Adam Clarke on John 3:13
Commentary and Critical Notes. Browse this work.
Read John 3. Compare commentaries on this chapter.
Source and publication rights
Public domain. Public Domain. Source edition.
Berean Blue opens December 1, 2026. Explore this passage in the app preview.
John3:13
No man hath ascended - This seems a figurative expression for, No man hath known the mysteries of the kingdom of God; as in Deu 30:12; Psa 73:17; Pro 30:4; Rom 11:34. And the expression is founded upon this generally received maxim: That to be perfectly acquainted with the concerns of a place, it is necessary for a person to be on the spot. But our Lord probably spoke to correct a false notion among the Jews, viz. that Moses had ascended to heaven, in order to get the law. It is not Moses who is to be heard now, but Jesus: Moses did not ascend to heaven; but the Son of man is come down from heaven to reveal the Divine will.
That came down - The incarnation of Christ is represented under the notion of his coming down from heaven, to dwell upon earth.
Which is in heaven - Lest a wrong meaning should be taken from the foregoing expression, and it should be imagined that, in order to manifest himself upon earth he must necessarily leave heaven; our blessed Lord qualifies it by adding, the Son of man who is in heaven; pointing out, by this, the ubiquity or omnipresence of his nature: a character essentially belonging to God; for no being can possibly exist in more places than one at a time, but He who fills the heavens and the earth.
Adam Clarke, Commentary and Critical Notes, John 3:13. Public domain.
Permanent link. Source edition.