Next day. That is, the day after the events of vs. 19-28. Detailed and often precise chronological information is characteristic of John (see chs. 1:29, 39, 43; 2:1, 12; 4:43; 6:22; 11:6, 17; 12:1, 12; 20:26).
John seeth Jesus. The delegation from Jerusalem had departed. Evidently they did not take John seriously, or they would have pressed their investigation further, to discover, if possible, of whom he spoke (see v. 26). The preceding day Jesus had not been identified by John’s indirect reference to Him as the Messiah (v. 26). Now He is singled out from the crowd.
Behold. What a privilege to be the first to herald (see on Matt. 3:1) Jesus, the One to whom all the prophets of old bore witness, as the true sacrifice! Which of the prophets would not have thrilled at the privilege! Little wonder that Jesus later spoke of John as a prophet than whom no greater had arisen in Israel (Luke 7:28)!
Lamb of God. That is, the Lamb provided by God. John alone uses this designation for Christ, though Luke (Acts 8:32) and Peter (1 Peter 1:19) have similar comparisons (cf. Isa. 53:7). John the Baptist introduced Jesus as “the Lamb of God” to John the evangelist (see on John 1:35, 36), and for the disciple this title must have held deep significance. The figure, which stresses Jesus’ innocence and perfection of character, and thus the vicarious nature of His sacrifice (Isa. 53:4-6, 11, 12; see on Ex. 12:5), is reminiscent of the paschal lamb of Egypt, which typified deliverance from the bondage of sin. “Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (1 Cor. 5:7). By the figure of a lamb John identifies the suffering Messiah as the one in whom the sacrificial system of OT times reaches reality and has meaning. In the divine foreknowledge and purpose He was “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8).
In view of the fact that contemporary Jewish thought found no place for a suffering Messiah, critics doubt that John could have held such a concept (see John 12:34; cf. Mark 9:31, 32; Luke 24:21). But as Robertson has well remarked (Word Pictures in the New Testament, on John 1:29), “Certainly the Baptist did not have to be as ignorant as the rabbis.” John had the Messianic prophecy of Isa. 53 (see on Isa. 53:1, 4-6; see DA 136). Furthermore, it would be strange indeed for God to ordain John the Baptist as herald of the coming of Messiah and not impart to him the knowledge of this fundamental aspect of Messiah’s mission.
Taketh away. Gr. aird, “to lift up,” “to bear away,” “to remove.” Only by virtue of the fact that the Lamb of God was without sin (Heb. 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22) could He “take away [Gr. aird] our sins” (1 John 3:5). Because the burden of sin was too heavy for us to bear, Jesus came to lift the load from our shattered lives.
Sin. By the singular form of the word John places emphasis on sin as a principle, rather than on particular sins (see 1 John 2:2; 3:5; 4:10).
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