John 8:21

Where Jesus Came From and Where He is Going

8:21 Then Jesus ¹  said to them again, ²  “I am going away, and you will look for me ³  but will die in your sin. ⁴  Where I am going you cannot come.”

John 8:23

8:23 Jesus replied, ⁵  “You people ⁶  are from below; I am from above. You people are from this world; I am not from this world.

John 14:12

14:12 I tell you the solemn truth, ⁷  the person who believes in me will perform ⁸  the miraculous deeds ⁹  that I am doing, ¹⁰  and will perform ¹¹  greater deeds ¹²  than these, because I am going to the Father.

John 16:7

16:7 But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate ¹³  will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you.

John 17:14

17:14 I have given them your word, ¹⁴  and the world has hated them, because they do not belong to the world, ¹⁵  just as I do not belong to the world. ¹⁶ 

John 18:20

18:20 Jesus replied, ¹⁷  “I have spoken publicly to the world. I always taught in the synagogues ¹⁸  and in the temple courts, ¹⁹  where all the Jewish people ²⁰  assemble together. I ²¹  have said nothing in secret.

¹ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn The expression οὖν πάλιν (oun palin) indicates some sort of break in the sequence of events, but it is not clear how long. The author does not mention the interval between 8:12-20 and this next recorded dialogue. The feast of Tabernacles is past, and the next reference to time is 10:22, where the feast of the Dedication is mentioned. The interval is two months, and these discussions could have taken place at any time within that interval, as long as one assumes something of a loose chronological framework. However, if the material in the Fourth Gospel is arranged theologically or thematically, such an assumption would not apply.

³ tn Grk “you will seek me.”

⁴ tn The expression ἐν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ὑμῶν ἀποθανεῖσθε (en th Jamartia Jumwn apoqaneisqe) is similar to an expression found in the LXX at Ezek 3:18, 20 and Prov 24:9. Note the singular of ἁμαρτία (the plural occurs later in v. 24). To die with one’s sin unrepented and unatoned would be the ultimate disaster to befall a person. Jesus’ warning is stern but to the point.

⁵ tn Grk “And he said to them.”

⁶ tn The word “people” is supplied in English to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.

⁹ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

¹⁰ tn Or “will do.”

¹¹ tn Grk “the works.”

¹² tn Or “that I do.”

¹³ tn Or “will do.”

¹⁴ tn Grk “greater works.”

¹³ tn Or “Helper” or “Counselor”; Grk “Paraclete,” from the Greek word παράκλητος (paraklhto"). See the note on the word “Advocate” in John 14:16 for a discussion of how this word is translated.

¹⁷ tn Or “your message.”

¹⁸ tn Grk “because they are not of the world.”

¹⁹ tn Grk “just as I am not of the world.”

²¹ tn Grk “Jesus answered him.”

²² sn See the note on synagogue in 6:59.

²³ tn Grk “in the temple.”

²⁴ tn Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish people generally, for whom the synagogues and the temple courts in Jerusalem were important public gathering places. See also the note on the phrase “Jewish religious leaders” in v. 12.

²⁵ tn Grk “And I.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.