Who will wash these dirty feet?
The task of washing anybody’s feet was seen by the Jews as peculiarly demeaning; it was one of the few things which the Law stated a Jewish slave should not be asked to do—it should be left to a Gentile slave. Jesus and his disciple group had been invited to use the Upper Room for this occasion. It would have been carpeted, and custom demanded that they wash filthy dusty feet before they occupied the room. But there was no Gentile slave, and none of the disciples were prepared to do such a thing, and so they did nothing about it. Jesus therefore took the opportunity of teaching the disciples a lesson in humility: What they were not prepared to do for one another he, their “Lord and Master,” did (v 14). WASH THOSE DIRTY FEET, ANYBODY? It is clear, however, that there are profounder dimensions to this narrative than what lies on the surface. Peter, protesting at Jesus washing his feet, is told first that only later will he be able to understand what Jesus is doing and, secondly, tha...