John 16:9

16:7-15 Christ's departure was necessary to the Comforter's coming. Sending the Spirit was to be the fruit of Christ's death, which was his going away. His bodily presence could be only in one place at one time, but his Spirit is every where, in all places, at all times, wherever two or three are gathered together in his name. See here the office of the Spirit, first to reprove, or to convince. Convincing work is the Spirit's work; he can do it effectually, and none but he. It is the method the Holy Spirit takes, first to convince, and then to comfort. The Spirit shall convince the world, of sin; not merely tell them of it. The Spirit convinces of the fact of sin; of the fault of sin; of the folly of sin; of the filth of sin, that by it we are become hateful to God; of the fountain of sin, the corrupt nature; and lastly, of the fruit of sin, that the end thereof is death. The Holy Spirit proves that all the world is guilty before God. He convinces the world of righteousness; that Jesus of Nazareth was Christ the righteous. Also, of Christ's righteousness, imparted to us for justification and salvation. He will show them where it is to be had, and how they may be accepted as righteous in God's sight. Christ's ascension proves the ransom was accepted, and the righteousness finished, through which believers were to be justified. Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. All will be well, when his power is broken, who made all the mischief.

John 16:9-11 . Of sin, because they believe not on me — He will convince the world of that aggravated sin of which they are guilty, in that they do not believe in me, to the truth of whose mission he will bear an unanswerable testimony, by his enlightening influences and miraculous operations. With regard to the latter, it may be observed, that they had been withdrawn from the Jews about four hundred years since, and their being restored, according to Christ’s promise, was sufficient to evince that Jesus, who had restored them by shedding the Holy Spirit upon his disciples, was the true Messiah, and so to convince them of sin, who believed not in him, as we see it did, Acts 2:37-41 . Of righteousness — He will convince them of my innocence and holiness; because I go to, and am accepted of my Father — Which will evidently appear, when I send the Spirit from him in so glorious a manner; and ye see me no more — Appearing among you in the form of a servant; but are assured, that, having finished what I was to do on earth, I am taken up to heaven, and received into glory. Though Christ was condemned by the Jews as an impostor, yet his being received into heaven, and sending the Holy Spirit thence upon his disciples, was a sufficient evidence that the Father owned him as a righteous person, and his true prophet and messenger.

Hence, from this effusion of the Holy Spirit, Peter argues, that this Jesus was by God made Lord and Christ; and that the Jews had crucified that holy and just One, whom the Father hath glorified, Acts 2:36 ; and Acts 3:13-14 . Of judgment — He will convince them of my being invested with a power of executing judgment; because the prince of this world — The great head of the apostacy, is now, as it were, already judged and condemned, and shall be triumphed over in a very remarkable manner, when his oracles are silenced, and he is cast out from many persons and countries also, which he before possessed. Whence it may appear that all who belong to his kingdom and choose rather to serve him than Christ, their lawful Prince and Judge, shall be condemned with him.

John 16:9 . In detail, new convictions περὶ ἁμαρτίας are to be wrought, ὅτι οὐ πιστεύουσιν εἰς ἐμέ . Each of the three clauses introduced by ὅτι is in apposition with the foregoing substantive, and is explanatory of the ground of the conviction, “Concerning sin, because they do not believe on me”. Unbelief will be apprehended to be sin. The world sins “because” it does not believe in Christ, i.e. , the world sins inasmuch as it is unbelieving, cf. John 3:18-19 ; John 3:36 ; John 15:22 . περὶ δικαιοσύνης δὲ … “And concerning righteousness, because I go to my Father and ye see me no longer.” The world will see in the exaltation of Christ proof of His righteousness [ δικαίου γὰρ γνώρισμα τὸ πορεύεσθαι πρὸς τὸν θεὸν καὶ συνεῖναι αὐτῷ , Euthymius] and will accordingly cherish new convictions regarding righteousness. The clause καὶ οὐκ ἔτι θεωρεῖτέ με is added to exhibit more clearly that it was a spiritual and heavenly life He entered upon in going to the Father; and possibly to remind them that the invisibility which they lamented was the evidence of His victory.

9. Of sin, because they believe not on me—As all sin has its root in unbelief, so the most aggravated form of unbelief is the rejection of Christ. The Spirit, however, in fastening this truth upon the conscience, does not extinguish, but, on the contrary, does consummate and intensify, the sense of all other sins.

