John 12:23

23 Jesus replied to them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

John 12:23 Meaning and Commentary

John 12:23

And Jesus answered them
Not directly and particularly; he did not in plain terms signify what was his will, whether these Greeks should be admitted or not; and yet expressed himself in such a manner as shows he was not averse to it, but was pleased with it, and takes notice of it, as an evidence of the near approach of his glorification:

saying, the hour is come, that the son of man should be glorified;
by rising from the dead, ascending to heaven, sitting at the right hand of God, and from thence pouring forth the Spirit upon his disciples, who should go and preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, as well as Jews; and which would issue in the conversion of many of them, and so in his glory, of which the coming of these Greeks was an earnest. But he intimates, in the next verse, that he must first die.

John 12:23 In-Context

21 So they came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and requested of him, "Sir, we want to see Jesus."
22 Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.
23 Jesus replied to them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
24 "I assure you: Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains by itself. But if it dies, it produces a large crop.
25 The one who loves his life will lose it, and the one who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Holman Christian Standard Bible ® Copyright © 2003, 2002, 2000, 1999 by Holman Bible Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.