Interpretation of the Gospel of John (Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria). Bible online

The story of the life of Jesus Christ on earth, recorded by his beloved disciple John, is considered the most popular in the New Testament. It is the Gospel of John that is recommended to be read by people who have just come to church and want to learn more about God. It is in this Gospel that Jesus contains the most direct speech, and Christ himself is presented as Teacher and Shepherd. Chapter 15 consists only of the words of the Lord Jesus addressed to the 12 apostles and all Christians in their person.

What is the 15th chapter of the Gospel of John about?

Chapter 15 contains only the words of Christ that He spoke at the Easter supper. Before this, there was a washing of the disciples’ feet, a conversation with Peter, an explanation of what it means to be a servant to everyone. Jesus had already shared bread and wine with his disciples, showing an example of the sacrament and explaining the meaning of the unity of the entire Church, and also told that one of those sitting at the table would betray Him.

At the supper, John reclined on the Teacher’s chest, that is, he was as close as possible to Him and therefore was able to hear and record the entire speech of Christ. which reveals the concept of relationship with one's neighbor and predicts future persecution of the Church.

On a note! In fact, chapters 14–17 are the farewell words of the Lord, who will be crucified within 24 hours.

Conventionally, this chapter can be divided into two parts:

• the first talks about the relationship between Jesus and the disciples (not only the 12 apostles, but all Christians);
• the second tells about the attitude of the world towards all His followers.

Christ first shows the relationship between people and God through Himself, then explains what the relationship between people should be, predicts persecution from the world and ends with the promise to send a Helper - the Holy Spirit to overcome all difficulties.

Interpretation

Commentaries from the Geneva Bible, as well as the interpretation of the church fathers, will allow you to understand the essence of what Christ said. To better understand this text, it is necessary to disassemble it in parts:

• Christ begins his speech (vv. 1-6) with a metaphorical explanation of the relationship between Him and the Father - Christ is the Vine, and the Lord is the vinedresser. Jesus often uses simple examples and analogies that are clear to former fishermen, so the comparison with the grapevine, which symbolizes unity and fertility, is quite understandable.

The branches of the vine - Christ - are all believers or converts to Christian faith

• Jesus goes on to say that the vinedresser cuts off and burns branches that do not bear fruit, pointing out that initially all branches are part of the root. Thus, He speaks of the joining of every believer to the Lord through His Death and the responsibility of Christians to lead a fruitful life, that is, not just to call themselves a Christian, but to lead a worthy life. Words about cutting and burning branches sound quite harsh, but anyone who knows the grape business understands that the presence of branches without clusters weakens the entire vine and takes away the fertility from it and the branches with grapes. It is necessary to clean the vine by removing its useless parts.
• Speaking in verse 3 about purification, Jesus thereby explains that the disciples, having heard His word and accepted it, have already become part of the vine and now it is up to them whether they will be fruitful in the Body of the Church. It is worth understanding that the Teacher’s appeal is relevant for all His followers, that is, for all Christians.
• Verses 7-8 convey the important idea that a Christian's being in a close relationship with the Lord is the key to a fruitful life. At the same time, “abide in Me” implies not only the acceptance of the commandments, but also reunification in deeds, i.e., a Christian must do pleasing to God things. And it is through a person’s actions that God is visible in his heart.
• Verses 9 - 10 describe a hierarchy of relationships: God loved Jesus, Jesus loved the disciples, so believers are in the love of the Father and Christ at the same time. At the same time, the Shepherd calls to “abide in My love,” i.e. this is a person’s conscious decision, his choice. And then the Shepherd explains what it means to be in love - it is to keep the commandments, Christ keeps God's laws, and Christians must keep the commandments of Jesus.
• Verses 11-13 contain the most important commandment that must be kept - to love your neighbor as yourself. This is the most important law that must be fulfilled - try to love your neighbor as Christ loves Him. At the same time, He explains how much one must love one’s neighbor - to be ready to give one’s life for him. And the Teacher gives this example on purpose, because in just a few hours He will give His life for the whole world.
• Verses 14 - 17 reveal Christ's attitude towards his disciples and followers - they are not slaves for Him, but friends for whom He gives his life. By constantly talking about love, Christ shows that the most important thing is to love unconditionally, no matter what. At the same time, it is shown quite accurately that this position and attitude was adopted by the Son from the Father.
• From verse 18, the Shepherd begins to talk about the persecution that will certainly overtake the church, but at the same time emphasizes that He will also experience this and this will be a support to all those who suffer. A little lower, the Savior explains why this will definitely happen - people hate everything that is different, different, purer, therefore, when a person becomes part of the church, people in the world begin to mock and hate him. Jesus suggests that we take this as a blessing, because if the world hates a person, it means that he is as close as possible to the Lord.

