Глава 13

1–20. Christ washing the feet of the disciples at the supper. – 21–30. Discovery of the traitor. – 31–35. The Lord's address to the disciples with final instructions. – 36–38. The question of the Apostle Peter and the Lord's answer. From chapters 13 to 17, the Gospel of John depicts the last hours spent by the Lord in the circle of His disciples. This section in John represents something independent in the presentation of the history of the life of Christ. It can be called “Christ in the close circle of 12.” Here the Lord, in view of His imminent separation from them, gives them the last instructions in order to strengthen their faith and courage. John 13:1. Before the Feast of Easter, Jesus, knowing that His hour had come to pass from this world to the Father, showed by deed that, having loved His beings in the world, He loved them to the end. This verse has a rather unusual construction in the original text, which is why the Russian translation found it necessary to make some insertion here to clarify the thought, adding the words “revealed that.” But it is difficult to agree with the interpretation of the Russian translation. This addition shows that the Russian translation sees the highest manifestation of Christ’s love for his disciples only in the washing of feet, which “revealed” this love. Meanwhile, if anything could be called a manifestation of love, it was not the symbolic admonition regarding the need for humility for the disciples, given to them in the rite of washing their feet, but the entire subsequent completely frank conversation of the Lord with His disciples, in which He spoke to them precisely as His beloved children, as His friends. Therefore, limiting the meaning of the first verse by only placing it in relation to the washing of feet, as is done in the Russian translation, is completely unfounded. According to the interpretations of the holy fathers and ancient translations, this verse should be translated as follows: “But since He already knew before the Easter holiday that His hour had come - to go from this world to the Father - then Jesus, as He loved His (disciples) who were (remained) in the world, loved them to the end.” It is clear that the evangelist's remark here applies not only to the following story of foot-washing, but to the entire section from the 13th to the 17th chapter. The Lord loved the disciples with all his might (“to the end”, cf. Matt. 10:22) precisely at this time, and felt extreme pity for them precisely now because this Easter holiday was, as He knew, the last days in which the disciples could still have their support in close communication with Him. Soon they will be left alone, and the Lord foresees how difficult it will be for them at that time, how unhappy and abandoned they will feel then! John 13:2. And during the supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Simon Iscariot to betray Him, "And during supper". The evangelist does not determine when or on what day this supper took place. But taking into account the fact that at this supper the discovery of the traitor takes place, which, according to the weather forecasters, took place precisely at the last Easter supper, when the Eucharist was established, we have the right to conclude that John here is talking about the last Paschal supper of Christ. To this we must add that both here and here the disciples are given instruction from Christ regarding humility. But why doesn’t John say anything about Christ eating Easter with his disciples and about the establishment of the Sacrament of the Eucharist? Probably because he found the account of this in the Synoptic Gospels quite sufficient. (On the day of the Last Supper according to the Gospel of John - see comments on John 18:28). “The devil invested...”. See comments on Luke 22:3. John 13:3. Jesus, knowing that the Father has given all things into His hands, and that He came from God and is going to God, "Jesus, knowing that..." These words are usually interpreted as a concessive sentence: “although Jesus knew... however,” etc. But such an interpretation is hardly correct. It is more consistent with the context of the speech to see here the circumstance of the reason and convey the thought of the entire verse as follows: “Jesus, since He knew that the Father had given everything - and, therefore, first of all these twelve apostles, who were to become witnesses of Christ - into His hands and, therefore, He was obliged to prepare them for the fulfillment of the task assigned to them by God, and, on the other hand, knowing that in a few hours He would return to His Father, from Whom He came and that, therefore, He there is little time left for teaching students the most important virtues - humility and love for each other, which they will so need in the work of their future ministry, “rose from supper,” i.e. taught them the last lesson of humility and love.” John 13:4. He got up from supper, took off