| 6908 Hesiod Op. 719–721; Livy 44.34.4–5; Horace Sat. 1.4.81–82; Martial Epigr. 3.28; Dio Chrysostom Or. 37.32–33; Lucian A True Story 1; Slander passim; Marcus Aurelius 6.30.2. 6909 1QS 7.15–16; Sib. Or. 1.178; Josephus Ant. 13.294–295; 16.81; Ag. Ap. 2.89; War 1.77, 443, 532, 564; Philo Abraham 20; Spec. Laws 4.59–60; T. Ab. 12:6–7B; Rom 1:30 ; Sipre Deut. 1.8.2–3; 275.1.1; " Abot R. Nat. 9, 40A; 41, §116B; b. c Arak. 15a-16a; B. Bat. 39ab; Pesah. 118a; Sanh. 103a; Ta c an. 7b; Pesiq. Rab Kah. 4:2; Gen. Rab. 79:1; 98:19; Exod. Rab. 3:13; Lev. Rab. 16:6; 26:2; 37:1; Num. Rab. 16:6; Deut. Rab. 5:10; 6:8,14; Ecc1. Rab. 3§1. 6910 Kraeling, John, 11–12. 6911 E.g., Justin Dia1. 69:7; b. Sanh. 43a; 107b. For more detailed discussion, see Klausner, Jesus, 27–28, 49–51, 293; Dalman, Jesus in Talmud, 45–50; Herford, Christianity 50–62; Gero, «Polemic»; Horbury, «Brigand,» 183–95; Stanton, Gospel Truth, 156–58. 6912 E.g., Homer Od. 18.15,406; 19.71; see more detailed comment on John 7:20 . 6913 Stanton, Gospel Truth, 161–62, suggesting that Mark 3and Q attest it independently. (But Mark may follow Q here.) 6914 Deut 4:2; 33:9; 1 Chr 10:13; esp. Ps 119:9, 17, 67, 101, 158 ; John 17:6; 1 John 2:5 ; Jub. 2:28; CD 6.18; 10.14,16; 20.17; 1QS 5.9; 8.3; 10.21; Sib. Or. 1.52–53. See Pancaro, Law, 403–30. 6915 Also, e.g., T.Ab. 11:5B. 6916 E.g., 4 Bar. 5:28. Cf. John 3:3 , where only the righteous will «see» the kingdom. 6917 E.g., Mark 9:1 ; Heb 2:9; Sib. Or. 1.82 (of Adam); Gen. Rab. 21:5; Lev. Rab. 18:1; Pesiq. Rab. 48:2; «taste death " s cup» in Tg. Neof. 1 on Gen 40:23 ; and on Deut 32:1 ; cf. Homer Od. 21.98. A newborn infant who died had merely «tasted life» (IG 14 1607 2171, in Horsley, Documents, 4:40, §12); cf. Longus 1.19; Musonius Rufus 19, p. 122.1. 6918 E.g., Gen 42:2; 43:8; 47:19 ; Num 4:19 ; Deut 33:6; 2 Kgs 18:32; Ps 118:17 ; Ezek 18:17, 21, 28; 33:15 ; L.A.B. 23:10. 6919 Cf. Philo Abraham 51–55; 4 Macc 16:25; Ecc1. Rab. 9:5, §1. In other Jewish traditions, the prophets died (cf. also T. Mos. 1:14–15) but their words endure (Pesiq. Rab Kah. 13:3; Pesiq. Rab. 1:2). Of course, the observation that all great people have died and no one will escape this is a natural one (e.g., Lucretius Nat. 3.1024–1052). |
| 6467 So also Holwerda, Spirit, 17–24; Hunter, John, 82. 6468 So also, e.g., Hunter, John, 83. 6469 Fenton, John, 93, cites Isa 55:6; cf. also Ezek 7:25–26 ; Hos 5:6 ; Amos 8:12; contrast Deut 4:29 ; Jer 29:13 ; Whitacre, John, 191, adds Prov 1:28–31 . 6470 Hunter, John, 83; Köstenberger, John, 137. 6471 Cf. Robinson, Trust, 88; idem, «Destination.» 6472 E.g., Isocrates Nic. 50, Or. 3.37; Paneg. 108, Or. 4; Helen 67–68, Or. 10; Plato Alc. 2, 141C; Theaet. 175A; Laws 9.870AB; Strabo Geog. 6.1.2; 13.1.1; 15.3.23; Plutarch Agesilaus 10.3; Timoleon 28.2; Eumenes 16.3; Bride 21, Mor. 141A; Dio Chrysostom Or. 1, On Kingship 1, §14; Or. 9, Isthmian Discourse, §12; Or. 12, Olympic Discourse, §§11, 27–28; Or. 31.20; Or. 32.35; Or. 36.43; Sextus Empiricus Eth. 1.15; Diogenes Laertius 6.1.2; Athenaeus Deipn. 