John 10:22-42 | What's the connection?

There is a certain ironic connection going on in the history of this event. If we remember, this is going on during the Feast of Dedication. Part of what this commemorates is a deliverance from Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Now I want to take a moment to take a sympathetic stances for the Pharisees. They most certainly were wrong, but let us think how they thought for a moment.

The coming of the Messiah meant a new rule and reign for the vast majority of scholars at the time. They were not looking for the Suffering Servant; they were looking for the Conquering King. The claims that have been floating around of Jesus being the Messiah meant for most that He would over throw the Roman empire and establish His own rule and reign. They are looking at their next ruler. And form the contentions they have already had, this ruler is disregarding the rules they have conjured up on the basis of Scripture. Though they misused it, they were convinced they had the truth. And now, they interpret Jesus as making a very similar claim to Antiochus Epiphanes, a claim to be God. So let me break it down here for a moment.

A man comes into town, questioning the practices that the Jewish elite are teaching, leads His own disciples in a different view, is being set up as the next ruler and is making claims similar to the historical figure that was a dread upon Israel's history. They may have been thinking that this Jesus was being set up as the next Antiochus Epiphanes!

It should be made clear that the text does not tell us all of this explicitly, but I do think it is interesting to entertain what the mindset may have been for the opponents of Jesus. Nevertheless, Jesus does walk around their accusations.

The direction that Jesus' statement goes lands right along with the purpose of John's narrative: you must believe. This connects to the larger whole of John's writings. You cannot just think well of Him. You must belong to Him. You cannot simply believe that He did cool things. You must believe in His works so that you may know and believe the Father and Him are one.

What connections are you seeing?