John 12 - Preacher's Commentary

12:1-8

Anointing in Bethany

In the meantime Jesus comes to a dinner party in Bethany. This feast of thanks, in which Lazarus, Martha, and Mary are involved, may well have taken place in the home of Simon the Leper if this is the same occasion recorded in Matthew 26:6–13 and Mark 14:3–9.

Martha is in her customary place of serving while Lazarus, never more fresh and alive, is at the table with Jesus. Even now one can almost hear the joy and soft laughter of their animated conversation as they eat and drink. It is Mary who kneels and anoints Jesus’ feet, generously pouring out costly perfumed oil that was equivalent to the wages of a year’s work, and then wiping His feet with her hair (v. 3). It is a symbol of consecration for that divine work which Jesus was about to do. An early preparation for His death. Also a pledge of honor reserved for royalty. In a few days Jesus will enter Jerusalem as an anointed King.

The fragrance of this generous gift, so gratefully poured out, fills the house with far more than its sweet smell. It brought the warm, pervasive glow of love. One can always tell when a home has become a place of hospitality and caring because the smell of fragrant love poured out fills the air.

This act of love is so extravagant that Judas, who obviously feels it has been a waste, asks piously why this money could not have been given to the poor (v. 5). He asks this not because he cares, but because he is a selfish thief. Apparently Judas was gifted in handling money, so he had been given the responsibility for the common pot, which became his undoing. How often we go astray in the area of our strength. The gifted preacher can succumb to his ego, the brilliant accountant become an embezzler, or the empathetic counselor give in to adultery.

While Mary is giving her best in preparing for His death, the greed of Judas will cause Jesus’ death. In Jewish thought, preparation for death was an act of mercy, a greater “good work” than justice, which was almsgiving for the poor. So Jesus commends Mary, not because He is indifferent to the poor, but because she has done a generous work of kindness preparing for His own death.

12:9-11

Destroying the Evidence

People come to Bethany, not only to see Jesus, but to see the man He has raised from the dead. It is a procession of the curious. And they believe! So the “chief priests” take counsel on how even Lazarus can be put to death (v. 10). He is another evidence of Jesus’ lifegiving power which is bringing men to faith. And this must be put to an end. One can feel both the fear and the paranoia of the hierarchy.

12:11

A King on a Donkey’s Colt

John 12:12–50

Scripture Outline

National Liberator or Savior? (12:12-19)

Death That Brings a Rich Harvest (12:20-26)

For This Purpose (12:27-36)

Hardened Hearts, but a Remnant (12:37-43)

Faithfulness to the Father’s Word (12:44-50)

12:12-19

National Liberator or Savior?

Lazarus has been raised from the dead! The word is out! There are witnesses who have seen it. Now the One who raised him is on His way to Jerusalem in spite of all the earlier threats from high places. This must be the Messiah. He is coming to take over. One can feel the excitement building!

Even while visiting villages in India or Africa on missionary tours I have been utterly overwhelmed by the crowds, young and old, running out breathlessly to meet us. We shrink back embarrassed. How can anyone greet us in this way! We are only men—forgiven sinners as they are. Ah, but they are coming with gratitude and joy. We represent the people who first shared the good news with them, bringing salvation and healing. This is why they shout and sing and wave branches. So we join in the celebration.

But can anyone grasp the frenzied, bottled up emotions let loose by these crowds welcoming Jesus to Jerusalem? Those who accompany Him are eager to tell anyone who will listen the amazing things they have seen. And people in the city, a great host who have come for the feast, have heard He is coming and they surge out to meet Him, and there is a mingling of crowds.

What mighty hopes and expectations they have. If Jesus has raised a man from the dead, surely He can set them free from the shackles of Rome. He has come to occupy the throne of David. This Jesus is their “national liberator,” so everything they do has political overtones. Even the palm branches are a sign of Maccabean nationalism. For when Judas Maccabeus rededicated the temple altar in 164 B.C. after the desecration by the Syrians, the Jews came bringing palms to the temple. They were victors! And later when his brother Simon conquered the Jerusalem citadel in 142 B.C. the Jews took possession carrying palm fronds.

