John 14:5

Joh 14:5-6. Thomas saith — Taking him in a gross sense; Lord, we know not whither thou goest — “As their thoughts turned very much on a temporal kingdom, they might imagine that their Master intended to remove to some splendid palace on earth, which he was to prepare for their reception, making it the seat of his court.” Jesus saith, I am the way, the truth, and the life — Christ was his own way to the Father, inasmuch as by his own blood he entered into the holy place, Heb 9:12; and he is our way, in that we enter by him. By his doctrine and example he teaches us our duty; by his merit and intercession he procures for us our happiness; and in these respects he is the way. In him God and man meet and are brought together, and by him a way of intercourse is appointed and kept up between heaven and earth; our prayers ascend to God, and his blessings descend to us by him. He is the truth, 1st, As truth is opposed to figure and emblem: he is the substance of all the Old Testament types and shadows, which are therefore said to be figures of the true things. He is the true manna, (Joh 6:32,) the true tabernacle, Heb 8:2. 2d, As truth is opposed to falsehood and error, the doctrine of Christ is infallibly true doctrine; the truth as it is in Jesus. 3d, As truth is opposed to fallacy and deceit; he is true and faithful to all that trust in him, and will assuredly make good all his declarations and promises, 2Co 1:20. He is the life, for we are made alive unto God here, and brought to eternal life hereafter, only in and through him, who is the resurrection and the life, Rom 6:11. For as God hath given to believers eternal life, this life is in his Son, and only he that hath the Son hath life, Joh 5:11-12. No man cometh unto the Father but by me — Fallen man may, and must come to God as a judge, but cannot come to him as a Father, otherwise than by Christ as a Mediator, Redeemer, and Saviour; for through him alone, through his merits and Spirit, his doctrine and grace, can we be pardoned and renewed, justified, sanctified, and glorified.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Joh 14:5. Θωμᾶς, Thomas) One after the other asks questions, with reverential and sweet affection [suavity] towards Him: Joh 14:8 [Philip], Joh 14:22 [Judas, not Iscariot], and previously, ch. Joh 13:36 [Simon Peter].—καὶ πῶς, and how) Thomas, using acute reasoning, lays it down as a sure conclusion, that, inasmuch as they knew not the goal, they must much less know the way. [Jesus replies as to both (the goal and the way), but in inverse order. Jesus is the way: through Him (as the way) whither is it given us to attain? To the Father.—V. g.]

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Joh 14:5 . But this statement bewilders the despondent Thomas, who gloomily interjects: Κύριε … εἰδέναι ; Thomas’ difficulty is that not knowing the goal they cannot know the way. In the reply of Jesus both the goal and the way are disclosed.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 5. Lord, we know not] Thomas, perhaps, thought that our Lord only spoke of his going some distance from the place where he then was.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

5. Thomas saith to him. Though, at first sight, the reply of Thomas appears to contradict what Christ had said, yet he did not intend to give the lie to his Master. But it may be asked, In what sense does he deny what Christ asserted? I reply, the knowledge possessed by the saints is sometimes confused, because they do not understand the manner or the reason of those things which are certain, and which have been explained to them. For example, the Prophets foretold the calling of the Gentiles with a true perception of faith, and yet Paul declares that it was a mystery hidden from them, (Ephesians 3:2, 4.) In like manner, when the Apostles believed that Christ was departing to the Father, and yet did not know in what way he would obtain the kingdom, Thomas justly replies, that they do not know whither he is going. Hence he concludes that they know still less about the way; for before we enter into a road, we must know where we intend to go.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(5) Thomas saith unto him.—Comp., for the character of Thomas, Joh_11:16; Joh_20:24; Joh_21:2.