11.461b; Tatian 1,21,29. 6473 E.g., Josephus War 5.17; Ant. 1.107; 15.136; 18.20; Ag. Ap. 1.201; 2.39; Philo Cherubim 91; Drunkenness 193; Abraham 267; Moses 2.20; Decalogue 153; Spec. Laws 2.18,20,44,165; 4.120; Good Person 94, 98; Contemp1. Life 21; Embassy 145,292. 6474 E.g., Bar 2:13 ; Tob 13:3; Pss. Sol 8:28; Josephus Ag. Ap. 1.33; Jas 1:1. John also applies the expression to the scattering of believers (10:12; 16:32; cf. Acts 8:1,4; 11:19; 1Pet l:l;perhaps Jas 1:1). 6475 Cf. Brown, John, 1:349. 6476 Talbert, John, 145 (following Lindars). Cf. the repetition some scholars find in the discourses of chs. 6, 14–16. 6477 E.g., Westcott, John, 123; Grigsby, «Thirsts.» 6478 The public part of the procession was in the court of women (Safrai, «Temple,» 866–67, 894–95; for women " s participation, Safrai, «Relations,» 198); processions were also central to pagan religious festivals (Grant, Gods, 53; Ferguson, Backgrounds, 151; SEG 11.923 in Sherk, Empire, 58, §32; Xenophon Eph. 5.11; Chariton 1.1.4–5; Dunand, Religion en Egypte, 96,103; Frankfurter, Religion in Egypt, 52–53; Bleeker, Festivals), including carrying sacred objects (Xenophon Eph. 1.2; Philostratus Vit. soph. 2.20.602). |
| 10526 See also Byrne, «Faith»; Talbert, John, 250; cf. 1Pet 1:8 . Faith here refers to faith in the resurrection (20:25, 27, 29; Hoskyns, Gospel, 540). 10527 The need to understand Scripture after the resurrection also fits the gospel tradition in Luke 24:25–27, 32,44–47 (Beasley-Murray, John, 373). 10528 Westcott, John, 290, favors Ps 16:10 , but no clues allow us to narrow down the range of possible verses. John 2could refer to Ps 69in John 2:17 , but that is likely only if the entire psalm is in view. 10529 See, e.g., Sipre Deut. 306.28.3; 329.2.1; b. Pesah. 68a; Sanh. 90b; Gen. Rab. 20:10. 10530 A frequent rabbinic interpretive method, e.g., Mek. Nez. 10.15–16,26,38; 17.17; Pisha 5.103; b. Ber. 9a; 35a; B. Qam. 25b; Git. 49a; Ker. 5a; Qidd. 15a; 35b; Menah. 76a; Naz. 48a; Nid. 22b-23a; Roš Haš. 3b; 34a; Sanh. 40b; 51b; 52a; Sabb. 64a; Tem. 16a; Zebah. 18a; 49b-50b; Exod. Rab. 1:20; cf. CD 7.15–20; Chernick, «Application.» 10531 Typical in Jewish sources (e.g., t. c Ed. 3:4; Sipre Num. 1.4.1; see much fuller documentation in comment on 7:23). 10532 Throughout this Gospel, δε usually stands for divine necessity (e.g., 3:14, 30; 10:16). 10533 E.g., Euripides Medea 928; Diodorus Siculus 17.37.3; Dionysius of Halicarnassus R.A. 7.67.2; 8.39.1; losephus Ant. 4.320. 10534 Their going out in 20may be simply «to them» (cf. 7:50) rather than to their homes (NRSV; NASB); in 20they are all together. 10535 Cf. Schneiders, «Encounter,» who argues that lohn presents Mary as the official witness of the resurrection, symbolic for the Johannine community (though her allusions to Song of Songs may be more dubious). 10536 Okure, «Commission.» Mary " s testimony may or may not (cf. Maccini, Testimony, 240–52) teach specifically about women " s testimony, but it prefigures Christian testimony in general, which implies the participation of women in that witness. 10537 Sanders, Figure, 280. 10538 Dio Cassius 58.4.5–6; 63.11.2–12.1. Josephus cites Jews» willingness to die for the law (Ag. Ap. 1.42–43). |
