​The End of the Feast: Division (7:37–52)

The End of the Feast: Division (7:37–52)

The seventh day, which was the last day of the feast, was very special because the priests would march around the altar seven times while singing Psalm 118:25. It would be the last time they took the water and poured it out. Jesus stood and shouted His great invitation to thirsty sinners while they were pouring out the water, which was a sign of the water Moses drew from the rock.

People have said that this "great day," the twenty-first of the seventh month, is the same day that the prophet Haggai made a special prediction about the temple (Hag. 2:1–9). The ultimate fulfillment must await Christ's return to Earth; however, there was a partial fulfillment during Jesus' visit to the temple. Hebrews 12:26–29 quotes Haggai 2:6–7 and says that it is about the Lord's return.

Jesus was talking about what happened to Israel in Exodus 17:1–7. That water was only a picture of God's Spirit. Believers would not only drink the living water, but they would also become living water channels to bless a world that is thirsty. The "artesian well" that He promised in John 4:14 has now turned into a river that flows! There are no specific prophetic Scriptures that say "rivers of water" flow from the believer, but there are a lot of verses that are similar to this idea. For example, Isaiah 12:3, 15, 32:2, 44:3, and 58:11; and Zechariah 14:8. Keep in mind that Zechariah 14:16ff. talks about the future Feast of Tabernacles, when the Lord will be King.

In the Bible, water for drinking is one of the symbols of the Holy Spirit. Water for washing is a symbol of the Word of God (see John 15:3 and Eph. 5:26). The Spirit of God fills us up and helps us bear fruit, just like water quenches thirst and makes things grow. The Jews were following a tradition at the feast that could never make them happy. Jesus gave them living water and promised them happiness forever!

What happened because of this announcement and invitation? Some people defended Him and some wanted to arrest Him. Is He a "good man" or "a liar" (John 7:12)? Is He "the Christ" (John 7:31)? Is He the "Prophet" that was promised (John 7:40; Deut. 18:15)? If they had only looked at the evidence honestly, they would have found out that He was the Christ, the Son of God. They thought Jesus was from Galilee (John 1:45–46; 7:52), but He was actually born in Bethlehem (see John 6:42 for similar reasoning).

The officers of the temple came back from the Jewish council meeting with nothing. It should have been pretty easy for them to catch Jesus, but they didn't. What made them stop? Their defense was, "No man ever spoke like this man!" In other words, "This Jesus is more than just a man!" No one else talks like He does! The Word of God, spoken by the Son of God, "arrested" them.

Once more, the leaders refused to be honest about the facts and made decisions based on their biases and a brief look at the facts. People are much more eager to label other people than to listen to what they have to say. Perhaps their reasoning was as follows: "So some individuals have faith in Jesus! What does that matter? These regular people don't know anything about the law! Have any important people, like us, put their faith in Him? No way!" They would use a similar argument to try to discredit the blind man's testimony that Jesus healed him (John 9:34).

It shouldn't surprise us when "the intelligentsia" or religious leaders don't believe in Jesus Christ. In Matthew 11:25–27, Jesus says that God has hidden His truth from "the wise and prudent" and revealed it to "spiritual babes," or humble people who will listen to him. Paul was a brilliant rabbi when God saved him, but he had to be "knocked down" before he would admit that Jesus Christ was the risen Son of God. To find out why it's challenging to get "smart religious people" to follow the Savior, read 1 Corinthians 1:26–31.

The rulers would have sent the guard out again, but Nicodemus spoke up. In John's gospel, this man is mentioned three times, and each time he is called "the one who came to Jesus by night" (see John 3:1–2; 19:39). Nicodemus had probably been doing a lot of thinking and studying since that first meeting with Jesus, and he wasn't afraid to stand up for what he believed in.

Nicodemus was sure that the council was not giving Jesus a fair chance to speak. The rulers had already decided what to do and were trying to arrest Him before He had even had a fair trial! Nicodemus may have been thinking of Old Testament verses like Exodus 23:1 and Deuteronomy 1:16–17; 19:15–21.

What did Nicodemus want them to contemplate regarding Jesus? His words and deeds. Nicodemus was first interested in Jesus because Jesus was a teacher and a miracle worker (John 3:2). Jesus even said that His works were proof that He was God (John 5:32), and He told people many times to listen to what He said. The miracles and the messages go together because the miracles point to the messages and the messages explain what the miracles mean spiritually.

"Are you a lowly and despised Galilean too?" the rulers said with sarcasm and disdain. They mocked Nicodemus instead of saying he was right to ask for a fair trial. This is an old trick in a debate: if you can't answer the argument, attack the person who said it.

They told Nicodemus to look through the prophecies and see if he could identify any that said a prophet would come from Galilee. Jesus said that Jonah was a picture of Himself in death, burial, and resurrection (Matt. 12:38–41). Of course, Jonah was from Galilee. Nicodemus may have read Isaiah 9:1–2 (see Matt. 4:12–16) and started to look at the important messianic prophecies in the Old Testament. If he did, he became sure that Jesus of Nazareth was the Son of God.

You can't help but feel sorry for the people in this chapter who didn't respond to Jesus the right way. His half-brothers didn't believe Him, and different people argued about it, which led to division. If they had accepted the truth and followed it with true obedience, they would have ended up at Jesus' feet, calling him the Messiah and Son of God.

But people today make the same mistake and let their biases and quick judgments keep them from seeing the truth.

Don't let it happen to you!