John 10:31Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

If He were less than the Father, this saying would be exceedingly bold, because it shows nothing other than equality of power. This is exactly how the Jews understood Him, and therefore they began to throw stones at Him. Yet even in spite of this, He did not refute their opinion and supposition. Meanwhile, if they had made an incorrect supposition, He ought to have corrected them and said: Why are you doing this? I did not say this in order to ascribe equal power to Me and the Father. But He does exactly the opposite. He confirms and approves their supposition, and all this despite their hardness. He not only does not excuse His words as poorly spoken, but, on the contrary, rebukes them for having an improper understanding of Him (see vv. 35-36).

Since the Lord said, “I and the Father are one,” meaning in authority and power, and showed that His hand and the Father’s are one, the Jews considered this blasphemy. They wanted to stone Him because He made Himself equal to God.

Unable to bear His words that He is one with the Father, they rushed to kill Him, although each of His works proclaimed Him as God by nature. Yet not only now, but also at another time, after taking up stones to kill Him, they stood motionless by the action of Christ's power. From this also it was clear that, if He were to suffer, He would do so only voluntarily. For if these works of Mine did not confirm the words in which I spoke about Myself, that I am equal to the Father, then you could at once be indignant with Me for calling Myself God by nature. But all My works show Me to be God by nature. For if I blasphemed, He says, by calling Myself God, then it would be natural for you to think that by the works I have done I reveal Myself still more as God. It is precisely for this that you seek to kill Me.

Until this point the Jews could still endure Him. But they heard, “I and the Father are one,” and they could not bear it. Being hard-hearted, they rushed to stones according to their custom. They took up stones to stone Him. The Lord did not suffer the passions which He did not wish to accept. He suffered only those sufferings which He willed to suffer. Therefore He addressed those who were eager to stone Him.

[...] because Jesus Christ called Himself the Son of God by nature. This was the meaning of His words, "We are one." See how the Jews were convicted. They had approached Jesus Christ with a question, not in order to learn, but only to find an occasion for a new attack against Him, as was said above. But why did Jesus Christ give them such an occasion? He wanted them to expose themselves as tempting Him and plotting evil against Him. Moreover, one must not always conform to this or that condition of the Jews. At times it was necessary to speak the pure truth to them.

At these words, forgetting everything, the Jews again took up stones to stone Him as a blasphemer. But this time the Lord did not depart as before, but stopped them by His divine power. He explained to them that Scripture itself calls those to whom the word of God came gods. Therefore not everyone who says of himself that he is the Son of God is necessarily a blasphemer. One must pay attention to such a man and to the works by which he confirms his right to be called the Son of God. If you do not believe Me already, the Lord added, then at least believe My works. They show that I am in the Father and the Father in Me.

That the words of Jesus Christ, "I and the Father are one," must be understood in precisely this way, namely as the unity in essence of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, with God the Father, is confirmed by the fact that the Jews understood them in this way (v. 33). The Savior did not deny the correctness of their understanding. In His answer to the Jews' reproach, that He blasphemed by calling Himself God, the Lord Christ first removes this reproach (vv. 34-36). Then He proves that He is one with the Father and that He is the Son of God (vv. 37-38). The quotation from the Old Testament sacred books that Jesus Christ adduces as proof is found in Ps 81:6. There judges are called gods.

The Pharisees' attempt to stone Him. Hearing this, the Pharisees seized stones. The Pharisees' intention to stone Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles had not been carried out for the reasons explained above (see Jn 8:59). But the Pharisees could explain that failure by saying that they had no stones at hand. Therefore, in all probability, they had now prepared stones and hidden them, perhaps in their pockets. The likelihood of this supposition is strengthened by the fact that all this took place in Solomon's porch, where there could have been no piles of stones. If the Pharisees, having no stones in their pockets, had rushed to the piles in the temple court, would Jesus really have waited for their return? More likely He would have left His embittered enemies, as before, since His hour had not yet come.

"I and the Father are one," He added solemnly. The meaning of these words was clear. In them He declared Himself not only the Messiah, but also God. The Pharisees certainly understood this. In the depth of their hearts, insofar as any feeling for truth remained in them, they could not fail to acknowledge the truth of these words on the basis of all that Christ had accomplished. But this destroyed their earthly dreams, and earthly interests were more important to them than anything, even truth itself. As wretched slaves of this world, they could not endure such exalted testimony. Again, as at the Feast of Tabernacles, they furiously seized stones, of which there were many near the unfinished temple structures. If His hour had already come, He would not have escaped the painful death later endured by His protomartyr Stephen.

“Again”: this points to Jn 8:59. “They took up stones”: the Greek expression here is stronger than in Jn 8:59. There it signifies more a threat; here, an impulse to carry that threat out. Thus, from time to time, the malice of Christ’s enemies against Him was expressed ever more strongly. There were hardly any stones in the porch itself. The enraged men had to go some distance to get them and open the circle in which they were holding the Lord (Jn 10:24). Perhaps the Lord used this moment to join Himself again to His disciples for greater safety from the furious enemies.

Verses 31-36. As before, the Jews took up stones to throw at Jesus for supposed blasphemy, Jn 8:57. "Many good works have I shown you from My Father; for which of them do you stone Me?" the Lord said to them. "Good works" are works of love, 1 Tim 6:18; Gen 44:4. They include the healing of various sick persons and the feeding of the hungry. The people bore witness of Him: "He has done all things well. He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak" (Mk 7:37). "I have shown from the Father" means by the power of the Father abiding in the Son. To show works is a Hebrew expression meaning to perform works, Ps 4:6; Ps 70:20; Ps 83:8. I have done many good works for you. For which of them do you wish to kill Me? What bitter lament, and what astonishing meekness, are in this question!

The true intention of the Jews was to kill the Lord under cover of trial and law, so that by a lawful sentence they might destroy the Lord's influence over the people. Yet at times, as in chapter 8 and here, malice seized them like men truly possessed. In the present case, however, we should note the following circumstance. The Lord was walking in Solomon's porch, where there were certainly no stones, since the gallery was probably paved with slabs. In this porch (vv. 23-24) the Jews surrounded the Lord. From where, then, did stones suddenly appear in their hands? We strongly suspect that the Jews who surrounded the Lord already had hidden stones with them. They surrounded Him with the direct intention of killing Him there on the spot.

By saying, “We are one, I and the Father,” He shows that there are Two whom He makes equal and joins together. Moreover, He added that He had shown many good works from the Father, for none of which He deserved to be stoned.