His outer clothing and, taking a towel, girded Himself. According to custom, before supper the minister washed the feet of those who came to the meal. This time there was no minister, and none of the disciples, obviously, wanted to provide Christ and his companions with the appropriate service. Then the Lord Himself gets up from supper and prepares to perform ablution, which a simple servant should do. It is very likely that the reason for this was a dispute that occurred between the disciples about primacy (see Luke 22:24). John 13:5. Then he poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel with which he was girded. John, in describing the washing of feet, does not say with whom Christ began. Most likely, the first to receive this was John, who reclined on Christ’s chest, and usually tries not to mention his name where he is placed ahead of others. "Started" . The evangelist adds this word due to the fact that the ablution was soon interrupted by the Lord’s conversation with Peter. John 13:6. He approaches Simon Peter, and he says to Him: Lord! Should you wash my feet? John 13:7. Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not know now, but you will understand later.” John 13:8. Peter says to Him: You will never wash my feet. Jesus answered him: If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me. The disciples, amazed at what their Lord and Teacher began to do, were unable to utter a single word and silently took a bath from the hands of Christ. But Peter, as a man, cannot restrain the feelings that overwhelm him, and expresses ardent protest against what Christ wants to do for him. The Lord does not consider it possible at this time to explain to Peter the whole meaning of His action: Peter will understand this “after”, i.e. partly in the coming night, when Peter, from the experience of his own fall, comprehended the need for humility and self-abasement, which the Lord showed in the rite of washing his feet, and partly later, after the resurrection of Christ, when Peter sees what His self-abasement will lead to Christ (cf. 1 Pet. 3:22). However, Peter, out of humility, which, however, was far from true, because at the same time it was accompanied by his resistance to the will of the Lord (true humility is always accompanied by obedience to the Lord), persists. To overcome Peter’s stubbornness, the Lord somewhat explains to him the meaning of the cleansing of the disciples’ feet that He performed. He tells Peter that washing the feet means washing the whole person in general: “unless I wash you,” and not “your feet” only... “You have no part with Me.” See comments on Matthew 24:51; Luke 12:46. The Lord inspires Peter that, unless he is purified by Christ, he will not participate with Him in the blessings that the Kingdom founded by Christ contains, or in eternal life. Thus, the washing of feet is interpreted here by the Lord not only as an invitation to the disciples to humility, but also as an action by which the disciples are given the grace-filled power that cleanses them from sins, which is necessary for every person to achieve salvation. John 13:9. Simon Peter says to Him: Lord! not only my feet, but also my hands and head. John 13:10. Jesus says to him: he who has been washed only needs to wash his feet, because he is all clean; and you are clean, but not all. John 13:11. For He knew His betrayer, and that is why He said: You are not all pure. Peter understands the importance of the washing that Christ offers and, in order to be completely sure of receiving “a part with Christ,” he asks Christ to wash not only his feet, but also his head, as the most important part of the body. The Lord answers Peter that he does not need complete cleansing, just as a man who has bathed in a river does not need to pour water on himself when he comes ashore: he only needs to rinse his feet, to which the dirt has stuck, until the man reaches the place where he laid his clothes. In the baptism of repentance and in constant communion with Christ, the disciples of Christ had already been cleansed, as much as possible before the sending of the Holy Spirit, but nevertheless, “walking” among a corrupt and sinful race (Matthew 17:17) could not help but leave some dirty spots on the feet of the disciples, which the Lord invites them to wash away with His grace or love. It is very possible that at the same time the Lord wanted to make it clear to Peter that he must renounce the narrow Jewish view of the Messiah and His Kingdom; this really prevented Peter from coming to terms with the idea of ​​the need for Christ to die on the cross (Matthew 16:22). "But not all". By this, the Lord, on the one hand, made it clear that He was well aware of the traitor’s plan, on the other hand, He turned to Judas’ conscience in these last minutes, giving him time to come to his senses. The evangelist especially highlights the first side, because while he was writing the Gospel, some enemies