Yohanes 6:69

6:69 We ¹  have come to believe and to know ²  that you are the Holy One of God!” ³ 

Yohanes 7:17

7:17 If anyone wants to do God’s will, ⁴  he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority. ⁵ 

Yohanes 8:19

8:19 Then they began asking ⁶  him, “Who is your father?” Jesus answered, “You do not know either me or my Father. If you knew me you would know my Father too.” ⁷ 

Yohanes 10:14

10:14 “I am the good shepherd. I ⁸  know my own ⁹  and my own know me –

Yohanes 14:1-31

Jesus’ Parting Words to His Disciples

14:1 “Do not let your hearts be distressed. ¹⁰  You believe in God; ¹¹  believe also in me. 14:2 There are many dwelling places ¹²  in my Father’s house. ¹³  Otherwise, I would have told you, because ¹⁴  I am going away to make ready ¹⁵  a place for you. ¹⁶  14:3 And if I go and make ready ¹⁷  a place for you, I will come again and take you ¹⁸  to be with me, ¹⁹  so that where I am you may be too. 14:4 And you know the way where I am going.” ²⁰ 

14:5 Thomas said, ²¹  “Lord, we don’t know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 14:6 Jesus replied, ²²  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. ²³  No one comes to the Father except through me. 14:7 If you have known me, you will know my Father too. ²⁴  And from now on you do know him and have seen him.”

14:8 Philip said, ²⁵  “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be content.” ²⁶  14:9 Jesus replied, ²⁷  “Have I been with you for so long, and you have not known ²⁸  me, Philip? The person who has seen me has seen the Father! How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 14:10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in me? ²⁹  The words that I say to you, I do not speak on my own initiative, ³⁰  but the Father residing in me performs ³¹  his miraculous deeds. ³²  14:11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father is in me, but if you do not believe me, ³³  believe because of the miraculous deeds ³⁴  themselves. 14:12 I tell you the solemn truth, ³⁵  the person who believes in me will perform ³⁶  the miraculous deeds ³⁷  that I am doing, ³⁸  and will perform ³⁹  greater deeds ⁴⁰  than these, because I am going to the Father. 14:13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, ⁴¹  so that the Father may be glorified ⁴²  in the Son. 14:14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.

Teaching on the Holy Spirit

14:15 “If you love me, you will obey ⁴³  my commandments. ⁴⁴  14:16 Then ⁴⁵  I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate ⁴⁶  to be with you forever – 14:17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, ⁴⁷  because it does not see him or know him. But you know him, because he resides ⁴⁸  with you and will be ⁴⁹  in you.

14:18 “I will not abandon ⁵⁰  you as orphans, ⁵¹  I will come to you. ⁵²  14:19 In a little while ⁵³  the world will not see me any longer, but you will see me; because I live, you will live too. 14:20 You will know at that time ⁵⁴  that I am in my Father and you are in me and I am in you. 14:21 The person who has my commandments and obeys ⁵⁵  them is the one who loves me. ⁵⁶  The one ⁵⁷  who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal ⁵⁸  myself to him.”

14:22 “Lord,” Judas (not Judas Iscariot) ⁵⁹  said, ⁶⁰  “what has happened that you are going to reveal ⁶¹  yourself to us and not to the world?” 14:23 Jesus replied, ⁶²  “If anyone loves me, he will obey ⁶³  my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and take up residence with him. ⁶⁴  14:24 The person who does not love me does not obey ⁶⁵  my words. And the word ⁶⁶  you hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.

14:25 “I have spoken these things while staying ⁶⁷  with you. 14:26 But the Advocate, ⁶⁸  the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you ⁶⁹  everything, ⁷⁰  and will cause you to remember everything ⁷¹  I said to you.

14:27 “Peace I leave with you; ⁷²  my peace I give to you; I do not give it ⁷³  to you as the world does. ⁷⁴  Do not let your hearts be distressed or lacking in courage. ⁷⁵  14:28 You heard me say to you, ⁷⁶  ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad ⁷⁷  that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am. ⁷⁸  14:29 I have told you now before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe. ⁷⁹  14:30 I will not speak with you much longer, ⁸⁰  for the ruler of this world is coming. ⁸¹  He has no power over me, ⁸²  14:31 but I am doing just what the Father commanded me, so that the world may know ⁸³  that I love the Father. ⁸⁴  Get up, let us go from here.” ⁸⁵ 

Yohanes 7:1-53

The Feast of Tabernacles

7:1 After this ⁸⁶  Jesus traveled throughout Galilee. ⁸⁷  He ⁸⁸  stayed out of Judea ⁸⁹  because the Jewish leaders ⁹⁰  wanted ⁹¹  to kill him. 7:2 Now the Jewish feast of Tabernacles ⁹²  was near. ⁹³  7:3 So Jesus’ brothers ⁹⁴  advised him, “Leave here and go to Judea so your disciples may see your miracles that you are performing. ⁹⁵  7:4 For no one who seeks to make a reputation for himself ⁹⁶  does anything in secret. ⁹⁷  If you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 7:5 (For not even his own brothers believed in him.) ⁹⁸ 

7:6 So Jesus replied, ⁹⁹  “My time ¹⁰⁰  has not yet arrived, ¹⁰¹  but you are ready at any opportunity! ¹⁰²  7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I am testifying about it that its deeds are evil. 7:8 You go up ¹⁰³  to the feast yourselves. I am not going up to this feast ¹⁰⁴  because my time ¹⁰⁵  has not yet fully arrived.” ¹⁰⁶  7:9 When he had said this, he remained in Galilee.

7:10 But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, then Jesus ¹⁰⁷  himself also went up, not openly but in secret. 7:11 So the Jewish leaders ¹⁰⁸  were looking for him at the feast, asking, “Where is he?” ¹⁰⁹  7:12 There was ¹¹⁰  a lot of grumbling ¹¹¹  about him among the crowds. ¹¹²  Some were saying, “He is a good man,” but others, “He deceives the common people.” ¹¹³  7:13 However, no one spoke openly about him for fear of the Jewish leaders. ¹¹⁴ 

Teaching in the Temple

7:14 When the feast was half over, Jesus went up to the temple courts ¹¹⁵  and began to teach. ¹¹⁶  7:15 Then the Jewish leaders ¹¹⁷  were astonished ¹¹⁸  and said, “How does this man know so much when he has never had formal instruction?” ¹¹⁹  7:16 So Jesus replied, ¹²⁰  “My teaching is not from me, but from the one who sent me. ¹²¹  7:17 If anyone wants to do God’s will, ¹²²  he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority. ¹²³  7:18 The person who speaks on his own authority ¹²⁴  desires ¹²⁵  to receive honor ¹²⁶  for himself; the one who desires ¹²⁷  the honor ¹²⁸  of the one who sent him is a man of integrity, ¹²⁹  and there is no unrighteousness in him. 7:19 Hasn’t Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps ¹³⁰  the law! Why do you want ¹³¹  to kill me?”

7:20 The crowd ¹³²  answered, “You’re possessed by a demon! ¹³³  Who is trying to kill you?” ¹³⁴  7:21 Jesus replied, ¹³⁵  “I performed one miracle ¹³⁶  and you are all amazed. ¹³⁷  7:22 However, because Moses gave you the practice of circumcision ¹³⁸  (not that it came from Moses, but from the forefathers), you circumcise a male child ¹³⁹  on the Sabbath. 7:23 But if a male child ¹⁴⁰  is circumcised ¹⁴¹  on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses is not broken, ¹⁴²  why are you angry with me because I made a man completely well ¹⁴³  on the Sabbath? 7:24 Do not judge according to external appearance, ¹⁴⁴  but judge with proper ¹⁴⁵  judgment.”

Questions About Jesus’ Identity

7:25 Then some of the residents of Jerusalem ¹⁴⁶  began to say, “Isn’t this the man ¹⁴⁷  they are trying ¹⁴⁸  to kill? 7:26 Yet here he is, speaking publicly, ¹⁴⁹  and they are saying nothing to him. ¹⁵⁰  Do the rulers really know that this man ¹⁵¹  is the Christ? ¹⁵²  7:27 But we know where this man ¹⁵³  comes from. ¹⁵⁴  Whenever the Christ ¹⁵⁵  comes, no one will know where he comes from.” ¹⁵⁶ 

7:28 Then Jesus, while teaching in the temple courts, ¹⁵⁷  cried out, ¹⁵⁸  “You both know me and know where I come from! ¹⁵⁹  And I have not come on my own initiative, ¹⁶⁰  but the one who sent me ¹⁶¹  is true. You do not know him, ¹⁶²  7:29 but ¹⁶³  I know him, because I have come from him ¹⁶⁴  and he ¹⁶⁵  sent me.”

7:30 So then they tried to seize Jesus, ¹⁶⁶  but no one laid a hand on him, because his time ¹⁶⁷  had not yet come. 7:31 Yet many of the crowd ¹⁶⁸  believed in him and said, “Whenever the Christ ¹⁶⁹  comes, he won’t perform more miraculous signs than this man did, will he?” ¹⁷⁰ 

7:32 The Pharisees ¹⁷¹  heard the crowd ¹⁷²  murmuring these things about Jesus, ¹⁷³  so the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers ¹⁷⁴  to arrest him. ¹⁷⁵  7:33 Then Jesus said, “I will be with you for only a little while longer, ¹⁷⁶  and then ¹⁷⁷  I am going to the one who sent me. 7:34 You will look for me ¹⁷⁸  but will not find me, and where I am you cannot come.”

7:35 Then the Jewish leaders ¹⁷⁹  said to one another, “Where is he ¹⁸⁰  going to go that we cannot find him? ¹⁸¹  He is not going to go to the Jewish people dispersed ¹⁸²  among the Greeks and teach the Greeks, is he? ¹⁸³  7:36 What did he mean by saying, ¹⁸⁴  ‘You will look for me ¹⁸⁵  but will not find me, and where I am you cannot come’?”

Teaching About the Spirit

7:37 On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, ¹⁸⁶  Jesus stood up and shouted out, ¹⁸⁷  “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and 7:38 let the one who believes in me drink. ¹⁸⁸  Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him ¹⁸⁹  will flow rivers of living water.’” ¹⁹⁰  7:39 (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been given, ¹⁹¹  because Jesus was not yet glorified.) ¹⁹² 

Differing Opinions About Jesus

7:40 When they heard these words, some of the crowd ¹⁹³  began to say, “This really ¹⁹⁴  is the Prophet!” ¹⁹⁵  7:41 Others said, “This is the Christ!” ¹⁹⁶  But still others said, “No, ¹⁹⁷  for the Christ doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? ¹⁹⁸  7:42 Don’t the scriptures say that the Christ is a descendant ¹⁹⁹  of David ²⁰⁰  and comes from Bethlehem, ²⁰¹  the village where David lived?” ²⁰²  7:43 So there was a division in the crowd ²⁰³  because of Jesus. ²⁰⁴  7:44 Some of them were wanting to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him. ²⁰⁵ 

Lack of Belief

7:45 Then the officers ²⁰⁶  returned ²⁰⁷  to the chief priests and Pharisees, ²⁰⁸  who said to them, “Why didn’t you bring him back with you?” ²⁰⁹  7:46 The officers replied, “No one ever spoke like this man!” 7:47 Then the Pharisees answered, ²¹⁰  “You haven’t been deceived too, have you? ²¹¹  7:48 None of the rulers ²¹²  or the Pharisees have believed in him, have they? ²¹³  7:49 But this rabble ²¹⁴  who do not know the law are accursed!”

