The selection from John 12:20-33 read on the fifth Sunday of Lent, Year B is found in a pivotal chapter in the Gospel of John. John 12 brings together many of the elements contained in the Book of Signs and at the same time prepares the reader for the Book of Glory. We will first describe the contents of John 12 and then zero in on vv. 20-36, the immediate context of the liturgical selection. The Sunday Thoughts for Sunday V, Lent B is found here.
The Content of John 12
- The Anointing at Bethany 12:1-11
- The Entrance into Jerusalem 12:12-19
- The Coming of the Greeks and the Hour of Glorification 12:20-43
- Belief in Jesus and His Words 12:44-50
The chapter tells of events preceding the Last Supper (ch. 13). It opens up with the story of another supper celebrated in the house of Lazarus, the one whom Jesus has raised from the dead (ch. 11). It is a supper where Jesus' death is anticipated in the loving gesture of Mary who anoints his feet with perfumed nard. The second episode in the chapter is Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem where crowds waving palm branches acclaim him as the Messiah. We are told that some Greeks who had come for the feast wanted to meet Jesus. The Greeks approaching Philip and Philip going to Andrew before both go to Jesus to relay the request of the visitors recalls the segment of discipleship in John 1. This particular episode though not ending with the Greeks following Jesus -- on the basis of the pattern of discipleship in John 1 -- raises the readers' expectation of their walking behind him. This is already hinted at in the Pharisees' observation in v. 19, "Behold, we can do nothing. The whole world has begun to walk behind him." The coming of the Greeks tell Jesus that his hour has come. It is the hour where the name of the Father will be glorified. A voice from heaven confirms Jesus' understanding of the coming of the Greeks, but the Jews who were there did not recognize the voice (27-30). Nor did they understand what Jesus told them about the son of Man being lifted up from the earth (31-34). The Jews fail to understand because as Isaiah has prophesied, their eyes were blinded and their hearts hardened (37-41). And even if there were those among them who believed in Jesus, these did not confess Him for fear of being excommunicated (Jn. 9), thus showing that they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God (42-43). The concluding section (44-50) are the words of Jesus regarding belief in Him and his words. These words close the first part of the Gospel of John, "the Book of Signs" and prepares for the following part, "the Book of Glory".
The Contents of John 12:20-43
- The arrival of the Greeks (20-22)
- Jesus' on the Hour
- The coming of the Hour (23)
- The grain of wheat (24-25)
- Jesus' servant (26)
- The glorification of God's name (27-28)
- Reaction of the Jews (29-30)
- Reply of Jesus
- Lifting up of the Son of Man
- Reaction of the Jews
- The comment of the evangelist
- Jesus' Response, his Hiding from the Jews (35-36)
- Comment: Isaiah on the Blindness of the Jews (37-41)
- Belief Among the Princes of the Jews (42-43)
John 12: 20-28 The Arrival of Jesus' Hour
Jesus receives the news that some Greeks wish to see him. In Jn. 10:16, he hinted at the existence of another flock that he, the Good Shepherd, must also lead into the one fold. It is probable that he was referring to the future non-Jewish members of his flock (cf. Eph. 2:13-18). Jesus understands it to be a sign that his hour has come. The hour of Jesus is not a period of sixty minutes. It is a "qualitative hour". Just as a woman's hour is her giving birth (16:21), and the hour of the Jews is the moment when God allows them to complete their crime (16:3-4), so the hour of Jesus is the time when he accomplishes God's will. It is also the hour of his glorification, that is his return to the glory he had before (17:5). He first refers to this "hour" at Cana (Jn. 2:4), where he changes water into wine -- sign of the new covenant -- at the behest of the Woman, his mother. The "hour" of Jesus begins at the arrival of the Greeks (12:23) and ends when on the cross he says "It is finished" (19:30).
The discourse is structured in a way that puts Jesus' declaration of the coming of the Hour (23) and his prayer for the glorification of the Father's name (27-28a) in parallel. The glorification of the name of God is the accomplishment of God's will. Here, Jesus' hour is identified with the moment when the name of God is given glory by the obedience of a son.