Even the phrase “went out to meet Him” is a “normal Greek expression used to describe the joyful reception of Hellenistic sovereigns into a city.” And the shout “Hosanna” which means “save now” is an acclamation of praise greeting Jesus as a conqueror. There is even a political innuendo in the cry, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” because the words “The King of Israel!” are added (v. 13). Their hopes and ambitions for Israel are man-centered and nationalistic. These people have misunderstood the meaning and implications of the raising of Lazarus as did the crowd of five thousand whom Jesus fed. They are about to acclaim Jesus as the king who will overthrow Rome and set them free.

Jesus answers the pressure and false expectations of this frenzied crowd with a prophetic, but simple, act. He “found a young donkey” and “sat on it” (v. 14). Yes, He is coming as Messiah. John’s words from Zechariah 9:9, which speak of the long-expected Chosen One, make this clear, “Behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt.” Had Jesus come to fulfill the earthly, nationalistic ambitions of these people He would have ridden a horse, as a warring liberator. But He comes on a donkey, an honored animal in that day, as a Man of Peace.

Not even the disciples understood what this all meant until much later when they were enlightened by the Spirit and they saw it through the Crucifixion and Resurrection.

Raymond Brown has made the suggestion that the first part of this quotation, “Fear not, daughter of Zion,” may well have come from the prophecy of Zephaniah 3:16.² This would be another of John’s compound quotations, using two passages to open up a world of larger meaning. Who then is the Messiah? “The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save… . I will gather those who sorrow… . I will deal with all who afflict you; I will save the lame” (Zeph. 3:17–19). The raising of Lazarus is not a sign of nationalistic glory for Israel, but a promise that when the Messiah comes He will share the gift of healing and life with all the people!

But do we not often have false, unholy expectations of what Jesus will do for us—be our errand boy and satisfy our needs; help make our way easy and comfortable; be on our side wherever we decide to fight, be that Lebanon or El Salvador or some other place? But all our perverted, self-centered hopes are radically altered by this One who comes riding on a young donkey.

The frustrated, impatient Pharisees are now on the defensive. But in their angry discussion they unknowingly reveal how universal the mission of Jesus has really become. For as they accuse one another of accomplishing nothing in the face of this dramatic turn of events, they are forced to admit, “Look, the world has gone after Him!” (v. 19).

12:20-26

Death that Brings a Rich Harvest

Now the Greeks come. The “other sheep, not of this flock” have heard the voice of the Shepherd. The children of God, who are scattered abroad, are being gathered. These are God-fearing Gentiles, possibly proselytes, who have come for the feast. They seek out Philip because they can identify with him. His name is Greek and he comes from a predominantly Gentile area. He is the easiest for them to approach, one of their own “social network.” Incidentally, those personal, family, and neighborhood ties are at the heart of most lasting evangelism. They address Philip with respect as they make their request known, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus” (v. 21). It is not a matter of looking at Him or meeting a “celebrity,” but of visiting with Him, getting to know Him.

Philip, who seems a bit slow and indecisive throughout this Gospel, is not quite certain what he ought to do. So he shares the hopes of these people with Andrew, the one who is so often the introducer or “middleman.” Together they take this request to Jesus who at first seems to ignore it.

However, the visit of these Greeks indicates a crucial moment is here. Jesus’ hour of glory has come! So often He has said it will come. Now it is here. The coming of the Gentiles, who represent a waiting world, is the sign that the time to lay down His life has come.

His own death, in “the economy of salvation,” is like the parable of the grain of wheat which must die if there is to be a harvest. There is no fruit apart from the death and burial of the seed. It is the same with Jesus, who speaks here of His own unique death. There will be no “multiplication of life” without His being cast into the ground.

This will be the glorification of the Son of Man (v. 23). But He is not using this designation as the Jews commonly understood it (Dan. 7:13–14), as the undefeatable world conqueror sent by God. He is not the tremendous figure held on leash by God until the day when He would destroy all enemies. No, while Jesus is the mighty Son of God, He comes, lowly and meek, to be crucified that sin and death might be destroyed.

The disciple is also involved in this harvest. He does not cling with a passion to life in this world, but gives it up, hates it, lets it go, and paradoxically discovers eternal life. He can only share in the resurrected life of his Lord if he dies with Jesus.

This becomes a life of service, following Jesus, learning to be obedient to Him. He will then be with Jesus wherever He is, in this world or in heaven. “To serve Jesus, that is to live according to the sequence obedience-death-life, is to live the life that is honored by God.”³

So Jesus is not ignoring the Greeks. They will come to “see Jesus” through the faithful witness and ministry of obedient disciples who have lost their lives to serve Jesus wherever He is. Thus Jesus will be universalized in a great harvest.

