Discovery BoxJohn 7:1--9:41
Context7:1 After this 1 Jesus traveled throughout Galilee. 2 He 3 stayed out of Judea 4 because the Jewish leaders 5 wanted 6 to kill him. 7:2 Now the Jewish feast of Tabernacles 7 was near. 8 7:3 So Jesus’ brothers 9 advised him, “Leave here and go to Judea so your disciples may see your miracles that you are performing. 10 7:4 For no one who seeks to make a reputation for himself 11 does anything in secret. 12 If you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 7:5 (For not even his own brothers believed in him.) 13
7:6 So Jesus replied, 14 “My time 15 has not yet arrived, 16 but you are ready at any opportunity! 17 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I am testifying about it that its deeds are evil. 7:8 You go up 18 to the feast yourselves. I am not going up to this feast 19 because my time 20 has not yet fully arrived.” 21 7:9 When he had said this, he remained in Galilee.
7:10 But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, then Jesus 22 himself also went up, not openly but in secret. 7:11 So the Jewish leaders 23 were looking for him at the feast, asking, “Where is he?” 24 7:12 There was 25 a lot of grumbling 26 about him among the crowds. 27 Some were saying, “He is a good man,” but others, “He deceives the common people.” 28 7:13 However, no one spoke openly about him for fear of the Jewish leaders. 29
7:14 When the feast was half over, Jesus went up to the temple courts 30 and began to teach. 31 7:15 Then the Jewish leaders 32 were astonished 33 and said, “How does this man know so much when he has never had formal instruction?” 34 7:16 So Jesus replied, 35 “My teaching is not from me, but from the one who sent me. 36 7:17 If anyone wants to do God’s will, 37 he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority. 38 7:18 The person who speaks on his own authority 39 desires 40 to receive honor 41 for himself; the one who desires 42 the honor 43 of the one who sent him is a man of integrity, 44 and there is no unrighteousness in him. 7:19 Hasn’t Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps 45 the law! Why do you want 46 to kill me?”
7:20 The crowd 47 answered, “You’re possessed by a demon! 48 Who is trying to kill you?” 49 7:21 Jesus replied, 50 “I performed one miracle 51 and you are all amazed. 52 7:22 However, because Moses gave you the practice of circumcision 53 (not that it came from Moses, but from the forefathers), you circumcise a male child 54 on the Sabbath. 7:23 But if a male child 55 is circumcised 56 on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses is not broken, 57 why are you angry with me because I made a man completely well 58 on the Sabbath? 7:24 Do not judge according to external appearance, 59 but judge with proper 60 judgment.”
7:25 Then some of the residents of Jerusalem 61 began to say, “Isn’t this the man 62 they are trying 63 to kill? 7:26 Yet here he is, speaking publicly, 64 and they are saying nothing to him. 65 Do the rulers really know that this man 66 is the Christ? 67 7:27 But we know where this man 68 comes from. 69 Whenever the Christ 70 comes, no one will know where he comes from.” 71
7:28 Then Jesus, while teaching in the temple courts, 72 cried out, 73 “You both know me and know where I come from! 74 And I have not come on my own initiative, 75 but the one who sent me 76 is true. You do not know him, 77 7:29 but 78 I know him, because I have come from him 79 and he 80 sent me.”
7:30 So then they tried to seize Jesus, 81 but no one laid a hand on him, because his time 82 had not yet come. 7:31 Yet many of the crowd 83 believed in him and said, “Whenever the Christ 84 comes, he won’t perform more miraculous signs than this man did, will he?” 85
7:32 The Pharisees 86 heard the crowd 87 murmuring these things about Jesus, 88 so the chief priests and the Pharisees sent officers 89 to arrest him. 90 7:33 Then Jesus said, “I will be with you for only a little while longer, 91 and then 92 I am going to the one who sent me. 7:34 You will look for me 93 but will not find me, and where I am you cannot come.”
7:35 Then the Jewish leaders 94 said to one another, “Where is he 95 going to go that we cannot find him? 96 He is not going to go to the Jewish people dispersed 97 among the Greeks and teach the Greeks, is he? 98 7:36 What did he mean by saying, 99 ‘You will look for me 100 but will not find me, and where I am you cannot come’?”
7:37 On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, 101 Jesus stood up and shouted out, 102 “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and 7:38 let the one who believes in me drink. 103 Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him 104 will flow rivers of living water.’” 105 7:39 (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been given, 106 because Jesus was not yet glorified.) 107
7:40 When they heard these words, some of the crowd 108 began to say, “This really 109 is the Prophet!” 110 7:41 Others said, “This is the Christ!” 111 But still others said, “No, 112 for the Christ doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? 113 7:42 Don’t the scriptures say that the Christ is a descendant 114 of David 115 and comes from Bethlehem, 116 the village where David lived?” 117 7:43 So there was a division in the crowd 118 because of Jesus. 119 7:44 Some of them were wanting to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him. 120
7:45 Then the officers 121 returned 122 to the chief priests and Pharisees, 123 who said to them, “Why didn’t you bring him back with you?” 124 7:46 The officers replied, “No one ever spoke like this man!” 7:47 Then the Pharisees answered, 125 “You haven’t been deceived too, have you? 126 7:48 None of the rulers 127 or the Pharisees have believed in him, have they? 128 7:49 But this rabble 129 who do not know the law are accursed!”
7:50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus 130 before and who was one of the rulers, 131 said, 132 7:51 “Our law doesn’t condemn 133 a man unless it first hears from him and learns 134 what he is doing, does it?” 135 7:52 They replied, 136 “You aren’t from Galilee too, are you? 137 Investigate carefully and you will see that no prophet 138 comes from Galilee!”
7:53 139 [[And each one departed to his own house. 8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 140 8:2 Early in the morning he came to the temple courts again. All the people came to him, and he sat down and began to teach 141 them. 8:3 The experts in the law 142 and the Pharisees 143 brought a woman who had been caught committing adultery. They made her stand in front of them 8:4 and said to Jesus, 144 “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of adultery. 8:5 In the law Moses commanded us to stone to death 145 such women. 146 What then do you say?” 8:6 (Now they were asking this in an attempt to trap him, so that they could bring charges against 147 him.) 148 Jesus bent down and wrote on the ground with his finger. 149 8:7 When they persisted in asking him, he stood up straight 150 and replied, 151 “Whoever among you is guiltless 152 may be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8:8 Then 153 he bent over again and wrote on the ground.
8:9 Now when they heard this, they began to drift away one at a time, starting with the older ones, 154 until Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 8:10 Jesus stood up straight 155 and said to her, “Woman, 156 where are they? Did no one condemn you?” 8:11 She replied, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”]] 157
8:12 Then Jesus spoke out again, 158 “I am the light of the world. 159 The one who follows me will never 160 walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 8:13 So the Pharisees 161 objected, 162 “You testify about yourself; your testimony is not true!” 163 8:14 Jesus answered, 164 “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true, because I know where I came from and where I am going. But you people 165 do not know where I came from or where I am going. 166 8:15 You people 167 judge by outward appearances; 168 I do not judge anyone. 169 8:16 But if I judge, my evaluation is accurate, 170 because I am not alone when I judge, 171 but I and the Father who sent me do so together. 172 8:17 It is written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. 173 8:18 I testify about myself 174 and the Father who sent me testifies about me.”
