INTRO TO THE GOSPEL OF JOHN, Sarah Barry
JESUS PRAYS FOR HIS DISCIPLES
Passage: John 17:6~19  
Key verse: 18
Jesus Prays for His Disciples6 “I have revealed you[a](A) to those whom you gave me(B) out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me(C) and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you,(D) and they believed that you sent me.(E) 9 I pray for them.(F) I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me,(G) for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.(H) And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world,(I) and I am coming to you.(J) Holy Father, protect them by the power of[b] your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one(K) as we are one.(L) 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by[c] that name you gave me. None has been lost(M) except the one doomed to destruction(N) so that Scripture would be fulfilled.(O)
13 “I am coming to you now,(P) but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy(Q) within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them,(R) for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.(S) 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.(T) 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.(U) 17 Sanctify them by[d] the truth; your word is truth.(V) 18 As you sent me into the world,(W) I have sent them into the world.(X) 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.(Y)
6 “I have revealed you[a](A) to those whom you gave me(B) out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me(C) and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you,(D) and they believed that you sent me.(E) 9 I pray for them.(F) I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me,(G) for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.(H) And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world,(I) and I am coming to you.(J) Holy Father, protect them by the power of[b] your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one(K) as we are one.(L) 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by[c] that name you gave me. None has been lost(M) except the one doomed to destruction(N) so that Scripture would be fulfilled.(O)
13 “I am coming to you now,(P) but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy(Q) within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them,(R) for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.(S) 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.(T) 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.(U) 17 Sanctify them by[d] the truth; your word is truth.(V) 18 As you sent me into the world,(W) I have sent them into the world.(X) 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.(Y)
Footnotes
- John 17:6 Greek your name
- John 17:11 Or Father, keep them faithful to
- John 17:12 Or kept them faithful to
- John 17:17 Or them to live in accordance with
Cross references
- John 17:6 : ver 26; Jn 1:18
- John 17:6 : S ver 2
- John 17:8 : ver 14, 26; S Jn 14:24
- John 17:8 : S Jn 13:3
- John 17:8 : ver 3, 18, 21, 23, 25; S Jn 3:17
- John 17:9 : Lk 22:32
- John 17:9 : S ver 2
- John 17:10 : Jn 16:15
- John 17:11 : Jn 13:1
- John 17:11 : ver 13; Jn 7:33
- John 17:11 : ver 21-23; Ps 133:1
- John 17:11 : Jn 10:30
- John 17:12 : S Jn 6:39
- John 17:12 : Jn 6:70
- John 17:12 : S Mt 1:22
- John 17:13 : ver 11
- John 17:13 : S Jn 3:29
- John 17:14 : Jn 15:19
- John 17:14 : ver 16; Jn 8:23
- John 17:15 : S Mt 5:37
- John 17:16 : ver 14
- John 17:17 : S Jn 15:3; 2Sa 7:28; 1Ki 17:24
- John 17:18 : ver 3, 8, 21, 23, 25; S Jn 3:17
- John 17:18 : Jn 20:21
- John 17:19 : ver 17
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source:  BibleGateway
1. I have revealed you to them (6-8)
Jesus talked with God about the men whom God had given him. He had revealed God to them by giving them God's word and training them in obedience. The purpose of his training was to teach them faith by planting God's word in their hearts (6,8,14). Jesus had prayed for them, and he had been their shepherd. Now it was time for them to become disciple-makers and shepherds (18). He could only commit them to God in prayer.
2. Prayer topics for the disciples (9-18)
Jesus did not pray for them to have easy lives. He gave them back to God. The devil would attack them by trying to destroy their love for one another. Jesus prayed that God would protect them from the evil one by the power of his name, and help them to be one. They must live in the world, but they must not be worldly. They must live according to the truth--not according to the shallow pragmatism of the world (17). Jesus died to make them holy.
Prayer: Lord, sanctify me by your truth and help me be a disciple-maker and shepherd.
One Word: Sent by Jesus into the world