| 5191 Plato Theaet. 191D; Alexander 14 in Plutarch S.K., Mor. 180D; Fort. Alex. 1.11, Mor. 333A. The seals leave an imprint in soft wax (Plutarch Educ. 5, Mor. 3F). 5192 Apuleius Metam. 10.10; cf. Lyall, Slaves, 148–52. Seals could indicate approval on a legal document, which is what Brown, John, 1:158, sees here; cf. 21:24–25. 5193 E.g., Esth 8LXX; cf. the letter in Chariton 4.5.8. The keeper of the royal signet-ring played an important role in royal courts (Tob 1:22). 5194 E.g., over a wide chronological range, P.Eleph. 1.16–18; 2.17–18; P.Lond. 1727.68–72; P.Tebt. 104.34–35; Rev 5:1. Witnesses might be recalled to testify to the validity of their seals (P.Oxy. 494.31–43; 156–165 C.E.). Seals were also used to identify the contents of merchandise (Carmon, Inscriptions, 108–9, 230–33; cf. perhaps Ps.-Callisthenes Alex. 1.8). 5195 Aelius Aristides Defense of Oratory 340, §112D (επισφραγζεται). A rhetor could also apply this term to his crowning touches of praise (Menander Rhetor 2.3, 380.2). 5196 Jewish tradition acknowledged that even those in error would ultimately acknowledge the truth of God and Moses (e.g., Koran " s family in b. B.Bat. 74a; Num. Rab. 18:20). 5198 B. Sanh. 64a; p. Sanh. 1:1, §4; Gen. Rab. 8:5; Deut. Rab. 1:10; Bonsirven, Judaism, 150. 5200 For Jesus» χερ, «hand,» of authority, see also 10:28; for the Father " s hand, see 10:29; contrast perhaps 7:30,44; 10:39. 5201 That the Father gives the Spirit to Jesus here is frequently maintained and is probably the majority view, e.g., Lightfoot, Gospel, 133; Carson, John, 213; Bruce, John, 97; Turner, Spirit, 59: Whitacre, John, 99; Smith, John (1999), 107. 5202 Lev. Rab. 15:2, noted also by Johnston, Spirit-Paraclete, 14; Carson, John, 213; Turner, Spirit, 59; Hofius, «Geist ohne Mass»; and Bürge, Community, 84, who also notes that the specific expression κ μτρου is foreign to Greek literature in genera1. Musonius Rufus 18B, p. 116.12, applies μετρα negatively to excess (unlimited gluttony); cf. T. Ab. 14:9; 17:7A. |
| 10621 Schnackenburg, John, 3:318; Brown, John, 2:992; McPolin, John, 255; Morris, John, 841; Bruce, John, 389; Carson, John, 644; Whitacre, John, 476; Smith, John (1999), 377. 10622 One could try to distinguish the prohibition for Mary from the invitation to Thomas by suggesting that Mary as a woman might be impure ( Lev 15:19–30 ), but apart from lacking clues in the text, this position would violate Johannine thought about purity as well as about gender (e.g., 2:6; 4:9). 10623 One might sever the first imperative grammatically from the following statement if one could take 20:17 " s γρ as anticipatory («since,» for the following clause) rather than causal (for the preceding; McGehee, «Reading»), but Johannine style makes that suggestion less likely. 10624 Bruce, John, 389; Carson, John, 644. 10625 Cf. McPolin, John, 255. 10626 Schneiders, «Encounter,» 165. 