João 7
J.C. Ryle · Citado em PreceptAustin
João 7
Ryle - It was not so much the high doctrines which He preached, as the high standard of practice which He proclaimed, which gave offence. It was not even His claim to be received the Messiah which men disliked so much, as His witness against the wickedness of their lives. In short, they could have tolerated His opinions if He would only have spared their sins. The principle, we may be sure, is one of universal application. It is at work now just as much as it was eighteen hundred years ago. The real cause of many people’s dislike to the Gospel is the holiness of living which it demands. Teach abstract doctrines only, and few will find any fault. Denounce the fashionable sins of the day, and call on men to repent and walk consistently with God, and thousands at once will be offended. The true reason why many profess to be infidels, and abuse Christianity, is the witness that Christianity bears against their own bad lives.—Like Ahab, they hate it, “because it does not prophesy good concerning them, but evil.” (1 Kings 22:8.) (John 7 Commentary) The world (kosmos) cannot hate (miseo) you, but (term of contrast) it hates (miseo) Me because (term of explanation) I (present tense - continually) testify (martureo) of it, that its deeds (ergon) are (present tense - continually) evil (poneros) - NLT = "I accuse it of doing evil." The world is that system of anti-God beliefs of people and philosophies, education, culture, etc, under the control of Satan (1Jn 5:19+), the father of lies (THOUGHT - Why are we so surprised that many people lie to us? that the news lies to us? etc). Jesus explains why the brothers would not be hated by the world (and in context the scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders of the Jews), because as unbelievers they too belonged to the world (kosmos) which hated Him! The brothers were floating downstream in synch with the world which would ruffle no one's feathers! Why did the world hate Jesus? Because He testified of it! In other words, He exposed the sins of the people in the world! The perfect, sinless Christ clearly and dramatically demonstrated how imperfect and sinful was the world's way of life. If Jesus was a "straight edge" (so to speak), He clearly revealed the crookedness of the world! Sinners resent being exposed for what they are! (Jn 3:20+). THOUGHT - If you are comfortable with this Satanically controlled world system, then you need to ask yourself "Whose kingdom do I truly belong to, to God's or to Satan's?" If the world does not hate you, you need to soberly ponder Paul's commands (test yourselves...examine yourselves) in 2 Corinthians 13:5+. David Thompson goes so far as to say "If we don’t ever find ourselves at odds with that which is contrary to God, then we have good reason to question whether we are saved (John 15:18-25)." Martin Luther said if you preach the truth of God with fearless fidelity, you will arm the whole world against you. J
João 7
Ryle - The true reason of this enmity of many of the Jews against Christ is here distinctly indicated. It was not merely His claims to be received as the Messiah. It was not merely the high and spiritual doctrine He preached. It was rather His constant testimony against the sinful lives and wicked practices of the many in His day. That adultery, covetousness, and hypocrisy were rife and common among the leading Pharisees, is evident from many expressions in the Gospels. It was our Lord’s witness against these darling sins that enraged His enemies. The wickedness of human nature is painfully shown in this sentence. Christ was “hated.” It is an utter delusion to suppose that there is any innate response to perfect moral purity, or any innate admiration of “the true, the pure, the just, the kind, the good, and the beautiful,” in the heart of man. God gave man, 1800 years ago, a perfect pattern of purity, truth, and love, in the person of our Lord while He was upon earth. And yet we are told He was “hated.” (John 7 Commentary) What the world hates about Christians is neither their doctrines, nor their faults, but their holy lives -- J C Ryle THOUGHT - True Christians must never be surprised if they are “hated” like their Lord. “The disciple is not above his Master.”—“Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.” (Matt. 10:24; 1 John 3:13.) In fact the more like Christ they are, the more likely to be “hated.” Moreover, they must not be cast down and make themselves miserable, under the idea that it is their inconsistencies the world hates, and that if they were more consistent and lovely in life the world would like them better. This is a complete mistake, and a common delusion of the devil. What the world hates about Christians is neither their doctrines, nor their faults, but their holy lives. Their lives are a constant testimony against the world, which makes the men of the world feel uncomfortable, and therefore the world hates them. Let us note, that unpopularity among men is no proof that a Christian is wrong, either in faith or practice. The common notion of many, that it is a good sign of a person’s character to be well-spoken of by everybody, is a great error. When we see how our Lord was regarded by the wicked and worldly of His day, we may well conclude that it is a very poor compliment to be told that we are liked by everybody. There can surely be very little “witness” about our lives if even the wicked like us. “Woe unto you when all men shall speak well of you.” (Luke 6:26.) That sentence is too much forgotten. Erasmus used to say, that Luther might have had an easy life, if he had not touched the Pope’s crown, and the monks’ bellies. Bengel observes, “Those who please all men, at all times, ought deservedly to look on themselves with suspicion.” (Ryle) F. B.
João 7
Ryle - The words which old Simeon had spoken thirty years before were here accomplished in a striking manner. He had said to our Lord’s mother, “This child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel: and for a sign which shall be spoken against;—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” (Luke 2:34, 35+.) In the diversities of opinion about our Lord which arose among the Jews, we see the good old man’s saying fulfilled. (John 7 Commentary) Some were saying, "He is a good (agathos) man" Sadly even those who favored Jesus still misrepresented Him as a good man failing to recognize Him as their great Messianic Savior. They were close because agathos means one who brings a benefit (likely alluding to His miracles that brought physical healing, deliverance from demons, etc), but close is only good in horseshoes! He was a good Man, but even this positive adulation misses the critical truth that He was (is) the God Man,. The crowd needed to "knock an O out" of the word "GOOD!" Jesus us the BEST Man. Jesus is the ONLY Man that can bring spiritual healing and save sinners (Acts 4:12+) from eternal separation from God. Steven
João 7
Ryle - Here the reason already given and commented on is repeated. Our Lord did not say He would not go to the feast, but not yet. There was “a time” for all His actions, and every step of His ministry, and that time had not yet fully arrived; or, as the Greek literally means, was not “fulfilled.” True Christians should remember that, like their Master on this occasion, they and worldly men cannot well work and act and move together. They will often find it so. Their principles are different. Their reasons and motives of action are different. They will often find that “two cannot walk together except they are agreed.”.....One reason perhaps for our Lord not going with them was His desire to avoid being made a public show by His relatives. They had very likely a carnal desire to call attention to Him and to rally a party of adherents round Him, for their own worldly ends. To avoid affording any opportunity for this, our Lord would not go in their company. He had not forgotten, no doubt, that in Galilee there was a party who once would fain have “taken Him by force to make Him a king.” (John 6:15.) He wished to keep clear of that party. (John 7 Commentary) NET Note - Although the word is kairos here, it parallels John's use of hora elsewhere as a reference to the time appointed for Jesus by the Father - the time of his return to the Father, characterized by His death, resurrection, and ascension (glorification). In the Johannine literature, synonyms are often interchanged for no apparent reason other than stylistic variation. TECHNICAL NOTE - Most manuscripts (P B L T W Θ Ψ 070 0105 0250 ƒ M sa), including most of the better witnesses, have “not yet” (οὔπω, oupō) here. Those with the reading οὐκ are not as impressive (א D K 1241 al lat), but οὐκ is the more difficult reading here, especially because it stands in tension with Jn 7:10. On the one hand, it is possible that οὐκ arose because of homoioarcton: A copyist who saw oupo wrote ouk. However, it is more likely that οὔπω was introduced early on to harmonize with what is said two verses later. As for Jesus’ refusal to go up to the feast in Jn 7:8, the statement does not preclude action of a different kind at a later point. Jesus may simply have been refusing to accompany his brothers with the rest of the group of pilgrims, preferring to travel separately and “in secret” (Jn 7:10) with his disciples. MIT is an accurate paraphrase - "I am not going up to this feast (right now)," The NAS, NET, ESV, et al have "I am not going up to this feast." This is an unfortunate rendering because it ostensibly makes Jesus out to be a liar because He did go up. On the other hand if we read it as the KJV has it we read "I go not up YET unto this feast". Compare the NKJV "I am not YET going up to this feast." Clearly these last two translations are more compatible with the fact that Jesus did go up to the feast, but not with His brothers when they went up. He was not seeking the public spotlight the brothers sought for Him (and probably for themselves). Fully come(complete) (4137) pleroo means to be filled (passive voice = saints acted on by outside force = "Divine Passive") to the brim (a net, Mt 13:48, a building, Jn 12:3, Acts 2:2+, a city, Acts 5:28+, needs Phil 4:19+), to make complete in every particular, to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally, to flood, to diffuse throughout, to pervade, to take possession of and so to ultimately to control. John's use of pleroo - Jn. 3:29; Jn. 7:8; Jn. 12:3; Jn. 12:38; Jn. 13:18; Jn. 15:11; Jn. 15:25; Jn. 16:6; Jn. 16:24; Jn. 17:12; Jn. 17:13; Jn. 18:9; Jn. 18:32; Jn. 19:24; Jn. 19:36;1 Jn. 1:4; 2 Jn. 1:12; Rev. 3:2; Rev. 6:11 Norman Geisler - JOHN 7:8—Did Jesus lie to His brothers? PROBLEM: Jesus’ unbelieving brothers challenged Him to go up to Jerusalem and show Himself openly if He was the Messiah (7:3–4). Jesus refused, saying, “I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come” (v. 8). However, only a few verses later Jesus “went up to the feast” (v. 10). SOLUTION: Jesus did not go up to Jerusalem in the way in which His brothers suggested. They suggested He go and be “known openly” (7:4). But the Scripture explicitly declares that “He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret” (7:10). (BORROW When Critics Ask) John 7:9 Having said these things to them, He stayed in Galilee. BGT John 7:9 ταῦτα δὲ εἰπὼν αὐτὸς ἔμεινεν ἐν τῇ Γαλιλαίᾳ. KJV John 7:9 When he had said these words unto them, he abode still in Galilee. NET John 7:9 When he had said this, he remained in Galilee. CSB John 7:9 After He had said these things, He stayed in Galilee. ESV John 7:9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee. NIV John 7:9 Having said this, he stayed in Galilee. NLT John 7:9 After saying these things, Jesus remained in Galilee. NRS John 7:9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee. NJB John 7:9 Having said that, he stayed behind in Galilee. NAB John 7:9 After he had said this, he stayed on in Galilee. YLT John 7:9 and saying these things to them, he remained in Galilee. GWN John 7:9 After saying this, Jesus stayed in Galilee. BBE John 7:9 Having said these things to them, he still kept in Galilee. RSV John 7:9 So saying, he remained in Galilee. NKJ John 7:9 When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee. ASV John 7:9 And having said these things unto them, he abode still in Galilee. MIT John 7:9 Subsequent to saying these things, he remained in Galilee. John 7 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Having said these things to them, He stayed (meno) in Galilee - Presumably the brothers obeyed and went on ahead to the feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem.
