Certain scenes in Sacred Scripture have a strong paradigmatic quality; they are particular gestures or statements that capture or summarize the sense of the whole, serving as “microcosms” of the broader literary narrative. Given John’s extended time for theological reflection and direct, personal experience of the incarnate Lord, his gospel is especially filled with such paradigmatic moments. I believe that the scene of Jesus’ washing the disciples’ feet in Jn 13 is one such scene. This scene is unique to John and sets the stage for his (extensive) account of the Last Supper discourses. The symbolic quality of Jesus’ gesture in washing his disciples’ feet is extraordinarily rich. In this brief essay, I will conduct an exegetical reflection on the text and draw out some parallels and connections to the rest of John’s gospel, as well as the rest of the New Testament.
Context
As mentioned, the washing of the feet sets the stage for the Last Supper. This scene marks the very beginning of John’s account of Jesus’ final meal with his apostles, which is quite long, spanning five (!) entire chapters (13-17). For John, evidently, the experience of this farewell meal with Jesus was absolutely decisive for his understanding of Jesus’ whole life, ministry, and death. The washing of the feet itself, along with the accompanying dialogue, is located in Jn 13:1-20. The context immediately preceding this in Chapter 12 is a controversy between Jesus and some of the Jews who do not believe in him. Jesus concludes by attributing the authority of his teaching to the Father Himself, and further stating that eternal life comes only from believing this word:
“For I have not spoken on my own authority; the Father who sent me has himself given me commandment what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has bidden me” (12:49-50).
Verse 13:1 serves as John’s introduction to the whole of the Last Supper. Alluding to Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer” to the Father in Ch. 17, this verse reads: “Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” With this beautiful introduction to the entire Passover meal, John is ready, with the two verses that follow, to introduce the specific event of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Like v. 1, vv. 2-3 are also pregnant with theological meaning, which John derives from Jesus’ later words during the meal. In v. 2, John provides yet another foreshadowing of Judas’ betrayal, which he has already mentioned explicitly two times by this point (6:71; 12:4). In v. 3, John reminds the reader of Jesus’ self-awareness of his divine origin, evidently basing this on words uttered by Jesus elsewhere: “Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands,(1 – see endnotes) and that he had come from God and was going to God…”(2) With this simple reminder that Jesus is fully aware of his mission and identity as coming from the Father, John instantly communicates to the reader the tremendous solemnity and significance of the words and gestures of Jesus that are about to take place. It is as if John is saying, “Now, remember exactly who this Jesus is who is about to kneel down on the ground and wash the dirt from his disciples’ feet with his own hands. Remember that the man who claims to come from God is the same one who is willing to do this deed of service.”
Framing the text: A descent-ascent pattern
Vv. 4 and 12 frame the beginning and end of the foot-washing with a kind of descent-ascent pattern. Specifically, v. 4 is the di-vesting and v. 12 the re-vesting. In v. 4 we read that Jesus “rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and tied a towel around himself.” Rose from supper. First, Jesus breaks from the group of disciples, he distinguishes himself from them, “rising” from the comfort and solemnity of the Passover meal. He is also breaking from traditional order of the Jewish meal, introducing a new cleansing “rite.” With the introduction of this novelty at the very beginning of the meal, Jesus already makes it clear to the disciples that this will not be a “normal” Passover. He laid aside his garments, and tied a towel around himself. An exchange takes place here. What is the Lord doing? He is dressed properly for the meal; his garments give a dignity to his appearance. These garments are not clothes for working, but clothes for a meal, and it is Passover after all. Why then is he removing his garments? Because he wants to perform a deed of service. But to do this, he must first expose himself; he must lower himself and remove his outer garment, the sign of his dignity. He not only removes his outer garments, but actively puts on a slave’s vesture: a towel. He does not merely hold the towel in his hand in order to use it, he ties it around himself. In a sense, he himself becomes the instrument for cleaning. In this we can perhaps see a foreshadowing of Jesus being stripped of his garments prior to his crucifixion; the one who will be stripped by the soldiers first willingly strips himself: Jesus “set aside [τίθησιν] his garments” (13:4) out of love before the Roman soldiers took [ἔλαβον] his garments” out of mockery. The Lord humiliates himself before he is humiliated. This initiative of Jesus calls to mind his words in the earlier Good Shepherd discourse of Jn 10: “No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord” (Jn 10:18).
“He emptied himself”: A Pauline parallel
Let’s turn now to the parallel verse that closes the pericope of the washing action, v. 12. Here we read, “When he had washed their feet, and taken his garments, and resumed his place…” Once the gesture is complete, Jesus takes his garments again and revests himself. Upon reflection, who can fail to see in this pattern of descent and ascent—of divesting and revesting—a beautiful and concrete illustration of the Pauline hymn in Philippians 2? There we read:
“[Christ Jesus], though he was in the form of God [ἐν μορφῇ θεοῦ], did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself [ἑαυτὸν ἐκένωσεν], taking the form of a slave [μορφὴν δούλου λαβών], being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself [ἐταπείνωσεν ἑαυτὸν] and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted [ὑπερύψωσεν] him…” (Php 2:6-9a).
