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Bible Notes - Tabernacle Commentaries
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John 1:46
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But then Nathanael asks – ‘Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?’ He is not saying anything derogatory about Nazareth, though many people did. It was an obscure place, a nothing place. But this is not prejudice, but disappointment, even perplexity. What he means is: ‘It does not say that Christ will come from Nazareth in Scripture. I thought you were going to tell me of some place mentioned in prophecy. This cannot be right,’ and he was correct, of course. But he did not know that Jesus of Nazareth did not come from Nazareth. He was born in Bethlehem according to the Scripture, but he did not realise that. Philip did not seem to know the answer yet either, so he simply says, Come and see. Philip does not say, ‘Forget about the Bible’ but ‘Come and see’. We have heard him speak, seen how he behaves; there is no one like him. If you just see him, all your doubts will be answered and met. So in spite of his reservations, Nathaniel still goes with Philip. But his encounter with Christ dispels them all.
Application
Someone witnesses to you and you listen, but Christ must speak to your soul before you can be certain. When people raise objections to Christ, we may try to answer some of them, but ultimately we say, ‘Come to Christ and let him explain it all.’ No one is ever converted unless they come and see.
Questions
Why is Nathaniel not mentioned in Matthew, Mark or Luke? By comparing the lists of the apostles in the other three gospels we see that Nathaniel and Bartholomew are the same person. Bartholomew is paired with Philip in the other gospels whenever the disciples are named and when they are sent out to preach. Bartholomew is a patronymic name – son of Tolmai – which acts as a surname.
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Purpose
Introduction