John 17:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,

NIV: I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—

NASB: The glory which You have given Me I also have given to them, so that they may be one, just as We are one;

CSB: I have given them the glory you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one.

NLT: I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one.

KJV: And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

NKJV: And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:

All statements in the Bible are meant to be understood in context—this verse is no exception. Jesus' references to "glory" here cannot be interpreted properly without noticing how He used the concept at the beginning of this High Priestly Prayer (John 17:1). In that statement, Jesus noted that "the hour has come" for Him to be crucified (John 12:32–33). At least in part, Jesus means the "glory" of the cross is something He is giving to the church (John 3:16; 1 Timothy 2:5–6). He is not elevating believers to His level or bestowing all aspects of His divine glory on us.

There is a sense in which Christians are given glory (2 Corinthians 3:18), in a more direct manner, by virtue of salvation (Romans 6:4; 8:17, 30; 1 John 3:1–2). Again, however, Jesus ties the purpose of this to Christian unity (John 17:21). The primary identifier of a Christian, among the unbelieving world, is supposed to be love (John 13:34–35). This does not extend to endorsing sin or false teaching (Galatians 1:8; 2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Corinthians 5:11). It does mean that self-professed Christians are supposed to demonstrate the goodness of God (Matthew 5:13–16), helping others come to faith. Truthful unity (Colossians 3:14) is intended to prove that Christians are following God (John 17:23).

John 17:20–26 completes the High Priestly Prayer offered by Jesus just before He goes to Gethsemane, where He will be captured by His enemies. His prayer has included requests on behalf of Himself and His closest disciples. Now, Christ begins to pray for those who will come to faith in Him through the writings and teachings of those apostles. A major theme of this prayer is for love and unity.

In this passage, known as the High Priestly Prayer, Jesus speaks to God about three main topics. First is Christ Himself, asking God the Father to glorify Him so He can glorify the Father. Next, Jesus prays for the faith and courage in His closest disciples. Finally, He prays for those who will come to faith because of the apostles' writing and teaching. This moment occurs before Jesus enters Gethsemane, where the other Gospels will record His final anguished prayers before being arrested (Matthew 26:36–46; Mark 14:32–42; Luke 22:39–46).

Over the last several chapters (John 13—16), Jesus has been giving last-minute instruction to His closest disciples. These lessons composed a large part of the Last Supper. Among those teachings were several warnings about persecution, with the encouragement of knowing the Holy Spirit would come. In chapter 17, we read Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, making requests on behalf of Himself, the apostles, and future believers. After this, Jesus will go into Gethsemane where Judas will turn Him over for arrest and His eventual execution.

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.