John 17 — Clausal Layout (English)

independentparticipialrelativepurposecausecomparativecontentconditionalphrase modifierdashed = verbless / suspended

Flush-left = a main (independent) clause. Each dependent line begins directly beneath the word it attaches to in the line above — the anchor word is dotted-underlined, and lights up when you hover its dependent clause; each tag also names the attachment. A dashed border marks verbless, elliptical, or suspended lines. Where a long sentence's staircase runs wider than the page, the diagram scrolls sideways. (In print, or without JavaScript, lines fall back to stepped indent columns.)

The High Priestly Prayer 17:1–26

v. 1a — the narrative frame: the eyes lifted to heaven

Jesus spoke these things,independent — the hinge from discourse (chs. 14–16) to prayer — constative aorist summing the farewell speech

and lifting his eyes to heavenparticipial — attendant-circumstance aorist — forward-leaning on εἶπεν; the Johannine prayer posture (cf. 11:41)

he said:independent — the single frame — the whole prayer, vv. 1b–26, hangs on this one εἶπεν

vv. 1b–8 — the first movement: for himself — glorify your Son

'Father, the hour has come;content — the first vocative — intensive perfect: the appointed hour (2:4; 7:30; 12:23) is now present reality

glorify your Son,content — the opening petition — the cross as the locus of glorification (12:28; 13:31–32)

that the Son may glorify you,purpose — mutual glorification — the double δοξάζω keys the whole prayer

just as you gave him authority over all flesh,comparative — the petition grounded in the Father's prior gift — καθώς here nearly causal

that he may give eternal life to all that you have given him.purpose — neuter πᾶν ὅ — the given ones as a corporate whole, distributed by masculine αὐτοῖς

And this is eternal life:content — parenthetical definition — evangelist's gloss (Bultmann, Schnackenburg) or Jesus' own words (Carson); αὕτη cataphoric

that they should know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.content — epexegetical ἵνα, not telic — life IS the knowing; present subjunctive: ongoing acquaintance; the double name in Jesus' own mouth is unique

I glorified you on the earth,content — the ground of the petition — the aorist proleptic, spoken from the standpoint of the finished work

having completed the workparticipial — τελειώσας — the verb of 19:30 (τετέλεσται) already sounding in the prayer

that you have given merelative — the perfect — the Father's permanent commissioning gift

to do;purpose — the gift's content — the assigned task itself (cf. 4:34)

And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glorycontent — καὶ νῦν — the pivot from finished mission to petition; emphatic σύ; the movement's climax

that I had with you before the world existed.relative — attracted ᾗ; the imperfect of continuous pre-incarnate possession — the Gospel's clearest pre-existence claim outside the Prologue

I have made known your name to the peoplecontent — the disciples characterized — the name manifested is the Father's own identity (vv. 11, 12, 26)

whom you gave me out of the world.relative — the electing gift — drawn out of the world (cf. 15:19)

They were yours,content — predicate dative of possession, fronted — the prior belonging

and you gave them to me,content — the mutuality of possession — δίδωμι, the structural backbone of the prayer

and they have kept your word.content — intensive perfect τετήρηκαν — τηρέω, the keyword of the coming intercession (vv. 11, 12, 15)

Now they have come to knowcontent — perfect — the disciples' arrival at settled recognition

that everything you have given me is from you;content — the content of their knowledge — all the Son has derives from the Father

for the words that you gave me I have given to them,cause — causal ὅτι — how they know: the chain of transmission, Father → Son → disciples; ῥήματα, the particular sayings

and they received themcause — coordinate within the ground — the first of three verbs of reception (cf. 1:12)

and truly knewcause — ingressive aorist — they came to know, and ἀληθῶς: genuinely

that I came from you,content — the Son's divine origin — ἐξῆλθον παρὰ σοῦ (cf. 16:27–30)

and they believedcause — the climactic third verb — ingressive: faith-commitment achieved

that you sent me.content — the Johannine confession — the σύ με ἀπέστειλας refrain (vv. 3, 8, 18, 21, 23, 25)

vv. 9–19 — the second movement: for the disciples — keep them, sanctify them

I am praying for them.content — the intercession proper opens — progressive present: the asking happening now; ἐρωτάω, the Son's petition-verb (14:16; 16:26)

I am not praying for the worldcontent — the delimitation — this prayer's scope, not a denial of 3:16

but for those whom you have given me,content — the positive object, verb elided — ὧν attracted into the case of its suppressed antecedent

because they are yours,cause — the ground of the intercession — the belonging of v. 6 restated

and all that is mine is yours,content — the mutual-possession formula — everything of the one belongs to the other (16:15)

and all that is yours is mine,content — the chiasm's verbless second half — the reciprocity stated in both directions

and I have been glorified in them.content — perfect passive — the Son already glorified in the disciples; the opening petition anticipated

