These words spake Jesus
.. and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come…
The Gospel of John 17:1a KJV
The Gospel introduction to perhaps Jesus’ most pivotal prayer varies in other translations but agrees in the Lord’s focus on the moment:
- “Father, the time has come.
- “Father, the hour has come
The Lord Jesus spoke these four words to the Father of a specific time of fulfillment of God’s plan of grace – a plan from before time into a moment of completion on the Cross of Redemption.
Time and Eternity
First let us consider time itself.
We measure and divide our numbered days counting by millenia, century, year, season, month, week, day, night, hour, minute, second, instant even to a millisecond.
All time measured as a meter or mile, distinct with start and finish and definable to man, a creation of indefinite but comparable time on this earth.
Seasons and sundials only approximate time given to mortal man fading faintly into the shadow of death and disintegration.
We measure our mortal hours by digital devices, clocks ticking away, watches counting the seconds passing into that which will be long forgotten in generations to come.
Time
“Father, the time has come.
Glorify your Son, so that your Son may glorify you— just as you have given him authority over all humanity, so that he may give eternal life to everyone you have given him.
John 17:1a-2 NET
What does Jesus mean by this— the time or the hour has come?
The context is this: Jesus is with the Disciples alone, having just finished the Last Supper. Judas now departed and after this all will leave this night for Gethsemane.
Jesus has just encouraged them promising the Holy Spirit.
John 16:31 Jesus responded to them, “Do you now believe?
32 Indeed, an hour is coming, and has come, when each of you will be scattered to his own home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone…
ὥρα – יוֹם – עֵת
Time – Specifically Hour from the Greek – a certain definite time or season fixed by natural law and returning with the revolving year.
Jesus points to this ‘certain definite time’ in a relational mortal sense. He may literally mean an ‘hour’ as this definite time, point of time, moment in which He and the Eleven must move on to His surrender to to sacrifice in Gethsemane. (It is now such and such an hour.)
Jesus, alone with the Father and the Eleven, knows that His time is come.
In a larger, immortal and timeless sense, His time has also come for completion of the redemption God planned for sinners before even the first sin of Adam.
Time from the Hebrew is: time (of an event), time (usual). experiences, fortunes, occurrence, occasion; however it can also point beyond the measurable timeline of history to perpetuity, for ever, continuing future, as well as ancient (of past time), for ever (of future time). Time may refer eternally of continuous existence and for ever (of God’s existence).
From נָצַח (H5329) – נֶצַח
From a root meaning preeminent, perpetual, an overseer; the Hebrew understanding of eternal time suggests:
eminence, perpetuity, strength, victory, enduring, everlastingness
- eminence
- enduring of life
- endurance in time, perpetual, continual, unto the end
- everlastingness, ever
From this, a prophecy known to the Jews, including Jesus’ disciples:
O LORD, You are my God
O LORD, You are my God;
I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name;
For You have worked wonders,
Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.
The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all
peoples on this mountain;
A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow,
And refined, aged wine.
And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples,
Even the veil which is stretched over all nations.
He will swallow up death for all time,
And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces,
And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth;
For the LORD has spoken.
וְאָמַר֙ בַּיֹּ֣ום הַה֔וּא הִנֵּ֨ה אֱלֹהֵ֥ינוּ זֶ֛ה קִוִּ֥ינוּ לֹ֖ו וְיֹֽושִׁיעֵ֑נוּ זֶ֤ה יְהוָה֙ קִוִּ֣ינוּ לֹ֔ו נָגִ֥ילָה וְנִשְׂמְחָ֖ה בִּישׁוּעָתֹֽו׃
Isaiah 25:9 Masoretic Text
And it will be said in that day,
“Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us.
This is the LORD for whom we have waited;
Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.”
Isaiah 25:9 NASB
“And it will be said IN THAT DAY…
this is ‘elohiym qavah yasha – יָשַׁע
GOD’S long-awaited SAVIOUR!
Isaiah 63: KJV
8 For he said,
Surely they are my people, children that will not lie:
so he was their Saviour.
9 In all their affliction he was afflicted,
and the angel of his presence saved them:
in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
and he bare them,
and carried them all the days of old.
When Jesus had finished saying these things, he looked upward to heaven and said,
“Father, the time has come.
Glorify your Son, so that your Son may glorify you— 2 just as you have given him authority over all humanity, so that he may give eternal life to everyone you have given him.
To be continued... Lord willing...
