Discovery BoxJohn 1:11
Context1:11 He came to what was his own, 1 but 2 his own people 3 did not receive him. 4
John 4:16
Context4:16 He 5 said to her, “Go call your husband and come back here.” 6
John 5:40
Context5:40 but you are not willing to come to me so that you may have life.
John 11:29
Context11:29 So when Mary 7 heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.
John 16:8
Context16:8 And when he 8 comes, he will prove the world wrong 9 concerning sin and 10 righteousness and 11 judgment –
John 20:3
Context20:3 Then Peter and the other disciple set out to go to the tomb. 12
[1:11] 1 tn Grk “to his own things.”
[1:11] 2 tn Grk “and,” but in context this is an adversative use of καί (kai) and is thus translated “but.”
[1:11] 3 tn “People” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
[1:11] 4 sn His own people did not receive him. There is a subtle irony here: When the λόγος (logos) came into the world, he came to his own (τὰ ἴδια, ta idia, literally “his own things”) and his own people (οἱ ἴδιοι, Joi idioi), who should have known and received him, but they did not. This time John does not say that “his own” did not know him, but that they did not receive him (παρέλαβον, parelabon). The idea is one not of mere recognition, but of acceptance and welcome.
[4:16] 5 tc Most witnesses have “Jesus” here, either with the article (אc C2 D L Ws Ψ 086 Ï lat) or without (א* A Θ Ë1,13 al), while several important and early witnesses lack the name (Ì66,75 B C* 33vid pc). It is unlikely that scribes would have deliberately expunged the name of Jesus from the text here, especially since it aids the reader with the flow of the dialogue. Further, that the name occurs both anarthrously and with the article suggests that it was a later addition. (For similar arguments, see the tc note on “woman” in 4:11).
[4:16] 6 tn Grk “come here” (“back” is implied).
[11:29] 9 tn Grk “she”; the referent (Mary) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[16:8] 13 tn Grk “when that one.”
[16:8] 14 tn Or “will convict the world,” or “will expose the world.” The conjunction περί (peri) is used in 16:8-11 in the sense of “concerning” or “with respect to.” But what about the verb ἐλέγχω (elencw)? The basic meanings possible for this word are (1) “to convict or convince someone of something”; (2) “to bring to light or expose something; and (3) “to correct or punish someone.” The third possibility may be ruled out in these verses on contextual grounds since punishment is not implied. The meaning is often understood to be that the Paraclete will “convince” the world of its error, so that some at least will repent. But S. Mowinckel (“Die Vorstellungen des Spätjudentums vom heiligen Geist als Fürsprecher und der johanneische Paraklet,” ZNW 32 [1933]: 97-130) demonstrated that the verb ἐλέγχω did not necessarily imply the conversion or reform of the guilty party. This means it is far more likely that conviction in something of a legal sense is intended here (as in a trial). The only certainty is that the accused party is indeed proven guilty (not that they will acknowledge their guilt). Further confirmation of this interpretation is seen in John 14:17 where the world cannot receive the Paraclete and in John 3:20, where the evildoer deliberately refuses to come to the light, lest his deeds be exposed for what they really are (significantly, the verb in John 3:20 is also ἐλέγχω). However, if one wishes to adopt the meaning “prove guilty” for the use of ἐλέγχω in John 16:8 a difficulty still remains: While this meaning fits the first statement in 16:9 – the world is ‘proven guilty’ concerning its sin of refusing to believe in Jesus – it does not fit so well the second and third assertions in vv. 10-11. Thus R. E. Brown (John [AB], 2:705) suggests the more general meaning “prove wrong” which would fit in all three cases. This may be so, but there may also be a developmental aspect to the meaning, which would then shift from v. 9 to v. 10 to v. 11.
[16:8] 15 tn Grk “and concerning.”
