John 13:12-19

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. John 13:12 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2. John 13:12 tn Grk “he reclined at the table.” The phrase reflects the normal 1st century Near Eastern practice of eating a meal in a semi-reclining position.
3. John 13:12 tn Grk “Do you know.”
4. John 13:13 tn Or “rightly.”
5. John 13:13 tn Grk “and I am these things.”
6. John 13:15 sn I have given you an example. Jesus tells his disciples after he has finished washing their feet that what he has done is to set an example for them. In the previous verse he told them they were to wash one another’s feet. What is the point of the example? If it is simply an act of humble service, as most interpret the significance, then Jesus is really telling his disciples to serve one another in humility rather than seeking preeminence over one another. If, however, the example is one of self-sacrifice up to the point of death, then Jesus is telling them to lay down their lives for one another (cf. 15:13).
7. John 13:16 tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
8. John 13:16 tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.
9. John 13:16 tn Or “nor is the apostle” (“apostle” means “one who is sent” in Greek).
10. John 13:17 tn Grk “If you know.”
11. John 13:18 tn Grk “But so that the scripture may be fulfilled.”
12. John 13:18 tn Or “The one who shares my food.”
13. John 13:18 tn Or “has become my enemy”; Grk “has lifted up his heel against me.” The phrase “to lift up one’s heel against someone” reads literally in the Hebrew of Ps 41 “has made his heel great against me.” There have been numerous interpretations of this phrase, but most likely it is an idiom meaning “has given me a great fall,” “has taken cruel advantage of me,” or “has walked out on me.” Whatever the exact meaning of the idiom, it clearly speaks of betrayal by a close associate. See E. F. F. Bishop, “‘He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me’—Jn xiii.18 (Ps xli.9),” ExpTim 70 (1958-59): 331-33.sn A quotation from Ps 41:9.
14. John 13:19 tn Or (perhaps) “I am certainly telling you this.” According to BDF §12.3 ἀπ᾿ ἄρτι (ap’ arti) should be read as ἀπαρτί (aparti), meaning “exactly, certainly.”
15. John 13:19 tn Grk “so that you may believe.”
16. John 13:19 tn Grk “that I am.” R. E. Brown (John [AB], 2:555) argues for a nonpredicated ἐγώ εἰμι (egō eimi) here, but this is far from certain.