Sidor som bilder
PDF
ePub

6 not enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that which is born of the spirit, 7 is spirit. Wonder not that I said unto thee, Ye must be 8 born again. The wind bloweth where it will, and thou hearest its sound, but knowest not whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the spi9 rit." Nicodemus answered and said unto him, "How 10 can these things be?" Jesus answered and said unto him,

"Art thou a teacher in Israel, and knowest not these 11 things? Verily verily I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and testify that which we have seen; 12 and yet ye receive not our testimony*. If I have told you earthly things †, and ye believe not; how will ye be13 lieve, if I tell you heavenly things? Now no man hath

ascended up to heaven, but he who came down from 14 heaven §, even the Son of man, [who is in heaven.] And

"Heavenly

* Some understand ver. 11. as the remark of the evangelist. "Earthly things," i. e. truths plain, intelligible and familiar. things," i. e. truths remote from common apprehension, opposite to vulgar prejudices, what could not be known but by intercourse with Heaven, or by divine revelation. See Deut. xxx. 12; Rom. x. 6. and the note on ver. 13.

No man hath ascended up to heaven.] "No man goeth up to heaven," Newcome; who remarks, after bishop Pearce, that the preter is here put for the present, and that again for the future. So that the expression, No man hath ascended up into heaven, means, No man will hereafter ascend. This surely is a forced interpretation. The Polish Socinians interpret the expression of a local ascent of Christ into heaven, whither they suppose him to have been taken at the commencement of his ministry, to receive divine instruction. A much more probable interpretation is that which has been proposed by Raphelius, and adopted by Dr. Doddridge and others, viz. that to ascend into heaven signifies, scrutari, et Dei novisse consilia, to search into and to understand the counsels of God. See Raphelius, Annot. vol. i. præf. Dr. Doddridge says that the phrase of ascending into heaven is plainly used in the sense of searching into the truths of God. Deut. xxx. 12; Rom. x. 6; Prov. xxx. 4. Fam. Expos. in loc. See also Cameron and Erasmus upon the text.

He who came down from heaven.] This clause is correlative to the preceding. If the former is to be understood of a local ascent, the latter must be interpreted of a local descent. But if the former clause is to be understood figuratively, as Raphelius and Doddridge explain it, the latter ought in all reason to be interpreted figuratively likewise. If" to ascend into heaven," signifies to become acquainted with the truths of God, "to descend from heaven," is to bring and to discover those truths to the world. And this text clearly explains the meaning of the phrase, wherever it occurs in this evangelist.

Who is in heaven.] This clause is wanting in some of the best copies. If its authenticity is allowed, it is to be understood of the knowledge which Christ possessed of the Father's will. See John i. 18.

P

as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the 15 Son of man be lifted up that every one who believeth in 16 him may [not perish, but] have everlasting life." For

God hath so loved the world, that he hath given his only Son, that every one who believeth in him may not pe17 rish, but have everlasting life. For God hath not sent his Son into the world, to condemn the world; but that 18 the world through him might be saved. He who believeth in him, shall not be condemned: but he that believeth not, is condemned already, because he hath not 19 believed on the name of the only* Son of God. And this is the condemnation; that light is come into the world, and yet men have loved darkness rather than light for 20 their deeds were evil: for every one who doeth evil hateth the light, and cometh not to the light, lest his deeds 21 should be discovered. But he who doeth the truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought through faith in God.

22

After these things, Jesus and his disciples came into the land of Judea; and there he tarried with them, and 23 baptized. And John also was baptizing in Enon, near Salim; because much water was there; and the people 24 came, and were baptized. For John was not yet cast into prison.

25

Then a question arose between some of John's disciples 26 and a Jew†, about baptizingt. And some came to John, and said unto him, "Rabbi §, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, he 27 baptizeth, and all men come to him." John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing, unless it be given 28 him from heaven. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that

I said, I am not the Christ, but I am sent before his 29 face.' He that hath the bride, is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly, because of the bridegroom's

* only begotten, N. Gr.

Gr. cleansing. c. ii. 6.

the Jews, R. T.

§ Master. or, My Master, N.

30 voice. This my joy therefore is complete. He must 31 increase, but I must decrease*. He that cometh from

above, is above all: he that is from the earth, is from the earth, and speaketh from the earth: he that cometh from 32 heaven [is above all t; and] testifieth what he hath seen 33 and heard; and yet none receiveth his testimony. He

that hath received his testimony, hath set his seal to eon34 firm that God is true. For he whom God hath sent,

speaketh the words of God: for [God] giveth him not 35 the spirit by measure. The Father loveth the Son, and 36 hath given all things into his hand. He who believeth

on the Son, hath everlasting life and he who disbeliev eth the Son, will not see life; but the anger of God abideth on him.”