João 7
Ryle - The difficulty of finding out “what is truth” in religion is a common subject of complaint among men. They point to the many differences which prevail among Christians on matters of doctrine, and profess to be unable to decide who is right. In thousands of cases this professed inability to find out truth becomes an excuse for living without any religion at all. The saying of our Lord before us is one that demands the serious attention of persons in this state of mind. It supplies an argument whose edge and point they will find it hard to evade. It teaches that one secret of getting the key of knowledge is to practise honestly what we know, and that if we conscientiously use the light that we now have, we shall soon find more light coming down into our minds.—In short, there is a sense in which it is true, that by doing we shall come to knowing. There is a mine of truth in this principle. Well would it be for men if they would act upon it. Instead of saying, as some do,—“I must first know everything clearly, and then I will act,”—we should say,—“I will diligently use such knowledge as I possess, and believe that in the using fresh knowledge will be given to me.” How many mysteries this simple plan would solve! How many hard thing would soon become plain if men would honestly live up to their light, and “follow on to know the Lord!” (Hosea 6:3.) It should never be forgotten that God deals with us as moral beings, and not as beasts or stones. He loves to encourage us to self-exertion and diligent use of such means as we have in our hands. The plain things in religion are undeniably very many. Let a man honestly attend to them, and he shall be taught the deep things of God. Whatever some may say about their inability to find out truth, you will rarely find one of them who does not know better than he practises. Then if he is sincere, let him begin here at once. Let him humbly use what little knowledge he has got, and God will soon give him more.—“If thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.” (Matt. 6:22.).... We are taught that clear knowledge depends greatly on honest obedience, and that distinct views of Divine truth cannot be expected, unless we try to practise such things as we know. Living up to our light we shall have more light. We learn from these words how greatly they err who profess to be waiting till their mental difficulties are removed before they become decided Christians. They must change their plan. They must understand that knowledge comes through humble obedience as well as through the intellect. Let them begin by honestly doing God’s will as far as they know that will, and in so doing they will find their minds enlightened. (John 7 Commentary) Bishop Hall thus paraphrases the text: “If any man shall, with a simple and honest heart, yield himself over to do the will of my Father, according to the measure of that he knows, God shall encourage and bless that man with further light; so as he shall fully know whether my doctrine be of God, or of myself.” Burgon remarks: “The perception of truth depends on the practice of virtue. It is a favourite maxim of the present day, that increased knowledge will bring with it growth in godliness. Scripture at all events entirely reverses the process. The way to know of the doctrine whether it be of God, is to do His will.” (See John 5:44; 8:12.) If anyone is willing (thelo) to do His will (thelema) he will know (ginosko) of the teaching (didache) - Simply put, Jesus is saying obey God's will which is most fully expressed in His Word. He is speaking of willingness, not intellect, as the starting point for true understanding. Jesus is not speaking about perfect obedience but about a heart resolved in advance to submit to God. The issue is not lack of evidence but lack of surrender. Knowledge of divine truth begins with a yielded will. He will know of the teaching - Notice that this is a promise that God will fulfill. Jesus promises real discernment, not mere opinion. Jesus asserts that spiritual truth is knowable, but it is disclosed relationally rather than academically. This knowledge is experiential and comes from walking in obedience, not standing back in neutral judgment. If you are not ordering your steps according to His Word (enabled by His Spirit), then do not be surprised if you find it difficult to discern of the will of God. Knowing His will is not based on a feeling but on faith. Why do I say that? Because genuine faith is faith that obeys and if we obey we will be shown the will of God. Jesus is saying in essence that "willing" (to do) is the way of "knowing!" Honest obedience to God’s will is one way to obtain clear spiritual knowledge. -- J C Ryle As an aside, without the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit, no man or woman would seek to do (or even have the supernatural power to do) God's will (Ro 3:11b), but it is the Holy Spirit Who gives "the desire and the power" (cf Php 2:13NLT+) to be willing to do His will! Of course, this is not "Let go, let God," but "Let God, let's go!" Utley on "IF" - "If" is a third class conditional sentence which means potential or possible action. This is the paradox of the universal offer of the gospel (cf. John 1:12; 3:16) and the sovereignty of God (cf. John 6:44,65). The Spirit must open the heart (cf. John 16:8-13). As Merrill Tenney says "Resolution to do the will of God would bring with it certainty of being right (ED: IN OTHER WORDS, THIS PERSON WOULD KNOW THAT WHAT JESUS WAS TEACHING WAS TRUE AND DIVINE). Usually the process is reversed in human thinking. Man seeks to know first, and to act afterward. The divine pragmatism says "Do and know!" Something akin to this principle of Jesus appears in John 11:40: "Didn't I say to you that if you would believe, you would see the glory of God?" (Original translation). (Borrow John the Gospel of Belief: An Analytic Study of the Text - Page 133) A person must be determined to obey the Word if he expects to understand it. -- Robertson McQuilkin Robertson McQuilkin in his subsection "Prerequisites for Interpreting Scripture" has this comment on John 7:17 "Regeneration is essential, but it alone will not qualify the believer to understand the truth of God. The believer must have confidence in Scripture, for faith is not mere intellectual assent. Rather, faith means commitment, yielding to the Book; to its message, its meaning, and its divine Author. Faith predisposes one to discover the meaning the biblical writer intended, not to read into the text his own desired meaning. Only the one with full confidence in the Scripture will make the commitment necessary to fully understand its meaning. "If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or whether I speak from Myself." (John 7:17) A person must be determined to obey the Word if he expects to understand it. (ED: In other words knowing [ginosko] God's Word is integrally related to obeying God's Word. To jettison the latter and expect the former to be successful is self-delusion!) Commitment to obedience has another characteristic: hard work. The person truly committed to obey God will study to show himself approved to God, a hard worker who has no need to be ashamed of his workmanship (2Ti 2:15). "Faith" does not mean the Bible student lays aside his intellect and relies on feelings or subjective impulses to understand Scripture. No, the kind of faith that believes the Bible is God's own Word will drive the student to use all the resources God has given him to understand Scripture so that he may obey it....Some people do not understand the Bible because they do not believe it is true, or at least, they do not believe that all parts of it are true. Others do not understand (Ed: They have "No ginosko" knowledge) it because they are unwilling to obey it. (Borrow Understanding and Applying the Bible - recommended) . Obedience is the organ of spiritual knowledge. -- F.W. Robertson
João 7
Ryle - The meaning seems to be as follows:—“He that undertakes on his own responsibility, and without being sent by God, to speak to men about religion, will naturally seek to advance his own importance, and get honour for himself. Speaking from himself, he will speak for himself, and try to exalt himself. He, on the contrary, who is a true messenger of God, and in whom there is no dishonesty or unrighteousness, will always seek first the glory of the God who sent him.” In short, it is one mark of a man being a true servant of God, and really commissioned by our Father in heaven, that he ever seeks his Master’s glory more than his own. The principle here laid down is a very valuable one. By it we may test the pretensions of many false teachers of religion, and prove them to be unsound guides. There is a curious tendency in every system of heresy, or unsound religion, to make its ministers magnify themselves, their authority, their importance, and their office. (John 7 Commentary) He who (present tense - continually) speaks from himself (present tense - continually) seeks (zeteo) his own glory (doxa) - You cannot seek your glory and God's glory. The Westminster Catechism says the chief end of man is to glorify God! As a practical application how sad to be seeking one's own glory instead of seeking the Glorious One! Even the Jews would have to agree with the general truth of Jesus' statement, for when they taught, they would cite the authority of "rabbi so-and-so." They considered Jesus to be arrogant because "He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes." (Mt 7:29) Every false teacher speaks from himself and seeks his own glory, seeking not to feed the flock, but fleece the flock (cf. Jer. 14:14; 23:16, 21, 26, 32; 27:15; 28:15; 29:9, 31; Neh. 6:10-12; Ezek. 13:2, 6, Mic 3:5, 11, Isa 56:11, Ezek 34:2-3). THOUGHT - The person who advances his original ideas seeks to glorify himself even if that is not the underlying motive (though it often is). It strikes me that this is the purpose of many books, even Christian books, which is why we should always focus our attention of the Book of books which has one goal and that is to glorify God Who Alone deserves the glory! Whenever I read a Christian book, one of the first things I do is scan the pages for Scriptural references. If I find none or only a small number, I generally won't take time to read the book. This is not to say that every Christian book without obvious Scriptural references is not worthwhile, for clearly there are exceptions. A T Robertson on the teacher who speaks from himself - This kind of teacher is self-taught, pushes his own ideas, presses his own claims for position and glory, “blows his own horn” as we say. Jesus is the other type of teacher, seeks the glory of the one who sent him, whose herald and ambassador he is. D A Carson - The maxims of this verse not only confirm that Jesus is a man of truth, but they exhibit the real reason why his opponents are unable to assess him rightly. The one who prides himself on being his own man, on speaking on his own, has his ego bound up with his witness, and so at least in part he speaks to gain honour (doxa; cf. notes on Jn 1:14) for himself. Jesus is quite unlike that. He is totally committed to working for the honour (doxa) of the one who sent him. As a result he can be trusted. He is neither a religious charlatan nor a respected religious leader with inevitably mixed motives. He is as trustworthy as his motives are unmixed. If Jesus were simply trying to persuade others to his views, he would seek whatever means seemed most effective. In fact he has utterly rejected such pragmatism (Jn 7:3–8) in favour of his Father’s agenda. (Borrow The Gospel according to John) J C Ryle - a self-exalting spirit in ministers of religion is entirely opposed to the mind of Christ. The wisdom and truth of this sentence will be evident at once to any reflecting mind. The minister truly called of God will be deeply sensible of his Master’s majesty and his own infirmity, and will see in himself nothing but unworthiness. He, on the other hand, who knows that he is not “inwardly moved by the Holy Ghost,” will try to cover over his defects by magnifying himself and his office. The very desire to exalt ourselves is a bad symptom. It is a sure sign of something wrong within. Does any one ask illustrations of the truth before us? He will find them, on the one side, in the Scribes and Pharisees of our Lord’s times. If one thing more than another distinguished these unhappy men, it was their desire to get praise for themselves.