10627 Witherington, Acts, 112–13. 10628 This real presence was, however, stronger than the mere epistolary presence that such language conventions as «absent in body, present in spirit» could imply ( 1Cor 5:3 ; Col 2:5; 1 Thess 2:17; Isocrates Nic. 51–52, Or. 3.37; Seneca Ep. Luci1. 32.1; Achilles Tatius 5.20.5; Stowers, Letter Writing, 60; Funk, «Parousia» 264; cf. Diogenes Laertius 7.1.24; contrast Diogenes Ep. 17). 10629 E.g., Homer I1. 12.15. The Iliad regularly predicts (e.g., I1. 21.110; 23.80–81) but does not narrate Achilles» death. 10630 Homer Il. 6.403; 22.506–507. 10631 E.g., Homer Od. 23.266–284. 10632 Apollonius of Rhodes 3.64, 75, 1135; 4.241–245. Writing after Euripides, this must be expected. 10633 E.g., Ovid Metam. 14.824–828; Diogenes Laertius 8.2.68; Phaedrus 4.12.3; cf. Euripides Iph. au1. 1608, 1614,1622. See more fully Talbert, «Immortals.» 10634 See also 2 En. 67:1–3; Gk. Apoc. Ezra 5:7; more fully, Palatty, «Ascension»; Luke, «Ascension»; Tabor, «Divinity»; Begg, «Disappearance.» 10635 Seealso Jos. Asen. 17:8, MSS; T. Ab. 4:5; 8:1; 15:11; 20:12A; 4:4; 8:1; 10:2B; cf. Jub. 32:20–21. 10636 Because of Heracles» apotheosis, people searched only vainly for his corpse (Diodorus Siculus 4.38.3–5); Romulus «vanished» (Plutarch Camillus 33.7); other deified persons, such as Aeneas, also «disappeared» (φανσθη, Diodorus Siculus 7.5.2; the term applies to Heracles in Lysias Or. 2.11, §191), as did Moses in Josephus Ant. 4.326. Boring et a1., Commentary, 163–64, also compare the first-century B.C.E. traditions of Romulus " s ascension (Livy 1.16.2–8; Ovid Metam. 14.805–851; Vir. illustr. 2.13; Plutarch Numa 11.2–3), even by horses and carriage (Ovid Fasti 2.475–510; cf. 2 Kgs 2:11–18), and Job " s children in T. Job 39:8–40:4. |
| 6812 The contrasting tenses in the two lines of 8allow the interpretation that Jesus «saw» (perfect) the Father in «a préexistent vision» (Brown, John, 1:356); but cf. the present tense in 5:19–20. Bernard, John, 2:310, and Michaels, John, 143, take ποιετε as imperative, hence a challenge to kill him (contrasted with the alternative imperative for true children of Abraham in 8:39). 6813 M. " Abot 5:19; Dibelius, James, 168–74. He even became the model Pharisee (p. Sotah 5:5, §2). 6814 For more detail, see further DeSilva, Honor, 202–6. 6815 See ibid., 194 (citing esp. 4 Macc 13:24–26 and texts in Philo). 6816 Cf., e.g., the «children of the prophets» in 1 Kgs 20:35; 2 Kgs 2:3, 5, 7, 15; 4:1, 38; 5:22; 6:1; 9:1. See more fully under John 13:33 . 6817 4 Macc 9:21 (βραμιαος νεανας). 6818 4 Macc 15(OTP2:560). 6819 Ps.-Phoc. 178; t. Sanh. 8:6; Pesiq. Rab Kah. 11:6; Lev. Rab. 23:12; probably Wis 4:6; cf. Aristotle Po1. 2.1.13,1262a. Children were said to bear the images of their parents ( Gen 5:3; 4 Macc 15:4; LA.B. 50:7; Chariton 2.11.2, 3.8.7; Philostratus Hrk. 52.2; P.Oxy. 37). 6820 Homer Il. 16.33–35. 6821 Lysias Or. 13.65–66, §135 (noting that the defendant " s brothers had all been executed for crimes); cf. Rhet. Alex. 35, 1440b.5–13; in nonlegal contexts, Theophrastus Char. 28.2. Malina and Rohrbaugh, John, 161, rightly note that ancients could infer ancestry from behavior or the reverse. 