Jesus has just arrived at the Temple when scribes and Pharisees had brought to him the woman caught in adultery. So his audience in todays readings are the disgruntled members of the crowd who were looking for the capital punishment judgement upon the woman but did not get to see because Jesus did not allow it to occur. Previously in John 7 we are told by John that it is the Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Booths. The particulars of this feast help us understand the literal meaning of Jesus statements here in John 8.
The Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot, commemorated the desert wanderings of the Israelites when they lived in tents and God led them with a pillar of fire by night. During the Feast of Tabernacles they would dwell in tents made from branches like their ancestors in the desert and large candelabras/ menorahs were lit to symbolise the pillar of fire that God used to light their way during the night.
12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
In the context now given by the festivities, Jesus’ statements do not seem so ethereal or random, Jesus is in the presence of the lights that represent God the Fathers pillar of fire that the Israelites would follow in the dark of night. Jesus is saying “Hey, I’m that”. The fire was not just to illuminate the dark but was God’s presence, therefore it was a light of life. Jesus is saying that he is that light, both of illumination to guide the way and also of life itself.
13 The Pharisees then said to him, “You are bearing witness to yourself; your testimony is not true.”
The Pharisees, the rightful teachers of the Mosaic Law, despite their failures in holding to it acknowledge this claim that Jesus is making. Again without the context of the feast it could be quite confusing why they respond this way.
The Mosaic law required witnesses for claims, divine or not. Two or three witnesses is the standard but this articulation most likely means, a person needs two witnesses which would be a total of three. Jesus appears to be by himself when he claims to be the pillar of fire that leads the Israelites in the darkness, it is throw this human lens that Pharisees see Jesus, he is just one man making claims but that is because they are blind to who Jesus actually is.
14 Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness to myself, my testimony is true, for I know whence I have come and whither I am going, but you do not know whence I come or whither I am going.
Jesus responds by saying with a hypothetical which allows us to presume that this isn’t actually the case but he is highlighting the way the Pharisees perceive him in order to point out that what he is saying would still be true regardless. Even if Jesus was alone as they think he is, his testimony would still be true, he says that is because he knows where he comes from and where he is going. This language might be confusing because we think of witnesses as temporal entities who are present at the time a claim is made but that is not how the ancients considered these things, there were valid ways of having witnesses without them physically being there and Jesus hints at how.
It was a typical custom among older cultures to introduce oneself by lineage, how can you trust me? I’m the son of the guy you find trustworthy. Especially amongst nobility this was a type of witness, we see remnants of this even today in peoples names that end in “son”. That’s their qualifier or witness for why you should hire them or whatever. Jesus says that even if he was alone, his origin by relation, his lineage (God the Father) would be enough. If the Pharisees could see that, I think we can all agree they would not dare disagree with him.
15 You judge according to the flesh, I judge no one.
The reason why they cannot perceive where Jesus is from or where he is going is because they judge according to the flesh, implying a limited scope of materiality. Jesus however does not judge…that way. Some misunderstand Jesus here as if he is contradicting himself by saying he doesn’t judge but the text is implying that this is in response to the paradigm at the start of the sentence. Jesus does not judge according to the flesh. He of course is the judge of everything though.
16 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone that judge, but I and he who sent me.
Similar to his previous statement about witnesses, Jesus says even if he did judge in this way that the Pharisees do, he wouldn’t make a mistake like them, he doesn’t do this but he is highlighting the perception of the Pharisees again and how he would still be in the right and they should not be arguing with him. This is because his judgement is aligned with God the Father, the one who sent him. If God the Father is the alignment of the judgements made by God the Son, they literally can’t be wrong.
17 In your law it is written that the testimony of two men is true;
18 I bear witness to myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness to me.”
Now Jesus makes his earlier hint more explicit, he refers to the Mosaic Law, the requirement for two witnesses to make a claim true and he says that the Father bears witness to him. What is interesting is that earlier in the Gospel of John, Jesus says the same about the third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit. The trinity itself is the 3 persons that make something true, a little bit of the divine sense of humour there.
The perception of the Pharisees is incorrect, he isn’t alone, he has the correct amount of witnesses to verify his claim.
19 They said to him therefore, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither me nor my Father; if you knew me, you would know my Father also.”
Because Jesus is pointing to his lineage as his witness, particularly God the Father they ask the human question, “Where he at”. Jesus informs them of the unpleasant aspect of their blindness. They do not know Jesus, because they do not know the Father. The issue is, both these persons are God. The Pharisees as the occupiers of the seat of Moses are meant to be the guides of the Jewish people. They are meant to be the lights in the darkness that lead the Israelites to God but they do not even know who they claim to serve.
20 These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.
John tells us that Jesus said these words “in the treasury”. This loops back to our mentioning of the Feast that is currently going on. The treasury was right by the Court of Women, therefore could be accessed by all Jews. This was the exact place that the candelabras were lit up during the Feast of Tabernacles to represent the pillar of fire or “light of the world” that led the Israelite people in the wilderness. Another little dash of the divine sense of humour.
Despite all these now unveiled divine claims, none could arrest him “because his hour had not yet come”. Reality is authored by God and although we get to make freewill choices there is a predestination going on regardless. The Pharisees are prevented from arresting him here and now through such a mystery, when his hour does arrive though he will hand himself over willingly without any defence.
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