There is a simple yet striking similarity between Jesus’ particular action of setting aside his garments to wash his disciples’ feet and his entire life’s mission, which involves “setting aside” his divinity, his divine right as one who is indeed “in the form of God”, in order to take on “the form of a slave.” Jesus’ “garments” represent his divinity, and the towel represents the human nature he assumes, that he “ties to himself.” Because of his love for the Father and obedience to Him, Jesus is willing to take the “form of a slave.” The Father accepts the Son’s loving offering of himself, “highly exalting him” (Php 2:9) and raising him back up to “his place” (Jn 13:12). This radical exchange of roles appears to overturn the cosmic order completely, and at first it is simply too much for Peter. His confusion and objection are quite understandable as an immediate reaction to the Lord’s self-abasement.
Peter’s objection
When Jesus arrives at Peter to wash his feet, Peter asks Jesus to explain his bizarre action: “Lord, do you wash my feet?” (v. 6b). In other words, “What are you doing, Lord?” The title “Lord” is particularly significant in this context. A “lord” does not perform such a dirty task of service, which is proper to a servant/slave. It is likewise beneath the dignity of a “teacher” to do this, especially for his own disciples. Jesus himself acknowledges that this is the normal order of relationships when moments later he says, “You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (vv. 13-14).(3)
Returning to the exchange between Peter and Jesus, Jesus encourages Peter to simply trust that what he does not understand now, he will understand later (v. 7). Peter does not immediately accept this reassurance, and instead he tries to give Jesus an ultimatum, “You shall never wash my feet” (v. 8a). This is very forceful language of negation: never. The Greek (Οὐ μὴ . . . εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα) has the sense of “Not in any way ever.” With this, Peter forces Jesus to appeal to his authority as “Teacher and Lord,” and to respond with an equally absolute but opposite statement, “If I do not wash you, you have no part in me” (v. 8b). The two wills collide. At this point, seeing that his very relationship with Jesus is at stake, Peter immediately gives in, blurting out (with his characteristic impulsiveness and excess), “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” (v. 9). Peter wants to prove himself to Jesus, to demonstrate that he is willing to go further than the rest of the disciples.(4) But Jesus reminds him that it is the Lord’s will that determines the proper response of the disciple, and therefore Peter has to accept Jesus and his way of loving, not try to manipulate him. Here we can see a parallel to the dramatic conclusion of the “Bread of Life” discourse in Jn 6. There Peter, speaking for all the apostles, submits to Jesus’ ultimatum once it becomes clear that their relationship with him depends on their acceptance of this teaching:
“After this many of his disciples drew back and no longer walked with him. Jesus said to the Twelve, “Will you also go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God” (6:66-69).
When Jesus says to the Twelve, “Will you also go away?”, he makes it perfectly clear that he is not willing to change the “hard saying” about eating his body and drinking his blood. Peter is a strong-willed man who does not always agree with what Jesus says immediately and without resistance. However, he is also loyal and trusts Jesus; he knows that his relationship with Jesus is paramount. If Peter’s own way of seeing and doing things puts his relationship with Jesus in jeopardy, he submits every time.
“Do you understand?” The scandal of divine love
Strangely, after telling Peter that he does not “know” what Jesus is doing and will not understand until “afterward” (13:7), Jesus then asks all the disciples, “Do you know what I have done to you?” (v. 12b). This seems to be a rhetorical question, the answer to which is “No.” The disciples do not yet understand what Jesus has done to them. At this point, they can only be shocked and grateful. Jesus has not abolished the reality of the master-slave relationship; he truly does have a right to have his feet washed by his disciples (v. 13). In fact, it is precisely because Jesus has this right that his act of service is so radical. Jesus is revealing to the disciples (and by extension, to the world) that the height of divine love is manifested in the depths to which it is willing to travel, that ascent of glory is revealed in the descent of self-emptying love, that exaltation is the fruit of kenosis.
Jesus tells the disciples that they must imitate his example of love and wash each other’s feet (vv. 14-15). In recording this commandment to love in imitation of Jesus, John is communicating to the reader one of the central insights and messages of the entire Johannine corpus, that is, that only the one who loves can understand divine love. Only a faith that is lived out in love will be open to the grace to understand God’s love:
“If any one says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love his brother also” (1 Jn 4:20-21).
Notes
1. “the Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand” (Jn 3:35); “The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son” (5:22); “All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out” (6:37); “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand” (10:29); “everything that you have given me is from you” (17:6); “all mine are yours, and yours are mine” (17:10).
2. “I know where I have come from and where I am going” (Jn 8:14) “I go to the Father” (14:12); “I go to the Father” (14:28); “But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, “Where are you going?”“ (16:5); “I go to the Father, and you will see me no more” (16:8-10); “And now I am no more in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you” […] “But now I am coming to you” (17:11, 13).
3. While he does not recount the actual event of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet, Luke almost seems to allude to this in the same context of the Last Supper. In his account, Jesus says: “let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For which is the greater, one who sits at table, or one who serves? Is it not the one who sits at table? But I am among you as one who serves” (Lk 22:26-27). Clearly, there were many ways in which Jesus “served” his disciples, but the language here referring to serving is relatively similar to that found in John.
4. We will see this desire to “go further” later in the same chapter: “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you” (Jn 13:37).
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