Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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John
Book: John
Chapter: 15
Overview:
Christ the true
Vine.
(1-8) His
Love to his disciples.
(9-17)
Hatred and persecutions foretold.
(18-25) The
Comforter
promised.
(26,27)
1-8 Jesus Christ is the
Vine, the true
Vine. The union of the
human and Divine natures, and the
Fulness of the
Spirit that is
in him, resemble the root of the
Vine made fruitful
By the
moisture from a rich soil. Believers are branches of this
Vine.
The root is unseen, and our
Life is hid with
Christ; the root
bears the tree, diffuses sap to it, and in
Christ are all
supports and supplies. The branches of the
Vine are many, yet,
meeting in the root, are all but one
Vine; thus all true
Christians, though in place and opinion distant from each other,
meet in
Christ. Believers, like the branches of the
Vine, are
weak, and unable to stand but as they are borne up. The
Father
is the
Husbandman. Never was any
Husbandman So Wise,
So
watchful, about his vineyard, as
God is about his
Church, which
therefore must prosper. We must be fruitful. From a
Vine we look
for grapes, and from a
Christian we look for a
Christian temper,
disposition, and
Life. We must honour
God, and do good; this is
bearing
Fruit. The unfruitful are taken away. And even fruitful
branches need pruning; for the best have notions, passions, and
humours, that require to be taken away, which
Christ has
promised to forward the
Sanctification of believers, they will
be thankful, for them. The
Word of
Christ is spoken to all
believers; and there is a cleansing virtue in that
Word, as it
Works Grace, and
Works out corruption. And the more
Fruit we
bring forth, the more we abound in what is good, the more our
Lord is glorified. In order to fruitfulness, we must abide in
Christ, must have union with him
By Faith. It is the great
concern of all
Christ's disciples, constantly to keep up
dependence upon
Christ, and
Communion with him. True Christians
find
By experience, that any interruption in the
Exercise of
their
Faith, causes holy affections to decline, their
corruptions to revive, and their comforts to droop. Those who
abide not in
Christ, though they may flourish for awhile in
outward profession, yet come to nothing. The
Fire is the fittest
place for withered branches; they are good for nothing else. Let
us seek to live more simply
On the
Fulness of
Christ, and to
grow more fruitful in every good
Word and work,
So may our joy
in Him and in his
Salvation be full.
9-17 Those whom
God loves as a
Father, may despise the
Hatred
of all the world. As the
Father loved
Christ, who was most
worthy,
So he loved his disciples, who were unworthy. All that
Love the
Saviour should continue in their
Love to him, and take
all occasions to show it. The joy of the
Hypocrite is but for a
moment, but the joy of those who abide in
Christ's
Love is a
continual
Feast. They are to show their
Love to him
By keeping
his
Commandments. If the same power that first shed abroad the
Love of
Christ in our hearts, did not keep us in that
Love, we
should not long abide in it.
Christ's
Love to us should direct
us to
Love each other. He speaks as about to give many things in
charge, yet names this only; it includes many duties.
18-25 How little do many persons think, that in opposing the
doctrine of
Christ as our
Prophet,
Priest, and
King, they prove
themselves ignorant of the one living and true
God, whom they
profess to
Worship! The name into which
Christ's disciples were
baptized, is that which they will live and die
By. It is a
comfort to the greatest sufferers, if they suffer for
Christ's
name's sake. The world's ignorance is the true cause of its
Hatred to the disciples of
Jesus. The clearer and
Fuller the
discoveries of the
Grace and
Truth of
Christ, the greater is our
Sin if we do not
Love him and believe in him.
26,27. The blessed
Spirit will maintain the cause of
Christ in
the world, notwithstanding the opposition it meets with.
Believers taught and encouraged
By his influences, would
Bear
Testimony to
Christ and his
Salvation.