of Christianity raised as an objection to Christians that Christ did not foresee that among His closest disciples there would be a traitor. No, the evangelist seems to be saying, Christ knew this well. John 13:12. When he had washed their feet and put on his clothes, he lay down again and said to them: Do you know what I have done to you? John 13:13. You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you speak correctly, for I am exactly that. John 13:14. So, if I, the Lord and Teacher, washed your feet, then you should wash each other’s feet. John 13:15. For I have given you an example, that you also should do the same as I have done to you. Explaining the immediate meaning of washing feet, the Lord says that He thereby gave an example of how His followers should act in relation to each other. “You must wash...”. This command, of course, must be understood not in a literal, but in a symbolic sense. Thus, in 1 Timothy 5:10, foot washing is mentioned as a manifestation or synonym of active Christian love for one's neighbor. The Lord here is not talking about what exactly His disciples should do, but about how they should, with what thoughts and feelings, serve their neighbors. This must be done not only out of obligation, but out of love, as Christ Himself did. "Lord and Teacher". These names correspond to the Jewish titles of that time, as the rabbis were called by their students: “mara” and “rabbi.” But Christ, of course, gives these names with which the apostles addressed Him real meaning. His apostles, of course, see in Him the one true Teacher and true Lord, and they are quite right, because He really is like that. And from this it follows that they are obliged to fulfill His commands to the fullest accuracy. John 13:16. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. John 13:17. If you know this, blessed are you when you do it. The Lord justifies the fact that it is necessary for the apostles to make every kind of self-sacrifice with the same consideration that He expressed when He first sent the apostles to preach. See comments on Matthew 10:24. “Blessed are you...” . See Matthew 5:3. John 13:18. I'm not talking about all of you; I know whom I chose. But let the Scripture be fulfilled: He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me. John 13:19. Now I tell you before it comes to pass, so that when it comes to pass, you may believe that it is I. With sadness, Christ again notes that not all His disciples can be called “blessed.” “I know whom I have chosen,” Christ adds. The disciples do not yet know that there is a traitor among them, but Christ has known this for a long time. But, submitting to the will of the Father, expressed in the Holy Scriptures, He did not take any measures to remove the traitor from among the apostles around Him. Psalm 40, from which one verse is quoted here (Ps. 40:10), is understood by the evangelist, undoubtedly, as a prophetic psalm, predicting the difficult fate of the Messiah. “He lifted up his heel against Me,” that is, pretending to be My friend, he wanted to crush Me when I was lying on the ground. Some see here a comparison with a horse that unexpectedly kicks with its hooves the owner standing behind it or the worker assigned to walk behind the horse. Let the apostles know that betrayal did not overtake Christ unexpectedly! "What is it I" . The Lord speaks of Himself as the omniscient Jehovah. See comments on John 8:24. John 13:20. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives him whom I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. Here Christ returns to the main idea of ​​​​His conversation with the disciples about the meaning of washing feet and wants to substantiate the idea that they can be called “blessed” (see verse 17). In content, this saying is similar to the 40th verse of the 10th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, but here it has the meaning that the self-humiliation to which Christ will subject Himself and which He depicted under the symbolic action of washing the feet of the disciples will not actually harm His greatness. “Accept Christ”, i.e. believing in Him is the same as believing in God, and trusting the apostles is the same as listening with faith to the preaching of Christ Himself. Shouldn't the apostles feel blessed, having such conviction of the power of their preaching with which they will go into the world? If they also go to any degree of self-abasement for the sake of Christ and their brothers in faith, this will not harm them at all. It should be noted that some other fathers and teachers of the Church explained the washing of feet in a symbolic sense, either seeing here a relation to the Sacrament of the Eucharist, or understanding this action as a pre-indication of the Sacrament of Christian Baptism. In modern times, Loisy has detailed the meaning of this action from a symbolic point of view. “Jesus,” says Loisy, focusing primarily on the