7:50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus ²¹⁵  before and who was one of the rulers, ²¹⁶  said, ²¹⁷  7:51 “Our law doesn’t condemn ²¹⁸  a man unless it first hears from him and learns ²¹⁹  what he is doing, does it?” ²²⁰  7:52 They replied, ²²¹  “You aren’t from Galilee too, are you? ²²²  Investigate carefully and you will see that no prophet ²²³  comes from Galilee!”

A Woman Caught in Adultery

7:53 ²²⁴ [[And each one departed to his own house.

Yohanes 9:1-41

Healing a Man Born Blind

9:1 Now as Jesus was passing by, ²²⁵  he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 9:2 His disciples asked him, ²²⁶  “Rabbi, who committed the sin that caused him to be born blind, this man ²²⁷  or his parents?” ²²⁸  9:3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man ²²⁹  nor his parents sinned, but he was born blind so that ²³⁰  the acts ²³¹  of God may be revealed ²³²  through what happens to him. ²³³  9:4 We must perform the deeds ²³⁴  of the one who sent me ²³⁵  as long as ²³⁶  it is daytime. Night is coming when no one can work. 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” ²³⁷  9:6 Having said this, ²³⁸  he spat on the ground and made some mud ²³⁹  with the saliva. He ²⁴⁰  smeared the mud on the blind man’s ²⁴¹  eyes 9:7 and said to him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” ²⁴²  (which is translated “sent”). ²⁴³  So the blind man ²⁴⁴  went away and washed, and came back seeing.

9:8 Then the neighbors and the people who had seen him previously ²⁴⁵  as a beggar began saying, ²⁴⁶  “Is this not the man ²⁴⁷  who used to sit and beg?” 9:9 Some people said, ²⁴⁸  “This is the man!” ²⁴⁹  while others said, “No, but he looks like him.” ²⁵⁰  The man himself ²⁵¹  kept insisting, “I am the one!” ²⁵²  9:10 So they asked him, ²⁵³  “How then were you made to see?” ²⁵⁴  9:11 He replied, ²⁵⁵  “The man called Jesus made mud, ²⁵⁶  smeared it ²⁵⁷  on my eyes and told me, ²⁵⁸  ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and was able to see.” ²⁵⁹  9:12 They said ²⁶⁰  to him, “Where is that man?” ²⁶¹  He replied, ²⁶²  “I don’t know.”

The Pharisees’ Reaction to the Healing

9:13 They brought the man who used to be blind ²⁶³  to the Pharisees. ²⁶⁴  9:14 (Now the day on which Jesus made the mud ²⁶⁵  and caused him to see ²⁶⁶  was a Sabbath.) ²⁶⁷  9:15 So the Pharisees asked him again how he had gained his sight. ²⁶⁸  He replied, ²⁶⁹  “He put mud ²⁷⁰  on my eyes and I washed, and now ²⁷¹  I am able to see.”

9:16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, ²⁷²  “This man is not from God, because he does not observe ²⁷³  the Sabbath.” ²⁷⁴  But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform ²⁷⁵  such miraculous signs?” Thus there was a division ²⁷⁶  among them. 9:17 So again they asked the man who used to be blind, ²⁷⁷  “What do you say about him, since he caused you to see?” ²⁷⁸  “He is a prophet,” the man replied. ²⁷⁹ 

9:18 Now the Jewish religious leaders ²⁸⁰  refused to believe ²⁸¹  that he had really been blind and had gained his sight until at last they summoned ²⁸²  the parents of the man who had become able to see. ²⁸³  9:19 They asked the parents, ²⁸⁴  “Is this your son, whom you say ²⁸⁵  was born blind? Then how does he now see?” 9:20 So his parents replied, ²⁸⁶  “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 9:21 But we do not know how he is now able to see, nor do we know who caused him to see. ²⁸⁷  Ask him, he is a mature adult. ²⁸⁸  He will speak for himself.” 9:22 (His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders. ²⁸⁹  For the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus ²⁹⁰  to be the Christ ²⁹¹  would be put out ²⁹²  of the synagogue. ²⁹³  9:23 For this reason his parents said, “He is a mature adult, ²⁹⁴  ask him.”) ²⁹⁵ 

9:24 Then they summoned ²⁹⁶  the man who used to be blind ²⁹⁷  a second time and said to him, “Promise before God to tell the truth. ²⁹⁸  We know that this man ²⁹⁹  is a sinner.” 9:25 He replied, ³⁰⁰  “I do not know whether he is a sinner. I do know one thing – that although I was blind, now I can see.” 9:26 Then they said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he cause you to see?” ³⁰¹  9:27 He answered, ³⁰²  “I told you already and you didn’t listen. ³⁰³  Why do you want to hear it ³⁰⁴  again? You people ³⁰⁵  don’t want to become his disciples too, do you?”

9:28 They ³⁰⁶  heaped insults ³⁰⁷  on him, saying, ³⁰⁸  “You are his disciple! ³⁰⁹  We are disciples of Moses! 9:29 We know that God has spoken to Moses! We do not know where this man ³¹⁰  comes from!” 9:30 The man replied, ³¹¹  “This is a remarkable thing, ³¹²  that you don’t know where he comes from, and yet he caused me to see! ³¹³  9:31 We know that God doesn’t listen to ³¹⁴  sinners, but if anyone is devout ³¹⁵  and does his will, God ³¹⁶  listens to ³¹⁷  him. ³¹⁸  9:32 Never before ³¹⁹  has anyone heard of someone causing a man born blind to see. ³²⁰  9:33 If this man ³²¹  were not from God, he could do nothing.” 9:34 They replied, ³²²  “You were born completely in sinfulness, ³²³  and yet you presume to teach us?” ³²⁴  So they threw him out.

The Man’s Response to Jesus

9:35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, so he found the man ³²⁵  and said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” ³²⁶  9:36 The man ³²⁷  replied, ³²⁸  “And who is he, sir, that ³²⁹  I may believe in him?” 9:37 Jesus told him, “You have seen him; he ³³⁰  is the one speaking with you.” ³³¹  9:38 [He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. ³³²  9:39 Jesus ³³³  said,] ³³⁴  “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, ³³⁵  and the ones who see may become blind.”

9:40 Some of the Pharisees ³³⁶  who were with him heard this ³³⁷  and asked him, ³³⁸  “We are not blind too, are we?” ³³⁹  9:41 Jesus replied, ³⁴⁰  “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, ³⁴¹  but now because you claim that you can see, ³⁴²  your guilt ³⁴³  remains.” ³⁴⁴ 

Yohanes 17:3

17:3 Now this ³⁴⁵  is eternal life ³⁴⁶  – that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, ³⁴⁷  whom you sent.

Yohanes 17:25

17:25 Righteous Father, even if the world does not know you, I know you, and these men ³⁴⁸  know that you sent me.

[6:69]  ¹ tn Grk “And we.”

[6:69]  ² sn See 1 John 4:16.

[6:69]  ³ tc The witnesses display a bewildering array of variants here. Instead of “the Holy One of God” (ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ, Jo {agio" tou qeou), Tertullian has ὁ Χριστός (Jo Cristo", “the Christ”); C³ Θ* ˹ 33 565 lat read ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ (Jo Cristo" Jo Juio" tou qeou, “the Christ, the Son of God”); two versional witnesses (b sy^c) have ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ (“the Son of God”); the Byzantine text as well as many others (Ψ 0250 ˹³ 33 Ï) read ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος (Jo Cristo" Jo Juio" tou qeou tou zwnto", “the Christ, the Son of the living God”); and Ì⁶⁶ as well as a few versions have ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ (“the Christ, the Holy One of God”). The reading ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ is, however, well supported by Ì⁷⁵ א B C* D L W as well as versional witnesses. It appears that Peter’s confession in the Synoptic Gospels (especially Matt 16:16) supplied the motivation for the variations. Although the witnesses in Matt 16:16; Mark 8:29; and Luke 9:20 vary considerably, the readings are all intra-synoptic, that is, they do not pull in “the Holy One of God” but reflect various permutations of “Christ”/“Christ of God”/“Christ, the Son of God”/“Christ, the Son of the living God.” The wording “the Holy One of God” (without “Christ”) in important witnesses here is thus unique among Peter’s confessions, and best explains the rise of the other readings.

[6:69]  sn You have the words of eternal life…you are the Holy One of God! In contrast to the response of some of his disciples, here is the response of the twelve, whom Jesus then questioned concerning their loyalty to him. This was the big test, and the twelve, with Peter as spokesman, passed with flying colors. The confession here differs considerably from the synoptic accounts (Matt 16:16, Mark 8:29, and Luke 9:20) and concerns directly the disciples’ personal loyalty to Jesus, in contrast to those other disciples who had deserted him (John 6:66).

[7:17]  ⁴ tn Grk “his will.”

[7:17]  ⁵ tn Grk “or whether I speak from myself.”

[8:19]  ⁶ tn Grk “Then they were saying to him.” The imperfect verb has been translated with ingressive force here because of the introduction of a new line of questioning by the Pharisees. Jesus had just claimed his Father as a second witness; now his opponents want to know who his father is.

[8:19]  ⁷ sn If you knew me you would know my Father too. Jesus’ reply is based on his identity with the Father (see also John 1:18; 14:9).

[10:14]  ⁸ tn Grk “And I.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[10:14]  ⁹ tn The direct object is frequently omitted in Greek and must be supplied from the context. Here it could be “sheep,” but Jesus was ultimately talking about “people.”

[14:1]  ¹⁰ sn The same verb is used to describe Jesus’ own state in John 11:33, 12:27, and 13:21. Jesus is looking ahead to the events of the evening and the next day, his arrest, trials, crucifixion, and death, which will cause his disciples extreme emotional distress.

[14:1]  ¹¹ tn Or “Believe in God.” The translation of the two uses of πιστεύετε (pisteuete) is difficult. Both may be either indicative or imperative, and as L. Morris points out (John [NICNT], 637), this results in a bewildering variety of possibilities. To complicate matters further, the first may be understood as a question: “Do you believe in God? Believe also in me.” Morris argues against the KJV translation which renders the first πιστεύετε as indicative and the second as imperative on the grounds that for the writer of the Fourth Gospel, faith in Jesus is inseparable from faith in God. But this is precisely the point that Jesus is addressing in context. He is about to undergo rejection by his own people as their Messiah. The disciples’ faith in him as Messiah and Lord would be cast into extreme doubt by these events, which the author makes clear were not at this time foreseen by the disciples. After the resurrection it is this identification between Jesus and the Father which needs to be reaffirmed (cf. John 20:24-29). Thus it seems best to take the first πιστεύετε as indicative and the second as imperative, producing the translation “You believe in God; believe also in me.”

[14:2]  ¹² tn Many interpreters have associated μοναί (monai) with an Aramaic word that can refer to a stopping place or resting place for a traveler on a journey. This is similar to one of the meanings the word can have in secular Greek (Pausanius 10.31.7). Origen understood the use here to refer to stations on the road to God. This may well have been the understanding of the Latin translators who translated μονή (monh) by mansio, a stopping place. The English translation “mansions” can be traced back to Tyndale, but in Middle English the word simply meant “a dwelling place” (not necessarily large or imposing) with no connotation of being temporary. The interpretation put forward by Origen would have been well suited to Gnosticism, where the soul in its ascent passes through stages during which it is gradually purified of all that is material and therefore evil. It is much more likely that the word μονή should be related to its cognate verb μένω (menw), which is frequently used in the Fourth Gospel to refer to the permanence of relationship between Jesus and the Father and/or Jesus and the believer. Thus the idea of a permanent dwelling place, rather than a temporary stopping place, would be in view. Luther’s translation of μοναί by Wohnungen is very accurate here, as it has the connotation of a permanent residence.