8:19 Then they began asking 175 him, “Who is your father?” Jesus answered, “You do not know either me or my Father. If you knew me you would know my Father too.” 176 8:20 (Jesus 177 spoke these words near the offering box 178 while he was teaching in the temple courts. 179 No one seized him because his time 180 had not yet come.) 181
8:21 Then Jesus 182 said to them again, 183 “I am going away, and you will look for me 184 but will die in your sin. 185 Where I am going you cannot come.” 8:22 So the Jewish leaders 186 began to say, 187 “Perhaps he is going to kill himself, because he says, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’” 8:23 Jesus replied, 188 “You people 189 are from below; I am from above. You people are from this world; I am not from this world. 8:24 Thus I told you 190 that you will die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am he, 191 you will die in your sins.”
8:25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus replied, 192 “What I have told you from the beginning. 8:26 I have many things to say and to judge 193 about you, but the Father 194 who sent me is truthful, 195 and the things I have heard from him I speak to the world.” 196 8:27 (They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father.) 197
8:28 Then Jesus said, 198 “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, 199 and I do nothing on my own initiative, 200 but I speak just what the Father taught me. 201 8:29 And the one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, 202 because I always do those things that please him.” 8:30 While he was saying these things, many people 203 believed in him.
8:31 Then Jesus said to those Judeans 204 who had believed him, “If you continue to follow my teaching, 205 you are really 206 my disciples 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 207 8:33 “We are descendants 208 of Abraham,” they replied, 209 “and have never been anyone’s slaves! How can you say, 210 ‘You will become free’?” 8:34 Jesus answered them, “I tell you the solemn truth, 211 everyone who practices 212 sin is a slave 213 of sin. 8:35 The slave does not remain in the family 214 forever, but the son remains forever. 215 8:36 So if the son 216 sets you free, you will be really free. 8:37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. 217 But you want 218 to kill me, because my teaching 219 makes no progress among you. 220 8:38 I am telling you the things I have seen while with the 221 Father; 222 as for you, 223 practice the things you have heard from the 224 Father!”
8:39 They answered him, 225 “Abraham is our father!” 226 Jesus replied, 227 “If you are 228 Abraham’s children, you would be doing 229 the deeds of Abraham. 8:40 But now you are trying 230 to kill me, a man who has told you 231 the truth I heard from God. Abraham did not do this! 232 8:41 You people 233 are doing the deeds of your father.”
Then 234 they said to Jesus, 235 “We were not born as a result of immorality! 236 We have only one Father, God himself.” 8:42 Jesus replied, 237 “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come from God and am now here. 238 I 239 have not come on my own initiative, 240 but he 241 sent me. 8:43 Why don’t you understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot accept 242 my teaching. 243 8:44 You people 244 are from 245 your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires. 246 He 247 was a murderer from the beginning, and does not uphold the truth, 248 because there is no truth in him. Whenever he lies, 249 he speaks according to his own nature, 250 because he is a liar and the father of lies. 251 8:45 But because I am telling you 252 the truth, you do not believe me. 8:46 Who among you can prove me guilty 253 of any sin? 254 If I am telling you 255 the truth, why don’t you believe me? 8:47 The one who belongs to 256 God listens and responds 257 to God’s words. You don’t listen and respond, 258 because you don’t belong to God.” 259
8:48 The Judeans 260 replied, 261 “Aren’t we correct in saying 262 that you are a Samaritan and are possessed by a demon?” 263 8:49 Jesus answered, “I am not possessed by a demon, 264 but I honor my Father – and yet 265 you dishonor me. 8:50 I am not trying to get 266 praise for myself. 267 There is one who demands 268 it, and he also judges. 269 8:51 I tell you the solemn truth, 270 if anyone obeys 271 my teaching, 272 he will never see death.” 273
8:52 Then 274 the Judeans 275 responded, 276 “Now we know you’re possessed by a demon! 277 Both Abraham and the prophets died, and yet 278 you say, ‘If anyone obeys 279 my teaching, 280 he will never experience 281 death.’ 282 8:53 You aren’t greater than our father Abraham who died, are you? 283 And the prophets died too! Who do you claim to be?” 8:54 Jesus replied, 284 “If I glorify myself, my glory is worthless. 285 The one who glorifies me is my Father, about whom you people 286 say, ‘He is our God.’ 8:55 Yet 287 you do not know him, but I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, 288 I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey 289 his teaching. 290 8:56 Your father Abraham was overjoyed 291 to see my day, and he saw it and was glad.” 292
8:57 Then the Judeans 293 replied, 294 “You are not yet fifty years old! 295 Have 296 you seen Abraham?” 8:58 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the solemn truth, 297 before Abraham came into existence, 298 I am!” 299 8:59 Then they picked up 300 stones to throw at him, 301 but Jesus hid himself and went out from the temple area. 302
9:1 Now as Jesus was passing by, 303 he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 9:2 His disciples asked him, 304 “Rabbi, who committed the sin that caused him to be born blind, this man 305 or his parents?” 306 9:3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man 307 nor his parents sinned, but he was born blind so that 308 the acts 309 of God may be revealed 310 through what happens to him. 311 9:4 We must perform the deeds 312 of the one who sent me 313 as long as 314 it is daytime. Night is coming when no one can work. 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 315 9:6 Having said this, 316 he spat on the ground and made some mud 317 with the saliva. He 318 smeared the mud on the blind man’s 319 eyes 9:7 and said to him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” 320 (which is translated “sent”). 321 So the blind man 322 went away and washed, and came back seeing.
9:8 Then the neighbors and the people who had seen him previously 323 as a beggar began saying, 324 “Is this not the man 325 who used to sit and beg?” 9:9 Some people said, 326 “This is the man!” 327 while others said, “No, but he looks like him.” 328 The man himself 329 kept insisting, “I am the one!” 330 9:10 So they asked him, 331 “How then were you made to see?” 332 9:11 He replied, 333 “The man called Jesus made mud, 334 smeared it 335 on my eyes and told me, 336 ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and was able to see.” 337 9:12 They said 338 to him, “Where is that man?” 339 He replied, 340 “I don’t know.”
9:13 They brought the man who used to be blind 341 to the Pharisees. 342 9:14 (Now the day on which Jesus made the mud 343 and caused him to see 344 was a Sabbath.) 345 9:15 So the Pharisees asked him again how he had gained his sight. 346 He replied, 347 “He put mud 348 on my eyes and I washed, and now 349 I am able to see.”
9:16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, 350 “This man is not from God, because he does not observe 351 the Sabbath.” 352 But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform 353 such miraculous signs?” Thus there was a division 354 among them. 9:17 So again they asked the man who used to be blind, 355 “What do you say about him, since he caused you to see?” 356 “He is a prophet,” the man replied. 357
9:18 Now the Jewish religious leaders 358 refused to believe 359 that he had really been blind and had gained his sight until at last they summoned 360 the parents of the man who had become able to see. 361 9:19 They asked the parents, 362 “Is this your son, whom you say 363 was born blind? Then how does he now see?” 9:20 So his parents replied, 364 “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 9:21 But we do not know how he is now able to see, nor do we know who caused him to see. 365 Ask him, he is a mature adult. 366 He will speak for himself.” 9:22 (His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders. 367 For the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus 368 to be the Christ 369 would be put out 370 of the synagogue. 371 9:23 For this reason his parents said, “He is a mature adult, 372 ask him.”) 373
9:24 Then they summoned 374 the man who used to be blind 375 a second time and said to him, “Promise before God to tell the truth. 376 We know that this man 377 is a sinner.” 9:25 He replied, 378 “I do not know whether he is a sinner. I do know one thing – that although I was blind, now I can see.” 9:26 Then they said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he cause you to see?” 379 9:27 He answered, 380 “I told you already and you didn’t listen. 381 Why do you want to hear it 382 again? You people 383 don’t want to become his disciples too, do you?”
