John 12:34

12:34 Then the crowd responded, ¹  “We have heard from the law that the Christ ²  will remain forever. ³  How ⁴  can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?”

John 19:38

Jesus’ Burial

19:38 After this, Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus (but secretly, because he feared the Jewish leaders ⁵ ), ⁶  asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. Pilate ⁷  gave him permission, so he went and took the body away. ⁸ 

John 20:17

20:17 Jesus replied, ⁹  “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

[12:34]  ¹ tn Grk “Then the crowd answered him.”

[12:34]  ² tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[12:34]  ³ tn Probably an allusion to Ps 89:35-37. It is difficult to pinpoint the passage in the Mosaic law to which the crowd refers. The ones most often suggested are Ps 89:36-37, Ps 110:4, Isa 9:7, Ezek 37:25, and Dan 7:14. None of these passages are in the Pentateuch per se, but “law” could in common usage refer to the entire OT (compare Jesus’ use in John 10:34). Of the passages mentioned, Ps 89:36-37 is the most likely candidate. This verse speaks of David’s “seed” remaining forever. Later in the same psalm, v. 51 speaks of the “anointed” (Messiah), and the psalm was interpreted messianically in both the NT (Acts 13:22, Rev 1:5, 3:14) and in the rabbinic literature (Genesis Rabbah 97).

[12:34]  ⁴ tn Grk “And how”; the conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has been left untranslated here for improved English style.

[19:38]  ⁵ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, especially the Pharisees (see John 12:42). See also the note on the phrase “Jewish leaders” in v. 7.

[19:38]  ⁶ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[19:38]  ⁷ tn Grk “And Pilate.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

[19:38]  ⁸ tn Grk “took away his body.”

[20:17]  ⁹ tn Grk “Jesus said to her.”