John 1

Notes

Ver. 1-5. From all eternity the Son of God, the great Speaker for and to men, the medium of divine manifestations to us, and to whom all the Scripture gives testimony, who may therefore properly be called the Word, existed a distinct person, equal to and the express image of his divine Father, and the same in substance with him, necessarily possessed of every excellency of Godhead; and by him were all creatures, from the highest to the lowest, formed of nothing in the beginning of time. From that life necessarily existent in him proceeded all kinds and degrees of life, knowledge, and comfort, found among men. And yet, though he, in the dictates of natural conscience and of revelation, manifests himself to men, such is the sinful ignorance and error of their minds, the bias of their will and affections, and corruption of their practice, that they do not naturally understand, but shut their eyes against, hate, and oppose these discoveries. 6-8. John the Baptist was eminently qualified, and divinely appointed, as the forerunner of his personal appearance, to point him forth as the glorious Sun of Righteousness rising among men, that persons of all sorts, Jews and Gentiles, might believe on him for life and salvation. 9-13. And indeed he, in opposition to the false lights of heathen philosophy, the corrupted and faint typical light of the Jews, and in distinction from John the Baptist and the prophets and apostles, is the original fountain of light from which all natural and divine knowledge is communicated to men in every period of time. By his upholding and governing providence, and by his dispensations of light and grace, he has all along been present in the world, which he created; and yet neither his manifestations of himself, in providence or revelation, have been duly discerned or improved; and when, in the fulness of time, he manifested himself in human nature, preaching the gospel, and working miracles among the Jews his peculiar people, most of them wilfully rejected him, and refused to acknowledge him as their Creator and Saviour. But to all such, whether Jews or Gentiles, as heartily received him by faith as their Redeemer, Prophet, Priest, and King, he bestowed the dignified right and privilege of being the real children of God; all of whom, without any influence of natural descent, ceremonial law, or any external aid, seek a supernatural habit or principle of grace which, exercised in them, disposes them to every good word and work.

14, 16-18. And in order to effect these grand designs of our redemption, the eternal Son of God assumed our nature, in its debased appearances, into a personal union with himself; and therein, in all his fulness of Godhead, for a season dwelt among us men, particularly us disciples, as Jehovah did in the cloud of glory which covered the mercy-seat, full of infinite grace and kindness to men, and of all necessary blessings, to be freely communicated to them. All the laws, promises, types, and prophecies were fulfilled in him; and we, in his doctrine, miracles, transfiguration, resurrection, and ascension, by faith steadfastly considered and admired these glorious perfections, becoming him as one with, and in an inconceivable and unparalleled manner begotten by, his eternal Father; and out of his fulness of divine perfections and communicative blessings, who is infinitely preferable to John the Baptist, all of us believers, great and small, have, do, and shall receive all spiritual blessings, multiplied one upon another, according to our capacities and wants, and answerable, in nature and kind, to our faith in Jesus Christ.—Far superior to Moses, who delivered the laws of God to the Jews in a manner suited to their circumstances, in a ministration of condemnation, and in obscure types, which could not make the worshippers perfect, Jesus has brought in the richest and plainest discoveries of God's love and grace, in which all the ancient types and predictions have their full accomplishment. And being himself the beloved and only begotten Son of God, intimately acquainted with all his excellencies and purposes of grace, he alone was fit for this work, and he hath now manifested these things to men in such a manner as no other was able to do.

Ver. 13. 'Not of bloods.' Neither by right of natural descent from Abraham, nor any of the tribes.—Nor of the will of the flesh, which is simply to seek present pleasure and escape present pain, as is manifest in all the lower and mere animal natures.—Nor of the will of man, who, being compounded of flesh and spirit, can, under the influence of natural intellect, make many sacrifices of present pleasure, and endure many pains, from a calculating regard to futurity.—But of God, who, by his Holy Spirit, can alone renew man 'after the image of him that created him,' Ep. 4. 24; Col. 3. 10. C.

