For the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son,
Parallel Translations
-
For the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son,
-
Nether iudgeth the father eny man: but hath committed all iudgement vnto the sonne
-
For the Father iudgeth no man, but hath committed all iudgement vnto the Sonne,
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (23)
Passages linked to John 5:22 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- John 5:27 He also gave him authority to execute judgment, because he is a son of man.
- Acts 17:31 because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.”
- Matthew 28:18 Jesus came to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
- 2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ that each one may receive the things in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
- Acts 10:42 He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that this is he who is appointed by God as the Judge of the living and the dead.
- John 9:39 Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.”
- Romans 2:16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men, according to my Good News, by Jesus Christ.
- 2 Timothy 4:1 I command you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his Kingdom:
- John 17:2 even as you gave him authority over all flesh, so he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him.
- Psalms 96:13 before Yahweh; for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, the peoples with his truth.
- 1 Peter 4:5 They will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
- Psalms 9:7-8 But Yahweh reigns forever. He has prepared his throne for judgment. He will judge the world in righteousness. He will administer judgment to the peoples in uprightness.
- Psalms 98:9 Let them sing before Yahweh, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.
- Matthew 16:27 For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to everyone according to his deeds.
- John 3:35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand.
- Romans 14:10-12 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, “ ‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘to me every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess to God.’ ” So then each one of us will give account of himself to God.
- Ecclesiastes 11:9 Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
- Matthew 11:27 All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son, except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son desires to reveal him.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:7-10 and to give relief to you who are afflicted with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, punishing those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus, who will pay the penalty: eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes in that day to be glorified in his saints and to be admired among all those who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.
- Revelation 20:11-12 I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. There was found no place for them. I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and they opened books. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works.
- Psalms 50:3-6 Our God comes, and does not keep silent. A fire devours before him. It is very stormy around him. He calls to the heavens above, to the earth, that he may judge his people: “Gather my saints together to me, those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” The heavens shall declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge.
- Ecclesiastes 12:14 For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil.
- Matthew 25:31-46 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?’ “The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you didn’t give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and you didn’t take me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ “Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’ “Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to me.’ These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (17 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 22. For the Father judgeth no man. He now…
22. For the Father judgeth no man. He now states more clearly the general truth, that the Father governs the world in the person of the Son, and exercises dominion by his hand; for the Evangelist employs the word judgment, agreeably to the idiom of the Hebrew language, as denoting authority and power We now perceive the amount of what is stated here, that the Father hath given to the Son a kingdom, that he may govern heaven and earth according to his pleasure. But this might appear to be very absurd, that the Father, surrendering his right to govern, should remain unemployed in heaven, like a private person. The answer is easy. This is said both in regard to God and to men; for no change took place in the Father, when he appointed Christ to be supreme King and Lord of heaven and earth; for he is in the Son, and works in him. But since, when we wish to rise to God, all our senses immediately fail, Christ is placed before our eyes as a lively image of the invisible God. There is no reason, therefore, why we should toil to no purpose in exploring the secrets of heaven, since God provides for our weakness by showing himself to be near in the person of Christ; but, on the other hand, whenever the inquiry relates to the government of the world, to our own condition, to the heavenly guardianship of our salvation, let us learn to direct our eyes to Christ alone, as all power is committed to him, (Matthew 28:18,) and in his face God the Father, who would otherwise have been hidden and at a distance, appears to us so that the unveiled majesty of God does not swallow us up by its inconceivable brightness.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain These words are not so to be taken, as…
These words are not so to be taken, as though they simply denied that God governeth the world, but as the Jews imagined it, which separate the Father from the Son, whereas indeed, the Father doth not govern the world but only in the person of his Son, being made manifest in the flesh: so saith he afterward, verse 30, that he came not to do his own will: that his doctrine is not his own, John 7:16, that the blind man and his parents sinned not, etc., John 9:3.
This word (judgeth) is taken by the figure Synecdoche, for all government.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath…
22 For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
Ver. 22. The Father judgeth no man] viz. The Father alone, but by the Son, to whom all judicatory power is committed.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Alone he judgeth no man, he judgeth no man…
Alone he judgeth no man, he judgeth no man but by the Son, no man without the Son; but committed all judgment in the administration of the mediatory kingdom in the church to his Son, and by his Son will judge the world at the last day.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain A fourth instance of Christ’s godhead, and proof of…
A fourth instance of Christ’s godhead, and proof of his equality with the Father, is, That it is his work to judge the world: The Father, says Christ, judges no man: that is, no man without me, but all men by me, to this intent, That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father: that is, honour him with the same faith, love, fear, and worship, that is due and payable to God the Father.
