వ్యాఖ్యానం ప్రస్తుతం ఆంగ్లంలో మాత్రమే అందుబాటులో ఉంది. తెలుగు అనువాదం పురోగతిలో ఉంది.
John 17 — The High Priestly Prayer
The longest prayer of Jesus recorded in the Gospels. He prays first for Himself, then for His disciples, then for everyone who would believe through their word. We are in this prayer.
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
— John 17:3
- v.1-5 Jesus prays for Himself — restore the glory
- v.6-19 He prays for His disciples — keep them, sanctify them
- v.20-26 He prays for all who will believe — that they may be one
The High Priest praying for His people before going to His sacrifice. The order matters — He prayed for them before He died for them.
Notice the security of the believer here. The Father keeps us, in His name, on the strength of the Son's prayer. Our security is the triune God Himself.
Important clarification. Jesus does not pray for our extraction; He prays for our preservation in place. Christians are not meant to flee the world but to be kept inside it.
The mission is not escape but witness. We are sent into the world (verse 18), and kept while sent.
The means of sanctification — the truth, which is identified with the Word of God. Holiness is not produced by mystical experience or moral effort, but by the Word working in the believer.
A Christian growing without Scripture is a contradiction in terms. The Word sanctifies; nothing else does to the same degree.
The most encouraging verse in the chapter for the rest of us. Jesus prayed specifically for those who would come to faith through the apostles' word — that is, the New Testament. Every Christian who has ever lived has been included in this prayer.
When you doubt your salvation, remember: Jesus prayed for you, by name as it were, the night before He died. The prayer of the Son of God on your behalf has been answered.
Read John 17 slowly and notice — every "them" and "they" in verses 20-26 is you. The Son of God prayed for you by name in essence. Let that sink in until it changes how you walk through your day.
The whole chapter is Christ's prayer. The High Priest who would offer Himself a few hours later first interceded for those He was about to die for. He is still doing both — He ever liveth to make intercession (Hebrews 7:25).
Jesus defines eternal life Himself — not as endless duration but as relational knowledge of the Father and the Son.
"Know" in biblical Hebrew (yada) and Greek (ginosko) means experiential, intimate knowledge. Not "know about" but "know personally."
You can be religious without knowing Him. You can attend church for fifty years and not know Him. Eternal life is not membership; it is knowing.