[14:2]  ¹³ sn Most interpreters have understood the reference to my Father’s house as a reference to heaven, and the dwelling places (μονή, monh) as the permanent residences of believers there. This seems consistent with the vocabulary and the context, where in v. 3 Jesus speaks of coming again to take the disciples to himself. However, the phrase in my Father’s house was used previously in the Fourth Gospel in 2:16 to refer to the temple in Jerusalem. The author in 2:19-22 then reinterpreted the temple as Jesus’ body, which was to be destroyed in death and then rebuilt in resurrection after three days. Even more suggestive is the statement by Jesus in 8:35, “Now the slave does not remain (μένω, menw) in the household forever, but the son remains (μένω) forever.” If in the imagery of the Fourth Gospel the phrase in my Father’s house is ultimately a reference to Jesus’ body, the relationship of μονή to μένω suggests the permanent relationship of the believer to Jesus and the Father as an adopted son who remains in the household forever. In this case the “dwelling place” is “in” Jesus himself, where he is, whether in heaven or on earth. The statement in v. 3, “I will come again and receive you to myself,” then refers not just to the parousia, but also to Jesus’ postresurrection return to the disciples in his glorified state, when by virtue of his death on their behalf they may enter into union with him and with the Father as adopted sons. Needless to say, this bears numerous similarities to Pauline theology, especially the concepts of adoption as sons and being “in Christ” which are prominent in passages like Eph 1. It is also important to note, however, the emphasis in the Fourth Gospel itself on the present reality of eternal life (John 5:24, 7:38-39, etc.) and the possibility of worshiping the Father “in the Spirit and in truth” (John 4:21-24) in the present age. There is a sense in which it is possible to say that the future reality is present now. See further J. McCaffrey, The House With Many Rooms (AnBib 114).

[14:2]  ¹⁴ tc A number of important mss (Ì^66c א A B C* D K L W Ψ Ë¹³ 33 565 579 892 al lat) have ὅτι (Joti) here, while the majority lack it (Ì^66* C² Θ Ï). Should the ὅτι be included or omitted? The external evidence is significantly stronger for the longer reading. Most Alexandrian and Western mss favor inclusion (it is a little unusual for the Alexandrian to favor the longer reading), while most Byzantine mss favor omission (again, a little unusual). However, the reading of Ì^66*, which aligns with the Byzantine, needs to be given some value. At the same time, the scribe of this papyrus was known for freely omitting and adding words, and the fact that the ms was corrected discounts its testimony here. But because the shorter reading is out of character for the Byzantine text, the shorter reading (omitting the ὅτι) may well be authentic. Internally, the question comes down to whether the shorter reading is more difficult or not. And here, it loses the battle, for it seems to be a clarifying omission (so TCGNT 206). R. E. Brown is certainly right when he states: “all in all, the translation without ὅτι makes the best sense” (John [AB], 2:620). But this tacitly argues for the authenticity of the word. Thus, on both external and internal grounds, the ὅτι should be regarded as authentic.

[14:2]  tn If the ὅτι (Joti) is included (see tc above), there are no less than four possible translations for this sentence: The sentence could be either a question or a statement, and in addition the ὅτι could either indicate content or be causal. How does one determine the best translation? (1) A question here should probably be ruled out because it would imply a previous statement by Jesus that either there are many dwelling places in his Father’s house (if the ὅτι is causal) or he was going off to make a place ready for them (if the ὅτι indicates content). There is no indication anywhere in the Fourth Gospel that Jesus had made such statements prior to this time. So understanding the sentence as a statement is the best option. (2) A statement with ὅτι indicating content is understandable but contradictory. If there were no dwelling places, Jesus would have told them that he was going off to make dwelling places. But the following verse makes clear that Jesus’ departure is not hypothetical but real – he is really going away. So understanding the ὅτι with a causal nuance is the best option. (3) A statement with a causal ὅτι can be understood two ways: (a) “Otherwise I would have told you” is a parenthetical statement, and the ὅτι clause goes with the preceding “There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house.” This would be fairly awkward syntactically, however; it would be much more natural for the ὅτι clause to modify what directly preceded it. (b) “Otherwise I would have told you” is explained by Jesus’ statement that he is going to make ready a place. He makes a logical, necessary connection between his future departure and the reality of the dwelling places in his Father’s house. To sum up, all the possibilities for understanding the verse with the inclusion of ὅτι present some interpretive difficulties, but last option given seems best: “Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going to make ready a place.” Of all the options it provides the best logical flow of thought in the passage without making any apparent contradictions in the context.

[14:2]  ¹⁵ tn Or “to prepare.”

[14:2]  ¹⁶ tn Or “If not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?” What is the meaning of the last clause with or without the ὅτι? One of the questions that must be answered here is whether or not τόπος (topos) is to be equated with μονή (monh). In Rev 12:8 τόπος is used to refer to a place in heaven, which would suggest that the two are essentially equal here. Jesus is going ahead of believers to prepare a place for them, a permanent dwelling place in the Father’s house (see the note on this phrase in v. 2).

[14:3]  ¹⁷ tn Or “prepare.”

[14:3]  ¹⁸ tn Or “bring you.”

[14:3]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “to myself.”

[14:4]  ²⁰ tc Most mss (Ì^66* A C³ D Θ Ψ Ë^1,13 Ï lat sy sa) read “You know where I am going, and you know the way” (καὶ ὅπου [ἐγὼ] ὑπάγω οἴδατε καὶ τὴν ὁδόν οἴδατε, kai {opou egw Jupagw oidate kai thn Jodon oidate). The difference between this reading and the wording in NA²⁷ (supported by Ì^66c א B C* L Q W 33 579 pc) is the addition of καί before τὴν ὁδόν and οἴδατε after. Either assertion on the part of Jesus would be understandable: “you know the way where I am going” or “you know where I am going and you know the way,” although the shorter reading is a bit more awkward syntactically. In light of this, and in light of the expansion already at hand in v. 5, the longer reading appears to be a motivated reading. The shorter reading is thus preferred because of its superior external and internal evidence.

[14:4]  sn Where I am going. Jesus had spoken of his destination previously to the disciples, most recently in John 13:33. Where he was going was back to the Father, and they could not follow him there, but later he would return for them and they could join him then. The way he was going was via the cross. This he had also mentioned previously (e.g., 12:32) although his disciples did not understand at the time (cf. 12:33). As Jesus would explain in v. 6, although for him the way back to the Father was via the cross, for his disciples the “way” to where he was going was Jesus himself.

[14:5]  ²¹ tn Grk “said to him.”

[14:6]  ²² tn Grk “Jesus said to him.”

[14:6]  ²³ tn Or “I am the way, even the truth and the life.”

[14:7]  ²⁴ tc There is a difficult textual problem here: The statement reads either “If you have known (ἐγνώκατε, egnwkate) me, you will know (γνώσεσθε, gnwsesqe) my Father” or “If you had really known (ἐγνώκειτε, egnwkeite) me, you would have known (ἐγνώκειτε ἄν or ἂν ἤδειτε [egnwkeite an or an hdeite]) my Father.” The division of the external evidence is difficult, but can be laid out as follows: The mss that have the perfect ἐγνώκατε in the protasis (Ì⁶⁶ [א D* W] 579 pc it) also have, for the most part, the future indicative γνώσεσθε in the apodosis (Ì⁶⁶ א D W [579] pc sa bo), rendering Jesus’ statement as a first-class condition. The mss that have the pluperfect ἐγνώκειτε in the protasis (A B C D¹ L Θ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 Ï) also have, for the most part, a pluperfect in the apodosis (either ἂν ἤδειτε in B C* [L] Q Ψ 1 33 565 al, or ἐγνώκειτε ἄν in A C³ Θ Ë¹³ Ï), rendering Jesus’ statement a contrary-to-fact second-class condition. The external evidence slightly favors the first-class condition, since there is an Alexandrian-Western alliance supported by Ì⁶⁶. As well, the fact that the readings with a second-class condition utilize two different verbs with ἄν in different positions suggests that these readings are secondary. However, it could be argued that the second-class conditions are harder readings in that they speak negatively of the apostles (so K. Aland in TCGNT 207); in this case, the ἐγνώκειτε…ἐγνώκειτε ἄν reading should be given preference. Although a decision is difficult, the first-class condition is to be slightly preferred. In this case Jesus promises the disciples that, assuming they have known him, they will know the Father. Contextually this fits better with the following phrase (v. 7b) which asserts that “from the present time you know him and have seen him” (cf. John 1:18).

[14:8]  ²⁵ tn Grk “said to him.”

[14:8]  ²⁶ tn Or “and that is enough for us.”

[14:9]  ²⁷ tn Grk “Jesus said to him.”

[14:9]  ²⁸ tn Or “recognized.”

[14:10]  ²⁹ tn The mutual interrelationship of the Father and the Son (ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ πατρὶ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἐν ἐμοί ἐστιν, egw en tw patri kai Jo pathr en emoi estin) is something that Jesus expected even his opponents to recognize (cf. John 10:38). The question Jesus asks of Philip (οὐ πιστεύεις, ou pisteuei") expects the answer “yes.” Note that the following statement is addressed to all the disciples, however, because the plural pronoun (ὑμῖν, Jumin) is used. Jesus says that his teaching (the words he spoke to them all) did not originate from himself, but the Father, who permanently remains (μένων, menwn) in relationship with Jesus, performs his works. One would have expected “speaks his words” here rather than “performs his works”; many of the church fathers (e.g., Augustine and Chrysostom) identified the two by saying that Jesus’ words were works. But there is an implicit contrast in the next verse between words and works, and v. 12 seems to demand that the works are real works, not just words. It is probably best to see the two terms as related but not identical; there is a progression in the idea here. Both Jesus’ words (recall the Samaritans’ response in John 4:42) and Jesus’ works are revelatory of who he is, but as the next verse indicates, works have greater confirmatory power than words.

[14:10]  ³⁰ tn Grk “I do not speak from myself.”

[14:10]  ³¹ tn Or “does.”

[14:10]  ³² tn Or “his mighty acts”; Grk “his works.”

[14:10]  sn Miraculous deeds is most likely a reference to the miraculous signs Jesus had performed, which he viewed as a manifestation of the mighty acts of God. Those he performed in the presence of the disciples served as a basis for faith (although a secondary basis to their personal relationship to him; see the following verse).

[14:11]  ³³ tn The phrase “but if you do not believe me” contains an ellipsis; the Greek text reads Grk “but if not.” The ellipsis has been filled out (“but if [you do] not [believe me]…”) for the benefit of the modern English reader.

[14:11]  ³⁴ tn Grk “because of the works.”

[14:11]  sn In the context of a proof or basis for belief, Jesus is referring to the miraculous deeds (signs) he has performed in the presence of the disciples.

[14:12]  ³⁵ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[14:12]  ³⁶ tn Or “will do.”

[14:12]  ³⁷ tn Grk “the works.”

[14:12]  ³⁸ tn Or “that I do.”

[14:12]  sn See the note on miraculous deeds in v. 11.

[14:12]  ³⁹ tn Or “will do.”

[14:12]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “greater works.”

[14:12]  sn What are the greater deeds that Jesus speaks of, and how is this related to his going to the Father? It is clear from both John 7:39 and 16:7 that the Holy Spirit will not come until Jesus has departed. After Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit to indwell believers in a permanent relationship, believers would be empowered to perform even greater deeds than those Jesus did during his earthly ministry. When the early chapters of Acts are examined, it is clear that, from a numerical standpoint, the deeds of Peter and the other Apostles surpassed those of Jesus in a single day (the day of Pentecost). On that day more were added to the church than had become followers of Jesus during the entire three years of his earthly ministry. And the message went forth not just in Judea, Samaria, and Galilee, but to the farthest parts of the known world. This understanding of what Jesus meant by “greater deeds” is more probable than a reference to “more spectacular miracles.” Certainly miraculous deeds were performed by the apostles as recounted in Acts, but these do not appear to have surpassed the works of Jesus himself in either degree or number.

