John 13:3

3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him complete power; he knew that he had come from God and was going to God.

John 13:3 Meaning and Commentary

John 13:3

Jesus knowing that the Father
These words express the sense Christ had of his own greatness and dignity as Mediator:

had given all things into his hands;
all the persons of the elect, all blessings both of grace and glory for them, and power and authority over all other persons and things, to make them subservient to his purposes:

and that he was come from God;
had his mission and commission, as man, from God; did not come of himself, but he sent him:

and went to God;
or was going to him in a very little time, to sit at his right hand, to have a name above every name, and to have angels, authorities, and powers subject to him; which, as it shows his high esteem with his Father, and his exalted character as Mediator, so it greatly illustrates his wonderful humility, that in the view, and under a sense and consideration of all this, he should condescend to wash the feet of his disciples; of which an account is given in the following verses.

John 13:3 In-Context

1 It was now the day before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. He had always loved those in the world who were his own, and he loved them to the very end.

2 Jesus and his disciples were at supper. The Devil had already put into the heart of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, the thought of betraying Jesus.

3 Jesus knew that the Father had given him complete power; he knew that he had come from God and was going to God.

4 So he rose from the table, took off his outer garment, and tied a towel around his waist.

5 Then he poured some water into a washbasin and began to wash the disciples' feet and dry them with the towel around his waist.