Joh 12:23-28 | TNotes | STEP | 12:23 Jesus often said that the time (literally the hour ) had not yet come (2:4 ; 7:30 ; 8:20 ), but now it had. The coming of the Greeks also marked the beginning of the key moment in Jesus’ ministry—the time of his glorification. This occurred when Jesus’ sacrificial work on the cross was completed (19:30 ), he rose from the dead (20:1-31 ), he gave the Spirit (20:22 ), and he returned to his place of glory in heaven (17:5 , 11 ). The connection with the Greeks who had come to Jerusalem (12:20 ) was significant: Jesus’ ministry among the Jews alone was finished and he now belonged to the wider world.

12:23 ^a Jesus often said that the time (literally the hour) had not yet come (2:4 ^b; 7:30 ^c; 8:20 ^d), but now it had. The coming of the Greeks also marked the beginning of the key moment in Jesus’ ministry—the time of his glorification. This occurred when Jesus’ sacrificial work on the cross was completed (19:30 ^e), he rose from the dead (20:1-31 ^f), he gave the Spirit (20:22 ^g), and he returned to his place of glory in heaven (17:5 ^h, 11 ⁱ). The connection with the Greeks who had come to Jerusalem (12:20 ^j) was significant: Jesus’ ministry among the Jews alone was finished and he now belonged to the wider world.
12:24 ^k The central event of Jesus’ glorification (12:23 ^l) was the cross. As with a kernel ... planted in the soil, Jesus’ death would bring abundant life.
12:25 ^m For disciples, sacrifice and self-effacement are means of gaining the fullness of life provided by Jesus’ sacrifice. Those who renounce the world will join Jesus in eternity and be honored by God just as Jesus is.
12:27 ⁿ my soul is deeply troubled: John used the same term (Greek tarassō) to describe Jesus’ strong emotion of agony before Lazarus’ tomb (11:33 ^o; also 13:21 ^p). When Jesus stood before death, he could not be impassive. Jesus experienced genuine anguish, yet he remained strong in obedience to the Father’s will (5:19-23 ^q; 6:37 ^r; 8:29 ^s, 38 ^t; 14:31 ^u).
12:28 ^v a voice spoke from heaven: Cp. Matt 3:17 ^w; 17:5 ^x; Mark 1:11 ^y; 9:7 ^z; Luke 3:22 ^aa; 9:35 ^ab.

• God had already brought glory to himself when Christ entered the world (John 1:14 ^ac) and through Jesus’ work, which showed God’s power to the world.

• I will do so again: The final display of glory would come at the cross (see 12:23 ^ad; 17:1 ^ae). In John, the cross is an event of glory as Christ was “lifted up” (12:32 ^af) and glorified there. Jesus was prepared for crucifixion like a king coming to his coronation; the cross was like a throne (see 19:19-22 ^ag), and he was buried like royalty. Jesus’ time of glorification included the entire sequence from arrest through resurrection.