And he that saw it, bare record
Meaning himself, John the evangelist, the writer of this Gospel,
who, in his great modesty, frequently conceals himself, under one
circumlocution or another; he was an eyewitness of this fact, not
only of the piercing of his side with a spear, but of the blood
and water flowing out of it; which he saw with his eyes, and bore
record of to others, and by this writing; and was ready to attest
it in any form it should be desired:
and his record is true;
though it is not mentioned by any of the other evangelists, none
of them but himself being present at that time: and he
knoweth that he saith true;
meaning either God or Christ, who knew all things; and so it is a
sort of appeal to God or Christ, for the truth of what he
affirmed, as some think; or rather himself, who was fully assured
that he was under no deception, and was far from telling an
untruth; having seen the thing done with his eyes, and being led
into the mystery of it by the Divine Spirit; see ( 1 John 5:6 1 John 5:8 ) wherefore
he could, and did declare it with the strongest asseverations:
that ye might believe;
the truth of the fact, and in Christ, both for the expiation of
the guilt of sin, and cleansing from the filth of it; both for
sanctifying and justifying grace, which the water and the blood
were an emblem of.