And I am no longer in the world,content — futuristic present — the departure spoken as already accomplished

yet they are in the world,content — the adversative καί — the exposure that occasions the petition

and I am coming to you.content — the return to the Father — certain and imminent

Holy Father, keep them in your namecontent — Πάτερ ἅγιε — unique in the NT; the first great petition: τήρησον, the movement's keyword

which you have given me,relative — neuter ᾧ (P66 ℵ B, NA28) against Byzantine οὕς — the NAME is the thing given, the harder reading kept

that they may be one just as we are.purpose — the unity-purpose — neuter ἕν, qualitative oneness; the seed of vv. 20–23

While I was with them,conditional — fronted ὅτε-temporal — forward-leaning on ἐτήρουν (typed cnd; no temporal key); the earthly companionship now closing

I was keeping them in your namecontent — continuous imperfect — the Son has been doing what he now asks the Father to do

which you have given me,relative — the neuter relative again, as at v. 11 — the given name

and I guarded them,content — φυλάσσω — the intensive synonym of τηρέω; the keeping summed as a completed whole

and not one of them has been lostcontent — the promise of 6:39 kept — ἀπόλλυμι, the losing that did not happen

except the son of destruction,phrase modifier — the εἰ μή exception — Judas named by his destiny; the Semitic genitive of characterization (cf. 2 Thess 2:3)

that the Scripture might be fulfilled.purpose — the fulfillment formula — Ps 41:9, cited at 13:18; the apostasy inside the providential plan

But now I am coming to you,content — νῦν δέ — resuming v. 11 after the retrospect

and these things I speak in the worldcontent — the prayer prayed aloud — spoken in the world for the disciples' hearing

so that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.purpose — τὴν χαρὰν τὴν ἐμήν — the complete-joy theme (15:11; 16:24); perfect participle: joy in its finished fullness

I have given them your word,content — the abiding transmission — perfect δέδωκα

and the world has hated them,content — the gift's corollary — the hatred predicted at 15:18–19

because they are not of the world,cause — the ground of the hatred — ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου: origin and belonging denied

just as I am not of the world.comparative — the disciples' alienation mirrors the Son's own (8:23)

I do not askcontent — the double-ἵνα antithesis begins — what the petition is NOT, then what it is

that you take them out of the world,content — the denied petition — removal would abrogate the mission (20:21)

but that you keep them from the evil one.content — the actual petition — τηρέω ἐκ; τοῦ πονηροῦ read masculine: the evil one, Satan (1 John 5:19), not abstract evil

They are not of the world,content — the refrain of v. 14 repeated verbatim, fronted — framing the sanctification petition

just as I am not of the world.comparative — the mirroring comparison, again — the anaphoric double beat

Sanctify them in the truth;content — the second great petition — ἁγιάζω, consecration for mission; ἐν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ instrumental

your word is truth.content — the instrument named — emphatic attributive ὁ σός; anarthrous predicate ἀλήθεια, qualitative: the word IS truth (14:6)

As you sent me into the world,comparative — fronted καθώς — forward-leaning on ἀπέστειλα below; the mission parallel exact: same verb, same direction

so I also have sent them into the world;content — proleptic aorist — the sending of 20:21 spoken as done; the Johannine basis of the apostolate

and for their sake I consecrate myself,content — the movement's climax — ἁγιάζω ἐμαυτόν, the unique reflexive, read sacrificially: the ὑπέρ of self-offering (10:11; 18:1 follows)

so that they too may be sanctified in truth.purpose — the derived consecration — perfect participle: an abiding state; anarthrous ἐν ἀληθείᾳ against v. 17's articular

vv. 20–26 — the third movement: for those who will believe — that they all may be one

And I do not ask for these only,content — the widening — from the Eleven to the whole church yet to come

but also for those who will believe in me through their word,phrase modifier — futuristic present participle — every future believer; διὰ τοῦ λόγου αὐτῶν: the apostolic word as the instrument

that they may all be one,content — the central petition of the chapter — neuter ἕν: qualitative oneness (10:30), not numerical merger

just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you,comparative — the verbless model — the mutual indwelling of Father and Son (10:38; 14:10–11) as the unity's measure

that they also may be in us,purpose — the second ἵνα — believers drawn inside the divine fellowship itself

so that the world may believepurpose — the third ἵνα — the unity's missiological goal: the world that hates (v. 14) is the intended believer

that you sent me.content — the confession again — the deepest indentation of the prayer: unity → indwelling → the world's faith