Lord, we know not whither thou goest.— Our Lord’s words had laid stress upon the “way.” Thomas lays stress upon the “whither.” His mind seeks for measured certainty. In all that he has heard of the Father’s house of many mansions, of being with the Lord, there is much that he cannot understand. The Messiah, they thought, was to reign upon earth. Where was this vast royal home, with dwelling-places for all, to which Christ was going first, and to which they were to follow? They know not whither, and without that knowledge they cannot even think of the way.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

5. Thomas] Nothing is to be inferred from the omission of ‘Didymus’ here (comp. Joh_11:16, Joh_20:24, Joh_21:2). For his character see on Joh_11:16. His question here has a melancholy tone combined with some dulness of apprehension. But there is honesty of purpose in it. He owns his ignorance and asks for explanation. This great home with many abodes, is it the royal city of the conquering Messiah, who is to restore the kingdom to Israel (see on Act_1:6); and will not that be Jerusalem? How then can He go away?

and how can we know] The true reading is, How know we.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thomas saith unto him, Lord,.... Who was one of his apostles, and here betrays his ignorance, as elsewhere his unbelief; and not only speaks for himself, but for the rest of the apostles, of whom he judged by himself; and who, it may be, might understand things better than himself, though their knowledge at present was but small:

we know not whither thou goest; though he had but just told them of his Father's house, and of his going to prepare a place for them:

and how can we know the way? for if we do not know the place, it is not reasonable to think we should know the way to it. Thomas seemed to have no other notion than that Christ was talking of some particular place in Judea, whither he was going, and of the road to it.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

Ver. 5. Lord, we know not whither thou goest, &c.] No, Thomas? what, are ye also ignorant? They knew, but knew not that they knew: their knowledge was yet but confused and indistinct; they saw men, but as it were walking like trees, till their eyes were better anointed with the eye-salve of the Spirit. A man (saith Gataker) may have grace, and yet not know it (as the embryo hath life, and yet knoweth it not), yea, he may think he hath it not, as we seek for keys that are in our pockets; or think we have lost a jewel, that we locked up in our chest: yea, as the butcher looketh for the candle that sticketh in his hat, by the light of what he seeketh.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

We know not whither thou goest - Though Jesus had so often told them of his approaching death and resurrection, yet it seems they did not understand him, nor did they fully comprehend him until after his resurrection. See Luk 24:21. They entertained the common notions of a temporal kingdom; they supposed still that he was to be an earthly prince and leader, and they did not comprehend the reason why he should die. Thomas confessed his ignorance, and the Saviour again patiently explained his meaning. All this shows the difficulty of believing when the mind is full of prejudice and of contrary opinions. If Thomas had laid aside his previous opinions - had he been willing to receive the truth as Jesus plainly spoke it, there would have been no difficulty. Faith would have been an easy and natural exercise of the mind. And so with the sinner. If he were willing to receive the plain and unequivocal doctrines of the Bible, there would be no difficulty; but his mind is full of opposite opinions and plans, occupied with errors and vanities, and these are the reasons, and the only reasons, why he is not a Christian. Yet who would say that, after the plain instructions of Jesus, Thomas might not have understood him? And who will dare to say that any sinner may not lay aside his prejudices and improper views, and receive the plain and simple teaching of the Bible?

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Reason tells every one, that he who knoweth not the term whither a person is going, must needs be ignorant of the way. It is plain, that Thomas, and so (probably) divers others of the apostles, notwithstanding what our Saviour had so plainly told them, Joh 14:2, yet dreamed of some earthly motion our Saviour was making, which makes Thomas to speak thus: so dull are we, and hard to conceive of spiritual things. But will some say, Doth not Thomas here contradict his Master, who had told them, Joh 14:4, that they both knew whither he went, and the way also?

Answer. Some think that our Saviour meant no more than they ought to have known, both whither he went, and the way also; active verbs in Scripture phrase, often signifying no more than duty, or ability. But possibly others answer better, They had some knowledge, but it was more confused and general; not distinct, particular, or certain.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

5. Thomas… whither… way?—Thomas, here, seems contradictory, but he is only doubtful. In fact, he is putting an experimental question. He somewhat exaggerates his own ignorance, to draw out from the Lord a more explicit explanation of his destination and departure. He knows not the whither, that is, the terminus; and how, then, can he know the way to it. He hopes that our Lord will give a full description, at least a verbal map, of the region to which he goes, and the route by which he attains it.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 5-7. (4) The question of Thomas, eliciting from Christ that he was going to the Father, and that his death was their way" as well as his own way thither.

