John 13–17

Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet

13Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that His hour had come to depart from this world to the Father. ^pHaving loved His own who were in the world, ^qHe loved them to the end. ^r

²Now by the time of supper, the Devil ^shad already put it into the heart of Judas, ^tSimon Iscariot’s son, to betray ^uHim. ³Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into His hands, ^vthat He had come from God, ^wand that He was going back to God. ^x4So He got up from supper, laid aside His robe, ^ytook a towel, and tied it around Himself. ^z5Next, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel tied around Him.

⁶He came to Simon Peter, ^awho asked Him, “Lord, are You going to wash my feet?”

⁷Jesus answered him, “What I’m doing you don’t understand now, but afterward you will know.” ^b

⁸“You will never wash my feet—ever!” Peter said.

Jesus replied, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with Me.”

⁹Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.”

¹⁰“One who has bathed,” Jesus told him, “doesn’t need to wash anything except his feet, but he is completely ^•clean. You are clean, but not all of you.” ¹¹For He knew who would betray Him. This is why He said, “You are not all clean.”

The Meaning of Footwashing

¹²When Jesus had washed their feet and put on His robe, He reclined ^cagain and said to them, “Do you know what I have done for you? ¹³You call Me Teacher and Lord. This is well said, for I am. ¹⁴So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. ^d15For I have given you an example ^ethat you also should do just as I have done for you.

¹⁶“^•I assure you: A ^•slave is not greater than his master, ^fgand a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. ^h18I’m not speaking about all of you; I know those I have chosen. ⁱBut the Scripture ^jmust be fulfilled: ^kThe one who eats My bread ^lhas raised his heel against Me. ^mn

¹⁹“I am telling you now before it happens, ^oso that when it does happen you will believe ^pthat I am He. ^q20I assure you: Whoever receives anyone I send receives Me, and the one who receives ^rMe receives Him who sent Me.”

Judas’s Betrayal Predicted

²¹When ^sJesus had said this, He was troubled in His spirit ^tand testified, ^u“I assure you: One of you will betray Me!”

²²The disciples started looking at one another—uncertain which one He was speaking about. ²³One of His disciples, the one Jesus loved, ^vwas reclining close beside Jesus. ^w24Simon Peter motioned to him to find out who it was He was talking about. ²⁵So he leaned back against Jesus and asked Him, “Lord, who is it?”

²⁶Jesus replied, “He’s the one I give the piece of bread to after I have dipped it.” ^xWhen He had dipped the bread, ^yHe gave it to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son. ^z27After Judas ate the piece of bread, Satan ^aentered him. Therefore Jesus told him, “What you’re doing, do quickly.”

²⁸None of those reclining at the table knew why He told him this. ²⁹Since Judas ^bkept the money-bag, some thought that Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the festival,” ^cor that he should give something to the poor. ³⁰After receiving the piece of bread, he went out immediately. And it was night. ^d

The New Command

³¹When ^ehe had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the ^•Son of Man ^fis glorified, and God is glorified ^gin Him. ^h32If God is glorified in Him, ⁱGod will also glorify Him in Himself and will glorify Him at once.

³³“Children, I am with you a little while longer. ^jYou will look for Me, and just as I told the ^•Jews, ‘Where I am going you cannot come,’ ^kso now I tell you.

³⁴“I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you must also love one another. ³⁵By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love ^lfor one another.”

Peter’s Denials Predicted

³⁶“Lord,” Simon Peter said to Him, “where are You going?”

Jesus answered, “Where I am going ^myou cannot follow Me now, but you will follow later.”

³⁷“Lord,” Peter asked, “why can’t I follow You now? I will lay down my life ⁿfor You!” ^o

³⁸Jesus replied, “Will you lay down your life for Me? I assure you: A rooster will not crow until you have denied Me three times.