9:28 They 384 heaped insults 385 on him, saying, 386 “You are his disciple! 387 We are disciples of Moses! 9:29 We know that God has spoken to Moses! We do not know where this man 388 comes from!” 9:30 The man replied, 389 “This is a remarkable thing, 390 that you don’t know where he comes from, and yet he caused me to see! 391 9:31 We know that God doesn’t listen to 392 sinners, but if anyone is devout 393 and does his will, God 394 listens to 395 him. 396 9:32 Never before 397 has anyone heard of someone causing a man born blind to see. 398 9:33 If this man 399 were not from God, he could do nothing.” 9:34 They replied, 400 “You were born completely in sinfulness, 401 and yet you presume to teach us?” 402 So they threw him out.
9:35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, so he found the man 403 and said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 404 9:36 The man 405 replied, 406 “And who is he, sir, that 407 I may believe in him?” 9:37 Jesus told him, “You have seen him; he 408 is the one speaking with you.” 409 9:38 [He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. 410 9:39 Jesus 411 said,] 412 “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, 413 and the ones who see may become blind.”
9:40 Some of the Pharisees 414 who were with him heard this 415 and asked him, 416 “We are not blind too, are we?” 417 9:41 Jesus replied, 418 “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, 419 but now because you claim that you can see, 420 your guilt 421 remains.” 422
[7:1] 1 sn Again, the transition is indicated by the imprecise temporal indicator After this. Clearly, though, the author has left out much of the events of Jesus’ ministry, because chap. 6 took place near the Passover (6:4). This would have been the Passover between winter/spring of
[7:1] 2 tn Grk “Jesus was traveling around in Galilee.”
[7:1] 3 tn Grk “For he.” Here γάρ (gar, “for”) has not been translated.
[7:1] 4 tn Grk “he did not want to travel around in Judea.”
[7:1] 5 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “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 phrase should be restricted to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents.
[7:1] 6 tn Grk “were seeking.”
[7:2] 7 tn Or “feast of the Tents” (the feast where people lived in tents or shelters, which was celebrated in the autumn after harvest). John’s use of σκηνοπηγία (skhnophgia) for the feast of Tabernacles constitutes the only use of this term in the New Testament.
[7:2] 8 sn Since the present verse places these incidents at the feast of Tabernacles (
[7:3] 13 tn Grk “his brothers.”
[7:3] 14 tn Grk “your deeds that you are doing.”
[7:4] 19 tn Or “seeks to be well known.”
[7:4] 20 sn No one who seeks to make a reputation for himself does anything in secret means, in effect: “if you’re going to perform signs to authenticate yourself as Messiah, you should do them at Jerusalem.” (Jerusalem is where mainstream Jewish apocalyptic tradition held that Messiah would appear.)
[7:5] 25 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
[7:6] 31 tn Grk “Then Jesus said to them.”
[7:6] 32 tn Or “my opportunity.”
[7:6] 33 tn Or “is not yet here.”
[7:6] 34 tn Grk “your time is always ready.”
[7:8] 37 sn One always speaks of “going up” to Jerusalem in Jewish idiom, even though in western thought it is more common to speak of south as “down” (Jerusalem lies south of Galilee). The reason for the idiom is that Jerusalem was identified with Mount Zion in the OT, so that altitude was the issue.
[7:8] 38 tc Most
[7:8] 39 tn Although the word is καιρός (kairos) here, it parallels John’s use of ὥρα (Jwra) elsewhere as a reference to the time appointed for Jesus by the Father – the time of his return to the Father, characterized by his death, resurrection, and ascension (glorification). In the Johannine literature, synonyms are often interchanged for no apparent reason other than stylistic variation.
[7:8] 40 tn Or “my time has not yet come to an end” (a possible hint of Jesus’ death at Jerusalem); Grk “my time is not yet fulfilled.”
[7:10] 43 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:11] 49 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.
[7:11] 50 tn Grk “Where is that one?”
[7:12] 55 tn Grk “And there was.”
[7:12] 56 tn Or “complaining.”
[7:12] 57 tn Or “among the common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in the previous verse).
[7:13] 61 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See also the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.
[7:14] 67 tn Grk “to the temple.”
[7:14] 68 tn Or “started teaching.” An ingressive sense for the imperfect verb (“began to teach” or “started teaching”) fits well here, since the context implies that Jesus did not start his teaching at the beginning of the festival, but began when it was about half over.
[7:15] 73 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders who were Jesus’ primary opponents. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish leaders” in v. 1.
[7:15] 74 tn Or “began to be astonished.” This imperfect verb could also be translated ingressively (“began to be astonished”), but for English stylistic reasons it is rendered as a simple past.
[7:15] 75 tn Grk “How does this man know learning since he has not been taught?” The implication here is not that Jesus never went to school (in all probability he did attend a local synagogue school while a youth), but that he was not the disciple of a particular rabbi and had not had formal or advanced instruction under a recognized rabbi (compare Acts 4:13 where a similar charge is made against Peter and John; see also Paul’s comment in Acts 22:3).
[7:16] 79 tn Grk “So Jesus answered and said to them.”
[7:16] 80 tn The phrase “the one who sent me” refers to God.
[7:17] 86 tn Grk “or whether I speak from myself.”
[7:18] 91 tn Grk “who speaks from himself.”
[7:18] 93 tn Or “praise”; Grk “glory.”
[7:18] 95 tn Or “praise”; Grk “glory.”
[7:18] 96 tn Or “is truthful”; Grk “is true.”
[7:19] 97 tn Or “accomplishes”; Grk “does.”
[7:20] 103 tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in 7:15).
[7:20] 104 tn Grk “You have a demon!”
[7:20] 105 tn Grk “Who is seeking to kill you?”
[7:21] 109 tn Grk “Jesus answered and said to them.”
[7:21] 110 tn Grk “I did one deed.”
[7:21] 111 sn The “one miracle” that caused them all to be amazed was the last previous public miracle in Jerusalem recorded by the author, the healing of the paralyzed man in John 5:1-9 on the Sabbath. (The synoptic gospels record other Sabbath healings, but John does not mention them.)
[7:22] 115 tn Grk “gave you circumcision.”
[7:22] 116 tn Grk “a man.” While the text literally reads “circumcise a man” in actual fact the practice of circumcising male infants on the eighth day after birth (see Phil 3:5) is primarily what is in view here.
[7:23] 121 tn Grk “a man.” See the note on “male child” in the previous verse.
[7:23] 122 tn Grk “receives circumcision.”
[7:23] 123 sn If a male child is circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses is not broken. The Rabbis counted 248 parts to a man’s body. In the Talmud (b. Yoma 85b) R. Eleazar ben Azariah (ca.
[7:23] 124 tn Or “made an entire man well.”
[7:24] 127 tn Or “based on sight.”
[7:24] 128 tn Or “honest”; Grk “righteous.”
[7:25] 133 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[7:25] 134 tn Grk “Is it not this one.”
[7:26] 139 tn Or “speaking openly.”
[7:26] 140 sn They are saying nothing to him. Some people who had heard Jesus were so impressed with his teaching that they began to infer from the inactivity of the opposing Jewish leaders a tacit acknowledgment of Jesus’ claims.
[7:26] 142 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[7:27] 146 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] 147 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[7:27] 148 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.
[7:28] 151 tn Grk “the temple.”
[7:28] 152 tn Grk “Then Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying.”
[7:28] 153 sn You both know me and know where I come from! Jesus’ response while teaching in the temple is difficult – it appears to concede too much understanding to his opponents. It is best to take the words as irony: “So you know me and know where I am from, do you?” On the physical, literal level, they did know where he was from: Nazareth of Galilee (at least they thought they knew). But on another deeper (spiritual) level, they did not: He came from heaven, from the Father. Jesus insisted that he has not come on his own initiative (cf. 5:37), but at the bidding of the Father who sent him.