6822 A rhetorical attack used, when possible, before classical Athenian juries (Aeschines False Embassy 78; Ctesiphon 172). 6823 Lysias Or. 30.1–2, §183; for honorable background, e.g., Aeschines False Embassy 148–150. For honorable birth as a matter of praise, e.g., Xenophon Agesilaus 1.2. 6824 Lysias Or. 10.2, §116; Plutarch Cicero 26.6. 6825 Phaedrus 6. Aristocrats assumed that thieves usually had some dishonest lineage on one side or the other (Sophocles Searchers 280–283). 6826 Philostratus Vit. soph. 2.25.611; cf. Acts 23:6. Pindar praises a victor who is also son of a victor (Ryth. 10.12). |
| 9328 E.g., Michaels, John, 271–72; Witherington, Wisdom, 266; Titus, Message, 204; Bernard, John, 2:513. 9330 Plutarch Lect. 11, Mor. 43BC; Aulus Gellius 1.26.2; 12.5.4; 20.10.1–6; t. Sank 7:10; " Abot R. Nat. 6A; see also Goodman, State, 79. 9331 Cf. Isocrates Demon. 41, Or. 1; Plutarch Lect. 18, Mor. 48A. Pythagoreans carried this further than others (Seneca Ep. Luci1. 52.10; Aulus Gellius 1.9.4; Diogenes Laertius 8.1.10). 9333 Cf. also 8:56; 17:13. For the association of joy with the resurrection of the righteous, see T. Jud. 25:4. See further the comment on 3:29. 9336 Syr. Men. 97–98; Xenophon Mem. 2.2.5. Often mothers did die in childbirth (Safrai, «Home,» 765, noting texts that blame such deaths on disobedience to the law; see Keener, Paul, 118–19), albeit not frequently enough to produce a decline in the Jewish population. 9337 Safrai, «Home,» 765, citing m. Šabb. 18:3; Roš Haš. 2:5; " Oha1. 7:4; also among Gentiles, e.g., Maximus of Tyre Or. 10.4. On the importance of midwives, see, e.g., Aristophanes Lys. 746–747; Galen N.F. 3.3.151–152; on the urgency, Seneca Ep. Luci1. 117.30. 9338 Descriptions of it nearly always focus on pain (e.g., Ovid Metam. 9.292–304; Phaedrus 1.18.2–3). 9343 E.g., Lightfoot, Gospel, 294; Morris, John, 706; Cadman, Heaven, 196; Fenton, John, 169; Robinson, Coming, 174; Carson, Discourse, 162. 9346 Cf. realized eschatology in Rev 12:2, 5; Rom 8:22 . Many spoke of the final turmoil without the specific metaphor of «birth pangs» (e.g., Jub. 23:13; 36:1; 1QM 15.1; Sib. Or. 3.213–215; 4 Ezra 8:63–9:8; 13:30; 2 Bar. 26:1–27:13; 69:3–5; T. Mos. 7–8; m. Sotah 9:15; b. Sanh. 97a; Pesiq. Rab Kah. 5:9). 9348 Cf. Hoskyns, Gospel, 487–88. The distributive singular for «heart» (14:1; 16:22; Brown, John, 2:618) might also reflect Isa 66LXX here. 9351 It may have been a commonplace that, even if one was robbed of possessions, others could not seize onés abilities or identity (cf. Cicero Atf. 3.5; Philostratus Vit. soph. 2.26.614); but the childbirth analogy remains central here. |
