John 15:13

Than this (tauth). Ablative case after the comparative adjective meizona and feminine agreeing with th agaph (love) understood. That a man lay down his life (ina ti thn psuchn autou qh). Object clause (non-final use of ina in apposition with the ablative pronoun tauth and the second aorist active subjunctive of tiqhmi. For the phrase see Matthew 10:11 of the good shepherd. Cf. 1 John 3:16 ; Romans 5:7 . For his friends (uper twn pilwn autou). "In behalf of his friends" and so "in place of his friends." "Self-sacrifice is the high-water mark of love" (Dods). For this use of uper see John 11:50 ; Galatians 3:13 ; 2 Corinthians 5:14 ; Romans 5:7 .