CH. IV. When therefore the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that he made and baptized more disciples than 2 John; (though Jesus himself baptized not, but his. dis3 ciples;) he left Judea, and went again into Galilee. 4 Now he must needs go through Samaria. He cometh 5 therefore to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near to the

portion of land which Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied with his journey, sat afterward on the well. (It was 7 about the sixth hour.) A woman of Samaria cometh to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, "Give me to drink." 8 (For his disciples were gone to the city, that they might

* Some think that the Baptist's speech ends here, and that the rest of the chapter contains the remarks of the Evangelist.

"If coming from above, or from heaven, meant only receiving a divine commission, then John came from above, or from heaven, as well as Jesus." Newcome. This remark of the learned primate is perfectly just; accordingly, the Baptist is said to have been sent from God, c. i. 6. and his baptism to have come from heaven, Matt. xxi. 25; Mark xi. 30; Luke xx. 4. When therefore he speaks of Christ as coming from above, and from heaven, in contradistinction to himself, he can only mean to express the great superiority of our Lord's mission, character and powers. So ver. 34, he describes Christ as he whom God had sent, meaning that he was such by way of eminence and distinction from all others, but not intending to discredit his own divine mission, or to insinuate that he did not himself deliver a message from God. See c. i. 9. See LindBay, Seq. p. 217. and Grotius in loc.

9 buy food.) Then the Samaritan woman saith unto him, "Why dost thou, being a Jew, ask drink of me, that am a Samaritan?" (for the Jews have no friendly deal10 ings with the Samaritans.) Jesus answered and said unto her," If thou knewest the bounty of God, and who he is that saith unto thee, Give me to drink;' thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given 11 thee living water." The woman saith unto him, "Sir,

thou hast no vessel to draw with, and the well is deep: 12 whence then canst thou have that living water? Art thou

[ocr errors]

greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and 13 himself drank of it, and his sons, and his cattle?" Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh 14 of this water, will thirst again: but whosoever shall drink of the water which I shall give him, will never thirst; but the water which I shall give him will be in him a well of water springing up to everlasting life.” 15 The woman saith unto him, "Sir, give me this water, 16 that I thirst not, nor come hither to draw." Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thine husband, and come hither." 17 The woman answered and said, "I have no husband." Jesus saith unto her, "Thou hast rightly said, 'I have no 18 husband' for thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast, is not thine husband: thou hast spoken 19 this truly." The woman saith unto him, Sir, I per20 ceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the 21 place where men ought to worship." Jesus saith unto her, "Woman, believe me, the hour cometh when ye shall worship the Father neither on this mountain nor at 22 Jerusalem. Ye worship what ye know not: we wor23 ship what we know: for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for indeed

66

24 the Father seeketh such worshipers of him.

God is a

spirit: and the worshipers of him ought to worship him

25 in spirit and in truth." The woman saith unto him, " I know that the Messiah cometh: (which signifieth the Christ) when he is come, he will tell us all things.' 26 Jesus saith unto her, " I, who talk with thee, am he."

27

And upon this his disciples came, and wondered that he was talking with a woman*: yet none said, "What 28 seekest thou?" or, "Why talkest thou with her?" The woman then left her bucket, and went into the city, and 29 saith to the men, "Come, see a man who hath told me 30 all things whatever I did: is this the Christ?" Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.

32"

31 In the mean time his disciples besought him, saying, Master, eat." But he said unto them, "I have food 33 to eat, which ye know not of." Then the disciples said

one to another, "Hath any one brought him any thing to 34 eat?" Jesus saith unto them, "My food is, to do the 35 will of him who sent me, and to finish his work. Say ye not, 'There are yet four months, and then cometh the harvest?' Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; that they are already white for 36 harvest. And he who reapeth receiveth wages, and ga

thereth a crop, to everlasting life: that both he who 37 soweth, and he who reapeth, may rejoice together. For herein is that saying true, 'One soweth, and another 38 reapeth.' I have sent you to reap that on which ye have not laboured: others have laboured, and ye are entered into their labours."

39

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in him, for the words of the woman who testified, "He 40 told me all things whatever I did." When therefore the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would abide with them: and he abode there two 41 days. And many more believed because of his own 42 words; and said to the woman, "We no longer believe

* So Wakefield, "that he talked with the woman," N.

« FöregåendeFortsätt »