Thomas true to the character elsewhere attributed to him in this Gospel, of anxious, intellectual striving after truth and reality, with a certain despondency and morbid fear of issues which he could not grasp, and yet with a great love to his Mastersaith to him, We know not whither thou goest; i.e. we are still in vague perplexity. "Whither? oh, whither?" Art thou going to the dispersed among the Gentiles? Art thou going to restore the kingdom to Israel? Thou art to be "lifted up;" but how and where art thou to be lifted up? Thou art going that is all we know, and this ignorance of ours makes us doubt "the way. How do we knew the way? Is not a knowledge of the goal absolutely necessary to bring into proper light for us the way, the strange mysterious way, thou art taking? There often seems in the language of skepticism much common sense, and in the dry light of science a straightforward honesty; and in reading the memorable reply of our Lord many have felt a lack of directness and recognition of the difficulty of Thomas. But is it really so?

Vers. 5-7. Thomas"s questioning.

It turned upon the ability of Christ to bring the disciples to the end of the way.

I THOMAS"S OBSCURITIES. Lord, we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?

1. He imagined that the Messiahs reign was to be on earth. Where, then, could be the royal home to which the Messiah was about to depart, and into which he was to gather his saints?

2. The question illustrates the peculiar temper of a disciple who is not destined to receive the higher blessing of those who "have not seen, and yet have believed.

II OUR LORD"S SOLUTION OF THOMAS"S DIFFICULTIES. "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." The answer is larger than the question. To know Christ is to know the goal and the way to it.

1. Jesus is the Way to heaven.

(1) He is the only Way. (Act_4:12)

(2) He is the new Way. (Heb_10:20)

(3) He is the old Way. (Heb_11:40)

(4) He is the Way that joins two worlds.

(5) He is the Way of access to the Father.

"No man cometh to the Father, but by me.

1. Jesus is the Truth.

a. He is the Teacher of the truth which directs to the way.

b. He is the Revelation of God to the world.

c. He is the eternal Truth.

2. Jesus is the Life.

a. He is the Giver of the life which carries the believer to heaven.

b. He is the living Way.

c. He is that eternal Life that was with the Father and was manifested to us. (1Jn_1:2)

d. He is the abiding Source of spiritual life.

3. The Father is the End of the way. "No man cometh to the Father, but by me." Christ"s mediatorship is an essential fact in Christianity.

4. The manifestation of Jesus is the manifestation of the Father. "If ye had known me, ye would have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him." This manifestation will be fuller as the day of Pentecost is at hand, with its shower of spiritual blessings and its wide enlargement of knowledge.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thomas saith - Taking him in a gross sense.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

An interruption by Thomas:

v. 5. Thomas saith unto Him, Lord, we know not whither Thou goest; and how can we know the way?

v. 6. Jesus saith unto him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no man cometh unto the Father but by Me.

v. 7. If ye had known Me, ye should have known My Father also; and from henceforth ye know Him, and have seen Him.

