Whose glory do you love?

Underneath every mistake the Pharisees made lay a root problem. Jesus put it simply: ‘They loved the glory of men more than the glory of God’ (John 12:43, my translation).

Jesus’ words cut like a scalpel through to their fundamental motivation. They would not confess Him because of what they loved. But what exactly did Jesus mean? Did He mean that they loved the glory that comes from men more than the glory that comes from God? Or did He mean that they loved the glory of men more than the glory that belongs to and is due to God?

The glory of men vs. the glory of God

I suggest that Jesus actually meant both: they loved the glory that comes from men more than the glory that comes from God precisely because they did not perceive the nature and beauty of the glory that belongs to and is due to God.