The "Hour of the Son of Man", Suffering, and Mary's Maternity
The word hour appears twenty times throughout the Gospel of John. More often than not, Jesus uses it to symbolize the climactic event of His glorification through suffering (cf. John 12:23, 27, NRSVCE). “Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father” (John 13:1). This verse begins the Last Supper discourse, and the language signals that the decisive moment has truly “come.”
In chapter 16, the word is used to foretell the suffering of the Apostles (John 16:2–4). Later in the same chapter, Jesus foretells their sorrow at His departure: “When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:21–22). Here, suffering is revealed as necessary for the accomplishment of a greater good: although extreme, the anguish is temporary and yields to a joy that cannot be taken away.
Later, Jesus again uses hour to predict both the crucifixion and the unveiling of divine truth. Up to this point, He has spoken in figures—through language, allegories, and proverbs—but the hour will come when He speaks “plainly,” openly and publicly (John 16:25, 30). In chapter 17, in His high-priestly prayer, Jesus prays, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you” (John 17:1). This reveals the full meaning of the hour: not simply death, but glorification—like a climactic moment in a symphony, upon which the entire score depends. Here, Christ transforms the meaning of suffering itself, showing it as the path to divine glory.
The Evangelist does not use the term again until describing the moment the beloved disciple received Mary as his Mother (John 19:27). Strikingly, this is also the final occurrence of hour in the Gospel. Seen in light of chapter 16, this moment recalls the pangs of birth: Mary’s heart is pierced with the sword of sorrow (cf. Luke 2:35), but through that agony she becomes Mother of many children (cf. 1 Samuel 2:5). Her suffering, like labor pains, brings forth the new family of God and brings us back to Eden’s promise, now fulfilled in Christ.
