Ryle On John 6: 68 — 71
68 [Thou hast the words of eternal life] This would be more literally rendered, "Thou has words of eternal life". "Thou possessest instruction about everlasting life, such as we can hear nowhere else, and such as we find soul-comforting and edifying. 'The sayings that fall continually from Thy lips, about eternal life, are such as we cannot leave." Our Lord's expression should be remembered, "I have given unto them the words which Thou gavest Me." (John 17: 8.)
69. [And we believe and are sure.] This would be more literally rendered, "We have believed and have known." Moreover, the "we" is emphatic - Whatever others may please to think, however many may go away and forsake Thee, after following Thee for a little, it is not so with us. We have believed and known, and do believe and know."
[Thou that Christ, the Son of the living God.] This might equally well have been rendered, "Thou art the Christ." The sentence is a noble confession, when we remember the time in which it was made, and the universal unbelief of the leaders of the Jewish nation. We may remember that it is precisely the same confession that is recorded to have been made by Peter, after which our Lord said to him, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven." (Matt. 16: 17.)
We must not, however, misunderstand the extent of Peter's confession. He declared his faith that our Lord was the Anointed Messiah, the Son of the living God. The Messiahship and divinity of Christ were the points on which he and the other apostles laid firm hold. But the sacrifice and death of Christ, and His substitution for us on the cross, were not things which he either saw or understood at present. (See Matt. 16: 22 — 23.)
(a) We should notice that a man's heart may be right towards God, while he remains very ignorant of some great doctrines of the Christian faith. It certainly was so with Peter and the apostles, at this time.
(b) We should also notice that there is nothing man is so backward to see as the sacrifice of the death of Christ, the substitution, and the atonement. It is possible to be right about Christ's divinity and Messiahship, and yet be in the dark about His death.
(c) We should notice how ignorant Christians often are of the state of others' souls. Peter never suspected any one of the twelve to be a false apostle. It is a fearful proof that Judas must have been, in all outward demeanour and profession, just like the rest of the apostles.
[One of you is a devil.] This is a singularly strong expression, and gives an awfully vivid impression of the wickedness of Judas. Of course, he was not literally and really "a devil," but a man. The meaning is, "one out of your number is so completely under the influence of the devil, such a servant of the devil, that he deserves to be called nothing less than a devil."
Let us note, that even now Judas is called "a devil," long before our Lord's betrayal and crucifixion. This helps to show that he never was a faithful disciple, even from the first.
Let us note that the only other expression of our Lord, which at all approaches the one before us in strength, is the one which, on another occasion, our Lord applies to His zealous apostle Peter, — "Get thee behind me, Satan." (Matt. 16: 23) While we condemn the wickedness of Judas, let us not forget that even a truehearted apostle may so far err and be mistaken, that he needs to be sharply rebuked and called "Satan."
71 [He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon.] The word "Iscariot" according to some, means "a man of Kerioth." Kerioth was a town of Judah. (Josh. 15: 25.) — According to others it means "a. man of Issachar." — According to Lampe, and others, it is a Syriac word, meaning "the bearer of the purse" — We are told that "He had the bag." (John 13: 29.)
It is remarkable that St. John, four times in his Gospel, calls Judas "the son of Simon." We do not exactly know why, Unless it is that Simon was a person well known by name, or that St John wished to make it quite clear that .Judas Iscariot was not St. Jude, the faithful apostle and cousin of Christ, by naming his father. There is no proof whatever, that Judas; was the son of Simon the Cananite," the apostle; though it is somewhat curious, that in the list of apostles given by Matthew and Mark. Simon and Judas Iscariot are named in close juxtaposition. (Matt. 10: 4 ; Mark 3: 18.)
The frequency of our Lord's warnings and hints, addressed to Judas Iscariot, is very remarkable. Rollock observes what an awful proof it is of the hardness of the heart, that a man so warned should not be conscience-stricken and repent.
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