—He will find them, on the other side, in the character of the Apostle St. Paul. The keynote that runs through all his Epistles is personal humility and zeal for Christ’s glory:—“I am less than the least of all saints—I am not meet to be called an Apostle—I am chief of sinners—we preach not ourselves but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.” (Ephes. 3:8; 1 Cor. 15:9; 1 Tim. 1:15; 2 Cor. 4:5.) Does any one ask for a test by which he may discern the real man of God from the false shepherd in the present day? Let him remember our Lord’s weighty words, and notice carefully what is the main object that a minister loves to exalt. Not he who is ever crying,—“Behold the Church! behold the Sacraments! behold the ministry!” but he who says,—“Behold the Lamb!”—is the pastor after God’s own heart. Happy indeed is that minister who forgets self in his pulpit, and desires to be hid behind the cross. This man shall be blessed in his work, and be a blessing. (John 7 Commentary) THOUGHT - If you are a teacher, test yourself as to your "quality". (1) Does your teaching come from God. We're not speaking of new revelation, because the canon is closed. We are speaking of 2Ti 3:16+ type teaching, not man centered (What do YOU think about this text?) but God centered (What does this text mean and how will I order my steps accordingly?). As best you can, do you take your students to the pure milk of the Word, because that is the ONLY WAY they will grow in respect to salvation (progressive sanctification) (1Pe 2:2+)? (2) Who receives the glory? You or God? Simple tests, but they make a profound impact on the supernatural effect of your teaching. But - Term on contrast. Self glory is now contrasted with God's glory. He who is seeking (zeteo in present tense) the glory (doxa in present tense) of the One Who sent Him, He is true (alethes), and there is (absolute negation) no unrighteousness (adikia) in Him - Jesus is giving the Jews a description of Himself. Note three characteristics of the teacher sent from God - (1) His goal is God's glory, (2) he teaches the truth (and nothing but the truth, "so help Him God" or better "with the help of God's Spirit") and (3) has no unrighteousness, no falsehood, and is without dishonesty. Jesus fulfilled all three characteristics and certainly had no intention of leading people astray, a charge some of the Jews were throwing at Jesus (cf Jn 7:12). THOUGHT - Given the fact that Paul commanded us to continually imitate Jesus (1Co 11:1+), as teachers called by God out of darkness into His marvelous light to proclaim His Light (the Son-light, the Gospel-light, not the "Gospel-lite"!), enabled by His Spirit and His Word are we (am I) striving to meet these three criteria of a God sent teacher? We will never achieve perfection, but this should constantly be our direction, as guided and enabled by the Word and the Spirit, for the glory of God. Let it be so Lord for all the teachers who read these words. In Jesus' Name. Amen (And by the way we are ALL teachers in some capacity, so no one gets a pass on this. As Christ followers others are always watching our actions and listening to our words, and if they are Christocentric and Bibliocentric words and actions, then we are teaching them something about the glory of our great God. What a high and holy privilege each of us have been divinely given. When He comes, may our Lord find each of us as His faithful stewards, so that the words we hear from His lips are "Well done, my good and faithful doulos.")
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Ryle - We learn, lastly, in this passage, the danger of forming a hasty judgment. The Jews at Jerusalem were ready to condemn our Lord as a sinner against the law of Moses, because He had done a miracle of healing on the Sabbath-day. They forgot in their blind enmity that the fourth commandment was not meant to prevent works of necessity or works of mercy. A work on the Sabbath our Lord had done, no doubt, but not a work forbidden by the law. And hence they drew down on themselves the rebuke, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” (John 7 Commentary)
João 7
Ryle - There appears to have been a restraining power put on our Lord’s enemies at this juncture. (See Jn 5:30.) It certainly seems to have struck the people before us as a remarkable thing, that our Lord should speak out so boldly, openly, and publicly, and yet no effort be made by the rulers to apprehend Him and stop His teaching. No wonder that they asked the question which immediately follows. “Have our rulers changed their mind? Are they convinced at last? Have they really found out that this is truly the Messiah, the Christ of God?” (John 7 Commentary) Know (1097) ginosko English derivatives - prognosis, gnostic, Gnosticism) means to acquire information through some modality, as through sense perception (hearing). However ginosko involves experiential knowledge, not merely the accumulation of known facts. Ginosko is one of the major verbs of the Bible and because of its numerous uses, it is not surprising that Greek lexicographers ascribe a number of nuances of meaning including to get to know, come to understand, to ascertain, to have intimate relations with another, etc. Keep in mind that the basic meaning of ginosko is to know by experience. Knowledge possessed through the intellectual process of learning is one thing. Knowledge gained by experience, by an active relationship between the one who knows and the person or thing known, is far superior to the former. Ginosko describes the latter quality of knowledge and is what every Christ follower should desire as their personal, permanent possession regarding the Person of Christ (e.g., see ginosko in Jn 8:32, Jn 17:3, Php 3:10). John 7:27 "However, we know where this man is from; but whenever the Christ may come, no one knows where He is from." BGT John 7:27 ἀλλὰ τοῦτον οἴδαμεν πόθεν ἐστίν· ὁ δὲ χριστὸς ὅταν ἔρχηται οὐδεὶς γινώσκει πόθεν ἐστίν. KJV John 7:27 Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is. NET John 7:27 But we know where this man comes from. Whenever the Christ comes, no one will know where he comes from." CSB John 7:27 But we know where this man is from. When the Messiah comes, nobody will know where He is from." ESV John 7:27 But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from." NIV John 7:27 But we know where this man is from; when the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." NLT John 7:27 But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from. When the Messiah comes, he will simply appear; no one will know where he comes from." NRS John 7:27 Yet we know where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from." NJB John 7:27 Yet we all know where he comes from, but when the Christ appears no one will know where he comes from.' NAB John 7:27 But we know where he is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from." YLT John 7:27 but this one -- we have known whence he is; and the Christ, when he doth come, no one doth know whence he is.' GWN John 7:27 However, we know where this man comes from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." BBE John 7:27 However, it is clear to us where this man comes from: but when the Christ comes no one will have knowledge where he comes from. RSV John 7:27 Yet we know where this man comes from; and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from." NKJ John 7:27 "However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from." ASV John 7:27 Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when the Christ cometh, no one knoweth whence he is. MIT John 7:27 But we are cognizant of this man's origin. When the messiah arrives, no one will know where he originates." we know: John 7:15 6:42 Mt 13:54-57 Mk 6:3 Lu 4:22 no man: John 7:41,42 Isa 11:1 53:8 Jer 23:5 30:21 Mic 5:2 Mt 2:5,6 Ac 8:33 John 7 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Mark 6:3 “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. Luke 4:22 And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” Micah 5:2 “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.” Malachi 3:1 (NO ONE KNOWS WHERE HE IS FROM) “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the LORD of hosts. MESSIAH THE "MYSTERY MAN" However (alla - term of contrast), we know where this man is from - NLT = "But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from" MIT = "But we are cognizant of this man's origin" The Jerusalemites think they know, but they do not really know. What did they know? They knew that our Lord was from Nazareth of Galilee (cf Jn 1:45, Jn 6:42). This is the general thought of all the Jews, for even when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, just before his crucifixion, the multitude said, “This is Jesus, the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.” (Mt 21:11) And when an inscription was put over His head on the cross, in the letters of the three languages, it was, “Jesus of Nazareth the king of the Jews.” (Jn 19:19 Mt. 13:55; Mk 6:3; Lk 4:22.) And so later in this chapter we see that the multitude did not even know Jesus was originally from Bethlehem (although the leaders did - "the chief priests and scribes" in Mt 2:4-6+)! Most of the people think that Jesus was a carpenter from Nazareth in Galilee. MacArthur rightly points out that "this is constantly where they found their safe zone in rejecting Jesus. They didn’t want to accept Jesus.....They always fell back to the fact that He can’t be the Messiah because we know where He came from. We know about Him.....All they were looking for was justification for their rejection because He didn’t fit their pattern....They misinterpreted both of those passages (Mal 3:1, Isa 53), and came up with a popular notion that the Messiah would have some kind of supernatural arrival at the temple, and not in the normal way, and they wouldn’t know anything about His family." And so they concluded Jesus could not be the Messiah they were expecting. D A Carson - As far as they were concerned, they know where Jesus came from: he sprang from Nazareth, and his family home was now in Capernaum, and he had been engaged in an itinerant ministry for some time. This is of course another instance of the celebrated ‘Johannine irony’: the Jerusalemites are not as informed of Jesus’ true origins as they think. (Borrow The Gospel according to John) R C H
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Ryle comments that "We can hardly doubt that the Jews might have found out this, if they had taken the pains to inquire narrowly into the early history of our Lord’s life. In a nation so strict about pedigrees and birthplaces, such a thing could not be hid. But it seems as if they would not take the pains to inquire, and satisfied themselves with the common story of His origin, as it gave them an additional excuse for not receiving Him as the Messiah. The entire ignorance which appears to have prevailed among the Jews, about all the circumstances of our Lord’s miraculous conception, and His birth at Bethlehem, is certainly rather remarkable. Yet it should be remembered that thirty years had passed away between our Lord’s birth and His public ministry,—that His mother and Joseph were evidently in a very humble position and might easily be overlooked, as well as all that happened to them,—and that living quietly at Nazareth, their journey to Bethlehem at the time of “the taxing” would soon be forgotten by others. After all we must not forget that it is part of God’s dealings with man, not to force conviction and belief on any one. The obscurity purposely left over our Lord’s birthplace was a part of the moral probation of the Jewish nation. If, in their pride and indolence and self-righteousness, they would not receive the abundant evidence which our Lord gave of His Messiahship, it could not be expected that God would make unbelief impossible, by placing His birth of a virgin at Bethlehem beyond the reach of doubt. In this, as in everything else, if the Jews had honestly desired to find out the truth, they might have found it." (John 7 Commentary) but whenever the Christ (Christos ~ "Messiah") may come, no one knows (ginosko) where He is from - They show their utter ignorance of their own Scriptures, for the Old Testament had clearly prophesied the Messiah would come from Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). As discussed below apparently there was a rabbinical teaching that said when Messiah came He would be a man of mystery, coming out of nowhere. And since the citizens knew Jesus was from Nazareth (cf Jn 6:42, Mt 13:54-57, Mk 6:3, Lk 4:22), He did not fulfill the requirement of that popular myth. Where did this notion originate (some thoughts are mentioned below)? The truth is efforts to trace the notion of the citizens in Jewish literature have produced no satisfactory results.