And the glory that you have given me I have given to them,content — the chain of gift mirrors the chain of mission — this δόξα the revelatory glory of the earthly work, not the pre-cosmic glory of v. 5

that they may be onepurpose — the shared glory as the unity's basis

just as we are one —comparative — the verbless measure again — ἡμεῖς ἕν, the divine oneness

I in them and you in me,content — the perichoretic chain, verbless — the Father's indwelling runs through the Son into the disciples

that they may be perfected into one,purpose — τετελειωμένοι — the perfecting verb of v. 4 and 19:30; unity as completed achievement

so that the world may knowpurpose — the missiological goal deepened — from believing (v. 21) to knowing

that you sent mecontent — the sending confessed once more

and loved themcontent — the astonishing coordinate content — the Father's love for the disciples set beside the sending

just as you loved me.comparative — the prayer's boldest καθώς — the disciples loved with the very love given the eternal Son

Father, that which you have given me — I desirecontent — casus pendens — neuter ὅ, the given ones as a whole, resumed by κἀκεῖνοι; θέλω, stronger than ἐρωτῶ: the Son's will speaking

that where I am, they too may be with me,content — the eschatological petition — ὅπου εἰμὶ ἐγώ echoes 14:3; co-presence as the goal

that they may behold my glory,purpose — θεωρέω — the beatific vision (1 John 3:2); the seeing that co-presence is for

which you have given merelative — the eternally given glory — here the pre-cosmic δόξα of v. 5 returns

because you loved me before the foundation of the world.cause — the ground of everything — the pre-temporal love within the Godhead (πρὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου, cf. Eph 1:4)

Righteous Father, though the world did not know you,content — Πάτερ δίκαιε — unique in the NT; concessive καί; the world's not-knowing its defining mark (1:10)

yet I knew you,content — the three-part contrast's center — the Son's knowledge, the source of all revelation

and these have knowncontent — the disciples between the world's ignorance and the Son's perfect knowledge

that you sent me;content — the confessional refrain, its final occurrence

and I made known to them your namecontent — the aorist — the earthly revelation completed

and I will make it known,content — the future — revelation continuing through the Paraclete (16:13–15); aorist and future embracing the whole arc

so that the love with which you loved me may be in them —purpose — the final purpose — the cognate ἀγάπη…ἠγάπησας, a Hebraism of emphasis; the eternal love (v. 24) indwelling the disciples

and I in them.'purpose — the prayer's last word, verb elided — the Son himself the indwelling gift; the whole High Priestly Prayer ends in union

Analysis. John 17 is one frame and one prayer. The narrative opening — Ταῦτα ἐλάλησεν Ἰησοῦς, the lifted eyes, εἶπεν — is the chapter's only depth-0 material; everything else, twenty-six verses of it, hangs from that single εἶπεν as one coordinate catena of blue cnt lines: the longest recorded prayer of Jesus, shaped on the page as the unbroken speech it is. Three movements are marked, each opened by a vocative (Πάτερ v. 1b, Πάτερ ἅγιε v. 11, Πάτερ v. 24 with Πάτερ δίκαιε v. 25 closing): for himself (vv. 1b–8), for the disciples (vv. 9–19), for those who will believe (vv. 20–26). Against the constant speech column the prayer's own grammar indents — the ἵνα purposes step inward (chaining five deep at v. 21, where unity begets indwelling begets the world's believing), the καθώς comparisons hang cmp with the Father-Son relation as the constant measure (vv. 2, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21–23), and the ὅτι grounds hang cau (vv. 8, 9, 14, 24). The cruxes are taken openly. The v. 3 ἵνα is read as epexegetical — defining eternal life as knowing, not stating its purpose — the tag conceding the old debate over whether the verse is the evangelist's gloss or Jesus' own solemn self-reference. At vv. 11–12 the neuter ᾧ δέδωκάς μοι (P66 ℵ B, NA28) is kept against the Byzantine οὕς: the name, not the disciples, is the thing given. τοῦ πονηροῦ at v. 15 is glossed masculine — the evil one, not abstract evil. The v. 19 ἁγιάζω ἐμαυτόν is tagged sacrificially: the ὑπέρ of self-offering, the passion hours away. The unity of vv. 21–23 is left as the text gives it — modeled on the Father-Son indwelling and aimed at the world's believing, resolved into neither ecumenical program nor mere sentiment. The v. 24 θέλω is flagged as stronger than ἐρωτῶ — the Son's will speaking. The prayer ends where the Gospel aims: κἀγὼ ἐν αὐτοῖς — and I in them.