Sword & Trowel 2018: Issue 2
SEVEN VOICES OF CALVARY
I
N THE study of any passage in John’s Gospel, we first look at the verses in order to determine the dominant theme. That is always our first step. The way the apostle John works, by the inspiration of the Spirit of God, is to follow themes. There is not a single run of verses that does not have an identifiable topic or prin- ciple to which all the verses relate. As we come to the narrative begin- ning at John 12.12 and continuing to verse 29, we see a number of events and statements recorded, and we ask what they have in common. What unites them? At first we may think the verses cover important but un- connected observations, but then as we look, and look, it suddenly dawns on us that there is an unmistakable uniting factor. It is the fact that in most of these verses John is tracking the statements of seven different par- ties about Christ. These include the Saviour’s own statement, and also the words of God the Father. But there are seven views or ‘voices’ about the Messiah through the passage. There is the voice of the people, first of all. Then
Friends and foes, enlightened and ignorant, human and divine, all authenticate and attest the Messianic office and glory of Christ Jesus our Lord.
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– by the Editor –
the voice of prophecy, then there is the voice of the witnesses to the raising of Lazarus, then the voice of the enemies, the Pharisees, then the voice of the Gentiles, then the voice of Christ speak- ing of his own death, and finally the voice of God the Father speaking from Heaven. So it is a passage of seven contributors or seven voices. Once we see it, it is obvious and it domi- nates the passage.
1 THE VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
It is our privilege to consider these testimonies to Messiah, and we begin with the first – the voice of the peo- ple.
‘On the next day much people that
were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jeru- salem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord’ (John 12.12-13). The people were repeating Psalm
118, much loved and sung at Passo- ver season, the word ‘Hosanna’, being more than an exclamation of praise, meaning, ‘Save now’. The Passover commemorated the deliver- ance of the people centuries before from slavery in Egypt, and their minds were full of longed-for libera- tion from Roman occupation. They
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