Matthew 24:13
John 10:28-29
28. I give unto them eternal life—not "will give them"; for it is a present gift. (See on Joh 3:36; Joh 5:24). It is a very grand utterance, couched in the language of majestic authority.
29. My Father, which gave them me—(See on Joh 6:37-39).
is greater than all—with whom no adverse power can contend. It is a general expression of an admitted truth, and what follows shows for what purpose it was uttered, "and none is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand." The impossibility of true believers being lost, in the midst of all the temptations which they may encounter, does not consist in their fidelity and decision, but is founded upon the power of God. Here the doctrine of predestination is presented in its sublime and sacred aspect; there is a predestination of the holy, which is taught from one end of the Scriptures to the other; not, indeed, of such a nature that an "irresistible grace" compels the opposing will of man (of course not), but so that that will of man which receives and loves the commands of God is produced only by God's grace (OLSHAUSEN—a testimony all the more valuable, being given in spite of Lutheran prejudice).1 Corinthians 10:12
12. thinketh he standeth—stands and thinks that he stands [BENGEL]; that is, stands "by faith . . . well pleasing" to God; in contrast to 1Co 10:5, "with many of them God was not well pleased" (Ro 11:20).
fall—from his place in the Church of God (compare 1Co 10:8, "fell"). Both temporally and spiritually (Ro 14:4). Our security, so far as relates to God, consists in faith; so far as relates to ourselves, it consists in fear.
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