house (say others): devil, and before whose glance and word partly in consequence of the language of the John nnd Paul fell to the earth, as if struck kinsman of Malchus, •• Did I not see thee in with lightning, did perhaps allow his very the garden?" But this is perfectly compa- captors (prepared by Judas for some display tible with the obvious fa.et that the eight of his might) to feel how powerless they disciples o.nd the favoured three should have were age.inst him. It is remarkable that lilhrnnk behind our Lord when he co.lmly our narrative should place between the " I emerged from the entrance to the garden, am he" and its effect, the tautologous reruark and that their position would be thus suf- if there be nothing to explain it, Now Judas ficiently indicated. It is remarkable that also, who wu.s betraying him, was standing John, who has been accused of personal with them. This implies that Judas had malice to Judas (i.e. by those who, like taken some step equivalent to that described Rene.n, admit, to a certain extent, the Johan- in the synoptic ne.rrati ve. There is some nine e.uthorship),doesnot refer to the traitor's momentary consolation in the thought that kiss. This well-attested and traditionally the traitor fell to the ground with his gang, sustained incident is not excluded by the nar- and for an insto.nt saw the transcendent crime rative before us-indeed, the second reference he hnd committed in betraying the innocent to Judas seems to imply something spooie.l in blood with the kiss of treachery and shame. his conduct, which is needed to account for Thoma sees in the approximation of Judas ft. We cnn hardly suppose that it could the approach of the prophetic Beast to the he.ve taken pie.ea before the Lord Jesus had true King, and endeavours out of the letters uttered his solemn word, but it may easily of hlB name to read the number 666 ! It is tme that eh. xiii. 27 represents Sa.tan as l T.R. reads #l•/\.8~11 E17rEV, with~. A, c•, having entered into Judas. He stood there, and numerous uncie.ls : but Lachmann, he fell there, with the powers of darkness, Trcgellcs, Tischendorf (8th edit.), Westcott Whe.t e. moment! The devil ml\y ho.v11 and Hort, nnd R.T., Jt~M,v ,ea.I /\.J"'f"• tempted Obrist to blast his emissaries with with B, o•, D, and the La$in versions and the breath of his nostrils: but, true to his fntbiirij, sublime mission, he is occupied only with  882 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. [en. xvm.1-40.