John 13:30

out into the night: This detail is more than a note about the time of day. It has symbolic meaning.

Judas’s departure shows his spiritual condition. Darkness had taken hold of him completely (see study note on 13:2; compare 3:19). Jesus, the light of the world, is the opposite of the night.

The setting is the final Passover meal of Jesus on Thursday evening. During this meal, Judas Iscariot betrays Jesus. John does not describe the meal itself like the Synoptic Gospels do (Matthew 26:17–29; Mark 14:12–25; Luke 22:7–20; see also 1 Corinthians 11:23–26). John focuses on other activities at the event, such as:

• the foot washing (John 13:1–17),

• Judas’s betrayal (13:18–30), and

• the prediction of Peter’s denials (13:31–38).