[7:28] 154 tn Grk “And I have not come from myself.”
[7:28] 155 tn The phrase “the one who sent me” refers to God.
[7:28] 156 tn Grk “the one who sent me is true, whom you do not know.”
[7:29] 157 tn Although the conjunction “but” is not in the Greek text, the contrast is implied (an omitted conjunction is called asyndeton).
[7:29] 158 tn The preposition παρά (para) followed by the genitive has the local sense preserved and can be used of one person sending another. This does not necessarily imply origin in essence or eternal generation.
[7:29] 159 tn Grk “and that one.”
[7:30] 163 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:31] 169 tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities).
[7:31] 170 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[7:31] 171 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here it is “will he?”).
[7:32] 175 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[7:32] 176 tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the Pharisees).
[7:32] 177 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:32] 178 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] 179 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.
[7:33] 181 tn Grk “Yet a little I am with you.”
[7:33] 182 tn The word “then” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
[7:35] 193 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “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 phrase is understood to refer to the Jewish authorities or leaders, since the Jewish leaders are mentioned in this context both before and after the present verse (7:32, 45).
[7:35] 195 tn Grk “will not find him.”
[7:35] 196 sn The Jewish people dispersed (Grk “He is not going to the Diaspora”). The Greek term diaspora (“dispersion”) originally meant those Jews not living in Palestine, but dispersed or scattered among the Gentiles.
[7:35] 197 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “is he?”).
[7:36] 199 tn Grk “What is this word that he said.”
[7:37] 205 sn There is a problem with the identification of this reference to the last day of the feast, the greatest day: It appears from Deut 16:13 that the feast went for seven days. Lev 23:36, however, makes it plain that there was an eighth day, though it was mentioned separately from the seven. It is not completely clear whether the seventh or eighth day was the climax of the feast, called here by the author the “last great day of the feast.” Since according to the Mishnah (m. Sukkah 4.1) the ceremonies with water and lights did not continue after the seventh day, it seems more probable that this is the day the author mentions.
[7:37] 206 tn Grk “Jesus stood up and cried out, saying.”
[7:38] 211 tn An alternate way of punctuating the Greek text of vv. 37-38 results in this translation: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. The one who believes in me, just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’” John 7:37-38 has been the subject of considerable scholarly debate. Certainly Jesus picks up on the literal water used in the ceremony and uses it figuratively. But what does the figure mean? According to popular understanding, it refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the believer. There is some difficulty in locating an OT text which speaks of rivers of water flowing from within such a person, but Isa 58:11 is often suggested: “The
[7:38] 212 tn Or “out of the innermost part of his person”; Grk “out of his belly.”
[7:38] 213 sn An OT quotation whose source is difficult to determine; Isa 44:3, 55:1, 58:11, and Zech 14:8 have all been suggested.
[7:39] 217 tn Grk “for the Spirit was not yet.” Although only B and a handful of other NT
[7:39] 218 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
[7:40] 223 tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the chief priests and Pharisees).
[7:40] 225 sn The Prophet is a reference to the “prophet like Moses” of Deut 18:15, by this time an eschatological figure in popular belief.
[7:41] 229 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[7:41] 230 tn An initial negative reply (“No”) is suggested by the causal or explanatory γάρ (gar) which begins the clause.
[7:41] 231 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “does he?”).
[7:42] 235 tn Grk “is from the seed” (an idiom for human descent).
[7:42] 236 sn An allusion to Ps 89:4.
[7:42] 237 sn An allusion to Mic 5:2.
[7:42] 238 tn Grk “the village where David was.”
[7:43] 241 tn Or “among the common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities like the chief priests and Pharisees).
[7:43] 242 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:44] 247 sn Compare John 7:30 regarding the attempt to seize Jesus.
[7:45] 253 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).
[7:45] 255 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[7:45] 256 tn Grk “Why did you not bring him?” The words “back with you” are implied.
[7:47] 259 tn Grk “answered them.”
[7:47] 260 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “have you?”).
[7:48] 265 sn The chief priests and Pharisees (John 7:45) 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. Likewise the term ruler here denotes a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews. Note the same word (“ruler”) is used to describe Nicodemus in John 3:1, and Nicodemus also speaks up in this episode (John 7:50).
[7:48] 266 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “have they?”).
[7:49] 271 tn Grk “crowd.” “Rabble” is a good translation here because the remark by the Pharisees is so derogatory.
[7:50] 277 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:50] 278 tn Grk “who was one of them”; the referent (the rulers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:50] 279 tn Grk “said to them.”
[7:51] 285 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “does it?”).
[7:52] 289 tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”
[7:52] 290 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are you?”).
[7:52] 291 tc At least one early and important ms (Ì66*) places the article before “prophet” (ὁ προφήτης, Jo profhths), making this a reference to the “prophet like Moses” mentioned in Deut 18:15.
[7:53] 295 tc This entire section, 7:53-8:11, traditionally known as the pericope adulterae, is not contained in the earliest and best
[8:1] 301 sn The Mount of Olives is a hill running north to south about 1.8 mi (3 km) long, lying east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. It was named for the large number of olive trees that grew on it.
[8:2] 307 tn An ingressive sense for the imperfect fits well here following the aorist participle.
[8:3] 313 tn Or “The scribes.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateu") as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.
[8:3] 314 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[8:4] 319 tn Grk “to him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:5] 325 sn An allusion to Lev 20:10 and Deut 22:22-24.
[8:5] 326 sn The accusers themselves subtly misrepresented the law. The Mosaic law stated that in the case of adultery, both the man and woman must be put to death (Lev 20:10, Deut 22:22), but they mentioned only such women.
[8:6] 331 tn Grk “so that they could accuse.”
[8:6] 332 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author of 7:53–8:11.
[8:6] 333 tn Or possibly “Jesus bent down and wrote an accusation on the ground with his finger.” The Greek verb καταγράφω (katagrafw) may indicate only the action of writing on the ground by Jesus, but in the overall context (Jesus’ response to the accusation against the woman) it can also be interpreted as implying that what Jesus wrote was a counteraccusation against the accusers (although there is no clue as to the actual content of what he wrote, some scribes added “the sins of each one of them” either here or at the end of v. 8 [U 264 700 al]).
[8:7] 337 tn Or “he straightened up.”
[8:7] 338 tn Grk “and said to them.”
[8:8] 343 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.
[8:9] 349 tn Or “beginning from the eldest.”
[8:10] 355 tn Or “straightened up.”
[8:10] 356 sn Woman was a polite form of address (see BDAG 208-9 s.v. γυνή 1), similar to “Madam” or “Ma’am” used in English in different regions.
[8:11] 361 tc The earliest and best
[8:12] 367 tn Grk “Then again Jesus spoke to them saying.”
[8:12] 368 sn The theory proposed by F. J. A. Hort (The New Testament in the Original Greek, vol. 2, Introduction; Appendix, 87-88), that the backdrop of 8:12 is the lighting of the candelabra in the court of women, may offer a plausible setting to the proclamation by Jesus that he is the light of the world. The last time that Jesus spoke in the narrative (assuming 7:53-8:11 is not part of the original text, as the textual evidence suggests) is in 7:38, where he was speaking to a crowd of pilgrims in the temple area. This is where he is found in the present verse, and he may be addressing the crowd again. Jesus’ remark has to be seen in view of both the prologue (John 1:4, 5) and the end of the discourse with Nicodemus (John 3:19-21). The coming of Jesus into the world provokes judgment: A choosing up of sides becomes necessary. The one who comes to the light, that is, who follows Jesus, will not walk in the darkness. The one who refuses to come, will walk in the darkness. In this contrast, there are only two alternatives. So it is with a person’s decision about Jesus. Furthermore, this serves as in implicit indictment of Jesus’ opponents, who still walk in the darkness, because they refuse to come to him. This sets up the contrast in chap. 9 between the man born blind, who receives both physical and spiritual sight, and the Pharisees (John 9:13, 15, 16) who have physical sight but remain in spiritual darkness.