relationship of foot washing to the Eucharist and to the death of Christ, which lies at the basis of this Sacrament, “in His death, out of love, became a servant of man. The Eucharist is a constant remembrance, a real symbol of this service.” But this service of Christ to man is also performed in the ritual of washing. The Evangelist John does not mention the establishment of the Eucharist because he considers the washing of feet to be completely appropriate to the Eucharist. Christ's taking off his clothes signifies His laying down of life; the towel with which Christ girded signified the shrouds with which Christ was wrapped during burial, etc. The water of baptism is also symbolically represented by the water that Christ poured into the laver. But such explanations seem highly artificial and it is easier to say, together with the famous preacher Nebe, that the washing of feet is, firstly, an example of humble love, secondly, a symbolic image of the action of the grace of Christ on our hearts and, thirdly, a guiding example for us in our relations with our brothers. John 13:21. Having said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.” The thought that there was a traitor among the disciples outraged the soul of Christ (see John 11:33), this was noted only by John, as he reclined closest to Christ. But this indignation soon passed, and after a few moments the Lord said clearly and definitely, without worrying (“testified”) that one of the apostles would betray Him. See comments on Matthew 26:21. John 13:22. Then the disciples looked around at each other, wondering who He was talking about. John 13:23. One of His disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at Jesus’ breast. John 13:24. Simon Peter made a sign to him to ask who it was that he was talking about. John 13:25. He fell to the chest of Jesus and said to Him: Lord! who is this? Here, only one evangelist, John, reports that at the request of Peter, the disciple, reclining on the toes of Jesus, quietly asked Christ who He meant when speaking about the traitor. On reclining at the table, see comments on Matthew 26:20. "One of the students..." It was, of course, John, who usually does not call himself by name (cf. John 1:40, 19:26, 21:7, 20). “Simon Peter made a sign to him.” The Apostle Peter, obviously, could not himself say something to Christ inaudibly for others: he was not reclining on the same bed on which Christ was reclining. But he was facing John, while the Lord was facing the direction opposite to where Peter was, and therefore Peter made a certain sign to John, expressing a request to quietly ask Christ about the traitor. Then, Peter, after his unsuccessful remark he made to the Lord about washing his feet, felt, of course, some embarrassment, which prevented him from turning to the Lord with a question (St. John Chrysostom). John 13:26. Jesus answered: the one to whom I dip a piece of bread and give it. And, having dipped the piece, he gave it to Judas Simon Iscariot. The Lord, giving Judas a dipped piece of bread, thereby pointed to the traitor. What kind of piece it was, the evangelist does not say. Some (Bishop Michael) believe that this is unleavened bread dipped in a sauce of bitter herbs, and this assumption is very likely. The very action of the Lord was not noted by His other disciples, except John, as something out of the ordinary, because at a feast in the east the host - and in this case Christ appeared - usually divided pieces of bread and meat to his guests. From this we can also draw the following conclusion: the Lord, offering a piece of bread to Judas, also now wanted to awaken better feelings in him. John 13:27. And after this piece Satan entered into him. Then Jesus said to him, “Whatever you are doing, do it quickly.” John 13:28. But none of those reclining understood why He told him this. John 13:29. And since Judas had a box, some thought that Jesus was telling him: buy what we need for the holiday, or to give something to the poor. John 13:30 . Having accepted the piece, he immediately left; and it was night. Judas should have been touched by this sign of love, but he was already too bitter. On hardened people, the greatest benefits of those against whom they are hardened have an even more hardening effect. Having received a sign of love, Judas became even more embittered, and then “Satan entered” into him, i.e. took possession of it completely, so as not to let it out of his hands anymore. Hatred towards Christ flared up in him even more strongly, it was hard for him to remain in the company of Christ and the apostles, and he began to come up with an excuse to leave the supper. The Lord sees his torment and lets him go: let him quickly accomplish what his soul strives for. But none of the disciples, of course, except John, understood the words of Christ. They believed that Christ was sending Judas to buy something for the holiday. From this it is clear that the shops