We catch glimpses of His harvest with June Sutton and Loren Noren in the high rise apartments of Hong Kong; with Michael Zhidkov in the amazing Moscow Baptist Church; with Daniel Fountain in a public health ministry in Vanga, Zaire; or even here in Wichita as we seek to minister in the inner city with our new friends the Southeast Asians, and the poor and emotionally damaged who come our way, as well as the middle-class suburbanites—streams of joyful worshipers, rejoicing in healing and salvation, becoming salt and light in the midst of the world.

12:27-36

For This Purpose

The Man who was weary at a well and wept before a tomb does not go automatically or casually to the Cross. The flesh shrinks from this awesome death. Here the anguish, the longing of Jesus to avoid the Cross, is boldly recorded.

But there is no turning back from the decision made in the counsels of eternity. Jesus has come in loving obedience to the Father’s will and every move of His ministry has been a response to that plan. That faithfulness has brought Him to this hour. And there will never be a harvest, the Greeks will never know, unless Jesus completes His mission. For this purpose He has come! So the trembling, questioning cry, “Father, save Me from this hour,” is answered by the Son’s decisive prayer of obedience, “Father, glorify Your name” (vv. 27–28). That name has been entrusted to Jesus and now in His last, costly act He will lift that name up above all other names.

Then, as at His baptism and His Transfiguration, the Father’s voice is heard. His name has been glorified throughout all of Jesus’ ministry, from the Jordan to Bethany, and now in this hour He will glorify it again. This is a sign of the Father’s approval. Are we not often hesitant and indecisive in seeking to obey our Father? We see through a glass darkly and hear so indistinctly even though we are eager to be faithful. But then as we take a feeble step of faith with what light we have and move out we are affirmed and blessed by the One we seek to obey.

After weeks of struggle, with so much uncertainty and inner debate, Ruth and I finally yielded to what seemed to be the inner pressure of the Lord. We left our great, exciting family in Sioux Falls, a church we had been a part of for sixteen years, to cast our lot with a needy, hopeful congregation in Wichita. As they had said, “All we have is a huge building and lots of problems.” At first we were so certain we were to turn down this invitation to continue our ministry in Sioux Falls. Then I heard the unexpected word of the Lord through a Catholic priest. It was then I became fearfully aware that God wanted us to move to a “new country.” When I came home and shared this sudden turn of events with Ruth she simply picked up a book and pointed to a chapter she had been reading that day. It was entitled “The Joy of Obedience” from Catherine Marshall’s book Something More. We read together through tear-filled eyes and, as we prayed, we knew we had both heard the Father’s voice. He will always let us know, sooner or later.

That voice could have been a moment of awakening for this crowd, making them aware of the grave importance of this hour. But they are confused, incapable of hearing the voice of the Father, as they have been unable to hear the word of His Son. So now the speech of God for them is only sound, thunder or perhaps angels!

But the judgment of God will be known in what is to take place. The cross is always a time and place of crisis and decision, where darkness and evil are unmasked and overcome, but also where faith and life are released.

I vividly recall leaving Nickerson Field in Boston a couple of years ago with thousands of other hushed, thoughtful people. We had just heard Billy Graham preach a powerful sermon on the Cross. There had been an unusual spirit of God’s nearness during the service even though a soft drizzle had fallen during most of it. At the climax, hundreds had come forward to stand quietly and pray and receive encouragement in their decision. As we were leaving, nearing the edge of the field, I heard someone say, “Billy’s always best when he preaches on the Cross.” Why not? That is the pivotal point, the center of it all, the place of judgment and life.

In this hour of struggle, as Jesus moves into enemy territory, the “ruler of this world” is driven “out of his former domain … his office and power.”⁴ The Son of Man has come to reclaim all that his greatest enemy has usurped. So as Jesus is “lifted up” from the earth on the Cross (John 3:14; 8:28), and through His Ascension to His place of power, the evil one is “cast out”! A “new Monarch” has come who will draw “all men” to Himself. Here is Jesus’ answer to the Gentiles!

All this has upset and baffled “the people.” They had welcomed Jesus as the Messiah of the Jews, assuming that He would reign as a permanent King here on earth. Then what did Jesus mean talking about His dying? He has shattered their assumptions. So when they ask, “Who is this Son of Man?” it is their last opportunity to hear.