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Ryle on sent - The expression “I am from Him,” must not be confined and cramped down to mean only that our Lord had come like any prophet of old, with a message and commission from God. It declares the relationship between God the Father and God the Son. “I am from Him by eternal generations,—always one with Him,—always equal with Him,—but always a distinct person;—always the only begotten Son,—always from Him.” The expression “He hath sent me,” is, like the preceding one, something far more than the mere assertion of a prophet’s commission. It is a declaration that He was the Sent One,—the Messiah, the Prophet greater than Moses, whom the Father had always promised to send:—“I am the Seed of the woman sent to bruise the serpent’s head. I am He whom the Father covenanted and engaged to send for the redemption of a lost world. I am He whom the Father hath sent to be the Saviour of lost man. I proclaim myself the Sent One,—the Christ of God.” (John 7 Commentary) John 7:30 So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. BGT John 7:30 Ἐζήτουν οὖν αὐτὸν πιάσαι, καὶ οὐδεὶς ἐπέβαλεν ἐπ᾽ αὐτὸν τὴν χεῖρα, ὅτι οὔπω ἐληλύθει ἡ ὥρα αὐτοῦ. KJV John 7:30 Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come. NET John 7:30 So then they tried to seize Jesus, but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come. CSB John 7:30 Then they tried to seize Him. Yet no one laid a hand on Him because His hour had not yet come. ESV John 7:30 So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. NIV John 7:30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come. NLT John 7:30 Then the leaders tried to arrest him; but no one laid a hand on him, because his time had not yet come. NRS John 7:30 Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. NJB John 7:30 They wanted to arrest him then, but because his hour had not yet come no one laid a hand on him. NAB John 7:30 So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come. YLT John 7:30 They were seeking, therefore, to seize him, and no one laid the hand on him, because his hour had not yet come, GWN John 7:30 The Jews tried to arrest him but couldn't because his time had not yet come. BBE John 7:30 Then they had a desire to take him: but no man put hands on him because his hour was still to come. RSV John 7:30 So they sought to arrest him; but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come. NKJ John 7:30 Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. ASV John 7:30 They sought therefore to take him: and no man laid his hand on him, because his hour was not yet come. MIT John 7:30 They were eager to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him because his time had not yet arrived. they: John 7:19,32 8:37,59 10:31,39 11:57 Mk 11:18 Lu 19:47,48 20:19 but: John 7:6,8,44-46 Jn 8:20 Jn 9:4 Jn 11:9,10 Ps 76:10 Isa 46:10 Lu 13:32,33 Lu 22:53 John 7 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: John 2:4 And Jesus *said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come.” John 7:6; 8 So Jesus *said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune.....(7:8) “Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.” John 7:44-46 Some of them wanted to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him. 45 The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, and they said to them, “Why did you not bring Him?” 46 The officers answered, “Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks.” John 8:20 These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come. John 12:23 And Jesus *answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. John 12:27 “Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. John 17:1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, SEEKING TO SEIZE THE SAVIOR So (oun) - Therefore. Then. Why is this a conclusion? What had Jesus just said? So in light of Jesus' claim to be sent from God, they conclude it is time to take Him out! Ryle - Just as on a former occasion, they saw, in His “calling God His Father,” that He “made Himself equal with God,” (John 5:18,) so here in His saying “I am from Him: He hath sent me,” they saw an assertion of His right to be received as Messiah. (John 7 Commentary) They were seeking (zeteo) to seize (arrest - piazo) Him - They in context is not the religious leaders, but the Jerusalemites who had been listening and now had heard enough of what they interpret as overt blasphemy (claiming He was God). To reiterate, since there is no change in subject indicated, this almost certainly is the aroused Jerusalemites, not the rulers. Furthermore, this conclusion is supported by the fact that Jn 7:32 notes the Jewish rulers sent officers to seize Jesus. Seeking is in the imperfect tense signifying again and again, depicting them as looking for a perfect moment. They tried again and again to arrest Him but they did not want to cause a riot among the pilgrims who believed Him to be the Messiah. Seize (piazo) is a keyword in John 7 (Jn. 7:32; Jn. 7:44), clearly indicative of the beginning of the end which would culminate in the Cross. D A Carson - In this instance, some of the Jerusalemites who had been disputing with him tried to seize him, apparently in a spontaneous decision rather different from the formal effort to arrest Jesus that follows (vv. 32, 45). (Borrow The Gospel according to John) And no man laid his hand on (epiballo) Him - While the text does not state exactly how they were prevented from seizing Jesus, it is clear that God's sovereign power is behind the scenes orchestrating all the events in Jesus' life and no man could cause His plan to deviate by even one second. It is possible that some of the "many" who believed in the crowd prevented the others in the crowd from laying hands on him. Because (term of explanation) His hour (hora) had not yet come - The reason the rulers could not arrest Jesus is because the hour appointed by His Father had not arrived. His hour refers to His arrest, trial and crucifixion. His hour signifies His personal time, set aside from eternity past, the perfect time to accomplish the Father's will regarding provision of the potential for redemption of sinful mankind. Had not yet come indicates the time would indeed come but (as most writers note) this would not occur until about 6 months later. Ryle - This restraint on our Lord’s enemies can only be accounted for by direct Divine interposition. It is like John 8:20, and 18:6. It is clear that they could do nothing against Him except by God’s permission, and when God, in His wisdom, was pleased to let it be done. Our Lord did not fall into His enemies’ hands through inability to escape, but because the “hour had come,” when He voluntarily undertook to die as a substitute. (John 7 Commentary) THOUGHT- The doctrine before us, let us note, is full of comfort to God’s people. Nothing can hurt them except and until God permits. We are all immortal till our work is done. To realize that nothing happens in this world except by the eternal counsels of our Father, and according to His eternal plans, is one grand secret of living a calm, peaceful, and contented life. (Ryle) Luther writes “God has appointed a nice, easy hour, for everything; and that hour has the whole world for its enemy: it must attack it. The devil shoots and throws at the poor clock-hand, but in vain: for all depends on the hour. Till the hour comes, and the hand has run its course, the devil and the world shall accomplish nothing.” John
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Ryle says "As God, He could truly say, “where I am,” and not merely where “I was,” or where “I shall be.” The expression is one of the many texts proving our Lord’s divinity. No mere man speaking on earth could speak of heaven as a place “where I am.” Augustine strongly maintains this view." D A Carson however feels the ego eimi here does not have "theological overtones." (I would agree) "The verb (eimi, “I am”) is a gnomic present expressing a timeless fact." (Mounce) Marvin Vincent differs from Carson - In absolute, eternal being and fellowship with the Father. I am (ἐγω εἰμι) is the formula of the divine existence (Jn 8:58). The phrase carries a hint of the essential nature of Jesus, and thus prepares the way for ye cannot come (see on Jn 7:7). The difference in character will make it essentially impossible. (John 7 Commentary) You cannot come - Cannot is two words "ou" the strongest negative in Greek and dunamai, which means to be able. Jesus' point is that they (if they remained unbelieving) would absolutely not have the supernatural enablement to come to where He was! In Jn 8:21+ Jesus added you "will die in your sin." They cannot come because they are sinners, natural men who have not been born again which is the necessary prerequisite for entering the Kingdom of Heaven (Jn 3:3+). William
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Ryle - The favourite notion of some modern theologians, that all mankind are finally to go to heaven, cannot possibly be reconciled with this expression. Men may please themselves with thinking it is kind and loving and liberal and large-hearted to teach and believe that all men and women of all sorts will finally be found in heaven. One word of our Lord Jesus Christ’s overturns the whole theory.—Heaven is a place, He says to the wicked, where “ye cannot come.” (John 7 Commentary) THOUGHT - They had heard and seen the Savior in their midst but when He was gone it was too late to seek Him and find Him. These solemn words remind us that one may have the opportunity to be saved today, but if that opportunity is rejected and passes by, it may never come again. Dear unbeliever or skeptic, have you been pondering the words of Jesus, thinking that perhaps in a future day you might believe in Him. If so, you need to be very careful, for you may not have a future day! Paul writes "“AT THE ACCEPTABLE TIME I LISTENED TO YOU, AND ON THE DAY OF SALVATION I HELPED YOU.” Behold, now is “THE ACCEPTABLE TIME,” behold, now is “THE DAY OF SALVATION”" (2Cor 6:2+) It is interesting that Jesus made a similar statement to His disciples in John 13:33+ declaring "Little children, I am with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’" However He went on to explain (after Simon Peter asked Him) "Where I go, you cannot follow Me now, but you will follow later." (Jn 13:36+). John 7:35 The Jews then said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we will not find Him? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks, is He? BGT John 7:35 εἶπον οὖν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι πρὸς ἑαυτούς· ποῦ οὗτος μέλλει πορεύεσθαι ὅτι ἡμεῖς οὐχ εὑρήσομεν αὐτόν; μὴ εἰς τὴν διασπορὰν τῶν Ἑλλήνων μέλλει πορεύεσθαι καὶ διδάσκειν τοὺς Ἕλληνας; KJV John 7:35 Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? NET John 7:35 Then the Jewish leaders said to one another, "Where is he going to go that we cannot find him? He is not going to go to the Jewish people dispersed among the Greeks and teach the Greeks, is he? CSB John 7:35 Then the Jews said to one another, "Where does He intend to go so we won't find Him? He doesn't intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks, does He? ESV John 7:35 The Jews said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? NIV John 7:35 The Jews said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? NLT John 7:35 The Jewish leaders were puzzled by this statement. "Where is he planning to go?" they asked. "Is he thinking of leaving the country and going to the Jews in other lands? Maybe he will even teach the Greeks! NRS John 7:35 The Jews said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? NJB John 7:35 So the Jews said to one another, 'Where is he intending to go that we shall not be able to find him? Is he intending to go abroad to the people who are dispersed among the Greeks and to teach the Greeks? NAB John 7:35 So the Jews said to one another, "Where is he going that we will not find him? Surely he is not going to the dispersion among the Greeks to teach the Greeks, is he? YLT John 7:35 The Jews, therefore, said among themselves, 'Whither is this one about to go that we shall not find him? -- to the dispersion of the Greeks is he about to go? and to teach the Greeks; GWN John 7:35 The Jews said among themselves, "Where does this man intend to go so that we won't find him? Does he mean that he'll live with the Jews who are scattered among the Greeks and that he'll teach the Greeks? BBE John 7:35 So the Jews said among themselves, To what place is he going where we will not see him? will he go to the Jews living among the Greeks and become the teacher of the Greeks? RSV John 7:35 The Jews said to one another, "Where does this man intend to go that we shall not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? NKJ John 7:35 Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? ASV John 7:35 The Jews therefore said among themselves, Whither will this man go that we shall not find him? will he go unto the Dispersion among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? MIT John 7:35 The Jews said to themselves, "Where is he about to go that we shall not be able to find him? He is not going to the Hellenistic diaspora to teach the Greeks, is he? He is not intending to go to the Dispersion: Isa 11:12 27:12,13 Zep 3:10 Ac 21:21 Jas 1:1 1Pe 1:1 teach: Ps 67:1,2 98:2,3 Isa 11:10 49:6 Mt 12:21 Lu 2:32 Ac 11:18 Ac 13:46-48 22:21 Eph 3:8 Col 1:27 1Ti 2:7 2Ti 1:11 John 7 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries THE JEWS ARE PERPLEXED AND "HUDDLE UP" Mounce - "True to form, the Jews misunderstood what Jesus was saying. Still thinking in one dimension (cf. Jn 7:28), they asked scornfully." I would add that the Jews were thinking "horizontally" (earthly) when they should have been thinking "vertically" (heavenly)! See Vertical Vision. The Jews then said to one another - The Jews may refer to the Jewish religious leaders, but does not exclude the other Jews in the multitude who heard Jesus' speaking. Talk about missing the forest for the trees! The Jews totally missed the profound truth He had just uttered. The Jews were hearing sound waves, but did not have ears to hear the spiritual truths Jesus was speaking. And so once again they interpret Jesus literally. They could not imagine where He could go physically that they could not find Him! They were earthly men, thinking earthly thoughts, which blinded them to heavenly truths (cf Isa 55:8)! And so they "huddle up" and begin discussing Jesus' enigmatic statements among themselves, summarized in the following question. William
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Ryle adds that Jerusalem was "the metropolis of Judaism, and the stronghold of priests and scribes, of Pharisees and Sadducees." (Shorthand for the "religious people"!) BACKGROUND ON FEAST OF TABERNACLES (See also excursus below) The Jewish historian Alfred Edersheim writes that The Feast of Tabernacles was "the most joyous of all festive seasons in Israel was that of the 'Feast of Tabernacles.' It fell on a time of year when the hearts of the people would naturally be full of thankfulness, gladness, and expectancy. All the crops had been long stored; and now all fruits were also gathered, the vintage past, and the land only awaited the softening and refreshment of the 'latter rain,' to prepare it for a new crop. It was appropriate that, when the commencement of the harvest had been consecrated by offering the first ripe sheaf of barley, and the full ingathering of the corn by the two wave-loaves, there should now be a harvest feast of thankfulness and of gladness unto the Lord." (For much more detailed discussion see Feast of Tabernacles - note the link to next page of article is at bottom right of the page) The Feast of Tabernacles (2Chr. 8:13; Ezra 3:4; Zech. 14:16), also called the Feast of Ingathering (Ex. 23:16; 34:22), the Feast to the Lord (Lev. 23:39; Jdg. 21:19). Sometimes it was simply referred to as "the feast" (1Ki 8:2; 2Chr 5:3; 7:8; Neh 8:14; Isa 30:29; Ezek 45:23,25) presumably because it was so well known. Its observance combined the ingathering of the labor of the field (Ex 23:16), the fruit of the earth (Lev 23:39), the ingathering of the threshing floor and winepress (Dt. 16:13), and the dwelling in booths (or tabernacles), all of which was to be a joyful celebration for Israel (Lev 23:41; Dt 16:14). The "booth" in Scripture is not an image of privation and misery, but of protection, preservation, and shelter from heat and storm (Ps 27:5; 31:20; Isa. 4:6). The rejoicing community included family, servants, widows, orphans, Levites, and sojourners (Dt. 16:13-15). To summarize, the Feast of Booths was a time of thanksgiving for the harvest. It was a happy time. Devout Jews lived outdoors in booths made of tree branches for seven days as a reminder of God’s provision in the desert during the wilderness wanderings. (See excursus on the Feast of Booths below) There were two practices that were not mentioned in Scripture but were included in the oral tradition passed on from Moses. One was the “special commandment of the willow,” and the other was the water libation. Each morning there was a solemn procession from the temple mount to the pool of Siloam for a pitcher of water. A priest would fill a gold pitcher with water as the people sang together from Isaiah 12:3 (See Commentary) The procession would return to the Temple Mount with trumpets blasting and great fanfare; there the priest would pour the water into a silver basin by the altar of burnt offering each day for the first seven days.... SUKKOT LINKS TOGETHER THE PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE Cecil summarizes the "three directions" the participants should have been pondering when they celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles for the Feast "looked back and reminded the people of how God had provided water from the rock during the wilderness wanderings (Ex 17:6, Nu 20:8-11). It looked at the present and praised God for the provision of the harvest and most likely acted as a prayer for the coming year (Ps 118:25). But the ritual also looked toward the future and spoke prophetically of the coming days of the Messiah when God’s blessing would be poured out on the nation (Zech 14:8 = "living waters will flow out of Jerusalem," Zech 14:16-19 = "to celebrate the Feast of Booths")." Notice in the chart below that the last great Feast of Israel is Sukkot and on the Jewish calendar it follows the last ingathering of the harvest of grain, but it surely points to the last great ingathering of souls when the Messiah returns, an event regarding which He prophesied declaring "And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other." (Mt 24:30-31, see parallel passages that speak of this great harvest of souls which coincides with the re-gathering of the Nation of Israel - Isa 11:12-note, Ezek 36:24-27-note, Ezek 37:21-28-note, Ezek 38:8-note, Ezek 38:12-note, Ezek 39:27-29-note). A few thoughts on these OT prophecies of the Feast of Booths, the future fulfillment and Jesus' invitation at the Feast of Booths in Jn 7:37-39. Recall that one reason for the Feast was to celebrate God's good provision of "living water" during their 40 years of "wilderness wanderings." It is notable that the OT descriptions of the "wilderness wanderings" state very clearly there was "NO WATER." (Read Ex 15:22, 17:1, Nu 20:2, 21:5, 33:14, Dt 8:15). No water in the wilderness meant certain physical death in only a few days. God saw their physical need and provided for their physical need, "painting" a beautiful picture of His desire and ability to provide for their (and every man's) spiritual need that they might not remain spiritually dead throughout eternity! Moses summarized the dry, desert times of Israel's wandering, writing "He (Jehovah) led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He brought water for you (supernaturally) out of the rock of flint." (Dt 8:15). And so the Jews who were celebrating the Feast in John 7 would have (should have) been very familiar with God's provision of life giving physical "living (springing up, gushing forth, running, flowing) water" in the Old Testament. As they celebrated the rituals associated with the Feast for seven days, the Jews were in a sense re-enacting the picture of God's OT provision as they would dip living (running) water from a pool (which came from a spring) and joyously transport it back up the hill, through the Water Gate and to the Temple priests who poured it out on the altar. Onto this scene came Jesus, crying out to dry, parched, thirsty souls living in the "wilderness of this world," and with NO WATER that gives life to one's soul. Instead they had forsaken the fountain of living water and constructed their own cisterns and systems of Law keeping, of doing "good" works, etc. And yet these religious activities failed to satisfy the spiritual "thirst" God had placed in each of them. Into this "spiritually dry desert", Jesus came and stood and cried out offering them a drink from Himself (the same One from Whom their ancestors had drunk physical water! 1Cor 10:4!). He offered them living water that they might live spiritually, even as their ancestors were enabled to live physically in the OT after receiving the physical water. As
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Ryle says "The time was ‘the last day of the feast’, when all the ceremonies were drawing to a close, when the water drawn from the fountain of Siloam, according to traditional custom, had been solemnly poured on the altar, and nothing remained for worshipers but to return home." (Thirst Relieved) The great day - So whether it was the seventh day or the eighth day, John makes it clear that it was in some regard a great day. This implies that the it may well have been the most well attended of all the days, for the Jews knew it was a great day. In any event, unbeknownst to the Jews, it was a great day, in fact the greatest day, because the greatest Person would issue the greatest invitation ever offered to sinful men. In an abbreviated form, Jesus would proclaim to them the Good News, the Gospel of their salvation. But sadly, it was not as some say "I'll make you an offer you can't refuse," because this was (and is) an offer that can be refused by the one who has no ears to hear nor heart to receive what Jesus is offering. Jesus spoke to this dullness of hearing and hardness of heart with he quoted from Isaiah 6:9-10-note in Mt 13:10-15. In fact God considers Isaiah 6:9-10 so significant that it is quoted no less than six times in the NT (Mt 13:14, 15; Mk 4:12; Lk 8:10; Jn 12:40; Acts 28:25, 26, 27, 28; Ro11:8)!. Compare the Jewish response to the Gospel in Jn 1:9-11 with a Gentile response in Acts 16:14. Pulpit Commentary - It may, moreover, have been called “the great day” because it was the closing day of all the festivals of the year. Josephus calls it “the very sacred close of the year.”