[14:13]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “And whatever you ask in my name, I will do it.”

[14:13]  ⁴² tn Or “may be praised” or “may be honored.”

[14:15]  ⁴³ tn Or “will keep.”

[14:15]  ⁴⁴ sn Jesus’ statement If you love me, you will obey my commandments provides the transition between the promises of answered prayer which Jesus makes to his disciples in vv. 13-14 and the promise of the Holy Spirit which is introduced in v. 16. Obedience is the proof of genuine love.

[14:16]  ⁴⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then” to reflect the implied sequence in the discourse.

[14:16]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “Helper” or “Counselor”; Grk “Paraclete,” from the Greek word παράκλητος (paraklhto"). Finding an appropriate English translation for παράκλητος is a very difficult task. No single English word has exactly the same range of meaning as the Greek word. “Comforter,” used by some of the older English versions, appears to be as old as Wycliffe. But today it suggests a quilt or a sympathetic mourner at a funeral. “Counselor” is adequate, but too broad, in contexts like “marriage counselor” or “camp counselor.” “Helper” or “Assistant” could also be used, but could suggest a subordinate rank. “Advocate,” the word chosen for this translation, has more forensic overtones than the Greek word does, although in John 16:5-11 a forensic context is certainly present. Because an “advocate” is someone who “advocates” or supports a position or viewpoint and since this is what the Paraclete will do for the preaching of the disciples, it was selected in spite of the drawbacks.

[14:17]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “cannot receive.”

[14:17]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “he remains.”

[14:17]  ⁴⁹ tc Some early and important witnesses (Ì^66* B D* W 1 565 it) have ἐστιν (estin, “he is”) instead of ἔσται (estai, “he will be”) here, while other weighty witnesses ({Ì^66c,75vid א A D¹ L Θ Ψ Ë¹³ 33^vid Ï as well as several versions and fathers}), read the future tense. When one considers transcriptional evidence, ἐστιν is the more difficult reading and better explains the rise of the future tense reading, but it must be noted that both Ì⁶⁶ and D were corrected from the present tense to the future. If ἐστιν were the original reading, one would expect a few manuscripts to be corrected to read the present when they originally read the future, but that is not the case. When one considers what the author would have written, the future is on much stronger ground. The immediate context (both in 14:16 and in the chapter as a whole) points to the future, and the theology of the book regards the advent of the Spirit as a decidedly future event (see, e.g., 7:39 and 16:7). The present tense could have arisen from an error of sight on the part of some scribes or more likely from an error of thought as scribes reflected upon the present role of the Spirit. Although a decision is difficult, the future tense is most likely authentic. For further discussion on this textual problem, see James M. Hamilton, Jr., “He Is with You and He Will Be in You” (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2003), 213-20.

[14:18]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “leave.”

[14:18]  ⁵¹ tn The entire phrase “abandon you as orphans” could be understood as an idiom meaning, “leave you helpless.”

[14:18]  ⁵² sn I will come to you. Jesus had spoken in 14:3 of going away and coming again to his disciples. There the reference was both to the parousia (the second coming of Christ) and to the postresurrection appearances of Jesus to the disciples. Here the postresurrection appearances are primarily in view, since Jesus speaks of the disciples “seeing” him after the world can “see” him no longer in the following verse. But many commentators have taken v. 18 as a reference to the coming of the Spirit, since this has been the topic of the preceding verses. Still, vv. 19-20 appear to contain references to Jesus’ appearances to the disciples after his resurrection. It may well be that another Johannine double meaning is found here, so that Jesus ‘returns’ to his disciples in one sense in his appearances to them after his resurrection, but in another sense he ‘returns’ in the person of the Holy Spirit to indwell them.

[14:19]  ⁵³ tn Grk “Yet a little while, and.”

[14:20]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “will know in that day.”

[14:20]  sn At that time could be a reference to the parousia (second coming of Christ). But the statement in 14:19, that the world will not see Jesus, does not fit. It is better to take this as the postresurrection appearances of Jesus to his disciples (which has the advantage of taking in a little while in v. 19 literally).

[14:21]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “keeps.”

[14:21]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “obeys them, that one is the one who loves me.”

[14:21]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “And the one.” Here the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated to improve the English style.

[14:21]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “will disclose.”

[14:22]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “(not Iscariot).” The proper noun (Judas) has been repeated for clarity and smoothness in English style.

[14:22]  sn This is a parenthetical comment by the author.

[14:22]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “said to him.”

[14:22]  ⁶¹ tn Or “disclose.”

[14:22]  sn The disciples still expected at this point that Jesus, as Messiah, was going to reveal his identity as such to the world (cf. 7:4).

[14:23]  ⁶² tn Grk “answered and said to him.”

[14:23]  ⁶³ tn Or “will keep.”

[14:23]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “we will come to him and will make our dwelling place with him.” The context here is individual rather than corporate indwelling, so the masculine singular pronoun has been retained throughout v. 23. It is important to note, however, that the pronoun is used generically here and refers equally to men, women, and children.

[14:24]  ⁶⁵ tn Or “does not keep.”

[14:24]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “the message.”

[14:25]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “while remaining” or “while residing.”

[14:26]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “Helper” or “Counselor”; Grk “Paraclete,” from the Greek word παράκλητος (paraklhto"). See the note on the word “Advocate” in v. 16 for a discussion of how this word is translated.

[14:26]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “that one will teach you.” The words “that one” have been omitted from the translation since they are redundant in English.

[14:26]  ⁷⁰ tn Grk “all things.”

[14:26]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “all things.”

[14:27]  ⁷² sn Peace I leave with you. In spite of appearances, this verse does not introduce a new subject (peace). Jesus will use the phrase as a greeting to his disciples after his resurrection (20:19, 21, 26). It is here a reflection of the Hebrew shalom as a farewell. But Jesus says he leaves peace with his disciples. This should probably be understood ultimately in terms of the indwelling of the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, who has been the topic of the preceding verses. It is his presence, after Jesus has left the disciples and finally returned to the Father, which will remain with them and comfort them.

[14:27]  ⁷³ tn The pronoun “it” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context.

[14:27]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “not as the world gives do I give to you.”

[14:27]  ⁷⁵ tn Or “distressed or fearful and cowardly.”

[14:28]  ⁷⁶ tn Or “You have heard that I said to you.”

[14:28]  ⁷⁷ tn Or “you would rejoice.”

[14:28]  ⁷⁸ sn Jesus’ statement the Father is greater than I am has caused much christological and trinitarian debate. Although the Arians appealed to this text to justify their subordinationist Christology, it seems evident that by the fact Jesus compares himself to the Father, his divine nature is taken for granted. There have been two orthodox interpretations: (1) The Son is eternally generated while the Father is not: Origen, Tertullian, Athanasius, Hilary, etc. (2) As man the incarnate Son was less than the Father: Cyril of Alexandria, Ambrose, Augustine. In the context of the Fourth Gospel the second explanation seems more plausible. But why should the disciples have rejoiced? Because Jesus was on the way to the Father who would glorify him (cf. 17:4-5); his departure now signifies that the work the Father has given him is completed (cf. 19:30). Now Jesus will be glorified with that glory that he had with the Father before the world was (cf. 17:5). This should be a cause of rejoicing to the disciples because when Jesus is glorified he will glorify his disciples as well (17:22).

[14:29]  ⁷⁹ sn Jesus tells the disciples that he has told them all these things before they happen, so that when they do happen the disciples may believe. This does not mean they had not believed prior to this time; over and over the author has affirmed that they have (cf. 2:11). But when they see these things happen, their level of trust in Jesus will increase and their concept of who he is will expand. The confession of Thomas in 20:28 is representative of this increased understanding of who Jesus is. Cf. John 13:19.

[14:30]  ⁸⁰ tn Grk “I will no longer speak many things with you.”

[14:30]  ⁸¹ sn The ruler of this world is a reference to Satan.

[14:30]  ⁸² tn Grk “in me he has nothing.”

[14:31]  ⁸³ tn Or “may learn.”

[14:31]  ⁸⁴ tn Grk “But so that the world may know that I love the Father, and just as the Father commanded me, thus I do.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged in the translation to conform to contemporary English style.

[14:31]  ⁸⁵ sn Some have understood Jesus’ statement Get up, let us go from here to mean that at this point Jesus and the disciples got up and left the room where the meal was served and began the journey to the garden of Gethsemane. If so, the rest of the Farewell Discourse took place en route. Others have pointed to this statement as one of the “seams” in the discourse, indicating that the author used preexisting sources. Both explanations are possible, but not really necessary. Jesus could simply have stood up at this point (the disciples may or may not have stood with him) to finish the discourse before finally departing (in 18:1). In any case it may be argued that Jesus refers not to a literal departure at this point, but to preparing to meet the enemy who is on the way already in the person of Judas and the soldiers with him.

[7:1]  ⁸⁶ sn Again, the transition is indicated by the imprecise temporal indicator After this. Clearly, though, the author has left out much of the events of Jesus’ ministry, because chap. 6 took place near the Passover (6:4). This would have been the Passover between winter/spring of a.d. 32, just one year before Jesus’ crucifixion (assuming a date of a.d. 33 for the crucifixion), or the Passover of winter/spring a.d. 29, assuming a date of a.d. 30 for the crucifixion.

[7:1]  ⁸⁷ tn Grk “Jesus was traveling around in Galilee.”

[7:1]  ⁸⁸ tn Grk “For he.” Here γάρ (gar, “for”) has not been translated.

[7:1]  ⁸⁹ tn Grk “he did not want to travel around in Judea.”

[7:1]  ⁹⁰ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase should be restricted to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents.

[7:1]  ⁹¹ tn Grk “were seeking.”

[7:2]  ⁹² tn Or “feast of the Tents” (the feast where people lived in tents or shelters, which was celebrated in the autumn after harvest). John’s use of σκηνοπηγία (skhnophgia) for the feast of Tabernacles constitutes the only use of this term in the New Testament.

[7:2]  ⁹³ sn Since the present verse places these incidents at the feast of Tabernacles (a.d. 29 or 32, depending on whether one dates the crucifixion in a.d. 30 or 33) there would have been a 6-month interval during which no events are recorded. The author is obviously selective in his approach; he is not recording an exhaustive history (as he will later tell the reader in John 21:25). After healing the paralytic on the Sabbath in Jerusalem (John 5:1-47), Jesus withdrew again to Galilee because of mounting opposition. In Galilee the feeding of the 5,000 took place, which marked the end of the Galilean ministry for all practical purposes. John 7:1-9 thus marks Jesus’ final departure from Galilee.

[7:3]  ⁹⁴ tn Grk “his brothers.”

[7:3]  sn Jesus’ brothers. Jesus’ brothers (really his half-brothers) were mentioned previously by John in 2:12 (see the note on brothers there). They are also mentioned elsewhere in Matt 13:55 and Mark 6:3.

[7:3]  ⁹⁵ tn Grk “your deeds that you are doing.”

