Jesus Washing Feet, John 13:34 Wall Art

In the upper room

Jesus kneels on a woven rug, a red mantle over his white robe, a towel gathered at his waist. He holds one bare foot of a disciple above a round terracotta basin, pouring or rinsing with care. A tall clay pitcher stands beside him. The disciple sits on a wooden stool in a blue robe and a green cloak, his chin resting on his hand, his face torn between embarrassment and thought.

Behind them, the other disciples sit around a table in the half light, watching. A small oil lamp burns on the table and a jar rests in a niche on the back wall. Lettered overhead: “That ye love one another; as I have loved you”, and the reference John 13:34.

What does John 13:34 mean?

The printed words are the heart of a longer sentence. In the King James text, Jesus says: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” The following verse adds that all people will know his disciples by the love they have for each other.

Love of neighbor was not new; it is already commanded in Leviticus 19:18. What John presents as new is the measure: as I have loved you. And the chapter has just shown what that looks like. During supper, before the Passover, Jesus rose, laid aside his garments, tied a towel around himself and washed the feet of his disciples, a task normally left to a household servant. Peter protested that his master would never wash his feet, and Jesus told him that unless he did, Peter would have no part with him.

The Latin for commandment, mandatum, gave its name to Maundy Thursday. On that evening many Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches repeat the gesture, with a priest or pastor washing the feet of members of the congregation while an old chant based on these words is sung.

For pastors and those who serve

Few images say more about Christian service, which is why this print is often chosen for a pastor, a deacon, a nurse, a caregiver or a volunteer leader. It belongs on a church office wall or in a fellowship hall, and it fits the season of Holy Week at home. Given at a baptism, it offers a picture of the life the newly baptized is invited into.