But Jesus does not answer them directly. He repeats language He has used before in John 7:33, 9:4, and 11:9–10 in saying the Light will be with them now only for a short time. They must either believe in Him, walk in the Light, and become sons of light, or darkness will overtake them as they stumble on toward their destruction.

Jesus leaves these men directly after He has confronted them with the ultimate choice between light and darkness. Jesus illustrates dramatically the passing of the light as He hides Himself.

12:37-43

Hardened Hearts, but a Remnant

Here at the conclusion of Jesus’ public ministry John is compelled to ponder the darkness of unbelief which engulfs His people. “Although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him” (v. 37). What tragic words! John has witnessed Jesus facing the stubborn misunderstanding and angry rejection of the very ones who should have accepted Him at every turn. All this has been a fulfillment of those words in the prologue, “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him” (1:11).

John emphasizes the repeated opportunities his own countrymen have had to know who Jesus is and why He has come by quoting from Isaiah. They have neither heard nor understood His teaching from the Father. “Who has believed our report?” And they have belittled and spurned His mighty works of provision and healing. “To whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

Then in verse 40 John refers to the words the Lord spoke to Isaiah when He called him to be a prophet. The longer Isaiah would faithfully call his people home, the more their eyes would be blinded and their hearts hardened. This is a mysterious and dark passage. The repeated rejection of the Lord, although He graciously deals with His people, is an old and sad story.

There is no neutral ground when God calls. Once Jesus appears and makes His claim men must decide. Who can fathom, in this moral warfare, the evil that moves men away from the Light? Rejection moves at its own pace from misunderstanding, to ridicule, then to anger, and finally death. Their ears cannot hear and their hearts are hardened.

The Hebrews, who had such a profound understanding of a sovereign God, were not afraid to say that He is ultimately responsible for this hardening. There is nothing outside His control, even our choosing to turn against Him. This misuse of our freedom, our spurning of His initiative, is finally His responsibility. Otherwise He would not be God.

And John is reminding us that this awesome rejection of Jesus by His own should not surprise us either. Is this not what Isaiah, who saw the glory of Jesus long ago, had said would happen? If we take Scripture seriously, then we see that this was a predicted spiritual fact.

Does this mean that the door is closed? That this unbelief of the Jewish people was predetermined before Jesus ever came? No, paradoxically this rejection does not mean that! For there is a “nevertheless” in verse 42. “Even among the rulers many believed in Him.” At this very time, in the shadow of the Cross, there is a remnant. Some have heard His voice, even here. Fearful and tentative, yes. But their faith, however hidden, was a courageous act, not unlike that which I have known among fellow believers in the Soviet Union. These who came to believe were “rulers” in the midst of those who were plotting Jesus’ death.

And they were anxious lest they be put out of the synagogue, for they at this stage “loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” Before we are too critical of them we need to deal with our own timidity, our own fear of social pressures. Who knows but what some of these were not among the five hundred who saw Jesus after He was raised from the dead (1 Cor. 15:6) and later were among those in the upper room when they received a “holy boldness.”

John is writing, not only for non-believers, Greek and Hebrew, but for those who have come to believe in Jesus and are now struggling with the issue of being ostracized from their synagogues and cut off from the only life they have known. This is a word of encouragement and challenge for them from a fellow Jew.

12:44-50

Faithfulness to the Father’s Word

Jesus now cries out a clear, strong word in the face of the unbelief of the people. We have here a brief summary of the person of Jesus and what His mission has been through the word He has spoken.

Throughout His ministry He has been eager to give His Father the glory. So He makes it plain that faith is not to finally rest in Him, but in His Father who sent Him and commissioned Him. We are not saved by forming a “Jesus cult,” but by believing in His Father. Likewise seeing Jesus is seeing the Father since the Son abides in the Father and the Father in the Son. So salvation, being brought from darkness into light, comes from this faith and sight!

Neither are the words Jesus speaks, bringing light to all who believe, given on His own authority. They come by command of the Father and they are the source of either judgment or life. Jesus has not come to judge, but to save! But His words, which come from the Father, bring judgment, both in this present moment and at the last day. That word, which will shortly be the act of the Son on the cross, will divide and condemn, but also bless and heal.