[7:3]  sn Should the advice by Jesus’ brothers, Leave here and go to Judea so your disciples may see your miracles that you are performing, be understood as a suggestion that he should attempt to win back the disciples who had deserted him earlier (6:66)? Perhaps. But it is also possible to take the words as indicating that if Jesus is going to put forward messianic claims (i.e., through miraculous signs) then he should do so in Jerusalem, not in the remote parts of Galilee. Such an understanding seems to fit better with the following verse. It would also indicate misunderstanding on the part of Jesus’ brothers of the true nature of his mission – he did not come as the royal Messiah of Jewish apocalyptic expectation, to be enthroned as king at this time.

[7:4]  ⁹⁶ tn Or “seeks to be well known.”

[7:4]  ⁹⁷ sn No one who seeks to make a reputation for himself does anything in secret means, in effect: “if you’re going to perform signs to authenticate yourself as Messiah, you should do them at Jerusalem.” (Jerusalem is where mainstream Jewish apocalyptic tradition held that Messiah would appear.)

[7:5]  ⁹⁸ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[7:6]  ⁹⁹ tn Grk “Then Jesus said to them.”

[7:6]  ¹⁰⁰ tn Or “my opportunity.”

[7:6]  ¹⁰¹ tn Or “is not yet here.”

[7:6]  ¹⁰² tn Grk “your time is always ready.”

[7:8]  ¹⁰³ sn One always speaks of “going up” to Jerusalem in Jewish idiom, even though in western thought it is more common to speak of south as “down” (Jerusalem lies south of Galilee). The reason for the idiom is that Jerusalem was identified with Mount Zion in the OT, so that altitude was the issue.

[7:8]  ¹⁰⁴ tc Most mss (Ì^66,75 B L T W Θ Ψ 070 0105 0250 Ë^1,13 Ï sa), including most of the better witnesses, have “not yet” (οὔπω, oupw) here. Those with the reading οὐκ are not as impressive (א D K 1241 al lat), but οὐκ is the more difficult reading here, especially because it stands in tension with v. 10. On the one hand, it is possible that οὐκ arose because of homoioarcton: A copyist who saw oupw wrote ouk. However, it is more likely that οὔπω was introduced early on to harmonize with what is said two verses later. As for Jesus’ refusal to go up to the feast in v. 8, the statement does not preclude action of a different kind at a later point. Jesus may simply have been refusing to accompany his brothers with the rest of the group of pilgrims, preferring to travel separately and “in secret” (v. 10) with his disciples.

[7:8]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Although the word is καιρός (kairos) here, it parallels John’s use of ὥρα (Jwra) elsewhere as a reference to the time appointed for Jesus by the Father – the time of his return to the Father, characterized by his death, resurrection, and ascension (glorification). In the Johannine literature, synonyms are often interchanged for no apparent reason other than stylistic variation.

[7:8]  ¹⁰⁶ tn Or “my time has not yet come to an end” (a possible hint of Jesus’ death at Jerusalem); Grk “my time is not yet fulfilled.”

[7:10]  ¹⁰⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:11]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.

[7:11]  ¹⁰⁹ tn Grk “Where is that one?”

[7:12]  ¹¹⁰ tn Grk “And there was.”

[7:12]  ¹¹¹ tn Or “complaining.”

[7:12]  ¹¹² tn Or “among the common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in the previous verse).

[7:12]  ¹¹³ tn Or “the crowd.”

[7:13]  ¹¹⁴ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See also the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.

[7:14]  ¹¹⁵ tn Grk “to the temple.”

[7:14]  ¹¹⁶ tn Or “started teaching.” An ingressive sense for the imperfect verb (“began to teach” or “started teaching”) fits well here, since the context implies that Jesus did not start his teaching at the beginning of the festival, but began when it was about half over.

[7:15]  ¹¹⁷ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.

[7:15]  ¹¹⁸ tn Or “began to be astonished.” This imperfect verb could also be translated ingressively (“began to be astonished”), but for English stylistic reasons it is rendered as a simple past.

[7:15]  ¹¹⁹ tn Grk “How does this man know learning since he has not been taught?” The implication here is not that Jesus never went to school (in all probability he did attend a local synagogue school while a youth), but that he was not the disciple of a particular rabbi and had not had formal or advanced instruction under a recognized rabbi (compare Acts 4:13 where a similar charge is made against Peter and John; see also Paul’s comment in Acts 22:3).

[7:15]  sn He has never had formal instruction. Ironically when the Jewish leaders came face to face with the Word become flesh – the preexistent Logos, creator of the universe and divine Wisdom personified – they treated him as an untaught, unlearned person, without the formal qualifications to be a teacher.

[7:16]  ¹²⁰ tn Grk “So Jesus answered and said to them.”

[7:16]  ¹²¹ tn The phrase “the one who sent me” refers to God.

[7:17]  ¹²² tn Grk “his will.”

[7:17]  ¹²³ tn Grk “or whether I speak from myself.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁴ tn Grk “who speaks from himself.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁵ tn Or “seeks.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁶ tn Or “praise”; Grk “glory.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁷ tn Or “seeks.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁸ tn Or “praise”; Grk “glory.”

[7:18]  ¹²⁹ tn Or “is truthful”; Grk “is true.”

[7:19]  ¹³⁰ tn Or “accomplishes”; Grk “does.”

[7:19]  ¹³¹ tn Grk “seek.”

[7:20]  ¹³² tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in 7:15).

[7:20]  ¹³³ tn Grk “You have a demon!”

[7:20]  ¹³⁴ tn Grk “Who is seeking to kill you?”

[7:20]  sn Who is trying to kill you? Many of the crowd (if they had come in from surrounding regions for the feast) probably were ignorant of any plot. The plot was on the part of the Jewish leaders. Note how carefully John distinguishes between the leadership and the general populace in their respective responses to Jesus.

[7:21]  ¹³⁵ tn Grk “Jesus answered and said to them.”

[7:21]  ¹³⁶ tn Grk “I did one deed.”

[7:21]  ¹³⁷ sn The “one miracle” that caused them all to be amazed was the last previous public miracle in Jerusalem recorded by the author, the healing of the paralyzed man in John 5:1-9 on the Sabbath. (The synoptic gospels record other Sabbath healings, but John does not mention them.)

[7:22]  ¹³⁸ tn Grk “gave you circumcision.”

[7:22]  ¹³⁹ tn Grk “a man.” While the text literally reads “circumcise a man” in actual fact the practice of circumcising male infants on the eighth day after birth (see Phil 3:5) is primarily what is in view here.

[7:23]  ¹⁴⁰ tn Grk “a man.” See the note on “male child” in the previous verse.

[7:23]  ¹⁴¹ tn Grk “receives circumcision.”

[7:23]  ¹⁴² sn If a male child is circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses is not broken. The Rabbis counted 248 parts to a man’s body. In the Talmud (b. Yoma 85b) R. Eleazar ben Azariah (ca. a.d. 100) states: “If circumcision, which attaches to one only of the 248 members of the human body, suspends the Sabbath, how much more shall the saving of the whole body suspend the Sabbath?” So absolutely binding did rabbinic Judaism regard the command of Lev 12:3 to circumcise on the eighth day, that in the Mishnah m. Shabbat 18.3; 19.1, 2; and m. Nedarim 3.11 all hold that the command to circumcise overrides the command to observe the Sabbath.

[7:23]  ¹⁴³ tn Or “made an entire man well.”

[7:24]  ¹⁴⁴ tn Or “based on sight.”

[7:24]  ¹⁴⁵ tn Or “honest”; Grk “righteous.”

[7:25]  ¹⁴⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:25]  ¹⁴⁷ tn Grk “Is it not this one.”

[7:25]  ¹⁴⁸ tn Grk “seeking.”

[7:26]  ¹⁴⁹ tn Or “speaking openly.”

[7:26]  ¹⁵⁰ sn They are saying nothing to him. Some people who had heard Jesus were so impressed with his teaching that they began to infer from the inactivity of the opposing Jewish leaders a tacit acknowledgment of Jesus’ claims.

[7:26]  ¹⁵¹ tn Grk “this one.”

[7:26]  ¹⁵² tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[7:26]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.

[7:27]  ¹⁵³ tn Grk “this one.”

[7:27]  ¹⁵⁴ sn We know where this man comes from. The author apparently did not consider this objection worth answering. The true facts about Jesus’ origins were readily available for any reader who didn’t know already. Here is an instance where the author assumes knowledge about Jesus that is independent from the material he records.

[7:27]  ¹⁵⁵ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[7:27]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.

[7:27]  ¹⁵⁶ sn The view of these people regarding the Messiah that no one will know where he comes from reflects the idea that the origin of the Messiah is a mystery. In the Talmud (b. Sanhedrin 97a) Rabbi Zera taught: “Three come unawares: Messiah, a found article, and a scorpion.” Apparently OT prophetic passages like Mal 3:1 and Dan 9:25 were interpreted by some as indicating a sudden appearance of Messiah. It appears that this was not a universal view: The scribes summoned by Herod at the coming of the Magi in Matt 2 knew that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. It is important to remember that Jewish messianic expectations in the early 1st century were not monolithic.

[7:28]  ¹⁵⁷ tn Grk “the temple.”

[7:28]  ¹⁵⁸ tn Grk “Then Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying.”

[7:28]  ¹⁵⁹ sn You both know me and know where I come from! Jesus’ response while teaching in the temple is difficult – it appears to concede too much understanding to his opponents. It is best to take the words as irony: “So you know me and know where I am from, do you?” On the physical, literal level, they did know where he was from: Nazareth of Galilee (at least they thought they knew). But on another deeper (spiritual) level, they did not: He came from heaven, from the Father. Jesus insisted that he has not come on his own initiative (cf. 5:37), but at the bidding of the Father who sent him.

[7:28]  ¹⁶⁰ tn Grk “And I have not come from myself.”

[7:28]  ¹⁶¹ tn The phrase “the one who sent me” refers to God.

[7:28]  ¹⁶² tn Grk “the one who sent me is true, whom you do not know.”

[7:29]  ¹⁶³ tn Although the conjunction “but” is not in the Greek text, the contrast is implied (an omitted conjunction is called asyndeton).

[7:29]  ¹⁶⁴ tn The preposition παρά (para) followed by the genitive has the local sense preserved and can be used of one person sending another. This does not necessarily imply origin in essence or eternal generation.

[7:29]  ¹⁶⁵ tn Grk “and that one.”

[7:30]  ¹⁶⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:30]  sn Here the response is on the part of the crowd, who tried to seize Jesus. This is apparently distinct from the attempted arrest by the authorities mentioned in 7:32.

[7:30]  ¹⁶⁷ tn Grk “his hour.”

[7:31]  ¹⁶⁸ tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities).

[7:31]  ¹⁶⁹ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[7:31]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.

[7:31]  ¹⁷⁰ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here it is “will he?”).

[7:32]  ¹⁷¹ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[7:32]  ¹⁷² tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the Pharisees).

[7:32]  ¹⁷³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:32]  ¹⁷⁴ tn Or “servants.” The “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive term for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26. As “servants” or “officers” of the Sanhedrin their representatives should be distinguished from the Levites serving as temple police (perhaps John 7:30 and 44; also John 8:20; 10:39; 19:6; Acts 4:3). Even when performing “police” duties such as here, their “officers” are doing so only as part of their general tasks (see K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:540).

[7:32]  ¹⁷⁵ tn Grk “to seize him.” In the context of a deliberate attempt by the servants of the chief priests and Pharisees to detain Jesus, the English verb “arrest” conveys the point more effectively.

[7:33]  ¹⁷⁶ tn Grk “Yet a little I am with you.”

[7:33]  ¹⁷⁷ tn The word “then” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[7:34]  ¹⁷⁸ tn Grk “seek me.”

[7:35]  ¹⁷⁹ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase is understood to refer to the Jewish authorities or leaders, since the Jewish leaders are mentioned in this context both before and after the present verse (7:32, 45).

