John 13:2

13:2 The evening meal ¹  was in progress, and the devil had already put into the heart ²  of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray ³  Jesus. ⁴ 

John 13:4

13:4 he got up from the meal, removed ⁵  his outer clothes, ⁶  took a towel and tied it around himself. ⁷ 

John 12:2

12:2 So they prepared a dinner for Jesus ⁸  there. Martha ⁹  was serving, and Lazarus was among those present at the table ¹⁰  with him.

John 21:20

Peter and the Disciple Jesus Loved

21:20 Peter turned around and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. ¹¹  (This was the disciple ¹²  who had leaned back against Jesus’ ¹³  chest at the meal and asked, ¹⁴  “Lord, who is the one who is going to betray you?”) ¹⁵ 

[13:2]  ¹ tn Or “Supper.” To avoid possible confusion because of different regional English usage regarding the distinction between “dinner” and “supper” as an evening meal, the translation simply refers to “the evening meal.”

[13:2]  ² sn At this point the devil had already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray Jesus. C. K. Barrett (St. John, 365) thought this was a reference to the idea entering the devil’s own heart, but this does not seem likely. It is more probable that Judas’ heart is meant, since the use of the Greek article (rather than a possessive pronoun) is a typical idiom when a part of one’s own body is indicated. Judas’ name is withheld until the end of the sentence for dramatic effect (emphasis). This action must be read in light of 13:27, and appears to refer to a preliminary idea or plan.

[13:2]  ³ tn Or “that he should hand over.”

[13:2]  ⁴ tn Grk “betray him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:4]  ⁵ tn Grk “and removed”; the conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has been left untranslated here for improved English style.

[13:4]  ⁶ tn The plural τὰ ἱμάτια (ta Jimatia) is probably a reference to more than one garment (cf. John 19:23-24). If so, this would indicate that Jesus stripped to a loincloth, like a slave. The translation “outer clothes” is used to indicate that Jesus was not completely naked, since complete nudity would have been extremely offensive to Jewish sensibilities in this historical context.

[13:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “taking a towel he girded himself.” Jesus would have wrapped the towel (λέντιον, lention) around his waist (διέζωσεν ἑαυτόν, diezwsen Jeauton) for use in wiping the disciples’ feet. The term λέντιον is a Latin loanword (linteum) which is also found in the rabbinic literature (see BDAG 592 s.v.). It would have been a long piece of linen cloth, long enough for Jesus to have wrapped it about his waist and still used the free end to wipe the disciples’ feet.

[12:2]  ⁹ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity and to conform with contemporary English style.

[12:2]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “And Martha.” The connective καί (kai, “and”) has been omitted in the translation because it would produce a run-on sentence in English.

[12:2]  ¹¹ tn Grk “reclining at the table.”

[21:20]  ¹³ tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[21:20]  ¹⁴ tn The words “This was the disciple” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied for clarity.

[21:20]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:20]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “and said.”

[21:20]  ¹⁷ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.