In John 15, Jesus emphasizes the themes of unity, obedience and love

• The Savior again gives an example of hierarchy, saying that people do not know the Father, and therefore hate both the Son and his followers. He again encourages the disciples, saying that He Himself went through hatred (and there is a prediction of a future crucifixion), and therefore He Himself knows their pain and fear.
• In verses 26-27, the Savior makes a promise to send a Helper to people in the person of the Holy Spirit, and the fulfillment of this promise can be seen in the first chapters of the book of the Acts of the Apostles. The Holy Spirit helps a person to overcome all difficulties and trials, and He is sent to Christians from the Father and the Son.

Chapter 15 is of great importance both for each individual Christian and for the Church as a whole. It reveals the hierarchy of relationships in the Kingdom of God and shows what is really important - to love the Lord and neighbor, and also to bear fruit by changing oneself and one’s life, and doing godly deeds.

15:1-27 This chapter consists of two main parts. In Art. 1-17 contain discussions about the vine, and in vv. 18-27 - warnings regarding the world's hatred of the followers of Christ.

15:1-17 The unity of Christ the Reconciler and His redeemed people is depicted in Scripture through symbolism, in particular: 1) foundation and building (1 Cor. 3:11; Eph. 2:20-22); 2) vine and branches (15.1-17); 3) head and body (1 Cor. 6:15.19; 12:12).

15:1-2 The image of the vine and branches is a symbol of unity - the branches can only “live” by feeding on the sap of the vine (see v. 3).

cleanses. Removes everything unnecessary and dead. Jesus explains the meaning of this word in this metaphor in v. 3.

15:7 Ask, and it will be done for you. These words of Christ are an explanation of 14.13.14. The fulfillment of a believer's prayer is possible if the believer abides in Christ, and Christ by His word (and Spirit) abides in the believer.

15:8 By this shall My Father be glorified. The Son is the glory of the Father. Christ commands His disciples to glorify the Heavenly Father. This does not mean that Christ, as it were, entrusted to them what was His lot. Since Christ dwells in the heart of a person by faith and abides there spiritually, such a person, forming unity with Christ, glorifies the Father with Him.

15:9 Abide in my love. The same as “in Me.”

15:10 If you keep My commandments. The love of Christ is not the price for obedience. Keeping the commandments is the only opportunity, and not a condition, to remain in the love of Christ. See com. by 8.51.

as I have kept. Christ does not demand more from his disciples than he fulfilled himself.

I abide in His love. The character and essence of the Father’s love for the Son is the same as for any believer who keeps the commandments of the Son.

15:13 if a man lay down his life. See com. by 10.17.18; 12.25. Christ in v. 18 speaks of His life: “I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again.” In relation to people, even believers, He uses different concepts: a person has no power either to give life (that is, transfer it to someone) or to accept it. A person can only “lay down his soul.”

15:14 My friends. The concept of friendship implies equality. The principle of friendship is the same as the principle of love (see vv. 9, 10), it consists in keeping the commandments.

15:15 Christ explains the fundamental difference between a slave and a friend, i.e. between different levels of spirituality and devotion to God.

15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you. See 13.18; Matt. 20.16; OK. 6.13; 10.1; 15.19; Open 17.14.

15:17 The main and main commandment.

15:20 Jesus warns His disciples and followers that they will experience the same thing that He went through. Likeness to Christ, if complete and sincere (see 14:20), is the cause that invariably leads to definite and unchangeable consequences.

