John 3:6

3:6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, ¹  and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.

John 4:37

4:37 For in this instance the saying is true, ²  ‘One sows and another reaps.’

John 6:55

6:55 For my flesh is true ³  food, and my blood is true ⁴  drink.

John 7:27

7:27 But we know where this man ⁵  comes from. ⁶  Whenever the Christ ⁷  comes, no one will know where he comes from.” ⁸ 

[3:6]  ¹ sn What is born of the flesh is flesh, i.e., what is born of physical heritage is physical. (It is interesting to compare this terminology with that of the dialogue in John 4, especially 4:23, 24.) For John the “flesh” (σάρξ, sarx) emphasizes merely the weakness and mortality of the creature – a neutral term, not necessarily sinful as in Paul. This is confirmed by the reference in John 1:14 to the Logos becoming “flesh.” The author avoids associating sinfulness with the incarnate Christ.

[4:37]  ² tn The recitative ὅτι (Joti) after ἀληθινός (alhqino") has not been translated.

[6:55]  ³ tn Or “real.”

[6:55]  ⁴ tn Or “real.”

[7:27]  ⁴ tn Grk “this one.”

[7:27]  ⁵ sn We know where this man comes from. The author apparently did not consider this objection worth answering. The true facts about Jesus’ origins were readily available for any reader who didn’t know already. Here is an instance where the author assumes knowledge about Jesus that is independent from the material he records.

[7:27]  ⁶ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[7:27]  ⁷ sn The view of these people regarding the Messiah that no one will know where he comes from reflects the idea that the origin of the Messiah is a mystery. In the Talmud (b. Sanhedrin 97a) Rabbi Zera taught: “Three come unawares: Messiah, a found article, and a scorpion.” Apparently OT prophetic passages like Mal 3:1 and Dan 9:25 were interpreted by some as indicating a sudden appearance of Messiah. It appears that this was not a universal view: The scribes summoned by Herod at the coming of the Magi in Matt 2 knew that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. It is important to remember that Jewish messianic expectations in the early 1st century were not monolithic.