The Way to the Father

14“Your heart must not be troubled. ^pBelieve ^qin God; ^rbelieve also in Me. ²In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; ^sif not, I would have told you. I am going away ^tto prepare a place for you. ³If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come back ^uand receive you to Myself, so that where I am you may be also. ^v4You know the way to where I am going.” ^wx

⁵“Lord,” Thomas ^ysaid, “we don’t know where You’re going. How can we know the way?”

⁶Jesus told him, “I am ^zthe way, ^athe truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Jesus Reveals the Father

⁷“If you know Me, you will also know ^bMy Father. ^cFrom now on you do know Him ^dand have seen Him.”

⁸“Lord,” said Philip, ^e“show us the Father, and that’s enough for us.”

⁹Jesus said to him, “Have I been among you all this time without your knowing Me, Philip? The one who has seen Me has seen the Father. ^fHow can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? ^gThe words I speak to you I do not speak on My own. ^hThe Father who lives in Me does His works. ⁱ¹¹Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me. Otherwise, believe ^jbecause of the works themselves. ^k

Praying in Jesus’ Name

¹²“^•I assure you: The one who believes in Me ^lwill also do the works that I do. And he will do even greater works than these, ^mbecause I am going to the Father. ⁿ¹³Whatever you ask in My name, I will do it so that the Father may be glorified ^oin the Son. ^p14If you ask Me ^qanything in My name, ^rI will do it. ^st

Another Counselor Promised

¹⁵“If you love Me, you will keep ^uMy commands. ^v16And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another ^•Counselor ^wto be with you forever. ¹⁷He is the Spirit ^xof truth. ^yThe ^•world is unable to receive Him because it doesn’t see Him or know Him. But you do know Him, because He remains with you and will be ^zin you. ^a18I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit

¹⁹“In a little while the world will see Me no longer, ^bbut you will see Me. ^cBecause I live, you will live ^dtoo. ²⁰In that day you will know that I am in My Father, ^eyou are in Me, and I am in you. ²¹The one who has My commands and keeps them is the one who loves Me. ^fAnd the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father. ^gI also will love him and will reveal Myself to him.”

²²Judas ^h(not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it You’re going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?” ⁱ

²³Jesus answered, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. ^j24The one who doesn’t love Me will not keep My words. The word that you hear is not Mine but is from the Father who sent Me. ^k

²⁵“I have spoken these things to you while I remain with you. ²⁶But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit ^l—the Father will send ^mHim in My name—will teach you all things ⁿand remind you of everything I have told you. ^o

Jesus’ Gift of Peace

²⁷“Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful. ^p28You have heard Me tell you, ‘I am going away ^qand I am coming to you.’ If you loved Me, you would have rejoiced that I am going to the Father, ^rbecause the Father is greater than I. ^s29I have told you now before it happens ^tso that when it does happen you may believe. ³⁰I will not talk with you much longer, because the ruler of the world ^uis coming. He has no power over Me. ^vw31On the contrary, I am going away ^xso that the world may know that I love the Father. Just as the Father commanded Me, so I do.

“Get up; let’s leave this place.

The Vine and the Branches

15“I am ^ythe true vine, and My Father is the vineyard keeper. ²Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, ^zand He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit. ³You are already ^•clean ^abecause of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me. ^b

⁵“I am the vine; ^cyou are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, ^dbecause you can do nothing without Me. ⁶If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown aside ^elike a branch and he withers. They gather them, throw them into the fire, ^fand they are burned. ^g7If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. ^h8My Father is glorified ⁱby this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be ^jMy disciples.

Christlike Love

⁹“As the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you. Remain in My love. ^k10If you keep My commands you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commands and remain in His love. ^l

¹¹“I have spoken these things to you so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. ^m12This is My command: Love one another as I have loved ⁿyou. ¹³No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life ^ofor his friends. ¹⁴You are My friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵I do not call you ^•slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master ^pqis doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father. ¹⁶You did not choose Me, but I chose you. ^rI appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask ^sthe Father in My name, ^tHe will give you. ^u17This is what I command you: Love one another.

…