[7:35]  ¹⁸⁰ tn Grk “this one.”

[7:35]  ¹⁸¹ tn Grk “will not find him.”

[7:35]  ¹⁸² sn The Jewish people dispersed (Grk “He is not going to the Diaspora”). The Greek term diaspora (“dispersion”) originally meant those Jews not living in Palestine, but dispersed or scattered among the Gentiles.

[7:35]  ¹⁸³ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “is he?”).

[7:35]  sn Note the Jewish opponents’ misunderstanding of Jesus’ words, as made clear in vv. 35-36. They didn’t realize he spoke of his departure out of the world. This is another example of the author’s use of misunderstanding as a literary device to emphasize a point.

[7:36]  ¹⁸⁴ tn Grk “What is this word that he said.”

[7:36]  ¹⁸⁵ tn Grk “seek me.”

[7:37]  ¹⁸⁶ sn There is a problem with the identification of this reference to the last day of the feast, the greatest day: It appears from Deut 16:13 that the feast went for seven days. Lev 23:36, however, makes it plain that there was an eighth day, though it was mentioned separately from the seven. It is not completely clear whether the seventh or eighth day was the climax of the feast, called here by the author the “last great day of the feast.” Since according to the Mishnah (m. Sukkah 4.1) the ceremonies with water and lights did not continue after the seventh day, it seems more probable that this is the day the author mentions.

[7:37]  ¹⁸⁷ tn Grk “Jesus stood up and cried out, saying.”

[7:38]  ¹⁸⁸ tn An alternate way of punctuating the Greek text of vv. 37-38 results in this translation: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. The one who believes in me, just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’” John 7:37-38 has been the subject of considerable scholarly debate. Certainly Jesus picks up on the literal water used in the ceremony and uses it figuratively. But what does the figure mean? According to popular understanding, it refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the believer. There is some difficulty in locating an OT text which speaks of rivers of water flowing from within such a person, but Isa 58:11 is often suggested: “The Lord will continually lead you, he will feed you even in parched regions. He will give you renewed strength, and you will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring that continually produces water.” Other passages which have been suggested are Prov 4:23 and 5:15; Isa 44:3 and 55:1; Ezek 47:1 ff.; Joel 3:18; and Zech 13:1 and 14:8. The meaning in this case is that when anyone comes to believe in Jesus the scriptures referring to the activity of the Holy Spirit in a person’s life are fulfilled. “When the believer comes to Christ and drinks he not only slakes his thirst but receives such an abundant supply that veritable rivers flow from him” (L. Morris, John [NICNT], 424-25). In other words, with this view, the believer himself becomes the source of the living water. This is the traditional understanding of the passage, often called the “Eastern interpretation” following Origen, Athanasius, and the Greek Fathers. It is supported by such modern scholars as Barrett, Behm, Bernard, Cadman, Carson, R. H. Lightfoot, Lindars, Michaelis, Morris, Odeberg, Schlatter, Schweizer, C. H. Turner, M. M. B. Turner, Westcott, and Zahn. In addition it is represented by the following Greek texts and translations: KJV, RSV, NASB, NA²⁷, and UBS⁴. D. A. Carson, John, 322-29, has a thorough discussion of the issues and evidence although he opts for the previous interpretation. There is another interpretation possible, however, called the “Western interpretation” because of patristic support by Justin, Hippolytus, Tertullian, and Irenaeus. Modern scholars who favor this view are Abbott, Beasley-Murray, Bishop, Boismard, Braun, Brown, Bullinger, Bultmann, Burney, Dodd, Dunn, Guilding, R. Harris, Hoskyns, Jeremias, Loisy, D. M. Stanley, Thüsing, N. Turner, and Zerwick. This view is represented by the translation in the RSV margin and by the NEB. It is also sometimes called the “christological interpretation” because it makes Jesus himself the source of the living water in v. 38, by punctuating as follows: (37b) ἐάν τι διψᾷ ἐρχέσθω πρός με, καὶ πινέτω (38) ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμέ. Καθὼς εἶπεν ἡ γραφή, ποταμοὶ ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας αὐτοῦ ῥεύσουσιν ὕδατος ζῶντος. Three crucial questions are involved in the solution of this problem: (1) punctuation; (2) determining the antecedent of αὐτοῦ (autou); and (3) the source of the scripture quotation. With regard to (1) Ì⁶⁶ does place a full stop after πινέτω (pinetw), but this may be theologically motivated and could have been added later. Grammatical and stylistic arguments are inconclusive. More important is (2) the determination of the antecedent of αὐτοῦ. Can any other Johannine parallels be found which make the believer the source of the living water? John 4:14 is often mentioned in this regard, but unlike 4:14 the water here becomes a source for others also. Neither does 14:12 provide a parallel. Furthermore, such an interpretation becomes even more problematic in light of the explanation given in v. 39 that the water refers to the Holy Spirit, since it is extremely difficult to see the individual believer becoming the ‘source’ of the Spirit for others. On the other hand, the Gospel of John repeatedly places Jesus himself in this role as source of the living water: 4:10, of course, for the water itself; but according to 20:22 Jesus provides the Spirit (cf. 14:16). Furthermore, the symbolism of 19:34 is difficult to explain as anything other than a deliberate allusion to what is predicted here. This also explains why the Spirit cannot come to the disciples unless Jesus “departs” (16:7). As to (3) the source of the scripture quotation, M. E. Boismard has argued that John is using a targumic rendering of Ps 78:15-16 which describes the water brought forth from the rock in the wilderness by Moses (“Les citations targumiques dans le quatrième évangile,” RB 66 [1959]: 374-78). The frequency of Exodus motifs in the Fourth Gospel (paschal lamb, bronze serpent, manna from heaven) leads quite naturally to the supposition that the author is here drawing on the account of Moses striking the rock in the wilderness to bring forth water (Num 20:8 ff.). That such imagery was readily identified with Jesus in the early church is demonstrated by Paul’s understanding of the event in 1 Cor 10:4. Jesus is the Rock from which the living water – the Spirit – will flow. Carson (see note above) discusses this imagery although he favors the traditional or “Eastern” interpretation. In summary, the latter or “Western” interpretation is to be preferred.

[7:38]  ¹⁸⁹ tn Or “out of the innermost part of his person”; Grk “out of his belly.”

[7:38]  ¹⁹⁰ sn An OT quotation whose source is difficult to determine; Isa 44:3, 55:1, 58:11, and Zech 14:8 have all been suggested.

[7:39]  ¹⁹¹ tn Grk “for the Spirit was not yet.” Although only B and a handful of other NT mss supply the participle δεδομένον (dedomenon), this is followed in the translation to avoid misunderstanding by the modern English reader that prior to this time the Spirit did not exist. John’s phrase is expressed from a human standpoint and has nothing to do with the preexistence of the third Person of the Godhead. The meaning is that the era of the Holy Spirit had not yet arrived; the Spirit was not as yet at work in a way he later would be because Jesus had not yet returned to his Father. Cf. also Acts 19:2.

[7:39]  ¹⁹² sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[7:40]  ¹⁹³ tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the chief priests and Pharisees).

[7:40]  ¹⁹⁴ tn Or “truly.”

[7:40]  ¹⁹⁵ sn The Prophet is a reference to the “prophet like Moses” of Deut 18:15, by this time an eschatological figure in popular belief.

[7:41]  ¹⁹⁶ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[7:41]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.

[7:41]  ¹⁹⁷ tn An initial negative reply (“No”) is suggested by the causal or explanatory γάρ (gar) which begins the clause.

[7:41]  ¹⁹⁸ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “does he?”).

[7:42]  ¹⁹⁹ tn Grk “is from the seed” (an idiom for human descent).

[7:42]  ²⁰⁰ sn An allusion to Ps 89:4.

[7:42]  ²⁰¹ sn An allusion to Mic 5:2.

[7:42]  map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[7:42]  ²⁰² tn Grk “the village where David was.”

[7:43]  ²⁰³ tn Or “among the common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the chief priests and Pharisees).

[7:43]  ²⁰⁴ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:44]  ²⁰⁵ sn Compare John 7:30 regarding the attempt to seize Jesus.

[7:45]  ²⁰⁶ tn Or “servants.” The “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive term for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26. As “servants” or “officers” of the Sanhedrin, their representatives should be distinguished from the Levites serving as temple police (perhaps John 7:30 and 44; also John 8:20; 10:39; 19:6; Acts 4:3). Even when performing ‘police’ duties such as here, their “officers” are doing so only as part of their general tasks (See K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:540).

[7:45]  ²⁰⁷ tn Grk “came.”

[7:45]  ²⁰⁸ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[7:45]  ²⁰⁹ tn Grk “Why did you not bring him?” The words “back with you” are implied.

[7:47]  ²¹⁰ tn Grk “answered them.”

[7:47]  ²¹¹ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “have you?”).

[7:48]  ²¹² sn The chief priests and Pharisees (John 7:45) is a comprehensive term for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26. Likewise the term ruler here denotes a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews. Note the same word (“ruler”) is used to describe Nicodemus in John 3:1, and Nicodemus also speaks up in this episode (John 7:50).

[7:48]  ²¹³ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “have they?”).

[7:49]  ²¹⁴ tn Grk “crowd.” “Rabble” is a good translation here because the remark by the Pharisees is so derogatory.

[7:50]  ²¹⁵ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:50]  ²¹⁶ tn Grk “who was one of them”; the referent (the rulers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:50]  ²¹⁷ tn Grk “said to them.”

[7:51]  ²¹⁸ tn Grk “judge.”

[7:51]  ²¹⁹ tn Grk “knows.”

[7:51]  ²²⁰ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “does it?”).

[7:52]  ²²¹ tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”

[7:52]  ²²² tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are you?”).

[7:52]  ²²³ tc At least one early and important ms (Ì^66*) places the article before “prophet” (ὁ προφήτης, Jo profhths), making this a reference to the “prophet like Moses” mentioned in Deut 18:15.

[7:52]  tn This claim by the leaders presents some difficulty, because Jonah had been from Gath Hepher, in Galilee (2 Kgs 14:25). Also the Babylonian Talmud later stated, “There was not a tribe in Israel from which there did not come prophets” (b. Sukkah 27b). Two explanations are possible: (1) In the heat of anger the members of the Sanhedrin overlooked the facts (this is perhaps the easiest explanation). (2) This anarthrous noun is to be understood as a reference to the prophet of Deut 18:15 (note the reading of Ì⁶⁶ which is articular), by this time an eschatological figure in popular belief. This would produce in the text of John’s Gospel a high sense of irony indeed, since the religious authorities by their insistence that “the Prophet” could not come from Galilee displayed their true ignorance of where Jesus came from on two levels at once (Bethlehem, his birthplace, the fulfillment of Mic 5:2, but also heaven, from which he was sent by the Father). The author does not even bother to refute the false attestation of Jesus’ place of birth as Galilee (presumably Christians knew all too well where Jesus came from).

