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This passage alludes to Jesus' statement that He came down from heaven (John 6:38). By claiming to have come from heaven, Jesus symbolically indicated His divine origin. The Jews interpreted Jesus' words literally and disputed with Him for making this claim because, from their point of view, Jesus had simply been physically born of Mary (John 6:41-2). By alluding to the claims of Jesus and how the Jews misunderstood them and failed to perceive Jesus' truth, Baha'u'llah is pointing out both His own divine claims and the dangers of failing to comprehend them correctly. In another passage, Baha'u'llah states: (17:3) He [Baha'u'llah], in truth, hath come unto the world in His most great glory, and all that hath been mentioned in the Gospel hath been fulfilled. (Epistle 60, clarification added) (17:4) In this passage, Baha'u'llah's terminology recalls the prophecy of Matthew 24:30, 'the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory'. We will examine this prophecy in detail later in the commentary. For now, it is sufficient to observe that Baha'u'llah's allusion to Matthew, chapter 24, is followed by words making an open connection between His ministry and the prophecies of the Gospel. There can be little doubt as to the magnitude of the claims Baha'u'llah advanced.
(17:5)
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