JOHN 13:19 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
“Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he.”
I tell you this now, before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe that I am he — Jesus foreknows the betrayal and tells it in advance so that the disciples' faith will not shatter when it occurs; they will see that Jesus possessed knowledge transcending time, that the events unfold according to his word. The affirmation "I am he" (ego eimi) recalls the divine name revealed to Moses; Jesus' ability to speak future events and have them occur proves his divine authority. Foreknowledge is not predestination but prophetic vision; Jesus tells what will happen, but Judas remains responsible for his choice.
Church Fathers on John 13:19
Our Lord, mindful of His promise to Peter that he should know the meaning of His act, you shall know here after, now begins to teach him: So after He had washed their feet, and had taken His garments, and was sat down again, He said to them, Know you what I have done to you?
Know you, is either interrogative, to show the greatness of the act, or imperative, to rouse their minds.
Mystically, when at our redemption we were changed by the shedding of His blood, He took again His garments, rising from the grave the third day, and clothed in the same body now immortal, ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father, from whence He shall come to judge the world.
Read all 26 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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