John 15:26 - Printer Friendly

ESV: "But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.

NIV: "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me.

NASB: When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, namely, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, He will testify about Me,

CSB: "When the Counselor comes, the one I will send to you from the Father —the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me.

NLT: But I will send you the Advocate — the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.

KJV: But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

NKJV: “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.

Verses 26 and 27 form a preview of Jesus' next major theme: the work of the Holy Spirit. That explanation will begin in earnest in John 16:5. For now, Jesus mentions the Holy Spirit as part of His encouragement in the face of persecution. Over the last several verses, Jesus has been warning the disciples—and, by extension, all believers—that the unbelieving world will hate them for their faith (John 15:18–25). Telling us about this in advance (John 13:19; 14:25, 29; 16:4) is meant to help us "hold fast" (Hebrews 4:14–16; 12:1–3). Instead of panicking, and wondering if Jesus was wrong, we can remember His words and know He is still in control (1 Peter 4:12–13).

Another aspect of comfort that Jesus brings is predicting the influence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus uses the same term He applied in John 14:16, paraklētos, also translated as "helper," "counselor," "comforter," or "advocate." Part of the Holy Spirit's role in helping us endure persecution is reminding us of these teachings from Jesus (John 14:16; 16:13). The Spirit comes from God in exactly the same sense in which Christ comes from God (John 8:42; 14:26).

This brief mention of the Holy Spirit also helps to take some of the sting out what comes next. At the beginning of chapter 16, Jesus will give a much more specific, dire description of what persecution can look like.

John 15:18–27 predicts that those who follow Christ faithfully will experience hatred and persecution from the world. The intensity of this experience has varied according to time and culture, but the non-believing world is generally hostile to authentic faith. Jesus reminds His followers this is due to sin and rejection of God by those unbelievers. Just as Christians are never "too good" to serve as Christ served, they are never "too good" to suffer as Christ suffered. In the following passage, Jesus emphasizes that this warning is meant to bolster faith when those hard times come.

This passage begins with a celebrated analogy from Christ: the vine and the branches. This includes the seventh and final "I Am" statement of the gospel of John. Jesus uses this metaphor to explain how our spiritual life, as born-again believers, is drawn from His life. God's intent for our lives is to progress from barrenness to fruitfulness, to spiritual abundance. Jesus also repeats His command for believers to love each other. In this context, He goes so far as to refer to those who follow His teachings as His "friends."

Jesus is in the middle of a long discourse given to the disciples, which began during the last supper. He presents the analogy of a vine and branches, then repeats His command for believers to love each other. Jesus also warns about how the unbelieving world will hate and persecute Christians. This leads into the teachings of chapter 16, which focus on perseverance in the face of trials.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.