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John 17:1-5

(The High Priestly Prayer)

 

(From the Orthodox Study Bible):

 

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You(1),

2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.

3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent(2).

4 I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work(3) which You have given Me to do.

5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

 

***Verse-by-Verse Study Notes Provided in This Bible***

(1) Verses 1 and 2: Christ’s prayer is often called the High Priestly Prayer, as it contains the basic elements of prayer a priest offers to God when a sacrifice is about to be made: glorification, remembrance of God’s works, intercession on behalf of others, and a declaration of the offering itself.

The passage that includes verses 1-13 is read on the seventh Sunday of Pascha (Easter), a day remembering the Early Christian Church Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council (Nicea 1) in AD 325. At this council the heresy of Arianism was condemned. This heresy taught that the Son of God was created by the Father and that there was a time when the Son of God did not exist. We find our Lord’s words here bearing witness to His divinity and to His filial relationship with the Father. This testimony is sufficient in itself to dismiss Arianism.

The hour has come signifies Christ is Lord over time. “He voluntarily willed to ascend the Cross in the flesh” (hymn of Orthodoxy Sunday). Glorify refers to the redemption of all creation that will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection—the purpose for which Christ was sent into the world. In this redemption, the Father and the Son are glorified. This is why the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as “life-giving” and the “weapon of peace.”

(2) Verse 3: The knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding. It is participation in His divine life and in communion with Him. Thus, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit.

(3) Verse 4: Christ’s work can never be separated from who He is. This verse is a statement each believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short that life may be.

 

 

(From the New Analytical King James Study Bible):

 

1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:

2 As thou hast given him power [authority] over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.

3 And this is eternal life, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.

5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.

 

(From the Amplified Holy Bible):

 

1 WHEN JESUS had spoken these things, He raised His eyes to heaven [in prayer] and said, “Father, the hour has come(1). Glorify Your Son, so that Your Son may glorify You.

2 “Just as You have given Him power and authority over all mankind, [now glorify Him] so that He may give eternal life to all whom You have given Him [to be His – permanently and forever] (2).

3 “Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true [supreme and sovereign] God, and [in the same manner know] Jesus [as the] Christ whom You have sent.

4 “I have glorified You [down here] on the earth by completing the work that You gave Me to do.(3)

5 “Now, Father, glorify me together with Yourself, with the glory and majesty that I had with You before the world existed.

 

***Verse-by-Verse Study Notes Provided in This Bible***

(1) Verse 1: meaning the time of Jesus’ death

(2) Verse 2: A reference to election or predestination (Also see John 6:39; John 17:6, 9, 24; Acts 13:48; Romans 8:29-33; Ephesians 1:3-6; Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2)

(3) Verse 4: Much of Jesus’ discourse and prayer in John 13-17 is reminiscent of God’s comparison of rain and snow to His word in Isaiah 55:10-11. Like God’s word, Jesus, who was introduced by John as the Word (John 1:1), comes from God (John 16:28; John 17:8), accomplished God’s desire (John 14:10; John 17:4, 8) and then returns to God (John 13:33; John 14:4; John 17:13). The themes of joy and peace found in Isaiah 55:12 also resonate throughout John 13-17; joy (John 15:11; John 16:20-24; John 17:13) and peace (John 14:27; John 16:33). Isaiah 55; 56 has many points of connection with John’s Gospel as a whole, most notably the invitations to quench thirst (Isaiah 55:1; John 4:13, 14; John 7:37) and receive bread (Isaiah 55:2; John 6:26-35; John 6:48-51). Other points of connection between Isaiah 55; 56 and John include the tie between listening and living, appeals to witnesses, calls to obedience, the idea of a special window of God’s nearness, and the inclusion of the Gentiles in salvation.

 

(From the Complete Jewish Study Bible):

 

1 After Yeshua(1) had said these things, he looked up toward heaven and said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, so that the Son may glorify you –

2 just as you gave him authority over all mankind, so that he might give eternal life to all those whom you have given him.

3 And eternal life(3) is this: to know you, the one true God, and him whom you sent, Yeshua(1) the Messiah(2).

4 I glorified you on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do.

5 Now, Father, glorify me alongside yourself. Give me the same glory I had with you before the world existed.

***Footnotes***

(1) In the Jewish language, the name “Yeshua” is used for “Jesus.”

(2) In the Jewish language, the term “Messiah” is used for “Christ.”

***Study Note Provided in This Bible***

(3) Verse 3: “Eternal life is this: to know you, the one true God…”: Eternal life is not merely survival after death, but having intimate “knowledge” of the Father and the Son. The Hebrew word for knowledge, da’at, denotes not only comprehending the acts and circumstances of the world, but also the most intimate experience of the object of knowledge. Here, the word know is used exactly as in Jeremiah 31:33, the passage promising Isra’el a new (or renewed) covenant.

 

(From the New American Standard Version Bible):

 

1 Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify you,

2 even as you gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.

3 This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

4 I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.

5 Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

 

 

(From the Knox Bible – The Latin Vulgate

 

1 Thus Jesus spoke to them, and then, lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the time has come; give glory now to thy Son, that thy Son may give the glory to thee.

2 Thou hast put him in authority over all mankind, to bring eternal life to all those thou hast entrusted to him.

3 Eternal life is knowing thee, who art the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

4 I have exalted thy glory on earth, by achieving the task which thou gavest me to do;

5 now, Father, do thou exalt me at thy own side, in that glory which I had with thee before the world began.

 

 

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