| 3666 Cf. Dionysius of Halicarnassus RA. 3.1.3 (μονογενς). Bernard, John, 1:23, Hoskyns, Gospel 149, and Roberts, «Only Begotten, " » 8, cite, e.g., Judg 11:34 ; Ps 35:17 ; Jer 6:26 ; Amos 8(cf. similarly Tob 3:15; 6:10, 14; 8:17; Luke 7:12; 8:42; 9:38; cf. Plato Tim. 31); technical exceptions include Heb 11:17; Josephus Ant. 20.19–22. They also cite non-Jewish examples in Plautus Captives 1.147,150; Aegeon Comedy of Errors 5.1.329; cf. similarly Du Plessis, ««Only Begotten,»» 30 n. 5 (on Plautus). 3667 Bernard, John, 1:23–24, and Roberts, «Only Begotten, " » 8, cite examples in Psalms (22:21; 25:16; 35:17). 3669 Sir 36:12 (πρωτγονος); Pss. So1. 18:4; 4 Ezra 6(also «only begotten,» OTP 1:536); cf. Jub. 19:29. Israel was beloved to God like an only child (Simeon ben Yohai in Exod. Rab. 52:5; Lev. Rab. 2:5; later rabbis, Song Rab. 5:16, §3; Israel as an only daughter, Song Rab. 2:14, §2; 3:11, §2). «Son» usually represents Israel in rabbinic parables (Johnston, Parables, 587). 3670 Bar 3:36–37 (γαπημνω); Pss. So1. 9(λας, öv γπησας); Jub. 31:15, 20; 4 Ezra 5:27; Rom 11:28 ; " Abot R. Nat. 43, §121 B; Sipre Deut. 344.1.1; 344.3.1; 344.5.1; Song Rab. 2:1, §1; 2:1, §3; Tg. Isa. 1:4. Sipre Deut. 97.2 interprets Deut 14as declaring that «every individual Israelite is more beloved before [God] than all the nations of the world» (trans. Neusner, 1:255). Different rabbis applied the title «most beloved [of all things]» variously to Torah, the sanctuary, or Israel (Sipre Deut. 37.1.3); for some rabbis, God " s love for Israel was the heart of Torah (Goshen Gottstein, «Love»). 3671 E.g., R. Ishmael (3 En. 1:8); Esdram (Gk. Apoc. Ezra 1[ed. Wahl, 25] ); articular if the article for «holy prophet» includes this, the κα being epexegetical); Sedrach (Apoc. Sedr. 3[ed. Wahl, 39]). Early Christian texts naturally transfer the title to Jesus ( Mark 1:11; 9:7 ; Matt 3:17: 17:5; Luke 3:22; Eph 1:6 ; Acts Paul 3:11Paul and Thecla 1; Gk. Apoc. Ezra 4[ed. Wahl, 30]). Ancients regarded being the «beloved of the gods» (θεοφιλς) a special privilege (Plutarch Lycurgus 5.3, LCL 1:216–17). |
| 916 For inscriptional evidence, cf., e.g., Inscriptions, ed. Carmon, 84, §183; 85, §§184–85. The literary evidence is, of course, pervasive. On the Qumran scriptorium and an evaluation of scholarly discussion on the Qumran «school,» see Culpepper, School, 156–68. 921 Meeks, Prophet-King, 144, cites Justin Dial 52.3 and Josephus Ant. 4.218. Cf. Acts 3:24; and the late reference Lev. Rah. 10cited in Bowman, «Prophets,» 208. 922 E.g., CD 8.20–21 (Baruch, Jeremiahs scribe, is promoted by analogy to Elishás Gehazi); Mek. Pisha 1:150–153; Pesiq. Rab Kah. 16:4; cf. Sipre Num. 93.1.3 (Moses sharing the Spirit). 923 Cf. the early Christian prophetic groups suggested in Aune, Prophecy, 195–98, 207; Hill, Prophecy, 88, although the evidence offered for them (especially in Revelation) is tenuous. 924 Culpepper, School, 188. Kugel and Greer, Interpretation, 53, suggest instead a broader similarity of school-like settings for OT prophet- and wisdom-guilds, which is more probable. 926 Pseudepigraphic devices like unreliable narrators were much less common in antiquity than today (Kurz, Reading Luke-Acts, 169–70). 928 Culpepper, Anatomy, 47. Aristotle praised Homer for his restraint in generally narrating or speaking as others without speaking in his own person (Aristotle Poet. 24.13–14, 1460a). Aristotle probably would have objected to some of Johns asides! 