John 8:13-20

¹³The Pharisees challenged Him, "Here You are, appearing as Your own witness; Your testimony is not valid." ¹⁴Jesus answered, "Even if I testify on My own behalf, My testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. ¹⁵You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. ¹⁶But if I do judge, My decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent Me. ¹⁷In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. ¹⁸I am One who testifies for Myself; My other witness is the Father, who sent Me." ¹⁹Then they asked Him, "Where is Your father?" ²⁰"You do not know Me or My Father," Jesus replied. "If you knew Me, you would know My Father also." He spoke these words while teaching in the temple area near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized Him, because His time had not yet come.


It’s the same old argument and controversy that the Jews have had with Him before, and Jesus will make the same offensive claims that had alienated Him from the religious leadership before: first, that they are unable to believe in God, and second, that He truly is God in the flesh – only this time, Jesus will make these claims even more clearly and emphatically. But for now, notice that the Pharisees’ reaction to Jesus’ claim reveals that they understood what He was saying – that’s why they refuted Him by saying His testimony was invalid. They are saying to Him, “We see what You’re saying, but it’s no use; we won’t be convinced of Your testimony unless another agrees with You.” They immediately point to what Jesus had said in an earlier argument. He was bearing witness of Himself, so His witness must not be true – even He had said that His witness was not true if it came from Himself.

In response, Jesus claims further that His testimony alone is enough, because He does not fit the ordinary class of human beings. He knows from whence He came, and He knows where He’s going. Ordinary men who testify for themselves to their advantage should be scrutinized, but the Son of Man does not fall under that classification. His rank is higher than that of men, though He has lowered Himself for a time. And the unbelief of mankind in no way hinders His glory, the glory that is rightly His by the authority of the Father (Philippians 2:5-11). With these words, Jesus clarified that His witness is indeed true, because it does not originate with Him, but comes from the Father. He’s saying, “I am an expert witness about heaven and God. I come from there, from Him. I’m an eyewitness. The Father testifies of Me too. Since there are two expert Witnesses, both in agreement, My claim is valid.”

Furthermore, Jesus describes their judgment as being by human standards, or “according to the flesh” – as opposed to “according to the Spirit.” This means either, or both, that their judgments are wicked and/or that their judgments are based on outside appearances and not on the heart, or the motive. And when Jesus says that He passes judgment on no one, He is speaking of this context. He is not taking the liberty – though it belongs to Him – to issue judgment on this matter; He is merely teaching at this moment. The Pharisees, however, do take the liberty to judge – even though they have not that right, given their hypocrisy. He’s rebuking them repeatedly and seemingly without mercy (though we know He is being merciful by not destroying them immediately). This view of Jesus’ statement is upheld by His next statement, “If I do judge, My decisions are right…because I stand with the Father, who sent Me.” His point is that everything He does proceeds from the Father; everything involving Jesus ought to be deemed Divine.

The Pharisees ask about Jesus’ father in v19, though not likely expecting Him to point them to Joseph (the rumor regarding Jesus’ earthly father was that He was a bastard child). With this question they suggest that they do not value Jesus’ Father highly enough to ascribe any significance to Jesus for the Father’s sake. This is a very audacious question to ask with the arrogance seen behind it. And Jesus does not give them a direct reply. He doesn’t answer their question – it deserves no response – but, He instead turns the argument back on the Pharisees and tells them that they do not know His Father, God the Father – for if they did, they would know and cherish Jesus for who He is. To see Jesus is to see God the Father. And these hypocrites saw neither.

But we do see by the grace of God, and as Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 3:18, we are being transformed into His image. “We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of God, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (NKJV). Finally, as mentioned earlier, John tells us that Jesus was speaking in the Temple treasury area. With the authority the Pharisees had, they should have been able to remove Jesus quickly and easily from His teaching post. But God guarded Him and caused men to hear Him, and those savage Pharisees did not touch Him, though they strongly desired to put an end to Him. God’s sovereign providence is amazing, and I can’t help but mention parts of the first two points of The Westminster Confession of Faith’s third chapter: (1) God from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass; (2) He has not decreed anything because He foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to pass upon such conditions.