JESUS WASHES the DISCIPLES FEET

JESUS WASHES the DISCIPLES FEET

The curtain rises on Act Two of John’s drama, yet slowly. Now that the ‘hour’ has finally come, time slows down. Act One and the interlude (chs. 1—12) have taken over two years, with two previous Passovers (2:13; 6:4). Act Two (chs. 13—19) covers just 24 hours: John is making a meal of it—literally! The dinner lasts until Jesus’ arrest, so it is the last supper on Thursday night before the crucifixion. The other gospels imply that it was a Passover meal, but Jn. 18:28 suggests Passover is not eaten until the next day. John portrays it like an ancient dinner party or symposium (literally ‘drinking together’), where people discussed ideas over food and drink, which gives us ‘symposium’ to mean an academic gathering for debate…