1 These words of the Lord, when He says, “A little while, and you shall no more see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me; because I go to the Father,” were so obscure to the disciples, before what He thus says was actually fulfilled, that they inquired among themselves what it was that He said, and had to confess themselves utterly ignorant. For the Gospel proceeds, “Then said some of His disciples among themselves, What is this that He says unto us, A little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me; and, Because I go to the Father? They said therefore, What is this that He says, A little while? We know not what He says.” This is what moved them, that He said, “A little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me.” For in what precedes, because He had not said, “A little while,” but only, “I go to the Father and you shall see me no more,” He appeared to them to have spoken, as it were, quite plainly, and they had no inquiry among themselves, regarding it. But now, what was then obscure to them, and was shortly afterwards revealed, is already perfectly manifest to us: for after a little while He suffered, and they saw Him not; again, after a little while He rose, and they saw Him. But how the words are to be taken that He used, “You shall no more see me,” inasmuch as by the word “more” He wished it to be understood that they would not see Him afterwards, we have explained at the passage where He said, The Holy Spirit “shall convince of righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you shall see me no more;” meaning thereby, that they would never afterwards see Christ in His present state of subjection to death.
2. “Now Jesus knew,” as the evangelist proceeds to say, “that they were desirous to ask Him, and said unto them, You inquire among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and you shall not see me: and again a little while, and you shall see me. Verily verily, I say unto you, That you shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice; and you shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy:” which may be understood in this way, that the disciples were thrown into sorrow over the death of the Lord, and straightway were filled with joy at His resurrection; but the world, whereby are signified the enemies that slew Christ, were, of course, in a state of rapture over the murder of Christ, at the very time when the disciples were filled with sorrow. For by the name of the world the wickedness of this world may be understood; in other words, those who are the friends of this world. As the Apostle James says in his epistle, “Whosoever will be a friend of this world, has become the enemy of God;” for the effect of that enmity to God was, that not even His Only-begotten was spared.
Source: Tractates on the Gospel of John (New Advent)