28 Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, saying, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.” 29 Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.” 30 Jesus answered and said, “This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.
For the third time in Jesus’ life the Father spoke directly from heaven. He did this previously at Jesus’ baptism and transfiguration.
12:28
Father, glorify Your name [revelation in Christ].”
Jesus prayed that the Father’s will be glorified by His death on the cross. The glory of the Father’s name was Jesus’ consuming concern. He would go to the cross because it would glorify the Father’s name. To glorify the “name” of the Father is to turn a spotlight on His attributes and work. He is worthy of praise.
Having looked death fully in the face, Jesus asked the Father to glorify His name with His death. The Son crucified is the Father glorified. It will show the Father’s overruling sovereignty.
Then a voice came from heaven, saying,
The Father spoke with a direct voice of revelation to the humanity of Christ. This is one of three instances where a direct voice came from heaven to speak in Jesus’ presence.
“I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”
The Father glorified His own name through Jesus’ life and would glorify it again when Jesus went to the cross, resurrection, and ascension. This was an affirmation that Jesus’ prayer was already answered by the Father. The Father would reinstate the Son in glory in His pre-incarnate status.
12:29
Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to Him.”
People speculated about the sound they heard. Evidently, they did not hear words but only the sound of the Father’s voice. Some theorized that it was an angel who spoke to Jesus. Neither theory was correct.
12:30
Jesus answered and said, “This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.
The Father’s voice declaration to Jesus was not for His sake but for His audience. How could the voice be for the benefit of the crowd if they did not understand what was said? It was not the content of what was said but the fact that the Father spoke to Jesus. The “voice” signaled something very important. If they did not recognize its significance, then they would miss something.
PRINCIPLE:
People have the option of positive or negative volition toward God.
APPLICATION:
The voice of God is heard only by those who have ears tuned to it (Ac 9:7; 22:9). Some people always shut down to what God has to say.
