CHAPTER II.

THE MUTUAL GLORIFICATION.

"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: as Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him."-JOHN xvii. 1, 2.

It will be noticed, by every careful reader, that in these verses statements are made, petitions are presented, and a plea is employed by the Saviour for securing an answer to His prayer. Before entering upon a consideration of these, it may be desirable to direct our attention to the address, "Father." The term "Father" may be understood to be expressive of relationship, and also of affection. The "holy Father" of verse 11, and "righteous Father" of verse 25, must not be confounded with it. Different truths appear to be set forth in the three addresses. "Holy," expresses what God is in Himself; "righteous," what He is in His moral administration. The relationship in which Christ stands to the Father is one peculiar to Himself, as may be inferred from the following Scriptures: Matt. vii. 21: "Not every one that saith unto

Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven." Matt. x. 32, 33: "Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny Me before men, him will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven." Matt. xi. 25-27: "At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in Thy sight. All things are delivered unto Me of My Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him." Matt. xii. 50: "For whosoever shall do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother." Matt. xv. 13: "But He answered and said, Every plant, which My heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up." Matt. xvi. 17: "And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven." Matt. xviii. 19, 35: "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven"; "So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their tres

passes." Matt. xx. 23: "And He saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on My right hand, and on My left, is not Mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of My Father." Matt. xxv. 34: "Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Matt. xxvi. 29, 39, 42, 53: "But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom"; "And He went a little farther, and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou wilt"; "He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O My Father, if this cup may not pass away from Me except I drink it, Thy will be done"; "Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me more than twelve legions of angels?" Mark xiii. 32: "But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father." Luke ii. 49: "And He said unto them, How is it that ye sought Me? wist ye not that I must be about My Father's business?" Luke ix. 26: "For whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels." Luke x. 21,

22: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in Thy sight. All things are delivered to Me of My Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal Him." Luke xxii. 29, 41, 42: "And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as My Father hath appointed unto Me"; "And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, saying, Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me: nevertheless not My will, but Thine, be done.”

The statements contained in the verses under consideration are, "The hour is come," and "Thou hast given Him (the Son) power over all flesh."

"The hour is come."-On different occasions the Saviour had spoken of an hour and a time which had not then arrived; as, for illustration, "Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come" (John vii. 6). "Then they sought to take Him: but no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come " (John vii. 30). "These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as He taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on Him; for His hour was not yet come" (John viii. 20). "And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified " (John xii. 23). "Now before the feast of the passover,

when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end" (John xiii. 1). To what hour can reference be made in these verses, as well as in that under consideration, "The hour is come"?

In connection with our Saviour's life and work there had been many hours of deep significance and of great importance; and this is not surprising if it is borne in mind that all the circumstances of redemption had proceeded, from the first, in accordance with a divinely predetermined arrangement. There had been the hour of the fulness of time, when Christ became incarnate; the hour of His great temptation in the wilderness; the hour of commencing His public ministry; the hour in which He endured the contradiction of sinners against Himself. There had, in fact, been repetitions of such hours during His brief sojourn amongst men. He appears, however, to have arrived at a period in His history which is unique in its importance and character, when He says, "The hour is come." We cannot err in supposing that reference is made to

The hour of mysterious suffering.-It is readily admitted, that there have never been sufferings endured by any person at all comparable with those through which the Saviour passed during the next few hours following the offering of this prayer. Allusion is not made so much to His physical sufferings, as to the combination of the physical and mental anguish which He