Ver. 16. Grace for grace. There being a fulness of grace in Christ, ver. 14, believers receive a measure of every form of grace in him. It may be illustrated by a garden in which there are many plants, and a barren waste into which there is made out of it a complete transplantation, so that they, at last, answer to each other, plant for plant. C.

Ver. 18. No man hath seen God at any time. God being infinite in being and perfections, can never be perfectly seen by any finite creature. For though the Shekinah, or other visible manifestation of his presence, has been or may be seen, still that manifestation is not God.—Declared him. Educed him, brought him out to the eye of the spirit in all his perfections, purposes, promises, and works of grace, providence, and final judgment. C.

Ver. 21. John replies in the sense intended by the questioner, and denies that he is Elias in resurrection flesh. When our Lord affirms that John was Elias, Mat. 11. 14, he speaks in the sense of Malachi (ch. 4. 5), of his being in the 'spirit and power of Elias,' 'that prophet' foretold by Moses, De. 18. 15. It cannot be translated 'a prophet,' for John was even more than a prophet, Mat. 11. 11. C.

Ver. 25. The Jews were accustomed to baptize heathen proselytes, but never without an order from the Sanhedrim, or great civil and ecclesiastical council, or before three magistrates or doctors of the law; they therefore very naturally feel jealous of John, who not only baptized without their authority, but baptized Jews themselves, contrary to the practice of the Pharisees. C.

Ver. 29. Behold the Lamb. The lamb was the first sacrifice on record, Ge. 4. 4; a lamb was also the daily sacrifice in the temple. It therefore furnished an appropriate title for him who came 'to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself,' He. 9. 26.—Taketh away the sin of the world. Rather, 'who is taking away,' by first bearing our sins in his own body, and finally to the cross, 1 Pe. 2. 24, whereby he finished the transgression, made an end of sins, and brought in everlasting righteousness, Da. 9. 24. 'The world' of Jew and Gentile, wherein the sacrifice of Christ differed from those of the law, which were appointed exclusively for the Jews. C.

Ver. 47. Behold an Israelite indeed. Jacob obtained the name of Israel after wrestling in prayer with the Angel of the Covenant, Ge. 32. 24, 28; and it seems most probable that Nathanael, when 'under the fig-tree,' ver. 48, had been similarly engaged.—In whom is no guile, no deceit in purpose or word, grace having already so purified his heart. C.

Ver. 51. The allusion seems evidently to the ladder of Jacob's vision, Ge. 28. 12, and the meaning, that Christ is the only medium of communication between earth and heaven.—Angels ascending—bearing the spirits of departed believers, Lu. 16. 23.—Descending—to 'minister to the heirs of salvation,' He. 1. 14. C.

**Reflections.—**Infinite and divine are the glories of our Mediator! He is the eternal God, equal with his Father; he is the Creator of all things, and the original source of all light, life, and honour, in the world.—Marvellous is his person as God-man, and full of grace and truth for our supply! His divine nature puts the most wonderful dignity upon his condescension, and on his offering himself a sacrifice to pardon our sins. And his character and mission are gloriously attested by apostles, by John the Baptist, and by his Father and blessed Spirit. Alas! that any, especially such as enjoy his oracles and favours, should remain ignorant or obstinate rejecters of him! But happy are they whom he persuades by his grace, adopts into his family, conforms unto his image, supplies with his light and life, humbles by his influence, informs by his Spirit, instructs by his visits, and honours in his service. And the more honour God puts upon men, the more humble they ought to be. The more they know of Christ and his work, the more they ought to extol him, that others, particularly their relations, may seek and follow him. It is habitual not transient fellowship with him that will supply the need and satisfy the desires of real believers. Acquaintance with him is the best answer to all prejudices and objections against him. They who find him cannot but exult in their acquisition. And great is the honour to have his attestation of our secret devotion and universal integrity.—Our views of his glory are but beginning and will be for ever on the advance. And angels and men will eternally behold, and increasingly admire and serve him, in his kingdom above.