John 17 Teaches Particular Redemption
In His high priestly prayer in John 17, Jesus states, “I pray for them:
I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine” (9). The “world” here is the world of the reprobate or non-elect for whom the incarnate Son of God does not pray, as opposed to the elect (“them which thou hast given me”).
If the Lord did not do the lesser thing (pray for the reprobate world), did He really do the greater thing (die for the reprobate world)?
Intercession is one of the two main aspects of Christ’s priestly work. If Jesus did not pray for the world (one aspect of His priestly work), is it possible that He died for the world (the other aspect of His priestly work)? This would destroy the unity of Christ’s priestly office, for He would be dying for those for whom He did not (and does not) intercede. Furthermore, the Saviour prays
on the basis of His finished work of redemption (
Isa. 53:12;
Rom. 8:34;
Heb. 7:25-27;
9:24-26). Therefore, if He did not pray for the world, it is because He did not die for the world.
In John 17, Jesus is praying just hours before the cross and with a view to His sacrificial death, for He says, “Father,
the hour is come” (1). Throughout John 17, Christ’s prayers and, therefore, His redeeming work are particular, only for the elect, those whom the Father gave Him (2, 6, 9, 11, 12, 24). Our Lord’s prayers that the Father keep (11-16), sanctify (17-19), unite (20-23) and glorify (24-26) “as many as thou hast given him” (2) are powerfully answered, for we are granted “eternal life” (2-3).
Jesus says, “And
for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified” (19). Christ’s sanctifying Himself is His consecrating and dedicating Himself to do the will of Him who sent Him. Our Lord especially set Himself apart as our willing sacrifice on the cross. This, He tells us, was “for
their sakes,” for those whom the Father gave Him, the elect. Thus Christ’s prayers and sacrifice are not only particular—”for them which thou hast given me” (9)—but also exclusive, “not for the world” (9). By AS 3