Thomas was but expressing the thoughts of the majority of the disciples; he acted, in a way, as their mouthpiece. So firmly and completely were their hearts and minds bound up with the matters of this world and with their hopes of a temporal reign of the Messiah that even now they did not understand the references of the Lord. It was necessary almost to pry their thoughts loose from this world. Thomas protested that they did not even know the object and goal of the Master’s going; and how could they possibly know the way! The question sounds so foolish that it is well to remember what one commentator remarks: The disciples knew, but they did not know that they knew. Sorrow had benumbed their spiritual faculties. With infinite patience, therefore, the Lord gives them a brief summary of all His teaching. Christ is the Way to God and to heaven; not merely a leader and guide; He bears, He carries them that are His, that trust in Him; He brings them safely to the home above. Christ is the Truth: His every Word may be trusted implicitly, for it teaches the knowledge of God, and directs the way; the way which He teaches is the only right way, for He is the absolute Truth. Christ is the Life: He is the Fountain and Giver of all true life, the life that animates all those that believe on Him, and that is to be enjoyed eternally at the end of the way. He that believes on Him has eternal life, is indissolubly united with God, so far as God’s will and intention are concerned. These things being true, it follows that no man can come to the Father, attain to the enjoyment of eternal bliss, but by and through Jesus. There is no other way, all those that are devised by men, the ways of good works and self-righteousness, being false paths, that lead to everlasting destruction. Jesus is the only Way to heaven. "This, I believe, is what the second word, ’truth,’ means in all simplicity, that Christ is not only the Way in the beginning, but the true, certain way, and alone will finally remain the Way to which one must ever adhere, and not let the wrong path deceive that would entice us to seek something besides Christ that should help us to salvation. " Jesus adds, by way of a gentle rebuke: If ye had known Me, ye should have known the Father. Their knowledge was not yet so deep and complete as it well might have been. The Father is in Jesus, and to know Him is to know the Father, chap. 10:30. The disciples had therefore seen the Father, who is revealed in the Son, with the eyes of faith, by which they had received Christ. "He that sees Christ with eyes ’in faith’ by that same process of seeing also sees the Father; for he touches that Person in whom the Father (also bodily, as St. Paul says, Col 2:1-23: lives, and revivals all His heart and will. Thus we also see and know both Him and the Father, although not with eyes, nor through bodily seeing and knowing, but through that very faith."

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Observe here, 1. How Thomas, and probably divers others of the apostles, notwithstanding all that Christ had said to the contrary, did still dream of a temporal kingdom, and supposed him to speak of some earthly palace which he was going to, and therefore he tells our Saviour, he knew not whither he was going; but Christ meaning not a temporal, but a heavenly kingdom, tells them, that if they intends to follow him, and be with him in heaven, he himself was the only way thither; I am the way, and the truth, and the life; that is, I am the true and living way to the Father; And no man cometh to the Father but by me! that is, no man can have any access to God by prayer, or any other act of religious worship here on earth, or any access to God by prayer, or any other act of religious worship here on earth, or any access to God in heaven, but by me, as Mediator. As if Christ had said, "I am the Author of the way that leadeth unto life, that Teacher of the truth which directs to it, and the Giver of that life which is to be obtained by walking in it: I am the way, and the truth, and the life.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

5. Θωμᾶς. Nothing is to be inferred from the omission of Δίδυμος here (comp. Joh 11:16, Joh 20:24, Joh 21:2). For his character see on Joh 11:16. His question here has a melancholy tone combined with some dulness of apprehension. But there is honesty of purpose in it. He owns his ignorance and asks for explanation. This great home with many abodes, is it the royal city of the conquering Messiah, who is to restore the kingdom to Israel (see on Act 1:6); and will not that be Jerusalem? How then can He be going anywhere? How do we know the way? The abrupt asyndeton gives emphasis.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

5.] Thomas is slow of belief and apprehension. The answer to ποῦ ὑπάγεις; ch. 13:37, which Peter seems to have apprehended, was not sufficient for him: see ch. 20:25: ᾤετο γάρ, says Euthym., αἰσθητὸν εἶναί τινα τόπον ὅπου ὑπάγει, καὶ ὁδὸν ὁμοίως τοιαύτην.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

5. Thomas now intervenes. Peter was the first to interrupt the great discourse by asking, “Whither goest thou?” (see 13:36). Thomas presses the question, and urges that they could not be expected to know the answer. The Eleven had been perplexed when this “going” of Jesus to the Father had been mentioned at an earlier point in the discourse (16:17), and their perplexities had not yet been removed. We have already had Thomas appearing as spokesman for the rest (11:16), Peter perhaps being absent on that occasion. But Peter is silent now, although present, probably because of the severity of the rebuke and warning which he had just received (13:38). He would hardly venture again to interrupt Jesus by questions.

For κύριε, see on 1:38. Thomas declares that they do not know where Jesus was going, and that therefore they cannot be expected to know the way. Yet one may know the way without knowing exactly the goal of one’s journey; and this is specially true of the Christian pilgrimage.

