John 2:23

Jesus at the Passover Feast

2:23 Now while Jesus ¹  was in Jerusalem ²  at the feast of the Passover, many people believed in his name because they saw the miraculous signs he was doing. ³ 

John 4:39

The Samaritans Respond

4:39 Now many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the report of the woman who testified, ⁴  “He told me everything I ever did.”

John 4:41

4:41 and because of his word many more ⁵  believed.

John 8:30

8:30 While he was saying these things, many people ⁶  believed in him.

John 11:45

The Response of the Jewish Leaders

11:45 Then many of the people, ⁷  who had come with Mary and had seen the things Jesus ⁸  did, believed in him.

John 12:42

12:42 Nevertheless, even among the rulers ⁹  many believed in him, but because of the Pharisees ¹⁰  they would not confess Jesus to be the Christ, ¹¹  so that they would not be put out of ¹²  the synagogue. ¹³ 

[2:23]  ¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:23]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:23]  ³ sn Because they saw the miraculous signs he was doing. The issue here is not whether their faith was genuine or not, but what its object was. These individuals, after seeing the miracles, believed Jesus to be the Messiah. They most likely saw in him a political-eschatological figure of some sort. That does not, however, mean that their concept of “Messiah” was the same as Jesus’ own, or the author’s.

[4:39]  ⁴ tn Grk “when she testified.”

[4:41]  ⁵ tn Or “and they believed much more.”

[8:30]  ⁶ tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied for clarity and smoothness in the translation.

[11:45]  ⁷ tn Or “the Judeans”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the friends, acquaintances, and relatives of Lazarus or his sisters who had come to mourn, since the Jewish religious authorities are specifically mentioned as a separate group in John 11:46-47. See also the notes on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 8 and “the Jewish people of the region” in v. 19, as well as the notes on the word “people” in vv. 31, 33 and the phrase “people who had come to mourn” in v. 36.

[11:45]  ⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:42]  ⁹ sn The term rulers here denotes members of the Sanhedrin, the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews. Note the same word (“ruler”) is used to describe Nicodemus in 3:1.

[12:42]  ¹⁰ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[12:42]  ¹¹ tn The words “Jesus to be the Christ” are not in the Greek text, but are implied (see 9:22). As is often the case in Greek, the direct object is omitted for the verb ὡμολόγουν (Jwmologoun). Some translators supply an ambiguous “it,” or derive the implied direct object from the previous clause “believed in him” so that the rulers would not confess “their faith” or “their belief.” However, when one compares John 9:22, which has many verbal parallels to this verse, it seems clear that the content of the confession would have been “Jesus is the Christ (i.e., Messiah).”

[12:42]  ¹² tn Or “be expelled from.”

[12:42]  ¹³ sn Compare John 9:22. See the note on synagogue in 6:59.