John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Jesus calls this a "new" commandment, not because love itself was new to God's people, but because the motive and standard for it were unprecedented. The way He loved them – self-sacrificially, to the point of laying down His own life – set an entirely new, radical benchmark for how His followers were to love each other.
Moments after Judas has left to betray him, Jesus gathers his disciples for a final meal. He's just finished washing their feet, a profound act of service, and now he's preparing them for his imminent departure. He speaks of his impending glory and the Father's glorification through his sacrificial death, while also gently warning them that they cannot follow him immediately.
Jesus calls His command to love 'new,' but didn't the Old Testament already say 'love your neighbor'? What makes this command so different?
The commandment to love wasn't invented by Jesus. The Old Testament law, specifically Leviticus 19:18, already stated, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' However, Jesus gives this command a radical newness in several ways:
Jesus gave His disciples many teachings. Why was this particular command so crucial that it would become the ultimate identifier of His followers?
In the moments before His crucifixion, Jesus gives His disciples a 'new commandment' that is central to their identity and mission. He declares, 'By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.'
This wasn't just a suggestion; it was a directive for unmistakable identification. In a world often characterized by division and self-interest, the early Christian community was meant to stand out through radical, selfless love for one another.
This love wasn't passive; it was an active demonstration of Christ's presence and work within them, a testament to the transforming power of the Gospel.
Understand the original words
entolē · Greek Noun
A divine directive or mandate that carries the authority of God. In this context, it is 'new' because it is defined by the unique, sacrificial pattern of Christ’s love rather than the old standards of self-preservation.
agapaō · Greek Verb
A sacrificial, self-giving love (agape) that seeks the highest good of the other, patterned specifically after the way Christ loved the Church—sacrificially, unconditionally, and redemptively.
mathētēs · Greek Noun
A learner, apprentice, or follower. In the New Testament, it signifies one who has identified with Jesus Christ, committed to His teachings, and aims to imitate His life and character.
This command was given in the intimate final hours before Jesus' crucifixion. The disciples were about to face intense persecution and separation from their Master. Jesus' emphasis on mutual love served as a vital instruction for their unity and witness in a hostile world, a testament to the transformative power of His own sacrificial love.
c. 30 AD— this verse
Last Supper
Jesus institutes the Lord's Supper and washes the disciples' feet, just before His betrayal and arrest.
c. 30 AD
Jesus' Arrest and Crucifixion
Jesus is betrayed by Judas, arrested, tried, and crucified on Passover.
c. 30 AD
Jesus' Resurrection
Jesus is raised from the dead on the third day, appearing to His disciples over 40 days.
c. 33 AD
Pentecost
The Holy Spirit descends upon the disciples, empowering them to spread the Gospel and live out Christ's teachings.
c. 48-50 AD
This passage directly links love to our divine origin, echoing Jesus' command in John 13:34 that love is the defining characteristic of His followers.
Leviticus 19:18This Old Testament verse states, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' providing the foundational principle that Jesus builds upon and redefines with His own example in John 13:34.
Galatians 5:13Here, Paul connects freedom in Christ to serving one another through love, illustrating the practical outworking of the 'new commandment' Jesus gave, emphasizing selfless service.
1 John 3:16This verse unpacks the depth of Jesus' love by referencing His willingness to lay down His life, directly mirroring the standard of love Jesus sets for His disciples in John 13:34.
Matthew 22:39Jesus reiterates the command to love your neighbor as yourself, but John 13:34 adds a crucial layer by providing Christ's own sacrificial love as the *model* and *motivation* for that love.
vincentJohn 13:34: "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another."
New (καινὴν)See on Matthew 26:29.Commandment (ἐντολὴν)The word for a single commandment or injunction, but used also for the whole body of the moral precepts of Christianity. See 1 Timothy 6:14; 2 Peter 2:21; 2 Peter 3:2. See also on James 2:8. This new commandment embodies the essential principle of the whole law. Compare also 1 John 3:23. Some interpreters instead…
calvinJohn 13:30-35: "He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night."
- When, therefore, he had received the sop, he went immediately out; and it was night. 31. When, therefore, he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and will immediately glorify him. 33. Little children, but a little while am I yet with you. You shall seek me, and as I said to the Jews,…
Jesus calls this a "new" commandment, not because love itself was new to God's people, but because the motive and standard for it were unprecedented. The way He loved them – self-sacrificially, to the point of laying down His own life – set an entirely new, radical benchmark for how His followers were to love each other.
Moments after Judas has left to betray him, Jesus gathers his disciples for a final meal. He's just finished washing their feet, a profound act of service, and now he's preparing them for his imminent departure. He speaks of his impending glory and the Father's glorification through his sacrificial death, while also gently warning them that they cannot follow him immediately.
Moments after Judas has left to betray him, Jesus gathers his disciples for a final meal. He's just finished washing their feet, a profound act of service, and now he's preparing them for his imminent departure. He speaks of his impending glory and the Father's glorification through his sacrificial death, while also gently warning them that they cannot follow him immediately.
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"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”" — Jesus calls this a "new" commandment, not because love itself was new to God's people, but because the motive and standard for it were unprecedented. The way He loved them – self-sacrificially, t…