...Meyer, Alford, Godet, Lange, and many others regard the eighth day as that here referred to by the word “great,” and find, in the very absence of the ceremonial of drawing water from the Pool of Siloam, the occasion which provoked the reference of our Lord to his own power to meet the spiritual thirst of mankind, thus repeating what he had said to the woman of Samaria Colin Kruse has an excellent discussion of the context of John 7:37-39 - On the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) Jesus promised living water to those who believed in him (Jn 7:37). To appreciate the impact of Jesus’ promise we need to understand the first-century water-pouring ritual during this feast. For the first six days of the feast they used to fill a golden flagon with water from the Pool of Siloam and carry it back to the Temple. When they reached the Water Gate, three blasts on the Shofar (ram’s horn trumpet) were sounded. When they arrived at the temple, they processed around the altar and sang the Hallel (Ps 113–118, eg see allusions to salvation in Ps 118:14, 15, 21, 25-26, partially fulfilled in Messiah's first advent = Mt 21:9), the people shaking their Lulavs (bundles of myrtle, palm and willow bound up with a Citron), while the priests shook theirs (made from willow [poplar] branches). The flagon was taken to the priest on duty at the altar who had two silver bowls, one for the water and the other for wine. These bowls were filled and then the contents poured over the altar. On the seventh day they processed around the altar seven times (Sukkah 3:9; 4:4–10; 5:1–4). People believed that when the Messiah came he would provide water (as he would provide manna) just as Moses had done: "As the former redeemer made a well to rise, so will the latter Redeemer bring up water, as it is stated, And a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim (Joel 3:18). (Qohelet Rabbah 1:9.1)" The evangelist sets the context of Jesus’ promise/proclamation: On the last and greatest day of the Feast. As noted above, the Feast of Tabernacles began with a solemn assembly on the first day, continuing for seven days, and was followed by another solemn assembly on the eighth day. When the evangelist refers to ‘the last and greatest day of the Feast’, it is difficult to know to which day he refers. If it was the eighth day, there would be no more water-pouring ceremonies, no more processions. These ceremonies had ceased. If it was the seventh day, when the priests and people processed around the altar seven times, singing the Hallel, shaking their Lulavs, and rejoicing before the Lord while the water was poured over the altar, the symbolism in Jesus’ proclamation would be striking. On the day when the last of the water-pouring ceremonies was performed amid much singing and rejoicing, Jesus invited people to come to Him, the One Who provides the rivers of living water. It seems preferable to say that ‘the last and greatest day’ was, in fact, the seventh day, when the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles reached its climax. (The Gospel According to John- An Introduction and Commentary Tyndale New Testament Commentaries) Of the feast (1859)(heorte) means feast, feast day, festival, holy day. In the NT heorte always denotes Jewish feasts or pilgrimage festivals (Passover =Lk 2:41, Feast of Unleavened Bread = Lk 22:1, Feast of Tabernacles = Jn 7:2). Mounce - Jesus and His disciples celebrated the feasts (Jn 2:23; 5:1; 7:10, 14). More than half of the occurrences of heortē are found in John (Jn 12:12; 13:1), where the beloved disciple demonstrates that the OT feasts find their true significance in Christ (Jn 7:37). There is only one usage of heortē outside of the gospels (Col 2:16). Here Paul teaches that believers are free to eat, drink, and celebrate feast days without condemnation. But they must always remember that these feasts are “a shadow of the things that were to come” and that Christ fulfilled these feasts (Col 2:17). (Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words) The derived verb heortázo (1858) means to keep a feast or celebrate a holiday (1Co 5:8; Ex 5:1; Ps 42:4) BDAG on heorte - a day or series of days marked by a periodic celebration or observance, Homer used heorte for a feast or festival. Later writers (Aeschylus, et al) sometimes used it with the meaning of "sport" or "play" (holidaymaking, amusement, pastime). NIDNTT - heortē has the basic meaning of performance, fulfilment (for the benefit of a deity). In its usual meaning of festival it is attested since Homer (Od., 20, 258 f.). Among the Greeks a great many events were elevated by means of festivals out of the common run of daily life: the change of the seasons and the high points of the year’s work from seed-time to harvest (fertility festivals); family events and the relationship between the individual and the community (family and tribal festivals). In later times especially, these festivities were practically always associated with certain deities and named after them. In addition to many festivals of local significance, there was an increasing number which were general throughout Greece. The list of these “legally sanctified portions of time” (Plato, Definitiones, 415a) produced a well-filled calendar of feasts which covered the whole year (in Roman times about a third of the total number of days in the year!) and every area of human life. It was not until later that important political events were also given festivals (memorial feasts), e.g. the battle of Marathon and the victory of Salamis....Spanning the whole realm of nature, every kind of occupation, and every special situation in life, numerous gods were honoured with a festival. Processes that were natural in origin were not only continued, but exaggerated to excess by celebrations involving immoderate indulgence in wine-drinking and love (especially in connection with the cult of Dionysus. Preparation for such feasts included fasting, washings and changes of clothing. The festival itself was celebrated with prayer and song, music and dancing, processions, sacrifice, sport, games and competitions. Markets and fairs were also part of the festival, and hostilities were usually interrupted. (New international dictionary of New Testament theology) In the present context the feast refers to is the Feast of Booths. The LXX uses heortē to translate the Hebrew hāg, which referred to a procession, round dance or festival (1 Kings 12:32–33; Neh 8:18). The LXX also uses heorte to translate mo'ed which refers to the appointed time (Lev 23:4 = "these are the appointed times"; Nu 28:2, Zeph 3:18). See Dictionary Articles - Feasts - American Tract Society Bible Dictionary Feasts - Fausset's Bible Dictionary Festivals - Holman Bible Dictionary Feasts and Festivals of Israel - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology Festivals - Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature Festivals - The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia Heorte - 25x in 23v - NAS = feast(23), festival(3). notice 6 uses in John 7 = Jn 7:2, 8, 10, 11, 14, 37 Matthew 26:5 But they were saying, "Not during the festival (Passover - Pesach), otherwise a riot might occur among the people." Matthew 27:15 Now at the feast (Passover - Pesach) the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. Mark 14:2 for they were saying, "Not during the festival (Passover - Pesach), otherwise there might be a riot of the people." Mark 15:6 Now at the feast (Passover - Pesach) he used to release for them any one prisoner whom they requested. Luke 2:41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when He became twelve, they went up there according to the custom of the Feast; Luke 22:1 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching. NET Note - The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a week long celebration that followed the day of Passover, so one name was used for both feasts (Ex 12:1–20; 23:15; 34:18; Deut 16:1–8). John 2:23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. John 4:45 So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves also went to the feast. John 5:1 After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. John 6:4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. John 7:2 Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. John 7:8 "Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come." Comment: Jesus perfectly fulfilled the OT prophecies of the Messiah which had been symbolized by each feast, and He knew that as the Lamb of God He was to die at the Feast of Passover not the Feast of Booths. John 7:10 But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as if, in secret. 11 So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, "Where is He?" John 7:14 But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach. John 7:37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. John 11:56 So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, "What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?" John 12:12 On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast; John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover (Pesach) , Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. John 13:29 For some were supposing, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus was saying to him, "Buy the things we have need of for the feast"; or else, that he should give something to the poor. Colossians 2:16-note Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-- Heorte - 84x in the Septuagint - Ex 10:9; 12:14; 13:6; 23:15f, 18; 32:5; 34:18, 22, 25; Lev 22:21; 23:2, 4, 6, 34, 37, 44; Num 10:10; 15:3; 28:2, 17; 29:12, 39; Deut 16:8, 10, 13f, 16; 31:10; Jdg 21:19; 1Kgs 8:65; 12:32f; 2Kgs 23:16; 1Chr 23:31; 2Chr 2:4; 5:3; 7:8f; 8:13; 30:13, 21f, 26; 31:3; 35:17; Ezra 3:4f; 6:22; Neh 8:14, 18; 10:33; Esther 8:12; Ps 74:4, 8; 81:3; 118:27; Isa 1:14; Jer 31:8; Lam 1:4; 2:6f, 22; Ezek 23:34; 36:38; 44:24; 45:17, 21, 23, 25; 46:9, 11; Hos 2:11; 9:5; 12:9; Amos 5:21; 8:10; Nah 1:15; Zeph 3:17; Zech 8:19; 14:16, 18f; Mal 2:3; (Ex 12:14) ‘Now this day will be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast (Heb = hag/chag; Lxx = heorte) to the LORD; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance. (Mal 2:3) “Behold, I am going to rebuke your offspring, and I will spread refuse (heb = peresh = fecal matter!) on your faces, the refuse (fecal matter!) of your feasts (Heb = hag/chag; Lxx = heorte); and you will be taken away with it. (Woe!) THE CRY HEARD AROUND THE WORLD While Jesus' original cry was in Jerusalem, His words immortalized in Scripture have been heard around the globe, on every continent. And yet how tragic that there are still so many thousands of unreached people groups who have yet to hear Jesus' great cry! Perhaps God's Spirit is calling you take Jesus' cry to them. As Paul asks "how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GLAD TIDINGS OF GOOD THINGS!"" (Ro 10:14 -15) How many nameless souls, like those who first heard Jesus' words, stand on the brink of eternity not having heard Jesus' invitation, for they have never even heard the Name "Jesus" by which they must be saved (Acts 4:12). Consider praying daily for these thirsting, unreached people groups, for Jesus wants to offer them a drink through you ("from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water" - Jn 7:38)! I highly recommend the daily prayer devotional Global Prayer Digest which specifically seeks to target the most unreached people groups in the world. Make it part of your daily devotional time - your eternity (and many of those you pray for) will be richer because you prayed (see 1Thes 2:19-20-note) Jesus stood - This translation obscures a subtle word picture. The verb stood is more literally translated "was standing," "which gives us a graphic touch" (Vincent) of Jesus standing and watching the ceremonial proceedings. Some commentaries observe that when teachers instructed in ancient Israel, they would do so for a sitting position, but here Jesus is standing to teach.
