4 

4:13 Illiterate and uneducated men - Even by such men (though not by such only) hath God in all ages caused his word to be preached before the world.

4:17 Yet that it spread no farther - For they look upon it as a mere gangrene. So do all the world upon genuine Christianity.Let us severely threaten them - Great men, ye do nothing. They have a greater than you to flee to.

4:18 They charged them not to speak - Privately; nor teach - Publicly.

4:19 Whether it be just to obey you rather than God, judge ye - Was it not by the same spirit, that Socrates, when they werecondemning him to death, for teaching the people, said, "O ye Athenians, I embrace and love you; but I will obey God rather than you. And if you would spare my life on condition I should cease to teach my fellow citizens, I would die a thousand times rather than accept the proposal."

4:21 They all glorified God - So much wiser were the people than those who were over them.

5 

5:17 My Father worketh until now, and I work - From the creation till now he hath been working without intermission. I do likewise.This is the proposition which is explained Joh 5:19-30, confirmed and vindicated in Joh 5:31 and following verses.

5:18 His own Father - The Greek word means his own Father in such a sense as no creature can speak. Making himself equal with God - It is evident all the hearers so understood him, and that our Lord never contradicted, but confirmed it.

5:19 The Son can do nothing of himself - This is not his imperfection, but his glory, resulting from his eternal, intimate, indissoluble unity with the Father. Hence it is absolutely impossible, that the Son should judge, will, testify, or teach any thing without the Father, Joh 5:30, etc; Joh 6:38; Joh 7:16; or that he should be known or believed on, separately from the Father. And he here defends his doing good every day, without intermission, by the example of his Father, from which he cannot depart: these doth the Son likewise - All these, and only these; seeing he and the Father are one.

5:20 The Father showeth him all things that himself doth - A proof of the most intimate unity. And he will show him - By doing them.At the same time (not at different times) the Father showeth and doth, and the Son seeth and doth. Greater works - Jesus oftener terms them works, than signs or wonders, because they were not wonders in his eyes. Ye will marvel - So they did, when he raised Lazarus.

5:21 For - He declares which are those greater works, raising the dead, and judging the world. The power of quickening whom he will follows from the power of judging.These two, quickening and judging, are proposed Joh 5:21-22. The acquittal of believers, which presupposes judgment, is treated of Joh 5:24; the quickening some of the dead, Joh 5:25; and the general resurrection, Joh 5:28.

5:22 For neither doth the Father judge - Not without the Son: but he doth judge by that man whom he hath ordained, Act 17:31.

5:23 That all men may honour the Son, even as they honour the Father - Either willingly, and so escaping condemnation, by faith: or unwillingly, when feeling the wrath of the Judge. This demonstrates the EQUALITY of the Son with the Father. If our Lord were God only by office or investiture, and not in the unity of the Divine essence, and in all respects equal in Godhead with the Father, he could not be honoured even as, that is, with the same honour that they honoured the Father. He that honoureth not the Son - With the same equal honour, greatly dishonoureth the Father that sent him.

5:24 And cometh not into condemnation - Unless he make shipwreck of the faith.