RSV ~ John 7 Notes
Jn 7:2 | ISB Notes
feast of Tabernacles: Also called the âfeast of Boothsâ (Lev 23:33-43; Deut 16:13-16). It is a seven-day fall festival held annually in Jerusalem. The feast of Tabernacles commemorates both the completion of the autumn harvest and Yahwehâs provisions for Israel during their Exodus journey through the wilderness. Throughout the week, Jewish pilgrims dwelled in small huts made of tree branches called âboothsâ. Two liturgical ceremonies from this feast hang as a backdrop behind Jesusâ teaching in chaps. 7 and 8. (1) Each morning Levitical priests drew water from the pool of Siloam in the southern quarter of Jerusalem, carried it in procession into the Temple, and poured it out as a libation next to the altar of sacrifice. This is connected with Jesusâ teaching about âwaterâ in 7:37-39. (2) Giant candelabras burned in the sanctuary (Court of Women) that illuminated the Temple courts; at the same time dancers with flaming torches processed through the Temple amid singing and music. This is linked with Jesusâ teaching about âlightâ in 8:12.
Jn 7:3 | ISB Notes
his brethren: Close relatives of Jesus, but not biological siblings. Although lacking in faith here, they later become believers (Acts 1:14). See note on Mt 12:46.
Jn 7:6 | ISB Notes
My time: Jesus is not scheduled to manifest the fullness of his glory until the âhourâ of his Passion (7:30; 13:1). His earthly relatives, therefore, cannot dictate the timing or direction of his heavenly mission.
Jn 7:7 | ISB Notes
The world: i.e., the family of sinful man. The relatives of Jesus are still part of the world because they are not hated by it as he is (15:18-19). See note on Jn 1:10.
Jn 7:8 | ISB Notes
I am not going up: The expression has two levels of meaning: (1) It is not yet time for Jesus to travel up to Jerusalem, (2) nor is it time for him to ascend in glory to the Father (20:17).
Jn 7:13 | ISB Notes
fear of the Jews: Rumors had leaked out that the Jerusalem authorities were plotting against Jesus (7:1, 11, 19). The crowds were thus reluctant to be associated with him or his teaching.
Jn 7:14 | ISB Notes
middle of the feast: Either the third or fourth day of the week-long festival. See note on Jn 7:2.
Jn 7:15 | ISB Notes
never studied: Jewish students were normally tutored by older rabbis in the interpretation of Scripture and in the traditions of their revered teachers. Jesus exhibits such profound insight into Scripture and spiritual things that many are shocked that he has no formal training (Mk 6:1-3; Lk 2:47).
Jn 7:18 | ISB Notes
the glory of him: i.e., of his heavenly Father (5:44; 17:5).
Jn 7:21 | ISB Notes
I did one deed: The healing of the lame man in 5:1-9.
Jn 7:22 | ISB Notes
circumcision: A sign of the Abrahamic covenant (Gen 17:10-14) that was later incorporated into the Mosaic covenant (Lev 12:3). According to Jewish tradition, the duty to circumcise newborn boys on the eighth day overrides the duty to observe the Sabbath rest when it falls on the same day. Jesus reasons that if part of the body may be lawfully tended to, then how much more should the whole body participate in the blessings of the covenant on the Sabbath (7:23) (CCC 2173).
Jn 7:26 | ISB Notes
the authorities: Probably members of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. .
Jn 7:27 | ISB Notes
no one will know: Two traditions regarding the birth and origin of the Messiah circulated in ancient Judaism. (1) Some expected the Messiah to grow up i
n obscurity and be manifested to the world only as an adult. (2) Others expected the Messiah to come from Bethlehem in accordance with the prophecy of Mic 5:2. The irony here is that both are true of Jesus: his heavenly origin in the Trinity is unknown to his audience (8:14), as is his birth in Bethlehem (Lk 2:4-7).
Jn 7:30 | ISB Notes
his hour: See topical essay: The âHourâ of Jesus at Jn 4.
Jn 7:32 | ISB Notes
officers: Temple police in Jerusalem (Acts 4:1-3; 5:2426).
Jn 7:35 | ISB Notes
Dispersion among the Greeks: i.e., among the Jews and Gentiles scattered throughout the Mediterranean world. Although Jesus himself never undertakes such a mission, his disciples will do precisely this, showing that the advance of the gospel beyond the borders of
Israel is unwittingly announced by Christâs adversaries (Mt 28:18-20; Acts 1:8).
Jn 7:37 | ISB Notes
the great day: The seventh and final day of Tabernacles. come to me and drink: Jesus is the source of the spiritual âwaterâ (4:10) that quenches our deepest âthirstâ (6:35). The symbolic meaning of this is that Christ is the source of the Spirit poured out upon the world (7:39; 20:22). Jesus is probably alluding to the water-drawing ceremony of the feas
t, thus inviting us to think of him as the heavenly counterpart to the pool of Siloam. See notes on Jn 7:2 and 9:7.
Jn 7:38 | ISB Notes
Out of his heart ⌠living water: Not a verbatim reference to any one OT passage, but a summary or synthesis of at least three.
⢠(1) In Num 20:10-13, Yahweh quenched Israelâs thirst in the wilderness by making water gush forth from a rock. (2) In Ezek 47:1-12, the prophet sees water streaming forth from the Temple and bringing new life everywhere it flows. (3) In Zech 14:8, Jerusalem of the last days is depicted as a spring of living wa
ter that flows when the Lord becomes king over the earth and the nations come to celebrate the âfeast of boothsâ (Tabernacles) year after year (Zech 14:9, 16). These traditions point forward to Jesus: he is the rock that slakes our thirst (1 Cor 10:4), the true temple that channels life to the world (2:21), and the Lord who reigns as king over the world (12:13; 18:36). See note on Jn 19:34.
Jn 7:39 | ISB Notes
not yet glorified: i.e., through his Passion and Resurrection (12:23; 17:1). Only then will the Spirit be poured out through the risen humanity of Christ (20:22) (CCC 728, 1287).
Jn 7:40 | ISB Notes
the prophet: The awaited prophet like Moses from Deut 18:15-19. See note on Jn 1:21.
Jn 7:41 | ISB Notes
the Christ: The awaited Messiah and king of Israel. See word study: Christ at Mk 14.
Jn 7:42 | ISB Notes
the Scripture: The Davidic lineage of the Messiah is mentioned in 2 Sam 7:12-14, Is 9:6-7, Jer 23:5, and Ezek 34:23-24, while his birthplace in Bethlehem is noted in Mic 5:2.
Jn 7:51 | ISB Notes
a hearing: Nicodemus pleads for due process and legal justice, only to be ridiculed by the Pharisees, just as the officers (7:47) and the people were (7:49).
Jn 7:53-8 | ISB Notes
Some ancient manuscripts of the Fourth Gospel omit this episode entirely. Other manuscripts place it elsewhere in John or even in the Gospel of Luke. According to the Council of Trent in the sixteenth century, the official canon of the Scriptures corresponds to everything included in the Latin Vulgate edition (Sess. 4, Dec. 1). This translation includes the episode as canonical.