Chapter 15 of the Book of John
Uploaded by Admin on Nov 08, 1999
This chapter takes place in the upper room in Jerusalem. This was during the Passover feast, though some scholars say otherwise. Jesus was speaking only to the disciples. The first part of the chapter is devoted to the analogy of the vineyard and it's branches. The second part is talks about the future relationship with the "world". This is an important chapter, which deals with not only relationship with Jesus and the Father, but also with the outside community.
1. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. egw eimi h ampeloV h alhqinh kai o pathr mou o gewrgoV esti
The scene must be kept in mind. The Lord and his disciples had just eaten the last supper. He had said, "Arise, let us go forth" (John 14:31). They had risen, but were still standing in the room. On the table, from where they had just risen, was the "fruit of the vine,"(wine) and the Lord had said he would never drink it again upon the earth. (Matthew 26:7) (Johnson)
There are numerous Old Testament passages, which refer to Israel as a vine: Ps. 80:8-16, Isaiah. 5:1-7, Jeremiah. 2:21, Ezekiel. 15:1-8, 17:5-10, 19:10-14, and Hosiah 10:1. The vine became symbolic of Israel, and even appeared on some coins issued by the Maccabees.
The Old Testament passages which use this symbol appear to regard Israel as faithless to why and/or the object of severe punishment. Ezek. 15:1-8 in particular talks about the worthlessness of wood from a vine (in relation to disobedient Judah). A branch cut from a vine is worthless except to be burned as fuel. This appears to fit more with the statements about the disciples than with Jesus' description of himself as the vine.
Ezek. 17:5-10 contains vine imagery that refers to a king of the house of David, Zedekiah, who was set up as king in Judah by Nebuchadnezzar. Zedekiah allied himself to Egypt and broke his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar (and therefore also with God), which would ultimately result in his downfall (17:20-21). Ezek. 17:22-24 then describes the planting of a cedar sprig, which grows into a lofty tree, a figurative description of Messiah. But it is significant that Messiah himself is not described in Ezekiel 17 as a vine, but as a cedar tree. The vine imagery here applies to Zedekiah's disobedience.
Jesus' description of himself as the "true Vine" is to be seen against this background, but...