15:25 Jesus seems to be referring to the words of Ps. 34.19 and 68.5. in their law. Here for the third time (7.19; 10.34) Jesus speaks about the law in a somewhat unexpected context - He most clearly removes Himself from the law and from the lawyers. But since He said that He came not to abolish or break the law, but to “fulfill” (see 10:34N), then the pronouns “your” and “their” in combination with the word “law” give rise to reflections. And the conclusion to which these reflections lead is striking in its improbability: the Jews rejected God, relying on the law of God! And since this is impossible in principle, Jesus says that the law that guided the Jews retained only the letter, but its spirit was irretrievably lost by them. See com. by 18.32.

Save, O Lord, and have mercy on Your servants (names) with the words of Your Divine Gospel, we read about the salvation of these servants (names). The thorns of all their sins, voluntary and involuntary, have fallen, Lord, and may Thy grace dwell in them, enlightening and scorching the whole person. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Gospel of John. Chapter 15

1. I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
2. Every branch of Me that does not bear fruit He cuts off; and every one that bears fruit he cleanses, that it may bear more fruit.
3. You have already been cleansed through the word that I preached to you.
4. Abide in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it is in the vine, so neither can you unless you are in Me.
5. I am the vine, and you are the branches; He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
6. Whoever does not abide in Me will be cast out like a branch and wither; and such branches are collected and thrown into the fire, and they burn.
7. If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
8. By this My Father will be glorified, if you bear much fruit and become My disciples.
9. As the Father has loved Me, I have loved you; abide in My love.
10. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
11. I have spoken these things to you, so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.
12. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
13. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
14. You are My friends if you do what I command you.
15. I no longer call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have told you everything that I have heard from My Father.
16. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name, He may give it to you.
17. I command you this, that you love one another.
18. If the world hates you, know that it hated Me first.
19. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
20. Remember the word that I said to you: a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you too; If they have kept my word, they will also keep yours.
21. But they will do all these things to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.
22. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have had sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.
23. He who hates Me also hates my Father.
24. If I had not done among them works that no one else had done, they would not have had sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father.
25. But let the word that is written in their law be fulfilled: They have hated Me without cause.
26. When the Comforter comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me;
27. and you also will testify, because you were with Me from the beginning.

. I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

What mysterious things does He teach them? “I,” he says, “am the vine, that is, the root, and you are the branches, and My Father is the vinedresser" Who does the Father care about? Is it really about the root? No, but about the branches.

. Every branch of Me that does not bear fruit He cuts off; and every one that bears fruit he cleanses, that it may bear more fruit.

Because, he says, “Every branch that does not bear fruit He cuts off”, that is, every person who through faith has become part of the root, united with the Lord and became a steward of Him, must also bear fruit, that is, lead a virtuous life, so that if someone has only an unfounded confession of faith, and does not bear fruit through observance commandments, he becomes a dead branch; for “faith without works is dead” ().

Therefore, everyone who believes is in Christ as long as he believes. “For,” he says, “every branch that is in Me, if it does not bear fruit, the Father “cuts off,” that is, deprives him of fellowship with the Son, “But she who bears fruit cleanses”. From here we learn that even a very virtuous person still needs God’s care. For a barren branch cannot remain on the vine, but the Father makes a fruitful branch even more fruitful.

Understand these words also about the disasters of the disciples. Since disasters are similar to what gardeners call pruning, the Lord shows the disciples that through disasters they will become more fruitful, just like branches through pruning. For through temptation they became more and more powerful.

. You have already been cleansed through the word that I preached to you.

Then, so that they don’t ask: “Who are you talking about?”, He says: “You have already been cleansed through the word that I preached to you.”. Look, I said above that the Father cleanses, and now He presents Himself as taking care of the branches. So, the Father and the Son have one action. “I,” he says, “purified you through My teaching: now it is necessary that you show in practice what should be done on your part.” Therefore he adds:

. Abide in Me, and I in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it is in the vine, so neither can you unless you are in Me.

