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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Joh_13:31-35
31Therefore when he had gone out, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in Him; 32if God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and will glorify Him immediately. 33Little children, I am with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, now I also say to you, 'Where I am going, you cannot come.' 34A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
Joh_13:31-38 These verses form part of a larger context of a series of questions by the disciples (cf. Joh_13:36; Joh_14:5; Joh_14:8; Joh_14:22; Joh_16:17-19) asked in the dialogue of the Upper Room the night of the Lord's Supper. It is obvious that Jesus' statements about going away caused the Apostles to have many questions based on the their misunderstanding of Jesus' words.
1. Peter (Joh_13:36)
2. Thomas (Joh_14:5)
3. Philip (Joh_14:8)
4. Judas (not Iscariot) (Joh_14:22)
5. some of His disciples (Joh_16:17-19)
Joh_13:31 "the Son of Man" This was Jesus' chosen self-designation. The background is from Eze_2:1 and Dan_7:13. It implies human and divine characteristics. Jesus used it because the term was unused in rabbinical Judaism, therefore, it had no nationalistic or militaristic implications and it combined His two natures (cf. 1Jn_4:1-3).
Joh_13:32 There is a Greek manuscript variant in this verse. The longer text is found in NASB, NKJV, NRSV, TEV, and NJB. It is supported by the manuscripts à c, A, C2, K, and the Textus Receptus. It ("if God is glorified in him") is left out in the MSS P66, à *, B, C*, D, L, W, and X. These seem to be the better set of manuscripts. But it is possible that scribes were confused by the parallelism and just omitted the first phrase.
▣ "glorified" The term is used four or five times in Joh_13:31-32 -two or three times in the aorist tense and twice in the future tense. It refers to God's plan of redemption through Jesus' death and resurrection (cf. Joh_7:39; Joh_12:16; Joh_12:23; Joh_17:1; Joh_17:5). Here it refers to the upcoming events in Jesus' life. They are so certain to occur that they are expressed as if they were past events (aorists). See note at Joh_1:14.
Joh_13:33 "Little children" John, writing as an old man from the city or area of Ephesus, uses this same title to address his hearers/readers in 1Jn_2:1; 1Jn_2:12; 1Jn_2:28; 1Jn_3:7; 1Jn_3:18; 1Jn_4:4; 1Jn_5:21. Here, Jesus' metaphor is another way to identify Him with the Father. He is father, brother, savior, friend, and Lord. Or to put it another way, He is both transcendent Deity and immanent companion.
▣ "I am with you only a little while longer. . .and as I said to the Jews" Jesus had said this to the Jewish leaders several months earlier (cf. Joh_7:33); now He says it to His Apostles (cf. Joh_12:35; Joh_14:19; Joh_16:16-19). Therefore, it is obvious that the time element is somewhat ambiguous.
▣ "Where I am going, you cannot come" The Jewish leaders could not come at all (cf. Joh_7:34; Joh_7:36; Joh_8:21). The disciples would not be with Him until their deaths. Death, or the rapture, will unite His followers with Him (cf. 2Co_5:8; 1Th_4:13-18).
Joh_13:34 "A new commandment I give to you that you love one another" "To love one another" was not a new commandment (cf. Lev_19:18; for "commandment" see Special Topic at Joh_12:50). What was new was that believers were to love each other as Jesus loved them (cf. Joh_15:12; Joh_15:17; 1Jn_2:7-8; 1Jn_3:11; 1Jn_3:16; 1Jn_3:23; 1Jn_4:7-8; 1Jn_4:10-12; 1Jn_4:19-20; 2Jn_1:5).
The gospel is a person to be welcomed, a body of truths to be believed, and a life to be lived (cf. Joh_14:15; Joh_14:21; Joh_14:23; Joh_15:10; Joh_15:12; 1Jn_5:3; 2Jn_1:5-6; Luk_6:46). The gospel is received, believed, and lived out! It is lived out in love or it is not lived out!
I like Bruce Corley's statement in his article "Biblical Theology of the New Testament" in the hermeneutics book Foundations For Biblical Interpretation: "Christ's people are characterized by the ethic of love, whereby the 'is-ness' of grace is linked to the 'ought-ness' of love through the work of the Spirit (cf. Gal_5:6; Gal_5:25; Gal_6:2; Jas_3:17-18; Joh_13:34-35; 1Jn_4:7)" (p. 562).
Joh_13:35 "By this all men will know that you are My disciples" Love is the one characteristic that Satan cannot counterfeit. Believers are to be characterized by love (cf. 1Jn_3:14; 1Jn_4:7-21).
▣ "if"This is a third class conditional sentence which means potential action. Our actions toward other Christians confirm our relationship with Jesus (cf. 1Jn_2:9-11; 1Jn_4:20-21).