John 2:18

2:18 So then the Jewish leaders ¹  responded, ²  “What sign can you show us, since you are doing these things?” ³ 

John 4:48

4:48 So Jesus said to him, “Unless you people ⁴  see signs and wonders you will never believe!” ⁵ 

John 4:54

4:54 Jesus did this as his second miraculous sign ⁶  when he returned from Judea to Galilee.

John 6:2

6:2 A large crowd was following him because they were observing the miraculous signs he was performing on the sick.

John 6:30

6:30 So they said to him, “Then what miraculous sign will you perform, so that we may see it and believe you? What will you do?

John 12:18

12:18 Because they had heard that Jesus ⁷  had performed this miraculous sign, the crowd went out to meet him.

¹ 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. 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.)

² tn Grk “answered and said to him.”

³ sn The request “What sign can you show us” by Jesus’ adversaries was a request for a defense of his actions – a mark of divine authentication. Whether this was a request for a miracle is not entirely clear. Jesus never obliged such a request. Yet, ironically, the only sign the Jewish leadership will get is that predicted by Jesus in 2:19 – his crucifixion and resurrection. Cf. the “sign of Jonah” in the synoptics (Matt 12:39, 40; Luke 11:29-32).

⁴ tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied to indicate that the verb is second person plural (referring to more than the royal official alone).

⁵ tn Or “you never believe.” The verb πιστεύσητε (pisteushte) is aorist subjunctive and may have either nuance.

⁷ tn This sentence in Greek involves an object-complement construction. The force can be either “Jesus did this as,” or possibly “Jesus made this to be.” The latter translation accents not only Jesus’ power but his sovereignty too. Cf. 2:11 where the same construction occurs.

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