“I,” he says, “purified you through My word and teaching, and nothing was left undone on My part. Now your business must begin.”

"Abide in Me". So that they do not separate from Him out of fear, He strengthens their weakened soul, cleaves them to Himself and already gives good hope: “Whatever you ask, you will receive, if you abide in me" ().

. I am the vine, and you are the branches; He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

The example of the branch clearly shows us that from Him strength and life are given to those who please Him. For just as the branch that abides in the vine bears fruit and receives life from it, so if you remain in Me by keeping the commandments, you will bear more fruit.

. Whoever does not abide in Me will be cast out like a branch and wither; and such branches they are collected and thrown into the fire, and they are burned.

But whoever does not remain will “wither,” that is, he will lose what he had from the root, and if he has received any spiritual grace, he will be deprived of it and the help and life imparted from it. And what finally? "Throw them into the fire and they burn". With these words he also gives them considerable consolation, showing that those who plot against Him, for example Judas, will be burned, and they who abid in Him will bear fruit. For without the strength and revival that comes from Him, they will not be able to do anything.

. If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

Here the Lord explains to us what the words mean "if you abide in me". Namely: if you keep My commandments. For words “if my words abide in you” mean that He desires connection with them through works. For everyone who lives in a godly manner abides in the Vine according to at will, uniting with Her through love and keeping the commandments and clinging to the spirit; just as, on the contrary, the one who ceases to keep the commandments arbitrarily alienates himself from the Lord.

. By this My Father will be glorified, if you bear much fruit and become My disciples.

“Therefore,” he says, “ My Father will be glorified if you bear much fruit.”. The glory of God and the Father is the dignity of the disciples of His Son. For when the light of the apostles shone before men, then they glorified the Heavenly Father (). The fruit of the apostles are those peoples who, through their teaching, were brought to faith and began to glorify God. If the Father is glorified when you bear fruit, then He will no doubt not neglect His glory, but will help you bear more fruit, so that He may also be glorified more. My Father will be glorified when you bear much fruit "And you will be my disciples". You see, whoever bears fruit is a true disciple. And the Father is “glorified” from this, that is, he rejoices and considers this His glory.

. As the Father has loved Me, I have loved you; abide in My love.

He convinces them not to be afraid and for this he says: “I loved you and loved you so, as the Father has loved me". He said this in a human-like manner. So, "abide in my love"- because it depends on you. Having heard that I have loved you, do not be careless, but try to remain in My love.

. If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love,

Then he explains how they can remain in this love, namely: if they keep His commandments. For, as has been said many times, he who keeps His commandments loves Him. By all this He shows that they will be safe when they lead a pure life.

just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

And this speaks out of condescension towards the weakness of the listeners. For it is very absurd to think that He who gives laws for everyone was subject to commandments and could not govern His life without the commandments of the Father. He says this in order to comfort them more. He told them: “I love you.” Meanwhile, they must subsequently struggle with sorrows. So that in this case they would not be tempted, as if His love serves them for nothing, He says: “Do not be embarrassed. For behold, the Father loves Me, yet he gives Me up to suffer for the world’s sake. And just as because I suffer, the Father’s love does not decrease, so My love for you will not decrease, although you will be subject to disasters.”

. I have spoken these things to you, so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

“I,” he says, “told you this so as not to interrupt your joy.” For they rejoiced when they were with Him, when He performed miracles and was glorified. They also rejoiced because they themselves cast out demons, just as He Himself said: “Do not rejoice that you cast out demons” (). But now that suffering has come, and sad words interrupted their joy, He says: “I told you these comforting words so that your joy would always and to the end remain uninterrupted, complete and perfect. And real events are worthy not of sadness, but of joy, although the cross, shame and dishonor lie ahead.”

. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

Above He said: “Then you will abide in Me when keep my commandments" Now he shows what commandments they must keep, and shows them love: “Love one another as I have loved you.”. He wants us to love each other not simply and as it happens, but in the way He loved us.

