The feast of the Dedication was then taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter. 23 And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me. 26 But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”
Jesus went to Jerusalem for the eight-day festival of the feast of the Dedication (Hanukkah). Hanukkah commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus was in the Temple area where the religious leaders had previously tried to stone him (Jn. 8:59). It was winter so he walked on Solomon’s Portico, a covered walkway on the Eastern side of the Temple, so he would be sheltered from the desert winds.
The Jews, probably the religious leaders or Pharisees, confronted Jesus and demanded that he tell them publicly if he was the Messiah. Jesus neither confirmed nor denied that he was the Messiah but told them that the works he had done in his Father’s name testified to who he was. Jesus told them that they did not believe because they refused to listen to his teaching and follow him (his sheep). Jesus knows his sheep and they hear his voice; they know who he is, and they follow him. They will receive eternal life and will not suffer eternal damnation as long as they follow him because he will protect them. The Father is greater than all and those who belong to Jesus are firmly in the Father’s grasp and no one can take them out of His hand.
Jesus had previously told the scribes and Pharisees, “If you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins (Jn. 8:24),” and Jesus again reaffirmed unity with the Father when he said, “The Father and I are one (v. 30).” Jesus will not lose anyone the Father has given to him. When he was about to return to the Father he prayed, “And now I will no longer be in the world, but they are in the world, while I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are (Jn. 17:11).”
Almighty God, help us to recognize Jesus as our shepherd and to obediently follow his teaching. Grant us the grace to have faith and trust in him and his promise of eternal life. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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