933 Manson, Paul and John, 86, finds them mainly in 1:1–34, 3:22–4:42, 5:1–47, 6:22–71, 7:14–10:39, and 12:20–18:40; Bruce, Documents, 54, however, cites Driver as noting that Burney " s most cogent examples for Aramaic in the Fourth Gospel are in Jesus» speeches. 939 Aune, Environment, 34, 47. For a broader literary structure, cf., e.g., Tolmie, Farewell, 183 (much more convincingly than Westermann, John, 7,63–64). 940 See Tenney, John, 40–41 for a structure based on this recognition. Bruce, Message, 106, outlines the Fourth Gospel according to clues in the prologue, but this use of the prologue is questionable. For suspense in ancient rhetoric, see, e.g., Cicero Verr. 2.5.5.10–11. |
| 6332 Plutarch Educ. 17, Mor. 13B; Arrian Alex. 4.8.4–5; 4.9.9; Epictetus Diatr. 1.9.26; 3.24.45; Herodian 5.5.6. 6333 Epictetus Diatr. 4.8.35–36. One should not do good deeds to earn others» praise; God would reward only those whose motives were pure («Abot R. Nat. 40A; 46, §129B; m. »Abot2:8; p. Hag. 2:1, §12; cf. Seneca Ep. Luci1. 5.1–2). 6334 E.g., Appian R.H. 9.11.3; cf. Arrian Alex. 5.28.1. 6335 For the favor attaching to its appropriate use in rhetoric, see Anderson, Glossary, 94; Rowe, «Style,» 139. 6336 Augustine Tr. Ev. Jo. 28.5.1 thinks that Jesus» brothers wanted him to pursue worldly honor; in the context of this Gospel such an attitude expresses unbelief ( John 12:43 ). 6337 Also observed, e.g., by Smith, John (1999), 168. 6338 1 John employs παρρησα somewhat differently, for believers» boldness with God and Christ (1 John 2:28; 3:21; 4:17; 5:14; cf. Eph 3:12 ; Heb 3:6; 4:16; 10:19, 35). 6339 Meeks, Prophet-King, 58. 6340 Cf. Cullmann, Circle, 21; Haenchen, John, 2:3. 6341 On the «time,» see, e.g., Ellis, Genius, 143; pace Bernard, John, 1:269. Cullmann, Time, 42, suggests that Jesus informs them that they do not operate with thought to especially significant redemptive history; see Odeberg, Gospel, 271, for many rabbinic examples of the belief in divinely appointed times. 6342 Westcott, John, 117. 6343 Public reproof or invective usually led to enmity with not only the person reproved but all his allies (see Marshall, Enmity, passim; see comment on 15:18–25). 6344 Greco-Roman moralists emphasized kinship of character over genetic relations (DeSilva, Honor, 194–95, citing 4 Macc 13:24–26; Philo Virtues 195; Spec. Laws 1.52, 316–317). Cf. Valerius Maximus 3.8.ext.4: a prosecutor must fulfill his duty and convict the accused even if the latter is someone the prosecutor loves. 6345 People normally traveled to festivals in local groups (see references in Sanders, Judaism, 128), so his brothers undoubtedly expected him to accompany them. Strict pietists would not travel with a caravan if its members were en route to an idolatrous festival (t. c Abod. Zar. 1:16), but this caveat is probably irrelevant even in the harshest reading of this passage. |
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