John 7:20

7:20 The crowd ¹  answered, “You’re possessed by a demon! ²  Who is trying to kill you?” ³ 

John 10:39

10:39 Then ⁴  they attempted ⁵  again to seize him, but he escaped their clutches. ⁶ 

John 18:7

18:7 Then Jesus ⁷  asked them again, “Who are you looking for?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.”

[7:20]  ¹ tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in 7:15).

[7:20]  ² tn Grk “You have a demon!”

[7:20]  ³ tn Grk “Who is seeking to kill you?”

[10:39]  ⁴ tc It is difficult to decide between ἐζήτουν οὖν (ezhtoun oun, “then they were seeking”; Ì⁶⁶ א A L W Ψ Ë^1,13 33 pm lat), ἐζήτουν δέ (ezhtoun de, “now they were seeking”; Ì⁴⁵ and a few versional witnesses), καὶ ἐζήτουν (kai ezhtoun, “and they were seeking”; D), and ἐζήτουν (Ì^75vid B Γ Θ 700 pm). Externally, the most viable readings are ἐζήτουν οὖν and ἐζήτουν. Transcriptionally, the οὖν could have dropped out via haplography since the verb ends in the same three letters. On the other hand, it is difficult to explain the readings with δέ or καί if ἐζήτουν οὖν is original; such readings would more likely have arisen from the simple ἐζήτουν. Intrinsically, John is fond of οὖν, using it some 200 times. Further, this Gospel begins relatively few sentences without some conjunction. The minimal support for the δέ and καί readings suggests that they arose either from the lone verb reading (which would thus be prior to their respective Vorlagen but not necessarily the earliest reading) or through carelessness on the part of the scribes. Indeed, the ancestors of Ì⁴⁵ and D may have committed haplography, leaving later scribes in the chain to guess at the conjunction needed. In sum, the best reading appears to be ἐζήτουν οὖν.

[10:39]  ⁵ tn Grk “they were seeking.”

[10:39]  ⁶ tn Grk “he departed out of their hand.”

[18:7]  ⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.