Preface
This chapter initially focuses on the “Christian home.” Then it depicts the Triumphal Entry of the promised Messiah into Jerusalem, which is particularly meaningful in light of a prophetic passage in the book of Daniel (9:24-27), which is considered by many Biblical and prophetic expositors as the most astonishing and significant prophetic passage in the entire Bible. The Triumphal Entry as seen in this chapter and in Luke 19 is an essential component of the prophetic message and time-line found in Daniel. Along with this is the continued rejection of Jesus as the Messiah by the Jews.
This chapter, as well as the last few verses of the previous chapter, mentions the Jewish Passover. The Passover was (and is) “the festival instituted by God for Israel at the time of the Exodus in order to commemorate the night when Yahweh spared all the firstborn of the Israelites but struck dead all those of the Egyptians (Ex 12:1-30, 43-49).”--by John Rea, Th.D., Theological Lecturer and Editor of the Wycliffe Bible Dictionary, Charles F. Pfeiffer, Howard F. Vos, John Rea, editors.
John 12:1-8
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”
The beginning of this chapter is a continuation from verse 55 in the previous chapter. While it was near the time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus entered the town of Bethany to visit and be honored by Mary, Martha and Lazarus in their home. By arriving at this location and because of its close proximity to Jerusalem, which was headquarters for all the forces that were arrayed against Him, Jesus was exposing Himself to very real and present danger.
Yet he wished to visit the Christian home of those He loved. He had opened His public ministry at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. He now closes His public ministry in the privacy of a Christian home in which flowed the warmth and love of those who recognized Him as the true Messiah. Here He places an emphasis on the Christian home, the godly home.
It was the home of Lazarus, whom He had previously raised from the dead, and Lazarus’ sisters who were always attentive to His needs. It was a home that embodied four essential components that should be in every local church. There is Lazarus, who was dead but made alive by Jesus Christ--representing the New Birth. There was Mary at the feet of Jesus--representing worship and spiritual growth. And there was Martha always serving Jesus--representing service. Every local church should be composed of born again people who grow in spiritual knowledge (Bible doctrine) and worship and service to Jesus Christ. After Christ’s resurrection local churches began in individual believer’s homes. Today they have morphed (changed or transformed) into great cathedrals and other huge and ornate structures. The problem with many of these “churches” today is that the emphasis is only on the façade (outward show) and not on Jesus Christ; on “demonstrations” (emotionalism and/or pious works) instead of on the inner (spiritual) change of a person’s nature. Because of this, many Christians today are going back to individual homes to assemble, worship God and grow in Bible doctrine.
There are several recorded instances in the Gospels where the Lord Jesus was anointed by a woman. No two incidents are exactly alike. Some believe this account parallels the one in Mark 14:3-9, but this probably isn’t the case. This one takes place six days prior to the Passover. The similarity between the two lies in the account of Mary taking a pound of “oil of spikenard” (also known as “nard”), which amount represented a year’s wages, and then anoints (applies it to) the feet of Christ. The lesson is that there is nothing too God for Jesus Christ. Mary then wiped the feet of Christ with her hair, showing true humility. True worship, more than any other characteristic, is the genuine understanding and acceptance of the proper position by the created one to the Creator. If the believer is to truly offer the sweet fragrance of worship before God, he must fully realize that he is nothing and that all that he is or will ever be is totally by and at the mercy of God. Mary would have retained on her hands and in her hair, which in that day was considered the “glory of the woman,” the sweet fragrance of the nard. “Thus when Christ is worshiped, the worshipers themselves carry away something of the fragrance of that moment. No house is so filled with pleasant aroma as the house where Jesus is given His rightful place.” (Believer’s Bible Commentary by William MacDonald).
But even while Mary was ministering to Jesus, evil rose up in the person of Judas Iscariot. Although thought to be a loyal apostle of Christ, he was not a believer in Jesus and was in fact, to use a current idiom, the “mother of all hypocrites.” He knew that 300 danarii was the equivalent of a year’s wages for the common man. Even though he protested saying that the spikenard (fragrant oil) should be sold and the money given to the poor, he actually had no concern for the poor. He was the keeper of the “money box,” which contained the finances for the apostles and he routinely stole from it. It was his intent to place the funds from the sale of the spikenard in the box for subsequent retrieval and his benefit.
