John 17:11

John 17:11, in plain English

Jesus prays: 'I'm leaving this world, but they're staying. Holy Father, protect them by your name so they can be one, just like we are one.'

Why it's here

Jesus is about to go to the cross, and He's concerned about His friends who'll be left behind. He asks the Father to keep them safe and united.

Who's speaking

Jesus prays with tender concern for His friends' safety.

Where it sits in the story

As Jesus prepares to leave, His heart is with His followers. He doesn't just pray for their safety—He prays they'll experience the same deep unity that He and the Father share.

The scholarly reading

Anticipating His departure from the world, Jesus asks the Holy Father to protect the disciples by the power of His name so they may share the unity of the Godhead.

Language and setting

The address 'Holy Father' (Pater hagie) appears only here in the New Testament. Protection 'by Your name' means preservation through the revealed character and power of God. The unity requested mirrors the intra-Trinitarian communion.

Voice

Jesus prays for the disciples' protection and unity.

Significance

Jesus is about to leave, but His disciples remain in a hostile world. He entrusts them to the Father's care, asking for their protection and a unity that mirrors the divine relationship.

9I ask on their behalf. I do not ask on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those You have given Me; for they are Yours.

10All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine; and in them I have been glorified.

11I will no longer be in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to You.

12While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

13But now I am coming to You; and I am saying these things while I am in the world, so that they may have My joy fulfilled within them.

Read all of John 17 — You get to overhear Jesus praying to the Father. He prays for His disciples — and then He prays for you.