Here may arise some doubt, whether these words import that the Holy Ghost should convince the world of sin in general, or of that particular sin of not believing on the Lord Jesus Christ: the first seemeth best to agree with John 16:8 , where convincing of sin is mentioned, without the addition which we have here; and it also best agreeth with the effect of the Spirit, for the Holy Spirit doth not convince the world of one sin only. The second seemeth to be favoured by the addition of those words, because they believe not on me; which yet may be understood only as a particular great instance of sin, of which the Spirit convinceth the world. It was the great sin of that age, that, though Christ was come into the world, and had given such manifest evidence that he was sent of his Father, yet the generality of the men and women in that part of the world into which he was come, would not receive and embrace him as the true Messiah. Now, saith our Saviour, when I am gone to my Father, I will send the Spirit, and he, by his gifts given to my apostles, saith so convince a great part of the world, that they shall have nothing to say, but be wholly inexcusable in their not receiving me as the true Messiah and Saviour of the world. Others he shall, by his inward influence upon their hearts, so convince of sin in not believing on me, that they shall believe on me, and be saved.

John 16:9 . Περὶ ἁμαρτίας , concerning sin ) He is speaking not of sin generally, but concerning the sin of unbelief , ch. John 15:22 , “If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin,” etc., which sin is an aberration from the primitive truth; ch. John 8:46 , “Which of you convinceth me of sin? ” [ i.e . that I am in error, and have wandered from the truth : He appeals to their conscience]. And again, unbelief is the confluence of all sins, and the worst of them all, Matthew 10:15 , note, “It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha than,” etc. Therefore not to believe the Gospel , is worse than to imitate the men of Sodom. Through it a man departs from (falls short of) all the will of God. Hebrews 3:12 , “Take heed lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God .”— ὅτι ) [ because , Engl. Vers.], namely that ; and so in the following verses, as is evident from the conjugates ( κρίσεως — κέκριται ),[363] in John 16:11 . [363] Κρίσεως — ὅτι , κέκριται , of judgment , namely, that the Prince of the world is judged ,” which show that the sentence in each case following ὅτι is not assigning the reason because of which, but is setting forth the subject, concerning which the reproof is given, more in detail.—E. and T.

9 . Of sin ] Or, Concerning sin . This naturally comes first: the work of the Spirit begins with convincing man that he is a fallen, sinful creature in rebellion against God. because they believe not on me ] This is the source of sin—unbelief; formerly, unbelief in God, now unbelief in His Ambassador. Not that the sin is limited to unbelief, but this is the beginning of it: ‘Because’ does not explain ‘sin,’ but ‘will convict.’ The Spirit, by bringing the fact of unbelief home to the hearts of men, shews what the nature of sin is.

(9) Of sin, because they believe not on me. —This should not be interpreted, as it very frequently is, of the sin of unbelief, but of sin generally; unbelief in Christ is stated as the cause of sin. Sin is missing the aim of life, the disordered action of powers that have lost their controlling principle. Christ is the revelation to the world of the Father’s love. In union with God through Him the soul finds the centre of its being, and the true purpose of its life. By the witness of Christ the Holy Spirit convinces men that He is the centre of the moral harmony of the Universe, and that through Him their spirits have access to God. This conviction reveals to them their sin, because they believe not on Him. Its effect is salutary or condemnatory, according as we are convinced and converted by it, or refuse its influence and remain convicted.

Of sin - The first thing specified of which the world would be convinced is sin. Sin, in general, is any violation of a law of God, but the particular sin of which men are here said to be convinced is that of rejecting the Lord Jesus. This is placed first, and is deemed the sin of chief magnitude, as it is the principal one of which men are guilty. This was particularly true of the Jews who had rejected him and crucified him; and it was the great crime which, when brought home to their consciences by the preaching of the apostles, overwhelmed them with confusion, and filled their hearts with remorse. It was their rejection of the Son of God that was made the great truth that was instrumental of their conversion. Acts 2:22-23 , Acts 2:37 ; Acts 3:13-15 ; Acts 4:10 , Acts 4:26-28 ; compare John 16:31-33 . It is also true of other sinners. Sinners, when awakened, often feel that it has been the great crowning sin of their lives that they have rejected the tender mercy of God, and trampled on the blood of his Son; and that they have for months and years refused to submit to him, saying that they would not have him to reign over them. Thus is fulfilled what is spoken by Zechariah, Zechariah 12:10 ; "And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and mourn." Throughout the New Testament this is regarded as the sin that is pre-eminently offensive to God, and which, if unrepented of, will certainly lead to perdition, Mark 16:16 ; John 3:36 .