A Study of John's Gospel

John 5:19-20: Jesus and God the Father

A Study of John 5:19-20

"So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel."

‭‭John‬ ‭5‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Definitions of the original language in the context of this passage:

-Jesus: "Ἰησοῦς", "Iēsous"; noun, nominative, singular, masculine - Jesus = "Yahweh is salvation"; the Son of God, the Savior of mankind, God incarnate.

-Truly: "Ἀμὴν", "amēn"; particle indeclinable - verily, amen, at the beginning of a discourse - surely, truly, of a truth.

-The Son: "υἱὸς", "huios"; noun, nominative, singular, masculine - a son; used to describe those who are born again (Lk. 20:36) and of angels and of Jesus Christ.

-The Father: "πατέρα", "patera"; noun, accusative, singular, masculine - God is called the Father; the Father of Jesus Christ, as one whom God has united to himself in the closest bond of love and intimacy, made acquainted with his purposes, appointed to explain and carry out among men the plan of salvation, and made to share also in his own divine nature.

-Loves: "φιλεῖ", "philei"; verb, present, active, indicative, third person, singular - to love, to be affectionate towards one.

-Is Doing: "ποιεῖ", "poiei"; verb, present, active, indicative, third person, singular - to do, to make.

-Will He Show: "δείξει", "deixei"; verb, future, active, indicative, third person, singular - to show, to make known; in John 5:20: to show works to one for him to do.

-May Marvel: "θαυμάζητε", "thaumazēte"; verb, present, active, subjunctive, second person, plural - to wonder, wonder at, marvel.

Observation/Summary (short explanation of what the passage says in your own words):

After being confronted by the Jewish leaders for healing a disabled man and telling him to get up, pick up his bedroll and walk on the Sabbath, Jesus equated Himself with God the Father to justify His actions (v.18). In verses 19-20 Jesus begins to explain more about the nature of His relationship to God the Father. He starts by saying that He (the Son) can do nothing apart from the Father's will, and He does what He sees the Father doing. Next, Jesus said the Father loves the Son, and the Son does whatever the Father shows Him to do.

Implication (what does this mean to us):

Verses 19-20 of John 5 are the beginning of Jesus' explanation of His role and authority as God the Son in relation to God the Father. In the preceding verses Jesus healed a man who had been unable to walk for 38 years. But He healed the man on the Sabbath and told him to pick up his bedroll and walk. The problem was this violated the man made traditions of the Jewish religious leaders, and they were very angry. They did not care that Jesus had performed yet another miraculous healing to prove He had been sent by God the Father. They only cared about their man made rules and the continuation of their positions of authority and influence. Jesus had not violated the Sabbath as defined in the Levitical law, or commanded the healed man to either. But instead of justifying His actions along these lines, He takes a more unexpected tact by saying, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." By this He meant that He is equal with God the Father and therefore did not violate the Sabbath. The Jewish leaders understood, at least in part, what He meant by this, and for this reason they wanted to kill Him even more. This is the lead into verse 19 where Jesus begins a longer explanation of who He is in relation to the Father and His work.