The G. Campbell Morgan Archive

The Parentheses - (John 1:2-13, John 1:14 b, John 1:15-17)
e now turn to the parentheses in the summary of the first eighteen verses (John 1:1-18). The first is found in verses two to thirteen (John 1:2-13). In verse fourteen certain words are in brackets. They constitute the second. Then in verses fifteen to seventeen (John 1:15-17) we have the third.
n the first parenthesis, having written the first facts about the Word, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word," or "and the Word was God," beginning with the words, "The same was in the beginning with God," the writer turned aside to show the relationship of the Word to two creations.
n the middle of verse fourteen we find an interpolated exclamation, "And we beheld His glory, glory as of the Only begotten from the Father." That parenthesis summarizes what John and the rest of them saw.
n the third parenthesis, verses fifteen to seventeen, we have the testimony of two witnesses; first that of John the herald; and then that of the writer, John the apostle; John, the Hebrew prophet, the last voice of the old economy; and John, the Christian apostle, the first voice of the new.
o summarize yet more briefly. Three parentheses. Number one, the Word and two creations; Number two, the Word as it was beheld; Number three, the Word and two witnesses.
n the first parenthesis there are two movements. The first of these deals with the relation of the Word to the first creation (verses two to five); while the second deals with the relation of the Word to a new creation (verses six to thirteen).
s to the first creation. Here the writer surveyed the stream of history from the beginning, as recorded in Genesis, to the moment of writing. In doing so he referred to original creation. Of that, he wrote, "The same was in the beginning with God." "The same," that is the One to Whom he has already referred as "the Word." The first declarations moved in the realm of the abstract, and may be impersonal. Now "the same," or more literally, "this One," was "in the beginning with God," brings the consideration into the realm of the personal.
he Greek preposition rendered "with" in verse one, and in verse two, is arresting. It is the preposition pros. It is not meta; it is not sun; it is not para. All these can be translated in our language accurately by the one preposition with. Yet there is a distinction between them. Meta means "in the midst of," or "after." Sun means "in closest association." Para means "by the side of." Pros suggests not merely nearness, but a processional nearness, and united activity. He was with God, that is, facing God; and the suggestion is that of facing Him, in a perpetual approach of nearness, and co-operation of activity; facing God, approaching God, acting with God.
hat was the relationship of the Word with God in original creation. So, "All things were made through Him." The word panta, rendered "all things" means exactly that, but recognizes things separately, not only sum totality, but each thing separately. All "were made through Him." That is to say, the Word was the Agent of God's action, through Whom all things came into being.
ut there is more to say. "And without Him," that is, "apart from Him was not anything made that hath been made." This declares that processional creation has also been through Him. Originally, through Him all was caused to be; and without Him there has been no progress or development.
his is the same truth as declared by Paul in his letter to the Colossians, "In Him were all things created in the heavens and upon the earth, . . . and in Him all things consist." That which was from the beginning, with God, and of the very nature of God, is the One through Whom God acted, and still acts; through Whom everything was originally created; and processionally, nothing further has appeared, except through Him.
roceeding, the writer now makes a summarizing declaration, and recognizes a distinction. The summarizing declaration is contained in the words, "In Him was life." What life? All life. What do we know about life? We recognize the fact of life. It may be that of an arch-angel or a butterfly. In that inclusive sense the declaration is made, "In Him was life"; He is the Fountain-Head of life; all life is from Him.
hen a distinction is recognized. "And the life was the light of men." Life everywhere, super-abundant life, life infinite, mysterious; but in man, life became light. Man, as distinguished from everything beneath him in the earthly creation, has this element of light. Man is the first, and the only one who, being created, understands; who can look back into the face of God and commune with Him. Humanity is seen as thus distinguished from everything beneath it in all the realm, or scale, if you like, of life. "The life was the light of men."
hen follows a brief, but arresting declaration. "And the light shineth in the darkness." Darkness, only a word; but a word recognizing all human failure. In writing of the great conflict of the soldier saints of Jesus, Paul referred to "the age-rulers of this darkness." That is how Paul saw the world. So did John. He saw that darkness persisting through all human history. But he says, "The light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness apprehended it not." The word "apprehended" as we now use it, might mean "understood." But that is not the thought of the writer. It is rather that the darkness has never extinguished the light. It is everywhere, but men have not walked in it. This is not ancient history only; it is true to-day. The light is everywhere, but men are walking in darkness, not obedient to that light. The human consciousness is universal in recognizing a distinction between right and wrong. That is the shining of a light. We read in the Wisdom literature, "The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord." Not the Spirit of God, but the spirit of man, is the lamp of the Lord. In that spirit nature of man the consciousness exists of the distinction between right and wrong. That light the darkness has never extinguished. Whether men obey it or not is another question.
aving thus dealt with the relation of the Word to the first creation, John turns to another matter, breaking in with the words, "There came a man." He is still viewing the stream of history. In that stream, "There came a man; sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for witness, that he might bear witness of the light, that all might believe through Him. He was not the light, but came that he might bear witness of the light."
his marks a new departure. It began with prophetic foretelling. "There was a man, whose name was John"; and he came, not to bring some new message, but to talk to men of that which was already with them, the light. This man was not the light; he was bearing witness to it. "There was the true light, even the light which lighteth every man, coming into the world." This is the second creation. The Light that lighteth every man, was coming into the world, was coming into observation, was coming into focussed visibility.