Hence learn, 1. That Christ, as God, hath the absolute power of life and death, of absolution and condemnation, which he executes in conjunction with his Father.
Read full note →
2. That having this power of judging the world with the Father, doth shew that the same glory is due to him, which is due unto the Father. All men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father.
3. That such as pretend to honour Christ, but deny him to be God, equal with the Father, withdraw the highest honour from him: and such as withdraw the honour from the Son, deny it to the Father, who will not be honoured but in and through honouring of the Son. This text speaks dread and terror to the Socinians, who pretend to honour Christ, but not with the same honour with which they pretend to honour the Father: in God’s account they honour him not at all: For he that honoureth not the Son, honoureth not the Father. True, they pray to Christ, and give him divine worship, though they believe him to be but a creature; but what is this but idolatry, to worship that which by nature is not God, and to do that to a creature which God requires to be given to himself, having said, My glory will I not give unto another? Isa 48:11
Divine honour can be only due to a divine person; that is, to him that is God blessed for evermore.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For the Father judgeth no man,.... That is, without…
For the Father judgeth no man,.... That is, without the Son; which is another proof of their equality: for that he does judge is certain; he is the Judge of the whole earth; he is God that judgeth in the earth, or governs the world with his Son, who works together in the affairs of providence: he judged and condemned the old world, but not without his Son, who by his Spirit, or in his divine nature, went and preached to the spirits now in prison, then disobedient in the times of Noah; he judged and condemned Sodom and Gomorrah, but not without the Son; for Jehovah the Son rained, from Jehovah the Father, fire and brimstone upon those cities, and consumed them; he judged the people of Israel, and often chastised them for their sins, but not without his Son; the angel of his presence that went before them; he judges all men, and justifies and acquits whom he pleases, but not without his Son; but through his justifying righteousness, which he imputes to them; in doing which he appears to he a just judge, and to do right; and he will judge the world in righteousness at the last day by his Son, whom he has ordained; so as the Son does nothing without the Father, the Father does nothing without the Son, which shows perfect equality. The Jews had an officer in their sanhedrim, whom they called Ab Beth Din, or "the father of the house of judgment", to whom belonged the trying of causes, and of judging and determining them. Hence the Targumist on Sol 7:4 says,
, "and the father of the house of judgment", who judgeth thy judgments, or determines thy causes, is mighty over thy people, &c.''
Read full note →
Whether there may not be some allusion here to this officer, I leave to be considered:
but hath committed all judgment to the Son; as the judgment, or government of his church and people, especially under the Gospel dispensation; and which he exercises by giving ordinances peculiar to it, such as baptism and the Lord's supper; and by enacting laws, and prescribing rules for the discipline of his house, over which he is as a Son; and by appointing proper officers under him, over his churches, to administer these ordinances, and see that these laws are put in execution, which he qualifies them for, by bestowing proper gifts upon them: and he exercises this judgment, by protecting and defending his people from all their enemies, so that they well safely under his government: as also the general judgment of the world at the last day, is committed to him; which affair will be managed by Christ, the Son of God, when he comes a second time; he will then raise the dead, that everyone may receive for the things done in his body, whether good or evil; he will gather all nations before him, and all shall stand before his judgment seat, both great and small; he will separate one from another, the sheep from the goats, and set the one on his right hand, and the other on his left; he will bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, and show himself to be the searcher of the hearts, and the trier of the reins of the children of men, and will pass a most righteous and decisive sentence upon all: now for such a trust, and such a work as this, whether the particular government of the church, or the general judgment of the world, he would not be fit, was he not God equal with the Father; the thing he had suggested, and which he supports and maintains in this vindication of himself.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain For neither doth the Father judge - Not without…
For neither doth the Father judge - Not without the Son: but he doth judge by that man whom he hath ordained, Acts xvii, 31.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 22. The Father judgeth no man] This confirms…
Verse 22. The Father judgeth no man] This confirms what he had said before, Joh 5:17; Joh 5:19, that the Father acts not without the Son, nor the Son without the Father; their acts are common, their power equal.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Judgeth no man - Jesus in these verses is…
Judgeth no man - Jesus in these verses is showing his “equality with God.” He affirmed Joh 5:17 that he had the same power over the Sabbath that his Father had; in Joh 5:19, that he did the same things as the Father; in Joh 5:21 particularly that he had the same power to raise the dead. He now adds that God has given him the authority to “judge” men. The Father pronounces judgment on no one. This office he has committed to the Son. The power of judging the world implies ability to search the heart, and omniscience to understand the motives of all actions. This is a work which none but a divine being can do, and it shows, therefore, that the Son is equal to the Father.
