John 6:41

6:41 Then the Jews who were hostile to Jesus ¹  began complaining about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven,”

John 6:61

6:61 When Jesus was aware ²  that his disciples were complaining ³  about this, he said to them, “Does this cause you to be offended? ⁴ 

John 7:32

7:32 The Pharisees ⁵  heard the crowd ⁶  murmuring these things about Jesus, ⁷  so the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers ⁸  to arrest him. ⁹ 

[6:41]  ¹ tn Grk “Then the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the translation restricts the phrase to those Jews who were hostile to Jesus (cf. BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e.β), since the “crowd” mentioned in 6:22-24 was almost all Jewish (as suggested by their addressing Jesus as “Rabbi” (6:25). Likewise, the designation “Judeans” does not fit here because the location is Galilee rather than Judea.

[6:61]  ² tn Grk “When Jesus knew within himself.”

[6:61]  ³ tn Or “were grumbling.”

[6:61]  ⁴ tn Or “Does this cause you to no longer believe?” (Grk “cause you to stumble?”)

[7:32]  ³ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[7:32]  ⁴ tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the Pharisees).

[7:32]  ⁵ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:32]  ⁶ tn Or “servants.” The “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive term for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26. As “servants” or “officers” of the Sanhedrin their representatives should be distinguished from the Levites serving as temple police (perhaps John 7:30 and 44; also John 8:20; 10:39; 19:6; Acts 4:3). Even when performing “police” duties such as here, their “officers” are doing so only as part of their general tasks (see K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:540).

[7:32]  ⁷ tn Grk “to seize him.” In the context of a deliberate attempt by the servants of the chief priests and Pharisees to detain Jesus, the English verb “arrest” conveys the point more effectively.