he phrase, "coming into the world," may refer to the word "light," or the word "man." It can mean either grammatically. It can mean, There was the Light which lighteth every man who comes into the world; or it may mean that the Light that lighteth every man, was coming into the world. The whole movement of the thought here gives little room for doubt that the reference is to the fact that the Light was now coming into the world. It recognizes that there is a light lightening every man; but the emphasis here is upon the fact that this Light was now entering human history in a new way. A new beginning was being made; a new creation was taking place.
hen the writer looks back, and looks around. "He was in the world." There was a sense in which He was in every man. "The world was made through Him," and yet "the world knew Him not." Then "The Word became flesh," so "He came unto His own." The Greek there is neuter, and we are sometimes told that it means that He came to His own country, Palestine. I think it has a wider meaning. He came into His own world. Then "they that were His own received Him not." There the reference is to men, not Jews only, but the men of His creation. That is the story of His coming, and of His rejection.
ut that is not all. "But as many as received Him, to them gave He the right," the authority, "to become children of God." Here we may pause for a moment with a technicality, upon which no man can be dogmatic. The question has to do with the words, "who were born." Some manuscripts read "who was born." The question is, does that passage mean that the people who believed on Him, were born; or does it mean that He was born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, but of God. It is an open question. Dr. Burney in his book, The Aramaic Origin of the Fourth Gospel, argues that it should be "Who was born," referring to the Word; and he says, moreover, that there is to be found John's recognition of the Virgin birth. He gave authority to those who believe on Him, to become children of God. Who did? He Who was born,-mark the words very carefully,-not by the will of the flesh, not of the will of man, but of God.
ake it either way, the main thought is not interfered with. Here is a new beginning. The light that was in every man, which darkness could not put out, came into the world; and when He came, they that were His own did not receive Him. The world that was His own, did not recognize Him, and those that should have received Him did not. But He started a new creation, and to everyone who did receive Him, who did believe on His name, He gave the authority, the right, to become children of God; and, either He Who did so, was the One born Himself, not by the will of man, nor by the will of the flesh, but of God; or those who from Him received that right, were so born. This is the relationship of the Word to the second creation.
n the parenthesis of verse fourteen, John says, "We beheld His glory." The Word . . . pitched His tent amongst us, and "we beheld." The Greek word means we inspected, we saw completely. What was seen was "Glory, as of an only begotten Son of a Father." The Greek preposition here is para, "an only begotten Son with a Father," the thought is that of the perfect fellowship of being between the Father and the Son.
hen in a phrase he described that glory,-"Full of grace and truth." In the signs recorded presently in the realm of works, John begins with the turning of water into wine at Cana. That was the glory of God in creation. The last sign he records is that of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. That was the glory of God in restoration. It was the glory of God that shined, when the water blushed into the fruit of the vine. It was the glory of God that was seen, when the body of the dead was reanimated, and came forth restored to strength and activity.
o we pass to the last of the parentheses, verses fifteen to seventeen. "John," that is the herald, "beareth witness of Him, and crieth, saying, This was He of Whom I said, He that cometh after me is become before me; for He was before me." That is the last word of the old economy. It declared that the Word made flesh, takes precedence in rank, because of eternal precedence. On a later day Jesus Himself said, "Before Abraham was, I am."
hen follows the first word of the new, the witness of the new. John the apostle says, "For of His fulness we all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." Literally, out of the fullness of Him we all received, and grace for grace; grace in the place of grace, grace succeeding grace.
he first dispensation was of His grace, but the measure was not complete. The law was given through Moses. It was temporary. Now "Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." The idea of that is not that grace and truth supersede law, except as the law was a temporary application of truth; and not the final enunciation of it. This passage is often quoted as though it drew a distinction between Law and Grace in essence. As a matter of fact it does not do so; but it does draw a distinction between them in method. The Law was an expression of Grace, temporary, transient, fitting the need of the time. Every provision of it was a requirement in the interest of man, and inspired by the love, that is the grace of the heart of God. It was given through Moses.
ow that same grace in union with truth came through Jesus Christ. All the requirements of the Law are lifted on to a higher level of interpretation through the Incarnation, both in a moral code, and in the interpretation of human realization. But now the grace which inspired law has come into visibility of action which brings to man a new ennoblement, by way of the cleansing of the nature, and a new birth.
hus we have three parentheses. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." That Word was related to the first creation, originating; and processionally continuing, the very Fountain-Head of life, which in man was light. That Word is related to a new beginning. There came a man from God named John, bearing witness to light; and there was the Light, coming into the world. For those who received Him He established a new creation. Those who receive Him, become the children of God. As He tabernacled in flesh, "we beheld His glory."
wo witnesses speak, John the herald, the last of the Hebrew line; John the apostle, the messenger of the new. The old came out of the Older, for "in the beginning" before Law, "The Word was with God." Now that Word-the Original in every way-has "become flesh"; He is the One Who was "before John," and so the New is related to the Eternal.
ow that the Original has come in a new way, the one who was related to the period of the Law, and the herald of the New retires; and the apostle of the New bears his testimony.