These two parallel lines act as frames containing three sayings, two about a death that ironically gives life (24-25) and one about serving Jesus (26). Of these three sayins, the middle one echoes Jesus' sayings on the cross of discipleship in the Synoptic gospels.
If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
For whoever would save his life will lose it,but whoever loses his life for my sakeFor what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
and the gospel’s will save it.
For what can a man give in return for his soul? (Mark 8:34-37 and par.)
The two outermost sayings are unique to John. The saying about the grain of wheat that falls and dies and bears much fruit (v. 24) anticipates what Jesus will say about his being lifted up, when he will draw all men to himself (v. 32). The saying, finally, about the servant echoes Jesus' invitation "follow me" as found in the synoptics. He wishes that his servant (here using verb diakonein) be where he is, at the cross and later, at the Father's right hand. Jesus' glorification is shared with the faithful servant who follows him, like sheep following the shepherd.
Jesus understanding of the connection between the arrival of the Greeks and his hour is confirmed by a voice from heaven (28b). In the synoptic gospels, the Voice from heaven announces Jesus as the Messiah and the Suffering Servant at his Baptism and at the Transfiguration. Here, in Johanine fashion, the Voice makes itself heard but only Jesus -- the one really attuned to it -- understands it.
John 12:29-36: The Obtuseness of the Jews and the Hiding of the Light
The people in the crowd hear the Voice from heaven but fail to recognize it (thunder) nor who it was who spoke (an angel). They are informed that the message of the Voice was meant for their benefit. The glorification of the name of the Father is linked to the judgment of the world, the defeat of the "prince of this world" and the lifting up of the son of man. In this lifting up, Jesus will draw all to himself. The theme of judgment was first opened up in the conversation with Nicodemus (Jn. 3:19-21). Men's attitude towards the Light will determine the verdict upon them: those who love evil deeds will continue to hide in darkness. The defeat of the prince of this world will once more be mentioned in the Last Supper Discourses as the work of the Holy Spirit who will be with the disciples (16:8-11) In v. 33, the evangelist informs the reader what Jesus meant about the lifting up of the son of man: his death on the cross. The phrase "lifting up" is an allussion to Isaiah 52:13 referring to the lifting up and glorification of the Servant of Yahweh. 1 In John 3:14, Jesus describes this lifting up in words that connote salvation, alluding to the healing of the Israelites as they contemplated the bronze serpent that Moses lifted up. In John 8:28, Jesus tells the Jews that when he is lifted up, they will realize that he is "I Am", the God who was always with them to bring healing and salvation (Hinnebusch, "Come and You Will See"). The crowds fail to understand what Jesus meant. They don't even know who the son of man is. This theme of the Jews' obtuseness will be explained in vv. 37-41 through the use of two texts from Isaiah. Jesus' reply to crowds is an allussion to the coming of darkness (13:30) that will engulf Judas, occassion the dispersal of the disciples and set the stage for his suffering and death. He hides from the Jews like the sun going beneath the horizon; unbelief has rendered them incapable of sight and hearing. The discourse of Jesus in vv. 44-50 recalls the theme of light linking it to the theme of faith in Jesus' name and his words. At the conclusion of this part, Jesus hides himself from the Jews like a lamp that leaves them in darkness (v. 36).
Liturgical notes
John 12:20-33 in Sunday V Lent B
The liturgy cuts off the selection at verse 33, where the evangelist tells us what Jesus meant by "the lifting up of the son of man." By doing this, the connection between Jesus' Hour, the Father's glorification and the Cross are is highlighted and prepares the way for the celebration of Holy Week. For the first reading, the words of Jeremiah 31:31-34 about the new covenant are recalled. The second reading from Hebrews 5:7-9 focuses on Jesus' prayer, a prayer rising from the heart of the obedient Son who now intercedes for us at the right of the Father.
- 1. The context of that Isaianic oracle contains an account of the suffering and death of the Servant. In the Greek text of the Septuagint, "servant" is paiV, which has the same connotation as the Filipino use of "boy" or the Ilonggo "bata".
