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COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL
ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN
THE REY. WILLIAM BRUCE
sfo4ad
C0,
The Missionary Society of the New Church
28, BLOOMSBURY WAYPREFACE,
Ti gope ofthe beloved pate Has 0 much a charter af ts
coe, tht ii gene tet. separately by thn who take a
synoptia view of tho gmp
{a writing bis goepl, John is supposed to have bad two ojela
in vow -=to soon some past of tho Ler life wnd teaching
‘whieh the ote evangelinta ind cmted; and to counteract the
{ntenn f Gnesi, which had even then beg to inf ths
hur andthe tendency of which was, to subetiate the Visionary
cedinent of tnetiora An forthe acta) Incarnation of
tho Heard Word? There sno weason to doubt that tho gospel,
ray havo bad a special an wll at & gene uke to performs
fd thatthe Divine andthe hasan purpoe in wet i may
av coined, sine evry good intention, Lika every ood ant
every pore it fom above. Such an opinion is only
ehjetonable ofr abi aiuto the gual « mec uma
suhorsip, of reduces the inspiration of Serptre to the aupe
fntendingtnenco of the Holy Spit Atha isa point of
‘eat importance and an tho present Commentary proses on
hak a iro
wy Sart i rine
sin a Sateatar reenact
Sis hae es
Sipe peste ken acest
ee ae emir
Sarena¥ PRERACE,
the principle that the Seriptases are divinely inspite, | have
‘reated of this subject in an introductory hapten. My object
Tiere is to eonidar the relation which John's gospel as tothe
thes, in aefeense to the Lon, to the elute, ad to anan in
Die eptitaal character,
‘The Wont of God, considared a a series of scoesive sev
tions, reflects the charter, and i indesd a history, of the
Tnuman race, a5 they Lived ed aoted under the avert dispen
sations of tho church, to which ¢hese revelstions werw aude,
‘As there isan analogy betwoen the history of te roe aud
hab of the individual, theo dipensations, which marke the
great epochs of sans epiitual history, aro analagovs to tho
succesive states of luman life, fom ite beginning othe come
lotion of regeneration. ‘The Okd Testament describes those
Sales which precede, ard aro proparatory to, the astual com.
rmencoment of tho regenemte life. The period froin Adam to
Oris, in the history of the rao, is analogous ta the peri of
man's lif, fom the time of hia fet, wo tho kine of his second,
bigth; fiom the time he is bom in the image of the fist dai,
‘who was made a living soul, to the kine he is born in the image
of the second Adam, who wae made «quickening Spit? The
s0epel,thorefore, which contain the history of the Lani’ Iie,
from his bith to hie ascension, and cut deseibe the entite
proces of his loriation, also inckade the period, and describe
the proves, of man's regeneration, as the elle and inne ofthe
Lani's work
While the New ‘Testament has thus a distinct liracter in
relition to the Old, ite several parte have a distinct charscter
in rolation to each other. Astuming Wnt the existance of four
gospels, cach containing « history of the Lord's lif, is uot of
nnn bat of God, we may consludo that this originated in a
purpose worthy of Divine wislom, We cannot, tharafore, eon
2 Para dev ao ti bythe son i wk
he tc try 88, i
PREFACE, ve
sistently with thir Divine anthorship zegnnd the gospels simply
te repetitions, aometimes with perplexing variations, nor even
5 supploments, one of another. “True, every gosps) contains
towashing that isnot to bo found in the other; ead Jolin’ ie
‘ot the lust eonapesos iu this respect. To his goepel we ove
‘the Lonts dicouse with Nicodemus on the now histh; with
the woran of Samasia on the living watar, and with the Jews
on the bread of life; with Martha on the rsurootion; with his
ciples on his oneness with the Father; and hi sublime
payer thatthe Father would perfect in him the work of Clute
fication, at the erowaing act of Reoonelition. ‘To it also we
ave indsbted for the xeon of some of th Lord's beneoent
works; as, the cure of the izpotent man at the pool of Beth.
eda; the git of sight to one bora blind the raising of Lazarus
from the dead; atl Ube washing of His ditiple eet. But there
se alan some particulars in which John's gospel dirs fran the
hers in its character ae wall as in ite contents, ‘The other
cevangelists relate mora of the pli, he relates roe of the
privat, lip and teaching of our Zord; nearly one balf of his
gospel being oecupiod with the record of transtctions tha tok
place in the presonco of tho disciples only, most of thom of the
profoundest nature and of the deopest import. It is admittod
‘yy al commentators that Jobe goypel is more spiritual in ite
durscter than the there; that conoentraee our aitenion
‘more fully upon the single parson of tho Lond; and that it givas
more ofthe Lore dootrine than of his history
‘What bss boen remarked reapoting the diatintiveehurntars
‘ofthe tro moct eminent of the Lon’ apostes—that John was
Glover of Jeet, and that Bete: wae a lover of Christ, may bo
‘ui ofthe four evangelist. John's gospel is moro the history
of Josue; the others aro more the history of Christ John
‘resnts tho Tord tows mor in his persona, the others more in
i Mssianie, charactor; ho prosnts Him moro in His character
of Jesus the Savion, th others more in is character of Christ