The same came for a witness
The end of his being sent, and the design of his coming were,
to bear witness of the light:
by which is meant, not the light of nature, or reason; nor the
light of the Gospel: but Christ himself, the author of light,
natural, spiritual, and eternal. This was one of the names of the
Messiah with the Jews; of whom they say F21,
(wmv aryhn) , "light is
his name"; as it is said in ( Daniel 2:22 ) and the
light dwelleth with him; on which they have F23
elsewhere this gloss, this is the King Messiah; and so they
interpret ( Psalms 43:3 ) of him
F24. Philo the Jew often speaks of the
Logos, or word, as light, and calls him the intelligible light;
the universal light, the most perfect light; represents him as
full of divine light; and says, he is called the sun F25. Now
John came to bear a testimony to him, as he did; of which an
account is given in this chapter, very largely, and elsewhere; as
that he testified of his existence before his incarnation; of his
being with the Father, and in his bosom: of his deity and divine
sonship; of his being the Messiah; of the fulness of grace that
was in him; of his incarnation and satisfaction; of his descent
from heaven; and of his relation to his church, as in ( John 1:15 John 1:16 John 1:18 John 1:23 John 1:27 John 1:29 John 1:30 John 1:34 John 1:36 ) ( John 3:29 John 3:31 ) the end of
which witness was,
that all men through him might believe;
that is, that the Jews, to whom he preached, might, through his
testimony, believe that Jesus was the light, and true Messiah;
for these words are to be taken in a limited sense, and not to be
extended, to every individual of mankind; since millions were
dead before John began his testimony, and multitudes then in
being, and since, whom it never reached: nor can it design more
than the Jews, to whom alone he bore witness of Christ; and the
faith which he taught, and required by his testimony, was an
assent unto him as the Messiah; though the preaching of the
Gospel is a means of true spiritual faith in Christ; and
doubtless it was so to many, as preached by John: it points out
the object of faith, and encourages souls to believe in Christ;
and hence, Gospel ministers are instruments by whom ethers
believe; and faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God; and then is it, considerable end of the Gospel ministry
answered.