NIV Life Application Study Bible, Third Edition - Flipbook - Page 50
J ohn 1 1 : 4 9
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page 1826
49 Then one of them, named Caiaphas, m who was high priest that year, n spoke up,
“You know nothing at all! 50You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die
for the people than that the whole nation perish.” o
51 He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus
would die for the Jewish nation, 52and not only for that nation but also for the scattered
children of God, to b
ring them together and make them one. p 53So from that day on they
plotted to take his life. q
54 Therefore Jesus no longer m
oved a
bout publicly a
mong the people of Judea. r In
stead he withdrew to a region near the wilderness, to a village c alled Ephraim, where
he stayed with his disciples.
55 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, s many went up from the country
to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing t before the Passover. 56They kept looking for
Jesus, u and as they s tood in the temple c ourts they a
sked one another, “What do you
think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?” 57But the chief priests and the Pharisees
had given orders that anyone who found out where Jesus was should report it so that
they might arrest him.
A Woman Anoints Jesus with Perfume (182/Matthew 26:6–13; Mark 14:3–9 )
Six days before the Passover, v Jesus came to Bethany, w where Lazarus lived, whom
Jesus had raised from the dead. 2Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha
served, x while Lazarus was a
mong t hose reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary
took about a pint a of pure nard, an expensive perfume; y she poured it on J esus’ feet and
wiped his feet with her hair. z And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, a objected, 5 “Why
wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was w
orth a year’s wages. b ”
6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper
of the money bag, b he used to help himself to what was put into it.
7“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume
for the day of my burial. c 8You will always have the poor among you, c d but you will not
always have me.”
12
a
11:49
mMt 26:3
nver 51; Jn 18:13,14
11:50
oJn 18:14
11:52
pIsa 49:6; Jn 10:16
11:53
qMt 12:14
11:54
rJn 7:1
11:55
12:13,23,27;
Mt 26:1,2; Mk 14:1;
Jn 13:1
t2Ch 30:17,18
sEx
11:56
7:11
uJn
12:1
11:55
21:17
vJn
wMt
12:2
10:3842
xLk
12:3
yMk
zJn
14:3
11:2
12:4
aMt 10:4
12:6
bJn 13:29
12:7
cJn 19:40
12:8
15:11
dDt
3 Or about 0.5 liter b 5 Greek three hundred denarii c 8 See Deut. 15:11.
political leader who would lead a rebellion against Rome. The Jewish
leaders feared that Rome’s displeasure would bring additional hardship
to their people and nation.
11:51 John regarded Caiaphas’s statement as a prophecy. As high
priest, Caiaphas was used by God to explain Jesus’ death even though
Caiaphas didn’t realize what he was doing.
11:52 John highlights that Jesus wanted to unite the children of God
scattered around the world, both Jews and Gentiles (see 10:11, 16). This
began with Jesus’ ministry but took a giant leap forward at Pentecost,
when people from many nations were converted and filled with the
Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4-8).
12:3 Pure nard was a fragrant ointment imported from the mountains
of India. It was very expensive. The amount Mary used was worth a year’s
wages. Mark records Jesus as saying that Mary’s act of love would be
remembered throughout history and around the world (Mark 14:9).
12:4-6 Judas often dipped into the disciples’ money bag for his own
use. Jesus would have known what Judas was doing (2:24-25; 6:64), but
he did not do or say anything about it. Similarly, when we choose the
way of sin, God may not immediately do anything to stop us, but this
does not mean he approves of our actions. We will get what we deserve.
12:5-6 Judas used a pious cover to hide his true motives. But Jesus
knew what was in his heart. Judas’s life had become a lie, and the devil
was gaining more and more control over him (13:27). Satan is the father
of lies, and a person like Judas with a lying character opens the door
to his influence. Jesus’ knowledge of us should make us want to keep
our actions consistent with our words. Because we have nothing to fear
with him, we should have nothing to hide.
12:7-8 This act—and Jesus’ response to it—does not give us permission
to ignore people who are poor, nor does it give us permission to spend
excessively in our churches or Christian ministries. This was a unique
act for a specific occasion—an anointing that anticipated Jesus’ burial
and a public declaration of faith in him as the Messiah. Jesus’ words
should have taught Judas a valuable lesson about the worth of money.
Unfortunately, Judas did not take heed; soon he would sell his master’s
life for 30 pieces of silver.
12:10-11 The chief priests’ blindness and hardness of heart caused
them to sink ever deeper into sin. They rejected the Messiah and planned
to kill him, and then plotted to murder Lazarus as well. One sin led to
another. From the Jewish leaders’ point of view, they could accuse Jesus
of blasphemy because he claimed equality with God. But Lazarus had
done nothing of the kind. They wanted Lazarus dead simply because
he was a living witness to Jesus’ power. Once more we see vividly
how sin can work. Sin leads to more sin, a downward spiral that can
be stopped only by repentance and the power of the Holy Spirit to
change our behavior.
12:13 Jesus began his last week on earth by riding into Jerusalem on
a donkey under a canopy of palm branches, with crowds hailing him as
their king. To announce that he was indeed the Messiah, Jesus chose a
time when all Israel would be gathered at Jerusalem, a place where huge
crowds could see him, and a way of proclaiming his mission that was
unmistakable. (For more on the prophecy that Jesus was fulfilling here,
see Zechariah 9:9 and the note there). On Palm Sunday we celebrate
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem as Lord of lords and King of peace.
12:13 The people who were praising God for giving them a conquering king had the wrong idea about Jesus. Many of them were sure he
would be a national leader who would restore their nation to its former
glory, and thus they were deaf to the words of their prophets and blind
to Jesus’ real mission. When they realized that Jesus would not fulfill
these hopes, many people turned against him.
12:16 After Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples understood for the first time
many of the prophecies that they had missed along the way. Jesus’ words
and actions took on new meaning and made more sense. In retrospect,