But Jesus would have nothing of this. Of course He could have there and then exposed Judas for what he truly was, but would not because it was necessary for Judas to later sell Christ out for an amount about a tenth of the 300 danarii. This was necessary to fulfill God’s overall plan, which was prophetically detailed in the Old Testament. Jesus quickly instructed Judas to leave Mary alone, since she obviously had her priorities straight. Worship of Jesus Christ must always come first in the Christian’s life, no matter how noble or righteous any other competing cause may be. Without Christ, no other cause can be just.
John 12:9-11
Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.
The truth-seekers, the curiosity-seekers and evil-doers all came to see Jesus and Lazarus. Some commentators advance the suggestion that since the chief priests were Sadducees, who denied the resurrection; they also wanted to eliminate any evidence of a resurrection by murdering Lazarus. But the primary lesson here is that anyone who brings others to Jesus Christ is subject to persecution and martyrdom.
John 12:12-19
The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ The King of Israel!” Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: “Fear not, daughter of Zion; Behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt.” His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him. Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness. For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!”
It was the Sunday before His crucifixion when Jesus allowed Himself to fulfill the prophecy expressed in detail in Daniel 9:24-27 and Zechariah 9:9. The passage in Daniel covers the “Seventy Weeks of Daniel, which is the most time and mathematically accurate prophecy regarding the end times. A detailed discussion of this passage may be found in the Systematic Bible Studies section covering the book of Revelation at the web site www.bibleone.net. The portion of this prophecy involving what is called The Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ depicted here in John 12:12-19 and Luke 19:28-44 is found in verse 25 of the 9th chapter of Daniel. An overview of this portion of the prophecy is covered in Learn the Bible in 24 Hours by Dr. Chuck Missler, which follows.
From the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem to the Messiah the King shall be sixty-nine weeks of years. The Bible clearly uses, both in Genesis and in Revelation, 360-day years. Sixty-nine weeks of 360-day years equals 173,880 days. When we get to Ezra and Nehemiah, we will learn that they went back to build the Temple in Ezra but got nowhere until Nehemiah was able to obtain the authority to rebuild the city. That authority was given by Artaerxes Longimanus on March 14, 445 B.C. That is the trigger; but when was the Messiah presented as King?
There is prophecy in Zechariah 9:9: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, they King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” And that’s exactly what Jesus did. He never allowed himself to be worshiped as a king except for the one day that he not only allowed it, He arranged it. He had the disciples get a donkey, and He rode from Bethany up over the Mount of Olives down through the Kidron Valley into Jerusalem, deliberately fulfilling Zechariah 9:9. In Luke 19, in what we call the Triumphal Entry account, the people sang Psalm 118, which is a Hallel Psalm proclaiming Him as the Messiah: “Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.” The Pharisees said, “Master, rebuke your disciples.” Why did they say that? Because they recognized that the disciples were proclaiming Jesus as the “Meshach Nagid,” the Messiah the King, and felt they were blaspheming! And Jesus declared, “I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out” (verse 40).
The event occurred on April 6, A.D. 32, which turns out to be 173,880 days from the decree authorizing the rebuilding of Jerusalem! The Angel Gabriel gave Daniel a prediction of the exact day the Messiah would present Himself as King to Jerusalem. What makes this particularly remarkable is that the Old Testament, including Daniel, was translated into Greek in the third century before Christ was born. This is one of the most astonishing verifications that Jesus Christ really was the Messiah of Israel.
Witnessing this entry into Jerusalem were those who had previously witnessed Jesus restore life to Lazarus and bring him forth out of the grave. For this reason they and others who had heard of this miracle came to see Jesus enter Jerusalem. How many actually were there only for curiosity sake as opposed to understanding that He was their promised King, it is not known. Palm branches are a token of rest and peace after sorrow (Revelation 7:9), and the word, “Hosanna,” means “Save now, we pray you.” Together the message by the people acknowledged Jesus to be the One sent from God to save them from Roman domination and cruelty and to give them rest and peace after the sorrow of their long years of Gentile oppression.
John writes this years after the event, and he admits that he and the other disciples had no idea at the time what Jesus was doing--that is not until after Jesus rose from the dead and rose in glory to the right hand of God in heaven. As the crowd grew in size and interest in Jesus mounted, the Pharisees were beside themselves. They were now convinced that “the world” was going after Jesus.
John 12:20-26
Now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast. Then they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Philip came and told Andrew, and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus. But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.”
At the feast were a number of Greeks (Gentiles) who had apparently been converted over to Judaism. They had come to worship at the Passover Feast. Why they wanted to see Jesus is not clear. Perhaps they had heard about the many miracles Jesus had performed, particularly the rising of Lazarus from the dead. They approached Philip possibly because Philip had a Greek name and he was from Bethsaida of Galilee. But since previously Jesus had told the disciples not to go to the Gentiles with the Gospel and since Philip was a modest and retiring person, he carried the Greek’s request to see Jesus up to Andrew. They in turn approached Jesus. It isn’t clear that Jesus agreed to the request, but it would not be in His character to refuse such a request. Our Lord and Savior will accommodate anyone who truly wishes to come to Him.
Previously Jesus had informed His earthly mother that “His hour” had not yet come (John 2:4), but now it had arrived. Jesus was in the shadow of the cross--the sole reason for His coming to earth in the form of man. Whereas the Roman populace visualized the cross as an instrument of infamy, disgrace and shame; Jesus had a totally different perspective of it. It was His path to joy. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2) He came to redeem (purchase) man from the curse of the law by becoming a curse in man’s place. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"). (Galatians 3:13) It was on the cross that Jesus would give up His life as our substitute so that we might have life. It was on the cross that He paid the penalty-price for our sins, so that “by faith alone in Christ alone” we may have eternal life. Jesus proclaimed that it was in the cross He would be “glorified.” How this can be is far beyond the understanding of man. How the Creator can receive glory by dying for His creation is unfathomable to mortal man.
Then our Lord states a great principle using the physical analogy of a grain of wheat. Although a grain of wheat in the ground dies, it produces the blade, the ear, and the harvest. It must die to bring forth fruit. Many people think they have seen Jesus because they have read the Gospels and they have studied His life. They see the historical Jesus, but they have never seen Jesus until they comprehend His death and his resurrection. He died a redemptive death. He gave His life in death so that we might have life. You haven’t seen Jesus until you have seen that He is the One who died for you on the cross. He is the One who died for the sins of the world.
This seems a strange thing to be saying to the Greeks who had come to see Him. He is telling them that there is more than just seeing Him physically. The important thing for them to see is that He is going to die. He is going to be put into the ground. When that grain of wheat died, it produced life. He died, but He rose again. That is so important to see.
The point is that before a person can truly see Christ and thereby be “saved” and granted eternal life, he must accept (commit by faith to) Jesus Christ and His work on Calvary for his “own personal salvation.” There must be more than head acknowledgment of the facts about Christ. There must be a genuine (heartfelt) decision to completely trust (believe in) Jesus Christ--and in NOTHING else!
Jesus then goes on to explain a great axiom, which relates to the sacrifice He is about to make for mankind and which is depicted in the grain of wheat analogy. The axiom is that a person will only gain spiritual treasure in heaven by willingly giving up physical treasure on earth. This isn’t speaking about forsaking financial remuneration; although it may include this. Here Jesus is talking about loving the pleasures and substances of this earthly life over a truly spiritual life available to everyone. If a person would rather have his senses gratified here and now, his opportunity for eternal profit is mighty slim.
There is only one way to turn (repent) from loving this life to hating it, which results in eternal life and awards. That way was depicted on the cross of Calvary when Jesus Christ shed His blood and willingly gave up His physical life. His physical death portrayed the spiritual death to which He voluntarily submitted in order to become the curse, pay the debt and redeem all of mankind.
When a person comes to this understanding of what Jesus did on the cross, he then truly sees Jesus. When upon truly seeing Jesus, he then by faith alone accepts what Christ has done for him on the cross in lieu of anything he can ever do; he is saved--given eternal life, a one-way ticket to heaven.
This is truly “serving Jesus.” When a person accepts by faith alone Jesus Christ, he then becomes united with Christ through the indwelling and baptizing work of the Holy Spirit. From that point on, the person and Christ will be permanently “together”--another way in saying that where Christ is so will be the child of God. In this relationship God is free to honor His children, because they are truly in the service of Christ.
John 12:27-30
“Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.” Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.” Jesus answered and said, “This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.”
Jesus Christ suffered in a manner that man cannot even begin to understand. There was a suffering connected with His sacrifice upon the cross that would take man an eternity and beyond to experience. Jesus Christ took upon Himself the sins of the entire world from its beginning to its end. He was in fact and actuallymade sin for every man, woman or child that has ever and will ever live upon earth. Isaiah 53:3, 4, 10; 2 Corinthians 5:21.
It was this coming suffering that troubled Jesus. He rhetorically asked the question, “Father, save Me from this hour,” to which the obvious and only answer is “Of course not!” Why? Because it was for “this hour” (His crucifixion) that He came to earth. It was going to be in “this hour” that He is to be glorified (vs. 23).
But wait. To glorify Himself is to glorify God the Father, for they are both One. He then cries out, “Father, glorify Your name,” and to this a voice from heaven responds saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.” Here are two important points.
- Jesus Christ was more interested in bringing glory to God the Father than in securing comfort and relief for Himself.
- God had brought glory to Himself in the sinless life of Christ prior to the cross. He would now bring glory to Himself again when Jesus goes to the cross to fulfill God’s will and plan for mankind.
Those around Jesus heard the voice of the Father, but to them it sounded only like thunder. Some thought it was the voice of an angel speaking to Jesus. Jesus confirmed that they were allowed to hear the Father’s response solely for their sake.
John 12:31-33
“Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” This He said, signifying by what death He would die.
These remarks follow the Father’s statement from heaven, saying that He would glorify Himself. It sounded like thunder to those around Jesus and definitely got their attention. With their attention sharpened Christ profoundly proclaims His coming crucifixion on the cross. He speaks of the coming judgment of the world (system) and the ultimate defeat of the “ruler of this world (system).”
The word “world” refers to the “world system,” which has always been at odds to God and spirituality. At the transgression of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, physical death and spiritual death were introduced into the world. No longer was the world “innocent.” Satan had taken control of it, and He is the “ruler of this world” (John 14:30; 16:11; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2; 6:12).
But at the cross Satan met His ultimate judgment. It hasn’t all materialized as yet (see Luke 10:18; Revelation 12:10; 20:3, 10), but it is absolutely certain. On the cross of Calvary the sins of the world were judged and paid for. As a result of this judgment, which was administered by and paid for by Christ, Satan’s perceived victory was turned into personal tragedy--that is, for Satan. Satan no longer has his way with man, unless man allows it. On the other hand man, by accepting Christ by faith alone, can now be completely victorious over Satan. Why? Because Satan was completely defeated by the death of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. Satan thought he had won, but just the opposite was and is true.
In speaking of being “lifted up from the earth,” Jesus was speaking of the crucifixion whereby a person is lifted up on and nailed to the cross. He spoke of this when talking with Nicodemus in John 3:14, 15--“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” By being crucified, Christ now draws all (types) of men from all walks of life to Him.
John 12:34-36
The people answered Him, “We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?” Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. “While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.
Those around Christ thought surely He had made a mistake, that is, if He had been talking about Himself. They remembered that the Scripture had declared the Messiah would be forever (Psalm 89:36-37; 110:4; Isaiah 9:7; Daniel 2:44; 7:14; Micah 4:7); therefore, they felt He must be referring to someone else.
Upon hearing these remarks revealing the confusion and unenlightened understanding of His teaching, Christ refers back to his allegory of light and darkness--warning them that they should accept Him, who is the Light, by faith while they still had time. To do so would transform them into “sons of light,” and there would be no more confusion and darkness (of understanding). After this Jesus left the crowd and hid Himself from them.
John 12:37-41
But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: “Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?” Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.” These things Isaiah said when he saw His glory and spoke of Him.
John is speaking here of the rejection of Christ as the Messiah by the Nation of Israel. If the Nation had accepted Him, He would have never been put to death on the cross; and thereby never become the Sin-bearer for the world. The net result would then be that Satan would have won, and this was not in God’s will and plan for mankind. Christ was designated before time and creation to come to the cross and pay by His spiritual death on that cross for the sins of man. Therefore it was always God’s plan that at this time in history that the Nation Israel reject Christ--and it is made clear here that this was the fulfillment of prophetic Scriptures.
John 12:42-50
Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him--the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”
Even though the Nation Israel rejected Him, some of the rulers (religious leaders) did in fact believe in Him. Unfortunately it was simply a “head” and not a “heart” belief in Christ. They were convinced that Jesus met all the requirements of the Messiah, but they were unwilling to accept Him wholeheartedly by faith, as witnessed by their unwillingness to proclaim their belief in Him publicly. Why? Because they wished to hang on to “religion” and all its trappings, which provided them acceptance and praise within their society. Jesus again reminds them that He is the Light and that to accept Him is to accept God and thereby reside in the Light. He never shrinks from declaring His Deity. But when someone rejects Him, it will be the clear Word of God that judges the person--not Jesus Christ personally because He came to save the world.
This was best explained in John 5:41-46, “I do not accept praise from men, but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. I have come in My Father's name, and you do not accept Me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God? But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me.”
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