Hath committed ... - Hath appointed him to be the judge of the world. In the previous verse he had said that he had power “to raise the dead;” he here adds that it will be his, also, to “judge” them when they are raised. See Matt. 25; Act 17:31.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Neither doth the Father judge any man. It is…
Neither doth the Father judge any man. It is certain that God is the Judge of all, by divers places of the holy Scriptures; and to judge, belongs both to the Father and to the Son, as they are the same God: so that when it is added, that the Father hath given all judgment to the Son,[6] this is meant of the exterior exercise of his judgment upon all mankind at the end of the world, in as much as Christ then will return, in his human body, to judge all men, even as man, in their bodies. (Witham)
===============================
Read full note →
[BIBLIOGRAPHY]
Omne judicium dedit filio. St. Augustine expounds it (trac. xxi.) sed judicium manifestum. Pater occultus erit judex, filius manifestus, quia mani feste ad judicium veniet.
====================
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain For the Father judgeth no man, &c.--rather, "For neither…
For the Father judgeth no man, &c.--rather, "For neither doth the Father judge any man," implying that the same "thing was meant in the former verse of the quickening of the dead"--both acts being done, not by the Father and the Son, as though twice done, but by the Father through the Son as His voluntary Agent.
all judgment--judgment in its most comprehensive sense, or as we should say, all administration.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 22. The Father—In his primitive essence.
22. The Father—In his primitive essence.
Judgeth no man—The manifestive act of judgment is performed by his Son; and even by that Son as Son of man, as well as Son of God.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 22. For the Father judgeth no man] Rather, For…
22. For the Father judgeth no man] Rather, For not even doth the Father (to Whom judgment belongs) judge any man. The Son therefore has both powers, to make alive whom He will, and to judge: but the second is only the corollary of first. Those whom He does not will to make alive are by that very fact judged, separated off from the living, and left in the death which they have chosen. He does not make them dead, does not slay them. They are spiritually dead already, and will not be made alive. Here, as in Joh_3:17-18, the judgment is one of condemnation; but this comes from the context, not from the word.
hath committed] Or, given; there is no reason for varying the common rendering.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (22) For the Father judgeth no man.—Better, For not…
(22) For the Father judgeth no man.—Better, For not even doth the Father judge any man; and if not the Father, to whom judgment belongs, then none other but the Son to whom He hath committed all judgment. To judge (comp. Joh_5:29) is the opposite of to quicken in the previous verse. The fact that the Son hath power to judge is correlative with His power to quicken whom He will. The spiritual life given to, and received by, some (Joh_5:24), is a separation from, and a judgment of, others. The eternal life which shall be given to some, shall be the eternal separation from, and exclusion of, others. The reason why judgment is committed to the Son is given in Joh_5:27 as resulting from His humanity. It is stated here as resulting from His divinity. It is that this power, like the quickening power of Joh_5:21, should lead all to give to the Son honour equal to that which they render to the Father. Again, this relation is urged against those who professed to honour God, and as a proof of it were seeking to kill His Son. That Sonship, expressing at once subordination and unity, necessarily involved the Fatherhood. To reject Him was to reject the Father who sent Him. (Comp. Joh_5:24; Joh_5:30; Joh_5:36-37.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain That ouv yelei is the point of connection with…
That ouv yelei is the point of connection with what follows, and that the Son quickeneth whom he willeth, is more clear, seeing that (gar) the Father even judges no man; judges no man apart from the Son. "Pater non judicat solus nec sine filio, judicat tamen (ver. 45; Rom_3:6)" (Bengel). The word krinei does not mean exclusively either "condemn" or "acquit," but the exercise of judicial functions which will either acquit or condemn. As in Joh_3:17, the "condemnation" is rather inferred than asserted. Moreover, we are there told that the Son was not sent into the world for the purpose of judgment, but for the larger purposes of salvation, and "to give eternal life." Nevertheless, "life" to some is judgment to others, and judgment even unto death is the obverse of the gift of life when the conditions of life are not found, in Joh_1:39 Christ declares that one solemn consequence of his coming was eiv krima , "unto judgment to