Note what He said above in plural“commandments”, but here he speaks in the singular “This is My commandment”. In my opinion, love is called commandments and commandment because it embraces all the commandments and is the head of them. At the same time, he shows us the way to keep the commandments, namely, through keeping one commandment - the commandment of love. How does he say: “ Love each other and so are you how I have loved you", then this indicates the measure and perfection of love.

. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

For “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends”. Therefore you also lay down your lives for one another, just as I am dying for you. So, do not think that I am now moving away from you out of dislike for you; on the contrary, this is being done out of love, and moreover, the most perfect one.

. You are My friends if you do what I command you.

. I no longer call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have told you everything that I have heard from My Father.

He constantly inserts speeches about love and with these many speeches shows us that the commandment of love is more important than others and requires great zeal. It also represents the greatest proof of His love. “I,” he says, “love you so much that I revealed to you unspeakable secrets. For I have told you everything that I have heard from My Father.”

As elsewhere () says: “I have many things to tell you; but now you can’t contain it”? He told them everything that could be heard and that they could now understand. When does he speak “all that I have heard from My Father”, then do not think that He needs teaching, but shows that He does not proclaim anything extraneous, but what belongs to the Father, and that all His words are the words of the Father.

. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain,

Having said that the proof of My love for you is the communication of secrets to you, he adds another sign of love. “I,” he says, “have chosen you,” that is, it was not you who were attracted to My friendship, but I to you, and I first loved you. How can I leave you for the next time?

"And he placed you", that is, I planted you “so that you might go,” that is, so that you would grow, multiply, expand, spread and bear fruit. Here He clearly presents Himself as a doer. He declared Himself the purifier above when He said: "You are cleansed through the word that I preached to you"(), and now even more clearly when he said: "I have chosen you and appointed you". For it is known that the worker chooses and places the branches in the ground.

Do you see the equality of the Father and the Son? Above the Father is called the worker, but here the Son is the worker. Shame, Arius, with those who, together with you, enslaved themselves to wickedness.

so that whatever you ask from the Father in My name, He will give it to you.

This is another sign of love. “So that whatever you ask of the Father, He may give it to you.”, that is, I will give it to you. Although the connection should have said, “Whatever you ask the Father, He will give it to you,” but He said, “I will give it to you”; said so, no doubt, due to equality of power. For the Father, when he gives, gives with His right hand, and His right hand is the Son.

Please note, I ask you, that when we, having been planted, bear fruit, then He will give us whatever we ask; if we do not bear fruit, we will not receive it. For whoever does not bear fruit does not ask for what is useful and saving for the soul, but certainly asks for worldly and useless things, and therefore does not receive. For it is said: “You ask, but you do not receive, because you ask wrongly” ().

. I command you this, that you love one another.

So that the apostles do not think that the Lord is saying to reproach them that He lays down His life for them and that He chose them, therefore He says: “I command you this neither as a reproach for you, nor as a praise to Himself, as if for some merit, but so that strengthen your souls more in love for each other; For this purpose I count the perfections of My love for you. This I command you, that you love one another.”.

. If the world hates you, know that it hated Me first.

Since enduring persecution and hatred is a difficult and very regrettable matter, he says to console them: “If they hate you, this is not at all new, for they hated Me before you. Therefore, you should find great consolation in the fact that you become My companions in enduring hatred.”

. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

For this he adds another method of consolation, which is more obligatory. “You,” he says, “on the contrary, would need to grieve if the world, that is, evil people, loved you. For if they loved you, it would be a sign that you yourself have fellowship with them in the same malice and deceit. And now, when the evil ones hate you, rejoice. For they hate you for your virtue; otherwise, if you were not virtuous, the world would love its own. But just as I have separated you from the evil of the world, the world hates you because you do not participate in its affairs.”

. Remember the word that I said to you: a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you too; If they have kept my word, they will also keep yours.

What he said above, namely, that they hated Me before they hated you, he now expounds in more detail, giving them greater consolation. “Remember,” he says, “My word that a slave is no greater than his master. And you are no greater than Me. Look how you treated Me. If they persecuted Me, the Lord, then much more will they persecute you, the slaves. If they did not persecute Me, but If you have kept My word, they will also keep yours.".