in Jerusalem were not yet closed (cf. Matt. 25:9-11) and, therefore, the supper that Christ celebrated was celebrated a day earlier than the legal time for celebrating Passover. “And it was night.” With these words, the evangelist marks the onset of that dark time about which the Lord spoke to the disciples earlier (see John 9:4, 11:10). John 13:31. When he went out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him.” John 13:32. If God was glorified in Him, then God will glorify Him in Himself, and will soon glorify Him. With the removal of the traitor who went after the detachment that was supposed to take Christ, the Lord sees His activity already completed. The Son of Man, or the Messiah, is now already glorified, but this is not yet the eternal, final glorification that the prophets predicted and which will take place only in the future (verse 32: “he will glorify Him”), but glorification through the acceptance of suffering and martyrdom for all humanity. “The fullness of the glory of Christ was revealed in His suffering for the sins of the world” (St. Cyril of Alexandria). By calling Himself here the Son of Man, the Lord wants to make it clear to His disciples that in His suffering He is the representative of humanity before Divine Justice and that, therefore, thanks to His feat, all humanity is glorified. "And God was glorified in Him". Through Christ, God fulfilled all of His promises to humanity, and together He Himself received glorification from people who had not previously glorified Him as they should (Rom. 1:19). Moreover, humanity itself in a state of glorification or restoration is the glory of God, because in the suffering and death of Christ, humanity responded to those ideal demands of obedience to God that were presented to it by God during the introduction of the ancestors of humanity into heaven (see Silchenkov. Farewell conversation, p. 15). “If God was glorified in Him...”. This speaks primarily of the glory that awaits Christ Himself. God glorified the representative of humanity in Himself, i.e. will clothe with His highest, heavenly glory the human nature of Christ, but the divine nature of Christ has never been deprived of divine glory, as can be seen from the fact of the transfiguration, when temporarily this divine glory, always inherent in Christ, shone through the bodily shell. “He will soon glorify Him.” Some (for example, Tsang) see here a limitation of the thought of glorification expressed by Christ: Christ supposedly means what will follow in the near future, i.e. only His resurrection. But it is more correct to see here an indication of the speed of subsequent events - the ascension of Christ on the cross and ascension into heaven: the days of Christ’s suffering will quickly fly by and glorification is not far! John 13:33. Children! I won't be with you for long. You will seek Me, and just as I told the Jews that where I go you cannot come, so I tell you now. Since the path to glory set before Christ is the path of suffering and death, and since now the disciples have not yet followed this path, they have to be separated from Christ. At the thought of this separation, Christ’s love for them awakens with special strength and pity for them seizes His heart. Therefore, he calls them by the most affectionate name, which is what a father calls his beloved children: “children,” or more correctly from Greek, “children” (τεκνία). “You will seek Me...”. Being pursued and persecuted by the world, the disciples will seek Him, the Lord and Teacher, but they will not be able to follow Him. The Lord spoke the same words before (John 7:34, 8:21), but there these words were addressed to the Jews who did not believe in Christ and had the meaning of a threat. Here they represent an expression of regret for the remaining disciples in the world. “I’m speaking now.” The Lord no longer considers it possible to delay announcing to the disciples the impending separation from Him. Saint John Chrysostom says that Christ warns them about this separation in order that this separation should not surprise them and that unexpected disasters should not confuse them. John 13:34. I give you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, let you also love one another. Like a father separated from his children, Christ gives His final instructions to the disciples. First of all, He gives them the main commandment that they must observe - this is the commandment of mutual love. At the same time, Christ calls the commandment of love “new” not because He had not previously taught them to love each other, but because He speaks here as a King establishing His Kingdom. His new Kingdom is also based on new principles - namely, first of all, on love, which from now on in the Kingdom of Christ becomes the main law of life for the members of this Kingdom. In other earthly human kingdoms, other principles were established as the basic state laws and, above all, the beginning