John 1:8

1:8 He himself was not the light, but he came to testify ¹  about the light.

John 4:2

4:2 (although Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were), ² 

John 6:36

6:36 But I told you ³  that you have seen me ⁴  and still do not believe.

John 16:6

16:6 Instead your hearts are filled with sadness ⁵  because I have said these things to you.

John 16:12

16:12 “I have many more things to say to you, ⁶  but you cannot bear ⁷  them now.

[1:8]  ¹ tn Or “to bear witness.”

[4:2]  ² sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[6:36]  ³ tn Grk “But I said to you.”

[6:36]  ⁴ tc A few witnesses lack με (me, “me”; א A a b e q sy^s,c), while the rest of the tradition has the word (Ì^66,75vid rell). It is possible that the mss that lack the pronoun preserve the original wording here, with the rest of the witnesses adding the pronoun for clarity’s sake. This likelihood increases since the object is not required in Greek. Without it, however, ambiguity increases: The referent could be “me” or it could be “signs,” reaching back to vv. 26 and 30. However, the oblique form of ἐγώ (egw, the first person personal pronoun) occurs some two dozen times in this chapter alone, yet it vacillates between the emphatic form and the unemphatic form. Although generally the unemphatic form is used with verbs, there are several exceptions to this in John (cf. 8:12; 12:26, 45, 48; 13:20; 14:9). If the pronoun is a later addition here, one wonders why it is so consistently the unemphatic form in the mss. Further, that two unrelated Greek witnesses lack this small word could easily be due to accidental deletion. Finally, the date and diversity of the witnesses for the pronoun are so weighty that it is likely to be authentic and should thus be retained in the text.

[16:6]  ⁴ tn Or “distress” or “grief.”

[16:12]  ⁵ sn In what sense does Jesus have many more things to say to the disciples? Does this imply the continuation of revelation after his departure? This is probably the case, especially in light of v. 13 and following, which describe the work of the Holy Spirit in guiding the disciples into all truth. Thus Jesus was saying that he would continue to speak (to the twelve, at least) after his return to the Father. He would do this through the Holy Spirit whom he was going to send. It is possible that an audience broader than the twelve is addressed, and in the Johannine tradition there is evidence that later other Christians (or perhaps, professed Christians) claimed to be recipients of revelation through the Spirit-Paraclete (1 John 4:1-6).

[16:12]  ⁶ tn Or (perhaps) “you cannot accept.”