reveal the final decisions of the Judge. How, then, shall we reconcile these apparently incongruous statements? Judgment unquestionably results from the rejection of the proffer of mercy. The judgment rests on those who say, "We see." Their sin remaineth. Those who are not willing to be made whole remain unhealed. Those who love darkness rather than light abide in the darkness. This is the judgment, but this judicial process was (not the end, but) the consequence of his mission. The Father"s ordinary providence, which is always passing judgment upon the lives of men, is now placed in the hands of "the Son." Howbeit he hath given the whole judgmenti.e. the judgment in all its partsto the Son. He has made the entire juridical process which brings to light the essential tendencies of human hearts, issue from the reception given by man to the Son. The whole question of right against wrong, of life versus death, acquittal against condemnation, is determined by the attitude of men towards the Son. In many passages this plenipotentiary endowment of "the Son" with functions, powers, authorities, is expressed by this same word ( dedwke), "he hath given". (ver. 36; Joh_3:35 Joh_6:37, 39 10:29 17:2, 4) Meyer limits the meaning of krinei to "condemnation," and Slier includes in it the separation of sin from the life of believers; but surely the judgment of the world is effected by the light that shines upon it, and the essence of the judgment (krisiv) is the discrimination which infallibly follows the revelation of the Father through the Son.
Vers. 22-27. The human Judge upon the Divine throne.
Read full note →
Many are the offices which it is appointed for the Son of man to hold. Yet they are all consistent one with another, and only a complete view of them can present Christ as he really is, and can elicit towards him all those sentiments which are justly due to him. If he is the Saviour of sinners and the Friend of his people, he is also the Lord of the earth and the Judge of all mankind.
I THE QUALIFICATIONS OF CHRIST AS JUDGE. As represented by himself, these are two.
1. His Divine ability of knowledge, of authority, of justice, in virtue of his nature as Son of God. This is asserted in the claim he makes in ver. 22 of equality with the Father, and of a consequent right to the same honour which is accorded to the Father.
2. His participation in our human nature implied in the designation "Son of man" in ver. 27. This true humanity of our Lord ensures that all judgment shall be conducted not only with Divine knowledge and equity, but with human sympathy and consideration.
II THE PERSONS OVER WHOM CHRIST EXERCISES HIS JUDICIAL FUNCTIONS. All mankind must stand at his bar; God hath committed all judgment unto him, and a day is appointed in which God will judge all men by the Man Christ Jesus. Friends and subjects, enemies and rebels, alike must receive sentence from his lips.
III THE PRINCIPLES WHICH DIRECT CHRIST"S JUDGMENT. Of these two may be mentioned.
1. The thoughts and intents of the heart are considered as well as outward actions.
2. With respect to those who have been privileged to hear the gospel, the all-important question is Did they receive or reject the Divine Mediator, the offer of Divine mercy?
IV THE INSTINCT PERIODS OF CHRIST"S JUDGMENT.
1. There is judgment here and now, as seems implied in ver. 22. Christ is ever passing judgment upon men, criticizing their character and their action, discriminating between the evil and the good, making allowance for human infirmities on the one hand, and for human endeavours on the other. It is well for us that Christ judges his people now; that when necessary he has a controversy with them; that he has words of reproach for the unfaithful, and words of encouragement for the depressed; that he chastens his people in kindness and with purposes of love. It is for them to submit themselves to their Lord, to bow before his chastising hand, to profit by his correction.
2. There is judgment hereafter. Life has to be considered, not only in detail, but as a whole. When it is finished, then is the time for it to be duly estimated and justly recompensed. Now, our Lord himself assures us that retribution in the life to come is his peculiar work. The anticipation of this process should quicken our spiritual diligence and solicitude. The sinner may well repent and seek acceptance, so that he may recognize his Saviour upon the judgment seat; and the Christian may well prepare to render in his account "with joy and not with grief. T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 22, 23. That all men should honour the Son.…
22, 23. That all men should honour the Son. Three “fors” occur in the 20th, 21st and 22d verses, all stating the exaltation given to the Son.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 5:22 In addition to giving life, Jesus claimed the…
5:22 In addition to giving life, Jesus claimed the absolute authority to judge, which belongs to God alone.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.