[7:53]  ²²⁴ tc This entire section, 7:53-8:11, traditionally known as the pericope adulterae, is not contained in the earliest and best mss and was almost certainly not an original part of the Gospel of John. Among modern commentators and textual critics, it is a foregone conclusion that the section is not original but represents a later addition to the text of the Gospel. B. M. Metzger summarizes: “the evidence for the non-Johannine origin of the pericope of the adulteress is overwhelming” (TCGNT 187). External evidence is as follows. For the omission of 7:53-8:11: Ì^66,75 א B L N T W Δ Θ Ψ 0141 0211 33 565 1241 1424* 2768 al. In addition codices A and C are defective in this part of John, but it appears that neither contained the pericope because careful measurement shows that there would not have been enough space on the missing pages to include the pericope 7:53-8:11 along with the rest of the text. Among the mss that include 7:53-8:11 are D Ï lat. In addition E S Λ 1424^mg al include part or all of the passage with asterisks or obeli, 225 places the pericope after John 7:36, ˹ places it after John 21:25, {115} after John 8:12, ˹³ after Luke 21:38, and the corrector of 1333 includes it after Luke 24:53. (For a more complete discussion of the locations where this “floating” text has ended up, as well as a minority opinion on the authenticity of the passage, see M. A. Robinson, “Preliminary Observations regarding the Pericope Adulterae Based upon Fresh Collations of nearly All Continuous-Text Manuscripts and All Lectionary Manuscripts containing the Passage,” Filologia Neotestamentaria 13 [2000]: 35-59, especially 41-42.) In evaluating this ms evidence, it should be remembered that in the Gospels A is considered to be of Byzantine texttype (unlike in the epistles and Revelation, where it is Alexandrian), as are E F G (mss with the same designation are of Western texttype in the epistles). This leaves D as the only major Western uncial witness in the Gospels for the inclusion. Therefore the evidence could be summarized by saying that almost all early mss of the Alexandrian texttype omit the pericope, while most mss of the Western and Byzantine texttype include it. But it must be remembered that “Western mss” here refers only to D, a single witness (as far as Greek mss are concerned). Thus it can be seen that practically all of the earliest and best mss extant omit the pericope; it is found only in mss of secondary importance. But before one can conclude that the passage was not originally part of the Gospel of John, internal evidence needs to be considered as well. Internal evidence in favor of the inclusion of 8:1-11 (7:53-8:11): (1) 7:53 fits in the context. If the “last great day of the feast” (7:37) refers to the conclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles, then the statement refers to the pilgrims and worshipers going home after living in “booths” for the week while visiting Jerusalem. (2) There may be an allusion to Isa 9:1-2 behind this text: John 8:12 is the point when Jesus describes himself as the Light of the world. But the section in question mentions that Jesus returned to the temple at “early dawn” (῎Ορθρου, Orqrou, in 8:2). This is the “dawning” of the Light of the world (8:12) mentioned by Isa 9:2. (3) Furthermore, note the relationship to what follows: Just prior to presenting Jesus’ statement that he is the Light of the world, John presents the reader with an example that shows Jesus as the light. Here the woman “came to the light” while her accusers shrank away into the shadows, because their deeds were evil (cf. 3:19-21). Internal evidence against the inclusion of 8:1-11 (7:53-8:11): (1) In reply to the claim that the introduction to the pericope, 7:53, fits the context, it should also be noted that the narrative reads well without the pericope, so that Jesus’ reply in 8:12 is directed against the charge of the Pharisees in 7:52 that no prophet comes from Galilee. (2) The assumption that the author “must” somehow work Isa 9:1-2 into the narrative is simply that – an assumption. The statement by the Pharisees in 7:52 about Jesus’ Galilean origins is allowed to stand without correction by the author, although one might have expected him to mention that Jesus was really born in Bethlehem. And 8:12 does directly mention Jesus’ claim to be the Light of the world. The author may well have presumed familiarity with Isa 9:1-2 on the part of his readers because of its widespread association with Jesus among early Christians. (3) The fact that the pericope deals with the light/darkness motif does not inherently strengthen its claim to authenticity, because the motif is so prominent in the Fourth Gospel that it may well have been the reason why someone felt that the pericope, circulating as an independent tradition, fit so well here. (4) In general the style of the pericope is not Johannine either in vocabulary or grammar (see D. B. Wallace, “Reconsidering ‘The Story of the Woman Taken in Adultery Reconsidered’,” NTS 39 [1993]: 290-96). According to R. E. Brown it is closer stylistically to Lukan material (John [AB], 1:336). Interestingly one important family of mss (˹³) places the pericope after Luke 21:38. Conclusion: In the final analysis, the weight of evidence in this case must go with the external evidence. The earliest and best mss do not contain the pericope. It is true with regard to internal evidence that an attractive case can be made for inclusion, but this is by nature subjective (as evidenced by the fact that strong arguments can be given against such as well). In terms of internal factors like vocabulary and style, the pericope does not stand up very well. The question may be asked whether this incident, although not an original part of the Gospel of John, should be regarded as an authentic tradition about Jesus. It could well be that it is ancient and may indeed represent an unusual instance where such a tradition survived outside of the bounds of the canonical literature. However, even that needs to be nuanced (see B. D. Ehrman, “Jesus and the Adulteress,” NTS 34 [1988]: 24–44).

[7:53]  sn Double brackets have been placed around this passage to indicate that most likely it was not part of the original text of the Gospel of John. In spite of this, the passage has an important role in the history of the transmission of the text, so it has been included in the translation.

[9:1]  ²²⁵ tn Or “going along.” The opening words of chap. 9, καὶ παράγων (kai paragwn), convey only the vaguest indication of the circumstances.

[9:1]  sn Since there is no break with chap. 8, Jesus is presumably still in Jerusalem, and presumably not still in the temple area. The events of chap. 9 fall somewhere between the feast of Tabernacles (John 7:2) and the feast of the Dedication (John 10:22). But in the author’s narrative the connection exists – the incident recorded in chap. 9 (along with the ensuing debates with the Pharisees) serves as a real-life illustration of the claim Jesus made in 8:12, I am the light of the world. This is in fact the probable theological motivation behind the juxtaposition of these two incidents in the narrative. The second serves as an illustration of the first, and as a concrete example of the victory of light over darkness. One other thing which should be pointed out about the miracle recorded in chap. 9 is its messianic significance. In the OT it is God himself who is associated with the giving of sight to the blind (Exod 4:11, Ps 146:8). In a number of passages in Isa (29:18, 35:5, 42:7) it is considered to be a messianic activity.

[9:2]  ²²⁶ tn Grk “asked him, saying.”

[9:2]  ²²⁷ tn Grk “this one.”

[9:2]  ²²⁸ tn Grk “in order that he should be born blind.”

[9:2]  sn The disciples assumed that sin (regardless of who committed it) was the cause of the man’s blindness. This was a common belief in Judaism; the rabbis used Ezek 18:20 to prove there was no death without sin, and Ps 89:33 to prove there was no punishment without guilt (the Babylonian Talmud, b. Shabbat 55a, although later than the NT, illustrates this). Thus in this case the sin must have been on the part of the man’s parents, or during his own prenatal existence. Song Rabbah 1:41 (another later rabbinic work) stated that when a pregnant woman worshiped in a heathen temple the unborn child also committed idolatry. This is only one example of how, in rabbinic Jewish thought, an unborn child was capable of sinning.

[9:3]  ²²⁹ tn Grk “this one.”

[9:3]  ²³⁰ tn Grk “but so that.” There is an ellipsis that must be supplied: “but [he was born blind] so that” or “but [it happened to him] so that.”

[9:3]  ²³¹ tn Or “deeds”; Grk “works.”

[9:3]  ²³² tn Or “manifested,” “brought to light.”

[9:3]  ²³³ tn Grk “in him.”

[9:4]  ²³⁴ tn Grk “We must work the works.”

[9:4]  ²³⁵ tn Or “of him who sent me” (God).

[9:4]  ²³⁶ tn Or “while.”

[9:5]  ²³⁷ sn Jesus’ statement I am the light of the world connects the present account with 8:12. Here (seen more clearly than at 8:12) it is obvious what the author sees as the significance of Jesus’ statement. “Light” is not a metaphysical definition of the person of Jesus but a description of his effect on the world, forcing everyone in the world to ‘choose up sides’ for or against him (cf. 3:19-21).

[9:6]  ²³⁸ tn Grk “said these things.”

[9:6]  ²³⁹ tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency). The textual variant preserved in the Syriac text of Ephraem’s commentary on the Diatessaron (“he made eyes from his clay”) probably arose from the interpretation given by Irenaeus in Against Heresies: “that which the Artificer, the Word, had omitted to form in the womb, he then supplied in public.” This involves taking the clay as an allusion to Gen 2:7, which is very unlikely.

[9:6]  ²⁴⁰ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) was replaced by a third person pronoun and a new sentence started here in the translation.

[9:6]  ²⁴¹ tn Grk “on his.”

[9:7]  ²⁴² tn The pool’s name in Hebrew is shiloah from the Hebrew verb “to send.” In Gen 49:10 the somewhat obscure shiloh was interpreted messianically by later Jewish tradition, and some have seen a lexical connection between the two names (although this is somewhat dubious). It is known, however, that it was from the pool of Siloam that the water which was poured out at the altar during the feast of Tabernacles was drawn.

[9:7]  ²⁴³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Why does he comment on the meaning of the name of the pool? Here, the significance is that the Father sent the Son, and the Son sent the man born blind. The name of the pool is applicable to the man, but also to Jesus himself, who was sent from heaven.

[9:7]  ²⁴⁴ tn Grk “So he”; the referent (the blind man) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:8]  ²⁴⁵ tn Or “formerly.”

[9:8]  ²⁴⁶ tn An ingressive force (“began saying”) is present here because the change in status of the blind person provokes this new response from those who knew him.

[9:8]  ²⁴⁷ tn Grk “the one.”

[9:9]  ²⁴⁸ tn Grk “Others were saying.”

[9:9]  ²⁴⁹ tn Grk “This is the one.”

[9:9]  ²⁵⁰ tn Grk “No, but he is like him.”

[9:9]  ²⁵¹ tn Grk “That one”; the referent (the man himself) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:9]  ²⁵² tn Grk “I am he.”

[9:10]  ²⁵³ tn Grk “So they were saying to him.”

[9:10]  ²⁵⁴ tn Grk “How then were your eyes opened” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:11]  ²⁵⁵ tn Grk “That one answered.”

[9:11]  ²⁵⁶ tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).

[9:11]  ²⁵⁷ tn Grk “and smeared.” Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when obvious from the context.

[9:11]  ²⁵⁸ tn Grk “said to me.”

[9:11]  ²⁵⁹ tn Or “and I gained my sight.”

[9:12]  ²⁶⁰ tn Grk “And they said.”

[9:12]  ²⁶¹ tn Grk “that one.” “Man” is more normal English style for the referent.

[9:12]  ²⁶² tn Grk “He said.”

[9:13]  ²⁶³ tn Grk “who was formerly blind.”

[9:13]  ²⁶⁴ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[9:14]  ²⁶⁵ tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).

[9:14]  ²⁶⁶ tn Grk “and opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:14]  ²⁶⁷ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[9:15]  ²⁶⁸ tn Or “how he had become able to see.”

[9:15]  sn So the Pharisees asked him. Note the subtlety here: On the surface, the man is being judged. But through him, Jesus is being judged. Yet in reality (as the discerning reader will realize) it is ironically the Pharisees themselves who are being judged by their response to Jesus who is the light of the world (cf. 3:17-21).

[9:15]  ²⁶⁹ tn Grk “And he said to them.”

[9:15]  ²⁷⁰ tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).

[9:15]  ²⁷¹ tn The word “now” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied to indicate the contrast between the man’s former state (blind) and his present state (able to see).

[9:16]  ²⁷² tn As a response to the answers of the man who used to be blind, the use of the imperfect tense in the reply of the Pharisees is best translated as an ingressive imperfect (“began to say” or “started saying”).

[9:16]  ²⁷³ tn Grk “he does not keep.”

[9:16]  ²⁷⁴ sn The Jewish religious leaders considered the work involved in making the mud to be a violation of the Sabbath.

[9:16]  ²⁷⁵ tn Grk “do.”

