John 13:21-33, 36-38
Chapter 13
Announcement of the Betrayal
The disciples then looked at one another, wondering whom he meant.
One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved, was reclining near Jesus;
so Simon Peter signaled him to ask Jesus whom he meant.
The disciple, who was reclining near Jesus, asked him:
“LORD, who is it?”
Jesus answered:
“I shall dip a piece of bread in the dish, and he to whom I give it is the one.”
So Jesus dipped the bread in the dish and gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
As Judas took the piece of bread, Satan entered into him.
Jesus then said to him:
“What you are going to do, do quickly.”
None of the others reclining at the table understood why Jesus had said this to Judas.
As Judas had the common purse, they may have thought that Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or “Give something to the poor.”
Judas left as soon as he had eaten the bread. It was night.
Brotherly Love
When Judas had gone out, Jesus said:
“Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and will glorify him at once.
My children, I am with you for only a little while; you will look for me, but as I already told the Jews, now I tell you: where I am going you cannot come.
Simon Peter asked him:
“LORD, where are you going?”
Jesus answered:
“Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, but afterward you will.”
Peter said:
“LORD, why can’t I follow you now? I am ready to give my life for you.”
“To give your life for me?”
Jesus asked Peter.
“Truly I tell you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times.”
Commentaries
Announcement of the Betrayal.
We can identify four key aspects of this scene: 1. The anxious love of the true disciples in the face of Jesus’ denunciation, especially of the “beloved disciple.” 2. The influence of Satan working within the hearts of humans. 3. The sacredness of the moment, as Jesus does not passively endure the betrayal but instead gives the command to begin. 4. The peak of the betrayal and Judas’ departure occurs at nightfall. “It was night,” the Gospel notes, because Jesus’ death had already started. Outside the Upper Room, it is night; but inside, once the genuine community of disciples is formed, the light will shine brighter than ever.
Brotherly Love.
Love is, above all, a gift and revelation from Jesus Christ to his disciples, rather than a task and commandment (“I give you a commandment”). It belongs to him (this is “my” commandment). It is new not because of the time—the precept of brotherly love already existed in the Old Testament (Lv 19:17ff)—but because Jesus fills it with newness, because of its quality and characteristics: it is a love without measure, because he has loved us to the point of giving his life for us.