There are unimportant variants. אAC2NΓΔΘ, with most vss., have καὶ after ὑπάγεις, and this may be right; but BC*LW and Syr. sin. omit καί the omission being characteristic of Jn.’s paratactic style. Again, for πῶς οἴδαμεν τὴν ὁδόν; (BC*D a b c), the rec., with AC2LNWΓΔΘ, has πῶς δυνάμεθα τὴν ὁδὸν εἰδέναι; which looks like an explanatory correction of the shorter reading.

5. Thomas now intervenes. Peter was the first to interrupt the great discourse by asking, “Whither goest thou?” (see 13:36). Thomas presses the question, and urges that they could not be expected to know the answer. The Eleven had been perplexed when this “going” of Jesus to the Father had been mentioned at an earlier point in the discourse (16:17), and their perplexities had not yet been removed. We have already had Thomas appearing as spokesman for the rest (11:16), Peter perhaps being absent on that occasion. But Peter is silent now, although present, probably because of the severity of the rebuke and warning which he had just received (13:38). He would hardly venture again to interrupt Jesus by questions.

For κύριε, see on 1:38. Thomas declares that they do not know where Jesus was going, and that therefore they cannot be expected to know the way. Yet one may know the way without knowing exactly the goal of one’s journey; and this is specially true of the Christian pilgrimage.

There are unimportant variants. אAC2NΓΔΘ, with most vss., have καὶ after ὑπάγεις, and this may be right; but BC*LW and Syr. sin. omit καί the omission being characteristic of Jn.’s paratactic style. Again, for πῶς οἴδαμεν τὴν ὁδόν; (BC*D a b c), the rec., with AC2LNWΓΔΘ, has πῶς δυνάμεθα τὴν ὁδὸν εἰδέναι; which looks like an explanatory correction of the shorter reading.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And how can we know [και πως δυναμεθα την οδον ειδεναι] . The best texts substitute oidamen, know we, for dunameqa, can we; reading, how know we the way. So Rev. Some also omit and before how.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Vv. 5, 6. “Thomas says to him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest, and how do we know the way? 6.Jesus says to him, I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me.”

Peter desired to follow Jesus immediately; this request having been rejected, Thomas wishes at least to understand clearly what is to take place, whither Jesus is going and by what way, and the more because the disciples are one day to follow Him. Thus far, the departure of Jesus leaves him nothing but obscurity. End and way, everything is lost for him in vacancy. Jesus, in His reply, lays hold especially upon the idea of the way while recalling to mind clearly the end in the second part of the verse. From the connection of these words with the question of Thomas it follows that the dominant idea of the three following terms is that of way, and that the other two must serve to explain it. From the second part of the verse it is also clear that the way which is in question is that which leads to the Father and His house, and not the way by which one can come to the truth and the life, as Reuss formerly supposed.

The figurative expression way is therefore explained without a figure by the two terms: truth and life. Truth is God revealed in His essence, that is to say, in His holiness and love (Joh 14:9). Life is God communicated to the soul and bringing to it a holy strength and perfect beatitude (Joh 14:23). And as it is in Jesus that this revelation and communication of God to the soul are effected, so it is through Jesus also that the soul comes to the Father and obtains through Him the entrance into the Father’s house. The three terms, way, truth and life, are not, therefore, co-ordinated (Luther, Calvin: beginning, middle, end); no more do they express a single notion: vera via vitae (Augustine). Jesus means to say: I am the means of coming to the Father (the way), in that I am the truth and the life.

Reuss justly observes with reference to the word I am, that this expression excludes every other means parallel to this. Gess: “A man can at the most show to others the right way; he cannot be either the way or the truth or the life.”

In the following clause, the words: to the Father, set forth a nearer end than the figurative expression of Joh 14:2. The question here is of communion with the Father here on earth, which is the condition of communion with Him in heaven (His house).

Frédéric Louis Godet — Commentaries on Luke, John, Romans, and 1 Corinthians — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1870s–1890s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.