. But they will do all this to you for My name's sake,

But this is not the case. Neither My word nor yours will be kept. But they will do all these things to you for Me. Therefore, if you love Me, endure what you suffer for Me, whom you say you love.

because they do not know Him who sent Me.

Here is another reason for consolation. By offending you, they also offend Him who sent Me. Therefore, if nothing else, then this very thing, that the same ones are the enemies of you and Me, and My Father, should serve to your consolation.

. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have had sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.

Are they really doing this rightly? Do they hate Me, and My Father, and you? Did they really find a reason for such behavior in My words or deeds? No, theirs is unforgivable. For was it not I who came and taught? If I had not come, if I had not spoken, they could have said, “We did not hear.” And now their anger is unpardonable.

. He who hates Me also hates My Father.

Then, since everywhere they referred to nothing other than the fact that they stood up for the Father (for they say: "This man is not from God", etc ()); therefore he adds: “He who hates Me also hates My Father”. Thus, this does not in the least serve to justify them.

. If I had not done among them works that no one else had done, they would not have had sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father.

I not only taught the doctrine, but also did things that no one else had done, for example, a miracle over the blind man, over Lazarus and other similar things. What is their excuse? For My part, I taught the doctrine in words and added evidence from deeds. And Moses () commands to obey the one who works miracles and teaches piety. And now they saw such things, and yet they hated both Me and My Father.

. But let the word that is written in their law be fulfilled: They have hated Me without cause.

Then he refers to the testimony of the prophet: “They hated Me for no reason”(). Their hatred was born from malice alone, and not from any other reason. Law, as we have often said, calls not only the Law of Moses, but also the Books of the Prophets, just as here he called the Book of David Law. David, by the Holy Spirit, declared ahead what their wickedness would do; and they, without a doubt, out of malice, fulfilled what was predicted by the prophet, and thereby confirmed the truth of the prophecy.

. When will the Comforter come,

The Lord said to the disciples: “They will persecute you, your words will not be kept.” They could say: “Lord, why, finally, are You sending us? How will they believe us? Who will listen to us? Who will listen to us? Lest they say this, the Lord adds: “When the Comforter comes, He will testify of Me.”. He is a reliable witness. Therefore, those who are convicted of the Spirit that they sin unrequitedly will accept your preaching.

whom I will send to you from the Father,

Words "Which I will send", show His equality with the Father. For in another place he said that the Father will send the Spirit (), but here he says that He Himself will send Him. The sim shows nothing less than equality. And so that they would not think that He rebels against the Father when He sends the Spirit by other authority, He added “from the Father.” I will send Him myself, but “from the Father,” that is, according to the good pleasure of the Father, and I will send him along with Him. For I do not bring the Spirit out of My own bosom, but He is given from the Father through Me.

The Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me;

When you hear that “emanates,” do not mean an embassy by “emanation”, as ministering spirits are sent; but procession is the natural being of the Spirit. If we understand the procession not in this way, but as an embassy occurring from outside, then it will not be clear what kind of Spirit He is talking about. For the spirits are countless, "sent out to minister for those who are to inherit salvation"(). But here procession is some kind of special and distinct property that actually belongs to the Spirit alone. So, by procession we must mean not an embassy, ​​but a natural being from the Father.

. And you too will testify, because you were with Me from the beginning.

And those who were with Me at first will also testify that I made them unrequited by both words and deeds. So, don't be embarrassed. There will be no preaching without testimony; but the Spirit will bear witness with signs and wonders, and His testimony will be trustworthy. For He is the Spirit of truth. As the Spirit of truth, He will testify to the truth. As coming from the Father, He knows everything exactly, for He is from Him from Whom is all knowledge.

This Spirit will testify to the preaching. And you too will testify, because you did not hear it from others, but you yourself are with Me from the very beginning. And the testimony of those who were with Him at first is important. The apostles themselves subsequently said in front of the people: “We are witnesses of His resurrection, who ate and drank with Him» ().

So, the testimony is from two sides: both from you and from the Spirit. You may be thought to be witnessing to please Me; but the Spirit will in no way testify out of servility.