João 7:37-39
Ryle adds that Jerusalem was "the metropolis of Judaism, and the stronghold of priests and scribes, of Pharisees and Sadducees." (Shorthand for the "religious people"!) BACKGROUND ON FEAST OF TABERNACLES (See also excursus below) The Jewish historian Alfred Edersheim writes that The Feast of Tabernacles was "the most joyous of all festive seasons in Israel was that of the 'Feast of Tabernacles.' It fell on a time of year when the hearts of the people would naturally be full of thankfulness, gladness, and expectancy. All the crops had been long stored; and now all fruits were also gathered, the vintage past, and the land only awaited the softening and refreshment of the 'latter rain,' to prepare it for a new crop. It was appropriate that, when the commencement of the harvest had been consecrated by offering the first ripe sheaf of barley, and the full ingathering of the corn by the two wave-loaves, there should now be a harvest feast of thankfulness and of gladness unto the Lord." The Feast of Tabernacles (2Chr. 8:13; Ezra 3:4; Zech. 14:16), also called the Feast of Ingathering (Ex. 23:16; 34:22), the Feast to the Lord (Lev. 23:39; Jdg. 21:19). Sometimes it was simply referred to as "the feast" (1Ki 8:2; 2Chr 5:3; 7:8; Neh 8:14; Isa 30:29; Ezek 45:23,25) presumably because it was so well known. Its observance combined the ingathering of the labor of the field (Ex 23:16), the fruit of the earth (Lev 23:39), the ingathering of the threshing floor and winepress (Dt. 16:13), and the dwelling in booths (or tabernacles), all of which was to be a joyful celebration for Israel (Lev 23:41; Dt 16:14). The "booth" in Scripture is not an image of privation and misery, but of protection, preservation, and shelter from heat and storm (Ps 27:5; 31:20; Isa. 4:6). The rejoicing community included family, servants, widows, orphans, Levites, and sojourners (Dt. 16:13-15). To summarize, the Feast of Booths was a time of thanksgiving for the harvest. It was a happy time. Devout Jews lived outdoors in booths made of tree branches for seven days as a reminder of God’s provision in the desert during the wilderness wanderings. (See excursus on the Feast of Booths below) There were two practices that were not mentioned in Scripture but were included in the oral tradition passed on from Moses. One was the “special commandment of the willow,” and the other was the water libation. Each morning there was a solemn procession from the temple mount to the pool of Siloam for a pitcher of water. A priest would fill a gold pitcher with water as the people sang together from Isaiah 12:3 (See Commentary) The procession would return to the Temple Mount with trumpets blasting and great fanfare; there the priest would pour the water into a silver basin by the altar of burnt offering each day for the first seven days… SUKKOT LINKS TOGETHER THE PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE Cecil summarizes the "three directions" the participants should have been pondering when they celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles for the Feast "looked back and reminded the people of how God had provided water from the rock during the wilderness wanderings (Ex 17:6, Nu 20:8-11). It looked at the present and praised God for the provision of the harvest and most likely acted as a prayer for the coming year (Ps 118:25). But the ritual also looked toward the future and spoke prophetically of the coming days of the Messiah when God’s blessing would be poured out on the nation (Zech 14:8 = "living waters will flow out of Jerusalem," Zech 14:16-19 = "to celebrate the Feast of Booths")." Notice in the chart below that the last great Feast of Israel is Sukkot and on the Jewish calendar it follows the last ingathering of the harvest of grain, but it surely points to the last great ingathering of souls when the Messiah returns, an event regarding which He prophesied declaring "And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other." (Mt 24:30-31, see parallel passages that speak of this great harvest of souls which coincides with the re-gathering of the Nation of Israel - Isa 11:12-note, Ezek 36:24-27-note, Ezek 37:21-28-note, Ezek 38:8-note, Ezek 38:12-note, Ezek 39:27-29-note). A few thoughts on these OT prophecies of the Feast of Booths, the future fulfillment and Jesus' invitation at the Feast of Booths in Jn 7:37-39. Recall that one reason for the Feast was to celebrate God's good provision of "living water" during their 40 years of "wilderness wanderings." It is notable that the OT descriptions of the "wilderness wanderings" state very clearly there was "NO WATER." (Read Ex 15:22, 17:1, Nu 20:2, 21:5, 33:14, Dt 8:15). No water in the wilderness meant certain physical death in only a few days. God saw their physical need and provided for their physical need, "painting" a beautiful picture of His desire and ability to provide for their (and every man's) spiritual need that they might not remain spiritually dead throughout eternity! Moses summarized the dry, desert times of Israel's wandering, writing "He (Jehovah) led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He brought water for you (supernaturally) out of the rock of flint." (Dt 8:15). And so the Jews who were celebrating the Feast in John 7 would have (should have) been very familiar with God's provision of life giving physical "living (springing up, gushing forth, running, flowing) water" in the Old Testament. As they celebrated the rituals associated with the Feast for seven days, the Jews were in a sense re-enacting the picture of God's OT provision as they would dip living (running) water from a pool (which came from a spring) and joyously transport it back up the hill, through the Water Gate and to the Temple priests who poured it out on the altar. Onto this scene came Jesus, crying out to dry, parched, thirsty souls living in the "wilderness of this world," and with NO WATER that gives life to one's soul. Instead they had forsaken the fountain of living water and constructed their own cisterns and systems of Law keeping, of doing "good" works, etc. And yet these religious activities failed to satisfy the spiritual "thirst" God had placed in each of them. Into this "spiritually dry desert", Jesus came and stood and cried out offering them a drink from Himself (the same One from Whom their ancestors had drunk physical water! 1Cor 10:4!). He offered them living water that they might live spiritually, even as their ancestors were enabled to live physically in the OT after receiving the physical water. As
João 7:37-39
Ryle says "The time was ‘the last day of the feast’, when all the ceremonies were drawing to a close, when the water drawn from the fountain of Siloam, according to traditional custom, had been solemnly poured on the altar, and nothing remained for worshipers but to return home." (Thirst Relieved) The great day - So whether it was the seventh day or the eighth day, John makes it clear that it was in some regard a great day. This implies that the it may well have been the most well attended of all the days, for the Jews knew it was a great day. In any event, unbeknownst to the Jews, it was a great day, in fact the greatest day, because the greatest Person would issue the greatest invitation ever offered to sinful men. In an abbreviated form, Jesus would proclaim to them the Good News, the Gospel of their salvation. But sadly, it was not as some say "I'll make you an offer you can't refuse," because this was (and is) an offer that can be refused by the one who has no ears to hear nor heart to receive what Jesus is offering. Jesus spoke to this dullness of hearing and hardness of heart with he quoted from Isaiah 6:9-10-note in Mt 13:10-15. In fact God considers Isaiah 6:9-10 so significant that it is quoted no less than six times in the NT (Mt 13:14, 15; Mk 4:12; Lk 8:10; Jn 12:40; Acts 28:25, 26, 27, 28; Ro11:8)!. Compare the Jewish response to the Gospel in Jn 1:9-11 with a Gentile response in Acts 16:14. Pulpit Commentary - It may, moreover, have been called “the great day” because it was the closing day of all the festivals of the year. Josephus calls it “the very sacred close of the year.”… Meyer, Alford, Godet, Lange, and many others regard the eighth day as that here referred to by the word “great,” and find, in the very absence of the ceremonial of drawing water from the Pool of Siloam, the occasion which provoked the reference of our Lord to his own power to meet the spiritual thirst of mankind, thus repeating what he had said to the woman of Samaria Colin Kruse has an excellent discussion of the context of John 7:37-39 - On the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) Jesus promised living water to those who believed in him (Jn 7:37). To appreciate the impact of Jesus’ promise we need to understand the first-century water-pouring ritual during this feast. For the first six days of the feast they used to fill a golden flagon with water from the Pool of Siloam and carry it back to the Temple. When they reached the Water Gate, three blasts on the Shofar (ram’s horn trumpet) were sounded. When they arrived at the temple, they processed around the altar and sang the Hallel (Ps 113–118, eg see allusions to salvation in Ps 118:14, 15, 21, 25-26, partially fulfilled in Messiah's first advent = Mt 21:9), the people shaking their Lulavs (bundles of myrtle, palm and willow bound up with a Citron), while the priests shook theirs (made from willow [poplar] branches). The flagon was taken to the priest on duty at the altar who had two silver bowls, one for the water and the other for wine. These bowls were filled and then the contents poured over the altar. On the seventh day they processed around the altar seven times (Sukkah 3:9; 4:4–10; 5:1–4). People believed that when the Messiah came he would provide water (as he would provide manna) just as Moses had done: "As the former redeemer made a well to rise, so will the latter Redeemer bring up water, as it is stated, And a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim (Joel 3:18). (Qohelet Rabbah 1:9.1)" The evangelist sets the context of Jesus’ promise/proclamation: On the last and greatest