[9:16]  ²⁷⁶ tn Or “So there was discord.”

[9:17]  ²⁷⁷ tn Grk “the blind man.”

[9:17]  ²⁷⁸ tn Grk “since he opened your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:17]  ²⁷⁹ tn Grk “And he said, ‘He is a prophet.’”

[9:17]  sn At this point the man, pressed by the Pharisees, admitted there was something special about Jesus. But here, since prophet is anarthrous (is not accompanied by the Greek article) and since in his initial reply in 9:11-12 the man showed no particular insight into the true identity of Jesus, this probably does not refer to the prophet of Deut 18:15, but merely to an unusual person who is capable of working miracles. The Pharisees had put this man on the spot, and he felt compelled to say something about Jesus, but he still didn’t have a clear conception of who Jesus was, so he labeled him a “prophet.”

[9:18]  ²⁸⁰ tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers mainly to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. References in this context to Pharisees and to the synagogue (v. 22) suggest an emphasis on the religious nature of the debate which is brought out by the translation “the Jewish religious leaders.”

[9:18]  ²⁸¹ tn The Greek text contains the words “about him” at this point: “the Jewish authorities did not believe about him…”

[9:18]  ²⁸² tn Grk “they called.”

[9:18]  ²⁸³ tn Or “the man who had gained his sight.”

[9:19]  ²⁸⁴ tn Grk “and they asked them, saying”; the referent (the parents) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:19]  ²⁸⁵ tn The Greek pronoun and verb are both plural (both parents are addressed).

[9:20]  ²⁸⁶ tn Grk “So his parents answered and said.”

[9:21]  ²⁸⁷ tn Grk “who opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:21]  ²⁸⁸ tn Or “he is of age.”

[9:22]  ²⁸⁹ tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Twice in this verse the phrase refers to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. The second occurrence is shortened to “the Jewish leaders” for stylistic reasons. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish religious leaders” in v. 18.

[9:22]  ²⁹⁰ tn Grk “confessed him.”

[9:22]  ²⁹¹ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[9:22]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.

[9:22]  ²⁹² tn Or “would be expelled from.”

[9:22]  ²⁹³ sn This reference to excommunication from the Jewish synagogue for those who had made some sort of confession about Jesus being the Messiah is dismissed as anachronistic by some (e.g., Barrett) and nonhistorical by others. In later Jewish practice there were at least two forms of excommunication: a temporary ban for thirty days, and a permanent ban. But whether these applied in NT times is far from certain. There is no substantial evidence for a formal ban on Christians until later than this Gospel could possibly have been written. This may be a reference to some form of excommunication adopted as a contingency to deal with those who were proclaiming Jesus to be the Messiah. If so, there is no other record of the procedure than here. It was probably local, limited to the area around Jerusalem. See also the note on synagogue in 6:59.

[9:23]  ²⁹⁴ tn Or “he is of age.”

[9:23]  ²⁹⁵ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author explaining the parents’ response.

[9:24]  ²⁹⁶ tn Grk “they called.”

[9:24]  ²⁹⁷ tn Grk “who was blind.”

[9:24]  ²⁹⁸ tn Grk “Give glory to God” (an idiomatic formula used in placing someone under oath to tell the truth).

[9:24]  ²⁹⁹ tn The phrase “this man” is a reference to Jesus.

[9:25]  ³⁰⁰ tn Grk “Then that one answered.”

[9:26]  ³⁰¹ tn Grk “open your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:27]  ³⁰² tn Grk “He answered them.” The indirect object αὐτοῖς (autois) has not been translated for stylistic reasons.

[9:27]  ³⁰³ tn Grk “you did not hear.”

[9:27]  ³⁰⁴ tn “It” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when they were clearly implied in the context.

[9:27]  ³⁰⁵ tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.

[9:28]  ³⁰⁶ tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[9:28]  ³⁰⁷ tn The Greek word means “to insult strongly” or “slander.”

[9:28]  ³⁰⁸ tn Grk “and said.”

[9:28]  ³⁰⁹ tn Grk “You are that one’s disciple.”

[9:29]  ³¹⁰ tn Grk “where this one.”

[9:30]  ³¹¹ tn Grk “The man answered and said to them.” This has been simplified in the translation to “The man replied.”

[9:30]  ³¹² tn Grk “For in this is a remarkable thing.”

[9:30]  ³¹³ tn Grk “and he opened my eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:31]  ³¹⁴ tn Grk “God does not hear.”

[9:31]  ³¹⁵ tn Or “godly.”

[9:31]  ³¹⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:31]  ³¹⁷ tn Or “hears.”

[9:31]  ³¹⁸ tn Grk “this one.”

[9:32]  ³¹⁹ tn Or “Never from the beginning of time,” Grk “From eternity.”

[9:32]  ³²⁰ tn Grk “someone opening the eyes of a man born blind” (“opening the eyes” is an idiom referring to restoration of sight).

[9:33]  ³²¹ tn Grk “this one.”

[9:34]  ³²² tn Grk “They answered and said to him.” This has been simplified in the translation to “They replied.”

[9:34]  ³²³ tn Or “From birth you have been evil.” The implication of this insult, in the context of John 9, is that the man whom Jesus caused to see had not previously adhered rigorously to all the conventional requirements of the OT law as interpreted by the Pharisees. Thus he had no right to instruct them about who Jesus was.

[9:34]  ³²⁴ tn Grk “and are you teaching us?”

[9:35]  ³²⁵ tn Grk “found him”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:35]  ³²⁶ tc Although most witnesses (A L Θ Ψ 070 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat) have θεοῦ (qeou, “of God”) instead of ἀνθρώπου (anqrwpou, “of man”) here, the better witnesses (Ì^66,75 א B D W sy^s) have ἀνθρώπου. Not only is the external evidence decidedly on the side of ἀνθρώπου, but it is difficult to see such early and diverse witnesses changing θεοῦ to ἀνθρώπου. The wording “Son of Man” is thus virtually certain.

[9:36]  ³²⁷ tn Grk “That one.”

[9:36]  ³²⁸ tn Grk answered and said.” This has been simplified in the translation to “replied.”

[9:36]  ³²⁹ tn Or “And who is he, sir? Tell me so that…” Some translations supply elliptical words like “Tell me” (NIV, NRSV) following the man’s initial question, but the shorter form given in the translation is clear enough.

[9:37]  ³³⁰ tn Grk “that one.”

[9:37]  ³³¹ tn The καί – καί (kai – kai) construction would normally be translated “both – and”: “You have both seen him, and he is the one speaking with you.” In this instance the English semicolon was used instead because it produces a smoother and more emphatic effect in English.

[9:38]  ³³² sn Assuming the authenticity of John 9:38-39a (see the tc note following the bracket in v. 39), the man’s response after Jesus’ statement of v. 37 is extremely significant: He worshiped Jesus. In the Johannine context the word would connote its full sense: This was something due God alone. Note also that Jesus did not prevent the man from doing this. The verb προσκυνέω (proskunew) is used in John 4:20-25 of worshiping God, and again with the same sense in 12:20. This would be the only place in John’s Gospel where anyone is said to have worshiped Jesus using this term. As such, it forms the climax of the story of the man born blind, but the uniqueness of the concept of worshiping Jesus at this point in John's narrative (which reaches its ultimate climax in the confession of Thomas in John 20:28) may suggest it is too early for such a response and it represents a later scribal addition.

[9:39]  ³³³ tn Grk “And Jesus.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[9:39]  ³³⁴ tc ‡ Some early and important witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ א* W b sa^ms ac² mf) lack the words, “He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped him. Jesus said,” (vv. 38-39a). This is weighty evidence for the omission of these words. It is difficult to overstate the value of Ì⁷⁵ here, since it is the only currently available papyrus ms extant for the text of John 9:38-39. Further, א is an important and early Alexandrian witness for the omission. The versional testimony and codex W also give strong support to the omission. Nearly all other mss, however, include these words. The omission may have been occasioned by parablepsis (both vv. 37 and 39 begin with “Jesus said to him”), though it is difficult to account for such an error across such a wide variety of witnesses. On the other hand, the longer reading appears to be motivated by liturgical concerns (so R. E. Brown, John [AB], 1:375), since the verb προσκυνέω (proskunew, “I worship”) is used in John 4:20-25 of worshiping God, and again with the same sense in 12:20. If these words were authentic here, this would be the only place in John’s Gospel where Jesus is the explicit object of προσκυνέω. Even if these words are not authentic, such an omission would nevertheless hardly diminish John’s high Christology (cf. 1:1; 5:18-23; 14:6-10; 20:28), nor the implicit worship of him by Thomas (20:28). Nevertheless, a decision is difficult, and the included words may reflect a very early tradition about the blind man’s response to Jesus.

[9:39]  ³³⁵ tn Or “that those who do not see may see.”

[9:40]  ³³⁶ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[9:40]  ³³⁷ tn Grk “heard these things.”

[9:40]  ³³⁸ tn Grk “and said to him.”

[9:40]  ³³⁹ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are we?”).

[9:41]  ³⁴⁰ tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”

[9:41]  ³⁴¹ tn Grk “you would not have sin.”

[9:41]  ³⁴² tn Grk “now because you say, ‘We see…’”

[9:41]  ³⁴³ tn Or “your sin.”

[9:41]  ³⁴⁴ sn Because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains. The blind man received sight physically, and this led him to see spiritually as well. But the Pharisees, who claimed to possess spiritual sight, were spiritually blinded. The reader might recall Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in 3:10, “Are you the teacher of Israel and don’t understand these things?” In other words, to receive Jesus was to receive the light of the world, to reject him was to reject the light, close one’s eyes, and become blind. This is the serious sin of which Jesus had warned before (8:21-24). The blindness of such people was incurable since they had rejected the only cure that exists (cf. 12:39-41).

[17:3]  ³⁴⁵ tn Using αὕτη δέ (Jauth de) to introduce an explanation is typical Johannine style; it was used before in John 1:19, 3:19, and 15:12.

[17:3]  ³⁴⁶ sn This is eternal life. The author here defines eternal life for the readers, although it is worked into the prayer in such a way that many interpreters do not regard it as another of the author’s parenthetical comments. It is not just unending life in the sense of prolonged duration. Rather it is a quality of life, with its quality derived from a relationship with God. Having eternal life is here defined as being in relationship with the Father, the one true God, and Jesus Christ whom the Father sent. Christ (Χριστός, Cristos) is not characteristically attached to Jesus’ name in John’s Gospel; it occurs elsewhere primarily as a title and is used with Jesus’ name only in 1:17. But that is connected to its use here: The statement here in 17:3 enables us to correlate the statement made in 1:18 of the prologue, that Jesus has fully revealed what God is like, with Jesus’ statement in 10:10 that he has come that people might have life, and have it abundantly. These two purposes are really one, according to 17:3, because (abundant) eternal life is defined as knowing (being in relationship with) the Father and the Son. The only way to gain this eternal life, that is, to obtain this knowledge of the Father, is through the Son (cf. 14:6). Although some have pointed to the use of know (γινώσκω, ginwskw) here as evidence of Gnostic influence in the Fourth Gospel, there is a crucial difference: For John this knowledge is not intellectual, but relational. It involves being in relationship.

[17:3]  ³⁴⁷ tn Or “and Jesus the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[17:25]  ³⁴⁸ tn The word “men” is not in the Greek text but is implied. The translation uses the word “men” here rather than a more general term like “people” because the use of the aorist verb ἔγνωσαν (egnwsan) implies that Jesus is referring to the disciples present with him as he spoke these words (presumably all of them men in the historical context), rather than to those who are yet to believe because of their testimony (see John 17:20).