John 10:22-30

Jesus at the Feast of Dedication

10:22 Then came the feast of the Dedication ¹  in Jerusalem. ²  10:23 It was winter, ³  and Jesus was walking in the temple area ⁴  in Solomon’s Portico. ⁵  10:24 The Jewish leaders ⁶  surrounded him and asked, ⁷  “How long will you keep us in suspense? ⁸  If you are the Christ, ⁹  tell us plainly.” ¹⁰  10:25 Jesus replied, ¹¹  “I told you and you do not believe. The deeds ¹²  I do in my Father’s name testify about me. 10:26 But you refuse to believe because you are not my sheep. 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 10:28 I give ¹³  them eternal life, and they will never perish; ¹⁴  no one will snatch ¹⁵  them from my hand. 10:29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, ¹⁶  and no one can snatch ¹⁷  them from my Father’s hand. 10:30 The Father and I ¹⁸  are one.” ¹⁹ 

[10:22]  ¹ tn That is, Hanukkah or the ‘Festival of Lights.’ The Greek name for the feast, τὰ ἐγκαίνια (ta enkainia), literally means “renewal” and was used to translate Hanukkah which means “dedication.” The Greek noun, with its related verbs, was the standard term used in the LXX for the consecration of the altar of the Tabernacle (Num 7:10-11), the altar of the temple of Solomon (1 Kgs 8:63; 2 Chr 7:5), and the altar of the second temple (Ezra 6:16). The word is thus connected with the consecration of all the houses of God in the history of the nation of Israel.

[10:22]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[10:23]  ³ sn It was winter. The feast began on 25 Kislev, in November-December of the modern Gregorian calendar.

[10:23]  ⁴ tn Grk “in the temple.”

[10:23]  ⁵ tn Or “portico,” “colonnade”; Grk “stoa.”

[10:24]  ⁶ 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.

[10:24]  ⁷ tn Grk “said to him.” This has been translated as “asked” for stylistic reasons.

[10:24]  ⁸ 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.”

[10:24]  ⁹ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[10:24]  ¹⁰ tn Or “publicly.”

[10:25]  ¹¹ tn Grk “answered them.”

[10:25]  ¹² tn Or “the works.”

[10:28]  ¹³ tn Grk “And I give.”

[10:28]  ¹⁴ tn Or “will never die” or “will never be lost.”

[10:28]  ¹⁵ tn Or “no one will seize.”

[10:29]  ¹⁶ tn Or “is superior to all.”

[10:29]  ¹⁷ tn Or “no one can seize.”

[10:30]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “I and the Father.” The order has been reversed to reflect English style.

[10:30]  ¹⁹ tn The phrase ἕν ἐσμεν ({en esmen) is a significant assertion with trinitarian implications. ἕν is neuter, not masculine, so the assertion is not that Jesus and the Father are one person, but one “thing.” Identity of the two persons is not what is asserted, but essential unity (unity of essence).