C. Jesus' Prediction of Denial (13:31-38)

With Judas’s departure, the die was cast; everything was moving to the conclusion God had designed. Jesus' glorification and removal from the scene were at hand, and he would no longer be accessible to the disciples (vv.31-33; cf. 7:33-34). For Jesus, his ministry, especially the foot washing and the Crucifixion, spoke of love, and it is no mistake that the love command makes its first appearance in this context (vv.34-35; cf. 15:12). Mutual love among Christians is essentially Christlike. But Peter was more concerned with the pronouncement about coming separation, and he challenged Jesus on it (vv.36-37; cf. 7:35-36; 16:17). Peter sincerely believed that he was prepared to die for Jesus and that not even death could separate them. But Jesus with supernatural knowledge knew that denial, not death, was ahead for Peter (v.38; cf. 18:17, 25-27).