of state egoism, for the sake of which every human personality was sacrificed. In the Kingdom of Christ, there is no place for such a principle, and the person retains all his legal rights as the image and likeness of God. Further, the commandment about love that Christ gives here is new even in relation to the commandment about love that already existed in the Old Testament (Lev. 19:18), because in the Old Testament this commandment also did not have the meaning of a moral principle on which all Old Testament ethics would be built. And most importantly, in the Old Testament it was required to love “your neighbor,” i.e. a division was made between people: some were closer, others further away. The Lord here speaks not only about a neighbor who needs to be loved, but in general about people who all stand in a relationship of closeness to each other. “Love one another” means that among the followers of Christ there cannot be people who are not close to us, that we must love everyone as our neighbors. Some interpreters believed that the news of Christ’s commandment lies in the degree of love, in its strength, reaching the readiness of self-sacrifice (“love your neighbor more than yourself,” the ancient Greek and some new interpreters interpreted). But it is hardly possible to accept such an opinion, because the particle “as” (καθώς) in the expression “as I have loved” ...” does not denote the degree, but rather (cf. John 17:2, 11) the mood of the lover, which at its core - and not in degree, size - should be likened to the mood that was in Christ (cf. Phil. 2:2). John 13:35. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. Let this love in the spirit of Christ serve as the distinguishing mark of a true follower of Christ (cf. 1 John 3:10). Of course, this does not deny other signs of a true disciple of Christ, faith and good deeds, nevertheless, it is certain that in the writings of the Apostle John all these other virtues are subsumed under the same concept - love (1 John 3:10; Rev. 2:4), just as in the Apostle Paul love is recognized as the totality of perfection (Col. 3:14). But this love, in order to be love in the spirit of Christ, must be free from all partisanship and intolerance towards people who do not profess our faith. We must, of course, start with love for people who are related to us in spirit and origin, but then go further and further in expanding the sphere of love, which must certainly rise to the level of love for all people, even our enemies. John 13:36. Simon Peter said to Him: Lord! where are you going? Jesus answered him: Where I am going, you cannot follow Me now, but later you will follow Me. John 13:37. Peter said to Him: Lord! Why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my soul for You. John 13:38. Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for Me?” Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow until you have denied Me three times. The divine demands presented to the apostles do not so much occupy their attention as they are oppressed by the thought that Christ is leaving them. The spokesman for the feelings of the disciples in this case is the Apostle Peter. John depicts the short conversation between the Savior and Peter here in a manner similar to the narrative of the Evangelist Luke (cf. Luke 22:31–34). The evangelists Matthew (Matthew 26:31–35) and Mark (Mark 14:27–31) differ here from John in depicting the time, place and occasion of the conversation. Peter, perhaps, believed that the Lord was leaving somewhere from Judea in order to found His Church in another country, where for some reason the disciples could not follow Him (St. Cyril of Alexandria). He did not think or did not want to think about the fact that the Lord was going to die. In his answer to Peter, Christ almost literally repeats what he said above to all the apostles (verse 33), and by this makes it clear that he will not explain anything more to them about the very fact that he has in mind. By adding “later you will follow Me,” the Lord reassures Peter and the other disciples, letting them know that they will follow the same path of asceticism and martyrdom that He follows, and thus unite with Him again. "Why can't I...". Peter even now feels ready to sacrifice his life for Christ, but the Lord predicts to him that, on the contrary, he will not only not want to lay down his soul for Christ now, but will renounce Christ before morning. It is clear that John here complements the narrative of the Evangelist Luke, whose prediction of Christ to Peter is not in direct connection with the previous words of Christ (see Luke 22:31 et seq.). It is best to make the following combination from two Gospel stories: 1) John 13:36–37; and 2) Luke 22:32–33; and 3) John 13:38. The evangelists Matthew and Mark describe only the continuation and end of Christ’s conversation with Peter (Matt. 26:30–31; Mark 14:29–31; Matt. 26:32–35). You might be interested in: