Chapter 17

1Christ prayeth to his Father to glorify him, 6to preserve his apostles, 11in unity, 17and truth, 20to glorify them, and all other believers with him in heaven.

1. These words spake Jesus. [Jesus’ Intercessory Prayer, John 17:1–26.] This prayer concludes Jesus’ parting counsel begun in the upper room and continued on the way to Gethsemane. This prayer is the longest of the prayers of Jesus on record. Bengel says with regard to ch. 17 that of all chapters in Scripture it is the easiest in regard to words; the most profound in regard to ideas. The prayer naturally divides itself into three parts: (1) prayer for Himself (vs. 1–5); (2) prayer for the disciples (vs. 6–19); (3) prayer for all believers (vs. 20–26).

Lifted up his eyes. See on ch. 11:41.

Father. See on ch. 13:31; cf. ch. 12:16, 23.

Glorify. See on ch. 13:13; cf. ch. 12:16, 23. Jesus would be glorified by being lifted up, in a victorious death which was the necessary prelude to His glorious resurrection.

2. Power. Gr. exousia, “authority” (see on Matt. 28:18).

Flesh. That is, human beings (cf. Mark 13:20; Luke 3:6; etc.).

Eternal life. See on John 1:4; 3:16; 8:51; 10:10; cf. Rom. 6:23.

Thou hast given. See on ch. 6:37.

3. Know thee. Experimental, living knowledge leads to life eternal. There is no salvation in knowledge alone, but neither can there be salvation without knowledge (Rom. 10:13–15). Saving knowledge is here defined as that which is centered upon the “true God,” in contrast with false gods, and upon Jesus Christ. It was the knowledge of Jesus Christ that was strikingly absent from the religion of the Jews. Men will be rejected in the last day because they have rejected the essential knowledge (see on Hosea 4:6). For the importance of knowledge in the development of Christian character see on John 17:17; cf. 5T 743.

4. Glorified thee. The second part of the sentence amplifies the first. God was glorified in the completion of the work that Jesus came to do for the salvation of man.

5. Glorify thou me. Compare v. 1. Jesus prays that He might return to His former glory. On the pre-existence of Christ see on ch. 1:1, 14; cf. ch. 8:58). Paul describes the fulfillment of this prayer: “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name” (Phil. 2:9).

Thy name. “Name” here, as often, stands for character. For Jesus as the personal revelation of the character of His Father see on ch. 1:14, 18.

Thou gavest. See on ch. 6:37. The unity of Father and Son is stressed (see on ch. 10:30).

Kept thy word. Equivalent to “kept thy commandments.” This does not imply perfect obedience, but notes that in contrast with the majority of the Jews the disciples had cast their lot with Jesus and had sought to fulfill the requirements of discipleship.

7. They have known. That is, according to the Greek, “they have come to know and are now aware.” Christ’s relationship with the Father, the God whom the Jews worshiped, was a point of constant emphasis in the teachings of Jesus (chs. 8; 10; etc.). The Jews charged Him with blasphemy and branded Him an impostor for claiming that God was His Father, but the disciples were persuaded of His true origin and identity.

8. Thou gavest me. A further emphasis on the dependence of Christ on the Father during the incarnation (chs. 1:14; 5:19, 30).

Received them. See on v. 7.

9. I pray for them. The disciples have already been introduced (vs. 6–8); now the prayer for them begins.

Not for the world. That is, at the present time. For the moment Jesus is concentrating upon His disciples. Jesus is not representing the world as outside the pale of His or His Father’s solicitude. God loves the world and freely offers salvation to all (John 3:16; Rev. 22:17). Later Jesus includes in His prayer “them also which shall believe on me through their word” (John 17:20).

Hast given me. See on ch. 6:37.

10. Mine are thine. The mutual ownership further emphasizes the oneness of the Father and the Son (see on v. 6).

Glorified. The Father was glorified by the obedience of Christ (see on v. 4). Likewise the Son was glorified by the obedience of the disciples, especially by their carrying out their mission to the world.

11. No more. The immediate future is regraded as present. By Jewish reckoning the day of crucifixion had already arrived.

I come to thee. Or, “I am coming to thee,” a futuristic present, referring to Jesus’ return to the Father, not to His approach to God in prayer.

Holy Father. This title occurs only here in the NT. In vs. 1, 5 the form of address is “Father,” and in v. 25 it is “righteous Father.” The term was doubtless chosen in view of the requests to follow. The subject of vs. 17–19 is sanctification. The word for “sanctify” (v. 17) is hagiazoµ, “to make holy,” and the word for “holy” in the title “Holy Father” is hagios, correctly rendered “holy.” It is the Holy Father who is petitioned to make the disciples holy. On the holiness of God see Lev. 11:44; cf. 1 Peter 1:16. The title “Holy Father” also appears in a eucharistic prayer in the Didache 10:2.

Keep. Jesus is about to leave; hence He commits the disciples to His Father’s care (see vs. 11, 12). They would be left in an evil world and would need special grace in their battle against sin. This keeping power every Christian may claim. God will not suffer him to be tempted above what he is able to bear (1 Cor. 10:13). He is impregnable to the assaults of Satan so long as he battles in the strength and light of Heaven. However, God keeps only those who choose to be kept. When against divine counsel men willfully place themselves upon the enemy’s ground they cannot expect to be preserved by the power of God.

Whom. Textual evidence favors (cf. p. 146) the reading “which,” that is, the “name.” This reading conveys the thought that God gave His name to the Son. This concept could be understood in the light of chs. 1:18; 14:9. Jesus came to represent the name, or character, of His Father, and functioned during His incarnation under the authority of His Father.

12. I kept them. See on v. 11.

Thou gavest me. See on ch. 6:37.

Son of perdition. That is, Judas Iscariot. The expression describes one destined to perdition, or destruction. The title is applied to the Antichrist in 2 Thess. 2:3. The word for perdition (apoµleia) occurs frequently and often describes the final destruction of the wicked (see Matt. 7:13; Rom. 9:22; Phil. 3:19; Heb. 10:39; Rev. 17:8, 11; etc.). By his own choice Judas became a man destined to destruction (see on John 3:17–20).

Might be fulfilled. This clause should doubtless be understood as expressing result rather than purpose. The Greek may be understood either way (see on Matt. 1:22; John 9:3). Judas was not destined to betray Jesus (see on John 6:71; 13:18). His heinous act was by his own choice. The passage alluded to is probably Ps. 41:9, the one mentioned in John 13:18.

13. Come I to thee. A reference to Jesus’ return to the Father, as in v. 11 (see comments there).

Joy fulfilled. See on ch. 15:11 cf. ch. 16:24.

14. Given them. Compare vs. 8, 17. The word delivered to them the disciples had kept (v. 6).

Hated them. See on ch. 15:18–21.

Not of the world. They were in the world (vs. 11, 15) but did not partake of the spirit of the world. They were sent into the world (v. 18) that they might induce others to renounce the world (Mark 16:15).

15. Out of the world. This might be thought to be the most effective means of being preserved from the evil of the world. But the disciples had a mission to accomplish in the world, even as Jesus had come into the world to accomplish His work (see v. 4).

The evil. The Greek may be understood as referring either to evil as a principle or to the evil one (see on Matt. 6:13). Either meaning is appropriate to the context. The same word appears in 1 John 5:18, but there a different grammatical case identifies the adjective as masculine, so making it a clear reference to the evil one.

16. Not of the world. See on v. 14.

17. Sanctify. Gr. hagiazoµ, literally, “to treat as holy,” “to consecrate,” “to make holy.” The disciples were to be consecrated to their task. Holiness is one of the attributes of God (1 Peter 1:16). Hence to be made holy is to become like God. This work the plan of salvation was designed to accomplish (2 Peter 1:4; Ed 125).

Through thy truth. For a definition of truth see on ch. 8:32. The Word of God is declared to be “truth”. The Scriptures reveal to us the character of God and of Jesus Christ. We become new creatures by making the truths of the Word of God a part of the life.

18. Sent me. See on ch. 3:17.

Sent them. He had earlier sent them out (Luke 9:1, 2) and would commission them again before departing from this world (John 20:21, 22).

19. Sanctify myself. Here the meaning “consecrate myself,” or, “dedicate myself,” seems to be the more appropriate definition (see on v. 17). Jesus dedicated Himself to the completion of the task He had come into the world to accomplish. Before Him lay the cross, and in the act of offering Himself He made possible the sanctification of all believers (see Heb. 10:10).

20. Them also. Here begins the prayer for all believers (see on v. 1) to the end of time.

Through their word. That is, through their preaching, teaching, and writing.

21. May be one. There would be diversities of gifts (1 Cor. 12), but there was to be unity of spirit, objectives, and beliefs. There were to be no strivings for supremacy such as had recently plagued the Twelve (Luke 22:24–30). The unity springing from the blended lives of Christians would impress the world of the divine origin of divine origin of the Christian church.

22. Glory. Here probably the glory of the incarnate Christ. This was to shine forth in the believer. Bengel remarks, “How great is the majesty of Christians!” Compare Rom. 8:30.

23. I in them. The close unity between the believer and the members of the Godhead is further emphasized.

Made perfect. See on Matt. 5:48. Growth toward perfection can take place only when the believer abides in Christ (see John 15:1–5).

World may know. See on v. 21.

24. Be with me. That is, in heaven. Jesus prays for the culmination of the plan of redemption in the glorification of the church of God at the time of the second coming of Christ. The human family has long been in a foreign land (Heb. 11:13, 14), away from the Father’s house (Rev. 14:2, 3). “The whole creation groaneth and travaileth … waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of” the body (Rom. 8:22, 23). The redemption comes when the Lord descends from heaven at the end of the age and gathers His children from the four corners of the earth (Matt. 24:31; 1 Thess. 4:16). At that time the faithful go to “ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:17). For the arrival of this glad moment of reunion Jesus prayed. For the speedy fulfillment of the promise every Christian should pray (Rev. 22:20).

Before the foundation. The same phrase occurs in Eph. 1:4; 1 Peter 1:20. See on John 1:1, 14.

25. Righteous Father. Compare the address “Holy Father” (v. 11). The world had not acknowledged the Father in spite of Jesus’ revelation of Him.

26. Have declared. See on ch. 1:18.

Name. That is, character.

Will declare it. Through the subsequent revelations of the Spirit (see on chs. 14:26; 16:13).

Ellen G. White comments

1 PK 69

1–3DA 680; FE 392, 431

3 AA 262, 531; COL 114, 133; CSW 110; CT 45, 169, 406; Ed 126; Ev 181; FE 174, 223, 272, 285, 341, 376, 381, 403, 404, 413, 415, 446, 484; MH 410; MYP 189, 191; TM 170; 5T 737; 6T 97, 131, 362; 8T 60, 62

4 AA 24; DA 829; MB 14; PK 69

4–6MH 454

4–8CT 459

5 AA 39

6 Ed 87; TM 193; 5T 738; 8T 286

8 FE 272

10, 11 AA 24; DA 680

11 AA 90

11–15FE 431

12 GC 646

14 AA 90; MH 404; 2T 44

14, 15 1T 285

14–16AA 467; FE 182; PK 59; 2T 492

15 FE 153, 395; MYP 82, 423; SC 99, 123; TM 198; 5T 334

15–17CT 323

15–18CH 591; MM 218

17 AH 186; COL 100; CS 28, 74, 83; CSW 19, 68; CW 124; Ev 155, 290; FE 120, 432, 433; GC 469, 608; ML 252, 261; MYP 35, 460; SL 60, 67; Te 19; TM 111, 150, 160, 378; 1T 248, 285, 336, 339, 406, 474, 543, 589, 621, 704; 2T 60, 78, 184, 188, 317, 479, 505, 639, 694; 3T 65, 162; 4T 315, 371, 441, 545; 5T 206, 432; 6T 403, 417; 7T 31, 249; 8T 184, 193, 235; 9T 40, 69

17–19FE 448

17–215T 237; 9T 196

18 COL 191; MB 40; MH 395; MM 24; MYP 47; SC 115

18, 19 FE 432; ML 252

19 COL 142; CSW 124; CT 197, 323; FE 161, 262, 466; GW 104; MB 36; MM 203; TM 162; 1T 339; 4T 457; 5T 442

19–23TM 124; 8T 80

20 ML 252; SC 75; 4T 401, 530

20, 21 MH 421; PP 520; 1T 327, 417; 3T 434; 4T 17

20–23AA 24; DA 680; ML 252; 3T 361; 8T 269; 9T 198

20–268T 239

21 AA 20, 90; CS 47, 303; Ev 213; FE 240; ML 11; TM 25, 55, 386; 1T 324; 5T 61, 94, 279, 488, 620; 6T 401; 7T 156; 8T 175; 9T 179, 194; WM 297

21–23Ed 86; 3T 446; 6T 151

22, 23 MH 405

23 AA 20, 24, 90; FE 178, 234; MB 104; SC 115; TM 215

23, 24 TM 18

24 DA 834; GC 501, 636, 646; TM 20; 4T 529; 6T 309

25 5T 737

25, 26 FE 177; PK 69

26 DA 19; FE 178, 466; 8T 286