For as the Father raises up the dead, and vivifies them; even so the Son vivifies whom he will.
as.
Deuteronomy 32:39 See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.
1 Kings 17:21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
2 Kings 4:32-35 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed…
even.
John 11:25,43,44 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: …
John 17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
Luke 7:14,15 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise…
so also the Son gives life
Here, the text draws a parallel between the Father and the Son, indicating that Jesus possesses the same life-giving power as God. This is a profound statement of Jesus' divinity and equality with the Father. In the context of the Gospel of John, this aligns with the prologue (John 1:1-4), where Jesus is described as the Word through whom all things were made, and in Him was life. This life-giving ability is not just physical but also spiritual, as seen in Jesus' teachings about eternal life (John 3:16).
to whom He wishes
This phrase highlights the sovereign will of Jesus in dispensing life. It suggests that Jesus has the authority to choose whom to grant life, reflecting His divine prerogative. This is consistent with the theme of divine election found throughout Scripture, where God chooses individuals for specific purposes (Romans 9:15-16). It also points to the personal relationship Jesus has with those who believe in Him, as He calls them by name and grants them eternal life (John 10:27-28).
Jesus begins by pointing to the work of His Father, creating an immediate link between divine activity and His own ministry (John 5:19).
• The phrase “just as” signals perfect harmony—what the Father does, the Son does likewise (John 1:1-3).
• This reminder of the Father’s role recalls Old Testament moments where God alone is credited with power over life and death (Deuteronomy 32:39; 1 Samuel 2:6).
• By starting here, Jesus anchors His claim in the well-known character of God the Father, setting the stage for a deeper revelation of His own authority.
“Raises the dead” tells us the Father’s power is not limited by the grave.
• Elijah and Elisha were instruments when God raised the dead (1 Kings 17:21-22; 2 Kings 4:32-35), underscoring that only God can reverse death.
• This divine ability foreshadows the greater resurrection hope described later in Scripture (Daniel 12:2; Acts 26:8).
• By acknowledging that the Father raises the dead, Jesus affirms a truth His listeners already accepted, preparing them for the next, more startling claim.
Resurrection is not merely resuscitation; it is the bestowal of life itself.
• “In Him was life, and that life was the light of men” (John 1:4). Life originates in God and is His to grant (Psalm 36:9).
• This phrase underscores both physical resurrection and spiritual renewal (Ezekiel 37:5-6).
• When God gives life, it is complete, sustained, and purposeful (Psalm 16:11).
Here Jesus places Himself alongside the Father in function and authority.
• The parallel “so also” means the Son acts with the same power and intent (John 10:30).
• By claiming equal ability, He asserts His divine identity—something that prompted the leaders’ charge of blasphemy (John 5:18).
• Colossians 1:15-17 reinforces that all things hold together in Him, confirming that His role is not derivative but co-equal.
Jesus is not limited to future resurrection; He imparts life here and now.
• “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25-26).
• He gives spiritual life to those dead in trespasses (Ephesians 2:4-5) and will ultimately raise believers bodily (John 6:40).
• This gift is transformative, moving people from death to life the moment they trust Him (John 5:24).
The closing words highlight sovereign freedom in dispensing life.
• Authority to give life rests entirely with Jesus (John 17:2).
• His choice is never arbitrary; it flows from divine grace and perfect justice (Romans 9:15-16).
• Those who receive life are those He calls and who respond in faith (2 Timothy 1:9; John 6:37).
John 5:21 reveals a breathtaking truth: the Son shares the Father’s exclusive power over life and death. The Father raises the dead and grants life; the Son does the very same, exercising sovereign authority to give life to whomever He wills. In this single verse, Jesus unmistakably declares His divinity, His role as life-giver, and His sovereign grace toward those who believe.
(21) The following verses (John 5:21-29) show what these greater works are. They are the Resurrection and the judgment; but these are regarded as spiritual as well as physical, as present as well as future. Once again the background of the thought is to be found in John 5:17. Resurrection and Judgment were the work of the Father--"My Father worketh hitherto;" but the manifestation in limits of space and time is the work of the Son--"and I work."For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them.--The "them" after "quickeneth" is better omitted. The words are purposely general. Raising the dead and making alive are attributes of God. "He kills and He makes alive" (Deuteronomy 32:39). "He bringeth down to the underworld and bringeth up" (1Samuel 2:6; Tobit 13:2). "He has the power of life and death" (Wisdom Of Solomon 16:13). These the Son seeth the Father doing, and these also He doeth in like manner. He, too, has the power to quicken whom He will, and He useth that power. Deadened souls have felt it, and are living in the new-born life. There is in His word, for the man who hears it and believes it, a moral change which is nothing other than an actual passing out of death into life (John 5:24). . . .
Verses 21-26. - Greater works:(1)
the resurrection of the dead. Verse 21. - For (γὰρ introduces an illustration, a proof of the previous assertion. viz. that the eternal love of the Son would issue in such new marvels) as the Father raiseth the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. This is the most exhaustive expression of the Father's love and revelation to the Son. This thing the Son sees, and this same thing he will do, whether these Jews attempt to put any arrest upon his will or not. The majority of commentators regard vers. 21-27 as descriptive of the moral and spiritual resurrection of dead souls, and hold that a transition is made in vers. 28, 29 to the resurrection of dead bodies and the final consummation. There are some, however, who regard the whole passage - even vers. 28, 29 - as referring, with the previous verses, to moral resurrection, although the words, "in their tombs" (μνημείοις) are there added to give distinctness and explicitness to that future resurrection; and though "now is" of ver. 25 is not there predicated or repeated. Others (with many of the older expositors) refer the entire passage to the final resurrection, which, however, is incompatible with ver. 20 and with the "now is" of ver. 25. Others, again, see in ver. 21, in ἐγείρει and ζωοποιεῖ,, the whole process of resurrection and renewal, both physical and moral, bodily and spiritual. They suppose that in ver. 25 Christ refers first to the spiritual renovation, to be affirmed and consummated in the universal resurrection and judgment of the last day. The generality of the terms ἐγείρει and ζωοποιει, attributed to the Father, makes it possible that the Lord was referring to the numerous events of uplifting from the pit, from the lowest sheol, which formed the staple religious nutrition of the Jewish race. The history of Divine revelation is one lengthened series of interpositions and deliverances, of resurrections of the people of Israel, and of the theocracy from bondage, exile, and spiritual and civil death, and of references to the wonderful transformations of saints and prophets and kings from the depths of despair to the light of life and Divine favour. Ezekiel (37) had likened the most memorable of these resurrections to the uprising of a huge army from a valley of vision, strown with the dry bones of both houses of Israel. "So also," says Jesus, "the Son quiekeneth." including under this term, it may be, the physical healing which is often the precursor and condition of spiritual awakening and moral health and vigour. The Son, the incarnate Logos, revealing himself on earth, both as Logos and Son of man, is now quickening after the same fashion whom he will. The will of Christ is in such entire harmony with the Father's will that there is no rivalry here. The will of the Son is in spontaneous accord with the Divine purpose of resurrection and quickening. He is already doing thus here on earth, as the great organ of the Father, that which makes his will the revelation of the Father. There is no arbitrary decree, such as Calvin found here, nor such as Roues insists upon. The emphasis is simply upon the subject of the verb θέλει; and we have in the expression a vindication of the nineteenth verse, "The Son doeth that which he sees the Father doing." His own θέλημα being the origin and revealed centre on earth of Divine manifestations.