04_Parker_222_244_222-244 10/07/15 12:41 Pagina 235 235 IS THE SUBJECT OF tete,lestai IN JOHN 19,30 “IT” OR “ALL THINGS” ? 235 (eivdw.j o` VIhsou/j) and 13,3 (eivdw.j … pa,nta) 46. Fourth, the “hour” that was mentioned in 13,1 (o[ti h=lqen auvtou/ h` w[ra ) refers, at least in part, to the events of 19,28-30, for, as Barrett asserts, “[t]he hour of Jesus refers to his death on the cross and exaltation in glory” 47. One objection to this overall view might be that the phrase “it is finished” in 19,30 would then refer to the fulfillment of Jesus’ love for the apostles (13,1) and not for all humanity. However, Jesus’ love shown to the apostles on the cross would not preclude a demonstration of his love for others in the same act. Another ob- jection might be that if the phrase eivj te,loj does not mean “to the end” (i.e. of Jesus’ life) 48, but rather means “to the limit” or “fully” 49, it could refer exclusively to the act of foot washing in chapter 13. Finally, if the argument above is correct that “all things” is the sub- ject of the verb in 19,28 and 19,30, then the singular noun “love” (avga,ph) would be an unlikely referent for the plural pa,nta 50. Al- though this interpretation is possible, it is not very likely. The three remaining interpretations are the most likely options for the referent of “it” or “all things”. These views are the atoning death of Jesus, the events of the passion narrative as a whole, and that tete,lestai signifies that Jesus’ death completed the work of God (Gen 2,2-3) prior to his ushering in creation’s renewal. These options fit the context well and will be evaluated in more detail after the presentation of the evidence in the following section. 2. “All Things” as Brackets for the Chiasm of John 18,28 – 19,16 The chiastic structure in the passion narrative of John may pro- vide the key for understanding the function of the words “all things” within this Gospel and help bring more precision to the definition 46 BERNARD, St. John, II, 454, 585, 637; LINDARS, Gospel of John, 580; WITKAMP, “Jesus’ Thirst”, 495. 47 BARRETT, St John, 159. 48 BARNES, Notes, 316; BROWN, John, II, 550; LINDARS, Gospel of John, 448; SCHNACKENBURG, St. John III, 16; MOLONEY, Gospel of John, 373; KÖSTENBERGER, John, 402; KEENER, John, II, 899. 49 W.K. GROSSOUW, “A Note on Joh 13:1-3”, NovT 8 (1966) 128; BEASLEY-MURRAY, John, 228, 229, 233; BLASS – DEBRUNNER – FUNK, A Greek Grammar, 207.3; DELLING, “te,loj”, VIII, 56. 50 The noun avga,ph is always singular in John (5,42; 13,35; 15,9.10.13; 17,26).