John 1:19

The Testimony of John the Baptist

1:19 Now ¹  this was ²  John’s ³  testimony ⁴  when the Jewish leaders ⁵  sent ⁶  priests and Levites from Jerusalem ⁷  to ask him, “Who are you?” ⁸ 

John 1:22

1:22 Then they said to him, “Who are you? Tell us ⁹  so that we can give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

John 10:24

10:24 The Jewish leaders ¹⁰  surrounded him and asked, ¹¹  “How long will you keep us in suspense? ¹²  If you are the Christ, ¹³  tell us plainly.” ¹⁴ 

John 19:9

19:9 and he went back into the governor’s residence ¹⁵  and said to Jesus, “Where do you come from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

Luke 22:67

22:67 and said, “If ¹⁶  you are the Christ, ¹⁷  tell us.” But he said to them, “If ¹⁸  I tell you, you will not ¹⁹  believe,

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.

² tn Grk “is.”

³ sn John’s refers to John the Baptist.

⁴ tn Or “witness.”

⁵ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Iουδαῖοι (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. Here the author refers to the authorities or leaders in Jerusalem. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.)

⁶ tc ‡ Several important witnesses have πρὸς αὐτόν (pro" auton, “to him”) either here (B C* 33 892^c al it) or after “Levites” (Ì^{66c vid} A Θ Ψ Ë¹³ 579 al lat), while the earliest mss as well as the majority of mss (Ì^66*,75 א C³ L W^s ˹ Ï) lack the phrase. On the one hand, πρὸς αὐτόν could be perceived as redundant since αὐτόν is used again later in the verse, thus prompting scribes to omit the phrase. On the other hand, both the variation in placement of πρὸς αὐτόν and the fact that this phrase rather than the latter αὐτόν is lacking in certain witnesses (cf. John 11:44; 14:7; 18:31), suggests that scribes felt that the sentence needed the phrase to make the sense clearer. Although a decision is difficult, the shorter reading is slightly preferred. NA²⁷ has πρὸς αὐτόν in brackets, indicating doubt as to the phrase’s authenticity.

⁷ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁸ sn “Who are you?” No uniform Jewish expectation of a single eschatological figure existed in the 1st century. A majority expected the Messiah. But some pseudepigraphic books describe God’s intervention without mentioning the anointed Davidic king; in parts of 1 Enoch, for example, the figure of the Son of Man, not the Messiah, embodies the expectations of the author. Essenes at Qumran seem to have expected three figures: a prophet, a priestly messiah, and a royal messiah. In baptizing, John the Baptist was performing an eschatological action. It also seems to have been part of his proclamation (John 1:23, 26-27). Crowds were beginning to follow him. He was operating in an area not too far from the Essene center on the Dead Sea. No wonder the authorities were curious about who he was.

⁹ tn The words “Tell us” are not in the Greek but are implied.

¹⁰ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders. The question they ask Jesus (“Are you the Christ?”) is the same one they sent and asked of John the Baptist in the desert (see John 1:19-34). See also the note on the phrase “the Jewish people” in v. 19.

¹¹ tn Grk “said to him.” This has been translated as “asked” for stylistic reasons.

¹² tn Grk “How long will you take away our life?” (an idiom which meant to keep one from coming to a conclusion about something). The use of the phrase τὴν ψυχὴν ἡμῶν αἴρεις (thn yuchn Jhmwn airei") meaning “to keep in suspense” is not well attested, although it certainly fits the context here. In modern Greek the phrase means “to annoy, bother.”

¹³ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

¹⁴ tn Or “publicly.”

¹⁵ tn Grk “into the praetorium.”

¹⁶ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text.

¹⁷ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

¹⁸ tn This is a third class condition in the Greek text. Jesus had this experience already in 20:1-8.

¹⁹ tn The negation in the Greek text is the strongest possible (οὐ μή, ou mh).