day of the Feast. As noted above, the Feast of Tabernacles began with a solemn assembly on the first day, continuing for seven days, and was followed by another solemn assembly on the eighth day. When the evangelist refers to ‘the last and greatest day of the Feast’, it is difficult to know to which day he refers. If it was the eighth day, there would be no more water-pouring ceremonies, no more processions. These ceremonies had ceased. If it was the seventh day, when the priests and people processed around the altar seven times, singing the Hallel, shaking their Lulavs, and rejoicing before the Lord while the water was poured over the altar, the symbolism in Jesus’ proclamation would be striking. On the day when the last of the water-pouring ceremonies was performed amid much singing and rejoicing, Jesus invited people to come to Him, the One Who provides the rivers of living water. It seems preferable to say that ‘the last and greatest day’ was, in fact, the seventh day, when the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles reached its climax. (The Gospel According to John- An Introduction and Commentary Tyndale New Testament Commentaries) Of the feast (1859)(heorte) means feast, feast day, festival, holy day. In the NT heorte always denotes Jewish feasts or pilgrimage festivals (Passover =Lk 2:41, Feast of Unleavened Bread = Lk 22:1, Feast of Tabernacles = Jn 7:2). Mounce - Jesus and His disciples celebrated the feasts (Jn 2:23; 5:1; 7:10, 14). More than half of the occurrences of heortē are found in John (Jn 12:12; 13:1), where the beloved disciple demonstrates that the OT feasts find their true significance in Christ (Jn 7:37). There is only one usage of heortē outside of the gospels (Col 2:16). Here Paul teaches that believers are free to eat, drink, and celebrate feast days without condemnation. But they must always remember that these feasts are “a shadow of the things that were to come” and that Christ fulfilled these feasts (Col 2:17). (Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words) The derived verb heortázo (1858) means to keep a feast or celebrate a holiday (1Co 5:8; Ex 5:1; Ps 42:4) BDAG on heorte - a day or series of days marked by a periodic celebration or observance, Homer used heorte for a feast or festival. Later writers (Aeschylus, et al) sometimes used it with the meaning of "sport" or "play" (holidaymaking, amusement, pastime). NIDNTT - heortē has the basic meaning of performance, fulfilment (for the benefit of a deity). In its usual meaning of festival it is attested since Homer (Od., 20, 258 f.). Among the Greeks a great many events were elevated by means of festivals out of the common run of daily life: the change of the seasons and the high points of the year’s work from seed-time to harvest (fertility festivals); family events and the relationship between the individual and the community (family and tribal festivals). In later times especially, these festivities were practically always associated with certain deities and named after them. In addition to many festivals of local significance, there was an increasing number which were general throughout Greece. The list of these “legally sanctified portions of time” (Plato, Definitiones, 415a) produced a well-filled calendar of feasts which covered the whole year (in Roman times about a third of the total number of days in the year!) and every area of human life. It was not until later that important political events were also given festivals (memorial feasts), e.g. the battle of Marathon and the victory of Salamis… Spanning the whole realm of nature, every kind of occupation, and every special situation in life, numerous gods were honoured with a festival. Processes that were natural in origin were not only continued, but exaggerated to excess by celebrations involving immoderate indulgence in wine-drinking and love (especially in connection with the cult of Dionysus. Preparation for such feasts included fasting, washings and changes of clothing. The festival itself was celebrated with prayer and song, music and dancing, processions, sacrifice, sport, games and competitions. Markets and fairs were also part of the festival, and hostilities were usually interrupted. (New international dictionary of New Testament theology) In the present context the feast refers to is the Feast of Booths. The LXX uses heortē to translate the Hebrew hāg, which referred to a procession, round dance or festival (1 Kings 12:32–33; Neh 8:18). The LXX also uses heorte to translate mo'ed which refers to the appointed time (Lev 23:4 = "these are the appointed times"; Nu 28:2, Zeph 3:18). See Dictionary Articles - Feasts - American Tract Society Bible Dictionary Feasts - Fausset's Bible Dictionary Festivals - Holman Bible Dictionary Feasts and Festivals of Israel - Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology Festivals - Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature Festivals - The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia Heorte - 25x in 23v - NAS = feast(23), festival(3). notice 6 uses in John 7 = Jn 7:2, 8, 10, 11, 14, 37 Matthew 26:5 But they were saying, "Not during the festival (Passover - Pesach), otherwise a riot might occur among the people." Matthew 27:15 Now at the feast (Passover - Pesach) the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. Mark 14:2 for they were saying, "Not during the festival (Passover - Pesach), otherwise there might be a riot of the people." Mark 15:6 Now at the feast (Passover - Pesach) he used to release for them any one prisoner whom they requested. Luke 2:41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when He became twelve, they went up there according to the custom of the Feast; Luke 22:1 Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching. NET Note - The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a week long celebration that followed the day of Passover, so one name was used for both feasts (Ex 12:1–20; 23:15; 34:18; Deut 16:1–8). John 2:23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. John 4:45 So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves also went to the feast. John 5:1 After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. John 6:4 Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. John 7:2 Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. John 7:8 "Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come." Comment: Jesus perfectly fulfilled the OT prophecies of the Messiah which had been symbolized by each feast, and He knew that as the Lamb of God He was to die at the Feast of Passover not the Feast of Booths. John 7:10 But when His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He Himself also went up, not publicly, but as if, in secret. 11 So the Jews were seeking Him at the feast and were saying, "Where is He?" John 7:14 But when it was now the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and began to teach. John 7:37 Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. John 11:56 So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, "What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?" John 12:12 On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast; John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover (Pesach) , Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. John 13:29 For some were supposing, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus was saying to him, "Buy the things we have need of for the feast"; or else, that he should give something to the poor. Colossians 2:16-note Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day-- Heorte - 84x in the Septuagint - Ex 10:9; 12:14; 13:6; 23:15f, 18; 32:5; 34:18, 22, 25; Lev 22:21; 23:2, 4, 6, 34, 37, 44; Num 10:10; 15:3; 28:2, 17; 29:12, 39; Deut 16:8, 10, 13f, 16; 31:10; Jdg 21:19; 1Kgs 8:65; 12:32f; 2Kgs 23:16; 1Chr 23:31; 2Chr 2:4; 5:3; 7:8f; 8:13; 30:13, 21f, 26; 31:3; 35:17; Ezra 3:4f; 6:22; Neh 8:14, 18; 10:33; Esther 8:12; Ps 74:4, 8; 81:3; 118:27; Isa 1:14; Jer 31:8; Lam 1:4; 2:6f, 22; Ezek 23:34; 36:38; 44:24; 45:17, 21, 23, 25; 46:9, 11; Hos 2:11; 9:5; 12:9; Amos 5:21; 8:10; Nah 1:15; Zeph 3:17; Zech 8:19; 14:16, 18f; Mal 2:3; (Ex 12:14) ‘Now this day will be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast (Heb = hag/chag; Lxx = heorte) to the LORD; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance. (Mal 2:3) “Behold, I am going to rebuke your offspring, and I will spread refuse (heb = peresh = fecal matter!) on your faces, the refuse (fecal matter!) of your feasts (Heb = hag/chag; Lxx = heorte); and you will be taken away with it. (Woe!) THE CRY HEARD AROUND THE WORLD While Jesus' original cry was in Jerusalem, His words immortalized in Scripture have been heard around the globe, on every continent. And yet how tragic that there are still so many thousands of unreached people groups who have yet to hear Jesus' great cry! Perhaps God's Spirit is calling you take Jesus' cry to them. As Paul asks "how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GLAD TIDINGS OF GOOD THINGS!"" (Ro 10:14 -15) How many nameless souls, like those who first heard Jesus' words, stand on the brink of eternity not having heard Jesus' invitation, for they have never even heard the Name "Jesus" by which they must be saved (Acts 4:12). Consider praying daily for these thirsting, unreached people groups, for Jesus wants to offer them a drink through you ("from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water" - Jn 7:38)! I highly recommend the daily prayer devotional Global Prayer Digest which specifically seeks to target the most unreached people groups in the world. Make it part of your daily devotional time - your eternity (and many of those you pray for) will be richer because you prayed (see 1Thes 2:19-20-note) Jesus stood - This translation obscures a subtle word picture. The verb stood is more literally translated "was standing," "which gives us a graphic touch" (Vincent) of Jesus standing and watching the ceremonial proceedings. Some commentaries observe that when teachers instructed in ancient Israel, they would do so for a sitting position, but here Jesus is standing to teach.