[8:12] 369 tn The double negative οὐ μή (ou mh) is emphatic in 1st century Hellenistic Greek.
[8:13] 373 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[8:13] 374 tn Grk “Then the Pharisees said to him.”
[8:13] 375 sn Compare the charge You testify about yourself; your testimony is not true! to Jesus’ own statement about his testimony in 5:31.
[8:14] 379 tn Grk “Jesus answered and said to them.”
[8:14] 380 tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to indicate that the pronoun (“you”) and verb (“do not know”) in Greek are plural.
[8:14] 381 sn You people do not know where I came from or where I am going. The ignorance of the religious authorities regarding Jesus’ origin works on two levels at once: First, they thought Jesus came from Galilee (although he really came from Bethlehem in Judea) and second, they did not know that he came from heaven (from the Father), and this is where he would return. See further John 7:52.
[8:15] 385 tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to indicate that the pronoun and verb (“judge”) in Greek are plural.
[8:15] 386 tn Or “judge according to external things”; Grk “according to the flesh.” These translations are given by BDAG 916 s.v. σάρξ 5.
[8:15] 387 sn What is the meaning of Jesus’ statement “I do not judge anyone”? It is clear that Jesus did judge (even in the next verse). The point is that he didn’t practice the same kind of judgment that the Pharisees did. Their kind of judgment was condemnatory. They tried to condemn people. Jesus did not come to judge the world, but to save it (3:17). Nevertheless, and not contradictory to this, the coming of Jesus did bring judgment, because it forced people to make a choice. Would they accept Jesus or reject him? Would they come to the light or shrink back into the darkness? As they responded, so were they judged – just as 3:19-21 previously stated. One’s response to Jesus determines one’s eternal destiny.
[8:16] 391 tn Grk “my judgment is true.”
[8:16] 392 tn The phrase “when I judge” is not in the Greek text, but is implied by the context.
[8:16] 393 tn The phrase “do so together” is not in the Greek text, but is implied by the context.
[8:17] 397 sn An allusion to Deut 17:6.
[8:18] 403 tn Grk “I am the one who testifies about myself.”
[8:19] 409 tn Grk “Then they were saying to him.” The imperfect verb has been translated with ingressive force here because of the introduction of a new line of questioning by the Pharisees. Jesus had just claimed his Father as a second witness; now his opponents want to know who his father is.
[8:19] 410 sn If you knew me you would know my Father too. Jesus’ reply is based on his identity with the Father (see also John 1:18; 14:9).
[8:20] 415 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:20] 416 tn The term γαζοφυλάκιον (gazofulakion) can be translated “treasury” or “treasure room” in this context. BDAG 186 s.v. 1 notes, “It can be taken in this sense J 8:20 (sing.) in (or at) the treasury.” BDAG 186 s.v. 2 argues that the occurrences of this word in the synoptic gospels also refer to the treasury: “For Mk 12:41, 43; Lk 21:1 the mng. contribution box or receptacle is attractive. Acc. to Mishnah, Shekalim 6, 5 there were in the temple 13 such receptacles in the form of trumpets. But even in these passages the general sense of ‘treasury’ is prob., for the contributions would go [into] the treasury via the receptacles.” Based upon the extra-biblical evidence (see sn following), however, the translation opts to refer to the actual receptacles and not the treasury itself.
[8:20] 417 tn Grk “the temple.”
[8:20] 419 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
[8:21] 421 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:21] 422 tn The expression οὖν πάλιν (oun palin) indicates some sort of break in the sequence of events, but it is not clear how long. The author does not mention the interval between 8:12-20 and this next recorded dialogue. The feast of Tabernacles is past, and the next reference to time is 10:22, where the feast of the Dedication is mentioned. The interval is two months, and these discussions could have taken place at any time within that interval, as long as one assumes something of a loose chronological framework. However, if the material in the Fourth Gospel is arranged theologically or thematically, such an assumption would not apply.
[8:21] 423 tn Grk “you will seek me.”
[8:21] 424 tn The expression ἐν τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ ὑμῶν ἀποθανεῖσθε (en th Jamartia Jumwn apoqaneisqe) is similar to an expression found in the LXX at Ezek 3:18, 20 and Prov 24:9. Note the singular of ἁμαρτία (the plural occurs later in v. 24). To die with one’s sin unrepented and unatoned would be the ultimate disaster to befall a person. Jesus’ warning is stern but to the point.
[8:22] 427 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “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 phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders in Jerusalem. It was the Pharisees who had begun this line of questioning in John 8:13, and there has been no clear change since then in the identity of Jesus’ opponents.
[8:22] 428 tn The imperfect verb has been translated with ingressive force (“began to say”) because the comments that follow were occasioned by Jesus’ remarks in the preceding verse about his upcoming departure.
[8:23] 433 tn Grk “And he said to them.”
[8:23] 434 tn The word “people” is supplied in English to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.
[8:24] 439 tn Grk “thus I said to you.”
[8:24] 440 tn Grk “unless you believe that I am.” In this context there is an implied predicate nominative (“he”) following the “I am” phrase. What Jesus’ hearers had to acknowledge is that he was who he claimed to be, i.e., the Messiah (cf. 20:31). This view is also reflected in English translations like NIV (“if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be”), NLT (“unless you believe that I am who I say I am”), and CEV (“if you don’t have faith in me for who I am”). For a different view that takes this “I am” and the one in 8:28 as nonpredicated (i.e., absolute), see R. E. Brown, John (AB), 1:533-38. Such a view refers sees the nonpredicated “I am” as a reference to the divine Name revealed in Exod 3:14, and is reflected in English translations like NAB (“if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins”) and TEV (“you will die in your sins if you do not believe that ‘I Am Who I Am’”).
[8:25] 445 tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”
[8:26] 451 tn Or “I have many things to pronounce in judgment about you.” The two Greek infinitives could be understood as a hendiadys, resulting in one phrase.
[8:26] 452 tn Grk “the one”; the referent (the Father) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:26] 453 tn Grk “true” (in the sense of one who always tells the truth).
[8:26] 454 tn Grk “and what things I have heard from him, these things I speak to the world.”
[8:27] 457 sn They did not understand…about his Father is a parenthetical note by the author. This type of comment, intended for the benefit of the reader, is typical of the “omniscient author” convention adopted by the author, who is writing from a postresurrection point of view. He writes with the benefit of later knowledge that those who originally heard Jesus’ words would not have had.
[8:28] 463 tn Grk “Then Jesus said to them” (the words “to them” are not found in all
[8:28] 464 tn Grk “that I am.” See the note on this phrase in v. 24.
[8:28] 465 tn Grk “I do nothing from myself.”
[8:28] 466 tn Grk “but just as the Father taught me, these things I speak.”
[8:29] 469 tn That is, “he has not abandoned me.”
[8:30] 475 tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied for clarity and smoothness in the translation.
[8:31] 481 tn Grk “to the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory (i.e., “Judeans”), 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; also BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish people in Jerusalem who had been listening to Jesus’ teaching in the temple and had believed his claim to be the Messiah, hence, “those Judeans who had believed him.” The term “Judeans” is preferred here to the more general “people” because the debate concerns descent from Abraham (v. 33).
[8:31] 482 tn Grk “If you continue in my word.”
[8:32] 487 tn Or “the truth will release you.” The translation “set you free” or “release you” (unlike the more traditional “make you free”) conveys more the idea that the hearers were currently in a state of slavery from which they needed to be freed. The following context supports precisely this idea.
[8:33] 493 tn Grk “We are the seed” (an idiom).
[8:33] 494 tn Grk “They answered to him.”
[8:33] 495 tn Or “How is it that you say.”
[8:34] 499 tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
[8:34] 500 tn Or “who commits.” This could simply be translated, “everyone who sins,” but the Greek is more emphatic, using the participle ποιῶν (poiwn) in a construction with πᾶς (pas), a typical Johannine construction. Here repeated, continuous action is in view. The one whose lifestyle is characterized by repeated, continuous sin is a slave to sin. That one is not free; sin has enslaved him. To break free from this bondage requires outside (divine) intervention. Although the statement is true at the general level (the person who continually practices a lifestyle of sin is enslaved to sin) the particular sin of the Jewish authorities, repeatedly emphasized in the Fourth Gospel, is the sin of unbelief. The present tense in this instance looks at the continuing refusal on the part of the Jewish leaders to acknowledge who Jesus is, in spite of mounting evidence.
[8:34] 501 tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.
[8:35] 505 tn Or “household.” The Greek work οἰκία (oikia) can denote the family as consisting of relatives by both descent and marriage, as well as slaves and servants, living in the same house (more the concept of an “extended family”).
[8:35] 506 sn Jesus’ point is that while a slave may be part of a family or household, the slave is not guaranteed a permanent place there, while a son, as a descendant or blood relative, will always be guaranteed a place in the family (remains forever).
[8:36] 511 tn Or “Son.” The question is whether “son” is to be understood as a direct reference to Jesus himself, or as an indirect reference (a continuation of the generic illustration begun in the previous verse).
[8:37] 517 tn Grk “seed” (an idiom).
[8:37] 518 tn Grk “you are seeking.”
[8:37] 520 tn Or “finds no place in you.” The basic idea seems to be something (in this case Jesus’ teaching) making headway or progress where resistance is involved. See BDAG 1094 s.v. χωρέω 2.
[8:38] 523 tc The first person pronoun μου (mou, “my”) may be implied, especially if ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) follows the second mention of “father” in this verse (as it does in the majority of
[8:38] 524 tn Grk “The things which I have seen with the Father I speak about.”
[8:38] 526 tc A few significant witnesses lack ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) here (Ì66,75 B L W 070 pc), while the majority have the pronoun (א C D Θ Ψ 0250 Ë1,13 33 565 892 Ï al lat sy). However, these
[8:39] 529 tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”
[8:39] 530 tn Or “Our father is Abraham.”
[8:39] 531 tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”
[8:39] 532 tc Although most
[8:39] 533 tc Some important
[8:40] 536 tn Grk “has spoken to you.”
[8:40] 537 tn The Greek word order is emphatic: “This Abraham did not do.” The emphasis is indicated in the translation by an exclamation point.
[8:41] 541 tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied in English to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.
[8:41] 542 tc ‡ Important and early witnesses (א B L W 070 it sys,p co) lack the conjunction here, while the earliest witnesses along with many others read οὖν (oun, “therefore”; Ì66,75 C D Θ Ψ 0250 Ë13 33 Ï). This conjunction occurs in John some 200 times, far more than in any other NT book. Even though the combined testimony of two early papyri for the conjunction is impressive, the reading seems to be a predictable scribal emendation. In particular, οὖν is frequently used with the plural of εἶπον (eipon, “they said”) in John (in this chapter alone, note vv. 13, 39, 48, 57, and possibly 52). On balance, it is probably best to consider the shorter reading as authentic, even though “Then” is virtually required in translation for English stylistic reasons. NA27 has the conjunction in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.
[8:41] 543 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) is specified in the translation for clarity.
[8:41] 544 sn We were not born as a result of immorality! is ironic, because Jesus’ opponents implied that it was not themselves but Jesus who had been born as a result of immoral behavior. This shows they did not know Jesus’ true origin and were not aware of the supernatural events surrounding his birth. The author does not even bother to refute the opponents’ suggestion but lets it stand, assuming his readers will know the true story.
[8:42] 547 tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”
[8:42] 548 tn Or “I came from God and have arrived.”
[8:42] 549 tn Grk “For I.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.
[8:42] 550 tn Grk “from myself.”
[8:42] 551 tn Grk “that one” (referring to God).
[8:43] 553 tn Grk “you cannot hear,” but this is not a reference to deafness, but rather hearing in the sense of listening to something and responding to it.
[8:44] 559 tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify that the Greek pronoun and verb are plural.
[8:44] 560 tn Many translations read “You are of your father the devil” (KJV, ASV, RSV, NASB) or “You belong to your father, the devil” (NIV), but the Greek preposition ἐκ (ek) emphasizes the idea of source or origin. Jesus said his opponents were the devil’s very offspring (a statement which would certainly infuriate them).
[8:44] 561 tn Grk “the desires of your father you want to do.”
[8:44] 562 tn Grk “That one” (referring to the devil).
[8:44] 563 tn Grk “he does not stand in the truth” (in the sense of maintaining, upholding, or accepting the validity of it).
[8:44] 564 tn Grk “Whenever he speaks the lie.”
[8:44] 565 tn Grk “he speaks from his own.”
[8:44] 566 tn Grk “because he is a liar and the father of it.”
[8:45] 565 tn Or “because I tell you.”
[8:46] 571 tn Or “can convict me.”
[8:46] 572 tn Or “of having sinned”; Grk “of sin.”
[8:46] 573 tn Or “if I tell you.”
[8:47] 577 tn Grk “who is of.”
[8:47] 578 tn Grk “to God hears” (in the sense of listening to something and responding to it).
[8:47] 579 tn Grk “you do not hear” (in the sense of listening to something and responding to it).
[8:47] 580 tn Grk “you are not of God.”
[8:48] 583 tn Grk “the Jews.” See the note on this term in v. 31. Here the phrase refers to the Jewish people in Jerusalem (“Judeans”; cf. BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e) who had been listening to Jesus’ teaching in the temple courts (8:20) and had initially believed his claim to be the Messiah (cf. 8:31). They had become increasingly hostile as Jesus continued to teach. Now they were ready to say that Jesus was demon-possessed.
[8:48] 584 tn Grk “answered and said to him.”
[8:48] 585 tn Grk “Do we not say rightly.”
[8:48] 586 tn Grk “and have a demon.” It is not clear what is meant by the charge Σαμαρίτης εἶ σὺ καὶ δαιμόνιον ἔχεις (Samarith" ei su kai daimonion ecei"). The meaning could be “you are a heretic and are possessed by a demon.” Note that the dual charge gets one reply (John 8:49). Perhaps the phrases were interchangeable: Simon Magus (Acts 8:14-24) and in later traditions Dositheus, the two Samaritans who claimed to be sons of God, were regarded as mad, that is, possessed by demons.
[8:49] 589 tn Grk “I do not have a demon.”
[8:49] 590 tn “Yet” is supplied to show the contrastive element present in the context.
[8:50] 595 tn Grk “I am not seeking.”
[8:50] 597 tn Grk “who seeks.”
[8:50] 598 tn Or “will be the judge.”
[8:51] 601 tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
[8:51] 602 tn Grk “If anyone keeps.”
[8:51] 604 tn Grk “he will never see death forever.” The Greek negative here is emphatic.
[8:52] 607 tc ‡ Important and early witnesses (Ì66 א B C W Θ 579 it) lack the conjunction here, while other witnesses read οὖν (oun, “therefore”; Ì75 D L Ψ 070 Ë1,13 33 Ï lat). This conjunction occurs in John some 200 times, far more than in any other NT book. Even though the most important Johannine papyrus (Ì75) has the conjunction, the combination of Ì66 א B for the omission is even stronger. Further, the reading seems to be a predictable scribal emendation. In particular, οὖν is frequently used with the plural of εἶπον (eipon, “they said”) in John (in this chapter alone, note vv. 13, 39, 48, 57, and possibly 41). On balance, it is probably best to consider the shorter reading as authentic, even though “Then” is virtually required in translation for English stylistic reasons. NA27 has the conjunction in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.
[8:52] 608 tn Grk “the Jews.” See the note on this term in v. 31. Here, as in vv. 31 and 48, the phrase refers to the Jewish people in Jerusalem (“Judeans”; cf. BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e) who had been listening to Jesus’ teaching in the temple courts (8:20) and had initially believed his claim to be the Messiah (cf. 8:31).
[8:52] 609 tn Grk “said to him.”
[8:52] 610 tn Grk “you have a demon.”
[8:52] 611 tn “Yet” has been supplied to show the contrastive element present in the context.
[8:52] 612 tn Grk “If anyone keeps.”
[8:52] 614 tn Grk “will never taste.” Here the Greek verb does not mean “sample a small amount” (as a typical English reader might infer from the word “taste”), but “experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something” (cf. BDAG 195 s.v. γεύομαι 2).
[8:52] 615 tn Grk “he will never taste of death forever.” The Greek negative here is emphatic.
[8:53] 613 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are you?”).
[8:54] 619 tn Grk “Jesus answered.”
[8:54] 620 tn Grk “is nothing.”
[8:54] 621 tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied in English to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.
[8:55] 625 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Yet” to indicate the contrast present in the context.
[8:55] 626 tn Grk “If I say, ‘I do not know him.’”
[8:56] 631 tn Or “rejoiced greatly.”
[8:56] 632 tn What is the meaning of Jesus’ statement that the patriarch Abraham “saw” his day and rejoiced? The use of past tenses would seem to refer to something that occurred during the patriarch’s lifetime. Genesis Rabbah 44:25ff, (cf. 59:6) states that Rabbi Akiba, in a debate with Rabbi Johanan ben Zakkai, held that Abraham had been shown not this world only but the world to come (this would include the days of the Messiah). More realistically, it is likely that Gen 22:13-15 lies behind Jesus’ words. This passage, known to rabbis as the Akedah (“Binding”), tells of Abraham finding the ram which will replace his son Isaac on the altar of sacrifice – an occasion of certain rejoicing.
[8:57] 637 tn Grk “Then the Jews.” See the note on this term in v. 31. Here, as in vv. 31, 48, and 52, the phrase refers to the Jewish people in Jerusalem (“Judeans”; cf. BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e) who had been listening to Jesus’ teaching in the temple courts (8:20) and had initially believed his claim to be the Messiah (cf. 8:31). They have now become completely hostile, as John 8:59 clearly shows.
[8:57] 638 tn Grk “said to him.”
[8:57] 639 tn Grk ‘You do not yet have fifty years” (an idiom).
[8:58] 643 tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
[8:58] 644 tn Grk “before Abraham was.”
[8:58] 645 sn I am! is an explicit claim to deity. Although each occurrence of the phrase “I am” in the Fourth Gospel needs to be examined individually in context to see if an association with Exod 3:14 is present, it seems clear that this is the case here (as the response of the Jewish authorities in the following verse shows).
[8:59] 649 tn Grk “they took up.”
[8:59] 650 sn Jesus’ Jewish listeners understood his claim to deity, rejected it, and picked up stones to throw at him for what they considered blasphemy.
[8:59] 651 tc Most later witnesses (A Θc Ë1,13 Ï) have at the end of the verse “passing through their midst, he went away in this manner” (διελθὼν διὰ μέσου καὶ παρῆγεν οὕτως, dielqwn dia mesou kai parhgen {outw"), while many others have similar permutations (so א1,2 C L N Ψ 070 33 579 892 1241 al). The wording is similar to two other texts: Luke 4:30 (διελθὼν διὰ μέσου; in several
[9:1] 655 tn Or “going along.” The opening words of chap. 9, καὶ παράγων (kai paragwn), convey only the vaguest indication of the circumstances.
[9:2] 661 tn Grk “asked him, saying.”
[9:2] 663 tn Grk “in order that he should be born blind.”
[9:3] 668 tn Grk “but so that.” There is an ellipsis that must be supplied: “but [he was born blind] so that” or “but [it happened to him] so that.”
[9:3] 669 tn Or “deeds”; Grk “works.”
[9:3] 670 tn Or “manifested,” “brought to light.”
[9:4] 673 tn Grk “We must work the works.”
[9:4] 674 tn Or “of him who sent me” (God).
[9:5] 679 sn Jesus’ statement I am the light of the world connects the present account with 8:12. Here (seen more clearly than at 8:12) it is obvious what the author sees as the significance of Jesus’ statement. “Light” is not a metaphysical definition of the person of Jesus but a description of his effect on the world, forcing everyone in the world to ‘choose up sides’ for or against him (cf. 3:19-21).
[9:6] 685 tn Grk “said these things.”
[9:6] 686 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency). The textual variant preserved in the Syriac text of Ephraem’s commentary on the Diatessaron (“he made eyes from his clay”) probably arose from the interpretation given by Irenaeus in Against Heresies: “that which the Artificer, the Word, had omitted to form in the womb, he then supplied in public.” This involves taking the clay as an allusion to Gen 2:7, which is very unlikely.
[9:6] 687 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) was replaced by a third person pronoun and a new sentence started here in the translation.
[9:7] 691 tn The pool’s name in Hebrew is shiloah from the Hebrew verb “to send.” In Gen 49:10 the somewhat obscure shiloh was interpreted messianically by later Jewish tradition, and some have seen a lexical connection between the two names (although this is somewhat dubious). It is known, however, that it was from the pool of Siloam that the water which was poured out at the altar during the feast of Tabernacles was drawn.
[9:7] 692 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Why does he comment on the meaning of the name of the pool? Here, the significance is that the Father sent the Son, and the Son sent the man born blind. The name of the pool is applicable to the man, but also to Jesus himself, who was sent from heaven.
[9:7] 693 tn Grk “So he”; the referent (the blind man) is specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:8] 698 tn An ingressive force (“began saying”) is present here because the change in status of the blind person provokes this new response from those who knew him.
[9:9] 703 tn Grk “Others were saying.”
[9:9] 704 tn Grk “This is the one.”
[9:9] 705 tn Grk “No, but he is like him.”
[9:9] 706 tn Grk “That one”; the referent (the man himself) is specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:10] 709 tn Grk “So they were saying to him.”
[9:10] 710 tn Grk “How then were your eyes opened” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:11] 715 tn Grk “That one answered.”
[9:11] 716 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:11] 717 tn Grk “and smeared.” Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when obvious from the context.
[9:11] 718 tn Grk “said to me.”
[9:11] 719 tn Or “and I gained my sight.”
[9:12] 721 tn Grk “And they said.”
[9:12] 722 tn Grk “that one.” “Man” is more normal English style for the referent.
[9:13] 727 tn Grk “who was formerly blind.”
[9:13] 728 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[9:14] 733 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:14] 734 tn Grk “and opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:14] 735 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
[9:15] 739 tn Or “how he had become able to see.”
[9:15] 740 tn Grk “And he said to them.”
[9:15] 741 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:15] 742 tn The word “now” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied to indicate the contrast between the man’s former state (blind) and his present state (able to see).
[9:16] 745 tn As a response to the answers of the man who used to be blind, the use of the imperfect tense in the reply of the Pharisees is best translated as an ingressive imperfect (“began to say” or “started saying”).
[9:16] 746 tn Grk “he does not keep.”
[9:16] 747 sn The Jewish religious leaders considered the work involved in making the mud to be a violation of the Sabbath.
[9:16] 749 tn Or “So there was discord.”
[9:17] 751 tn Grk “the blind man.”
[9:17] 752 tn Grk “since he opened your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:17] 753 tn Grk “And he said, ‘He is a prophet.’”
[9:18] 757 tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “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 phrase refers mainly to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. References in this context to Pharisees and to the synagogue (v. 22) suggest an emphasis on the religious nature of the debate which is brought out by the translation “the Jewish religious leaders.”
[9:18] 758 tn The Greek text contains the words “about him” at this point: “the Jewish authorities did not believe about him…”
[9:18] 759 tn Grk “they called.”
[9:18] 760 tn Or “the man who had gained his sight.”
[9:19] 763 tn Grk “and they asked them, saying”; the referent (the parents) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:19] 764 tn The Greek pronoun and verb are both plural (both parents are addressed).
[9:20] 769 tn Grk “So his parents answered and said.”
[9:21] 775 tn Grk “who opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:21] 776 tn Or “he is of age.”
[9:22] 781 tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Twice in this verse the phrase refers to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. The second occurrence is shortened to “the Jewish leaders” for stylistic reasons. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish religious leaders” in v. 18.
[9:22] 782 tn Grk “confessed him.”
[9:22] 783 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[9:22] 784 tn Or “would be expelled from.”
[9:22] 785 sn This reference to excommunication from the Jewish synagogue for those who had made some sort of confession about Jesus being the Messiah is dismissed as anachronistic by some (e.g., Barrett) and nonhistorical by others. In later Jewish practice there were at least two forms of excommunication: a temporary ban for thirty days, and a permanent ban. But whether these applied in NT times is far from certain. There is no substantial evidence for a formal ban on Christians until later than this Gospel could possibly have been written. This may be a reference to some form of excommunication adopted as a contingency to deal with those who were proclaiming Jesus to be the Messiah. If so, there is no other record of the procedure than here. It was probably local, limited to the area around Jerusalem. See also the note on synagogue in 6:59.
[9:23] 787 tn Or “he is of age.”
[9:23] 788 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author explaining the parents’ response.
[9:24] 793 tn Grk “they called.”
[9:24] 794 tn Grk “who was blind.”
[9:24] 795 tn Grk “Give glory to God” (an idiomatic formula used in placing someone under oath to tell the truth).
[9:24] 796 tn The phrase “this man” is a reference to Jesus.
[9:25] 799 tn Grk “Then that one answered.”
[9:26] 805 tn Grk “open your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:27] 811 tn Grk “He answered them.” The indirect object αὐτοῖς (autois) has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[9:27] 812 tn Grk “you did not hear.”
[9:27] 813 tn “It” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when they were clearly implied in the context.
[9:27] 814 tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.
[9:28] 817 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[9:28] 818 tn The Greek word means “to insult strongly” or “slander.”
[9:28] 820 tn Grk “You are that one’s disciple.”
[9:29] 823 tn Grk “where this one.”
[9:30] 829 tn Grk “The man answered and said to them.” This has been simplified in the translation to “The man replied.”
[9:30] 830 tn Grk “For in this is a remarkable thing.”
[9:30] 831 tn Grk “and he opened my eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:31] 835 tn Grk “God does not hear.”
[9:31] 837 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:32] 841 tn Or “Never from the beginning of time,” Grk “From eternity.”
[9:32] 842 tn Grk “someone opening the eyes of a man born blind” (“opening the eyes” is an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:34] 853 tn Grk “They answered and said to him.” This has been simplified in the translation to “They replied.”
[9:34] 854 tn Or “From birth you have been evil.” The implication of this insult, in the context of John 9, is that the man whom Jesus caused to see had not previously adhered rigorously to all the conventional requirements of the OT law as interpreted by the Pharisees. Thus he had no right to instruct them about who Jesus was.
[9:34] 855 tn Grk “and are you teaching us?”
[9:35] 859 tn Grk “found him”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:35] 860 tc Although most witnesses (A L Θ Ψ 070 0250 Ë1,13 33 Ï lat) have θεοῦ (qeou, “of God”) instead of ἀνθρώπου (anqrwpou, “of man”) here, the better witnesses (Ì66,75 א B D W sys) have ἀνθρώπου. Not only is the external evidence decidedly on the side of ἀνθρώπου, but it is difficult to see such early and diverse witnesses changing θεοῦ to ἀνθρώπου. The wording “Son of Man” is thus virtually certain.
[9:36] 866 tn Grk answered and said.” This has been simplified in the translation to “replied.”
[9:36] 867 tn Or “And who is he, sir? Tell me so that…” Some translations supply elliptical words like “Tell me” (NIV, NRSV) following the man’s initial question, but the shorter form given in the translation is clear enough.
[9:37] 872 tn The καί – καί (kai – kai) construction would normally be translated “both – and”: “You have both seen him, and he is the one speaking with you.” In this instance the English semicolon was used instead because it produces a smoother and more emphatic effect in English.
[9:38] 877 sn Assuming the authenticity of John 9:38-39a (see the tc note following the bracket in v. 39), the man’s response after Jesus’ statement of v. 37 is extremely significant: He worshiped Jesus. In the Johannine context the word would connote its full sense: This was something due God alone. Note also that Jesus did not prevent the man from doing this. The verb προσκυνέω (proskunew) is used in John 4:20-25 of worshiping God, and again with the same sense in 12:20. This would be the only place in John’s Gospel where anyone is said to have worshiped Jesus using this term. As such, it forms the climax of the story of the man born blind, but the uniqueness of the concept of worshiping Jesus at this point in John's narrative (which reaches its ultimate climax in the confession of Thomas in John 20:28) may suggest it is too early for such a response and it represents a later scribal addition.
[9:39] 883 tn Grk “And Jesus.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[9:39] 884 tc ‡ Some early and important witnesses (Ì75 א* W b sams ac2 mf) lack the words, “He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped him. Jesus said,” (vv. 38-39a). This is weighty evidence for the omission of these words. It is difficult to overstate the value of Ì75 here, since it is the only currently available papyrus ms extant for the text of John 9:38-39. Further, א is an important and early Alexandrian witness for the omission. The versional testimony and codex W also give strong support to the omission. Nearly all other
[9:39] 885 tn Or “that those who do not see may see.”
[9:40] 889 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[9:40] 890 tn Grk “heard these things.”
[9:40] 891 tn Grk “and said to him.”
[9:40] 892 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are we?”).
[9:41] 895 tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”
[9:41] 896 tn Grk “you would not have sin.”
[9:41] 897 tn Grk “now because you say, ‘We see…’”
[9:41] 899 sn Because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains. The blind man received sight physically, and this led him to see spiritually as well. But the Pharisees, who claimed to possess spiritual sight, were spiritually blinded. The reader might recall Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in 3:10, “Are you the teacher of Israel and don’t understand these things?” In other words, to receive Jesus was to receive the light of the world, to reject him was to reject the light, close one’s eyes, and become blind. This is the serious sin of which Jesus had warned before (8:21-24). The blindness of such people was incurable since they had rejected the only cure that exists (cf. 12:39-41).
