John 8:35-59

8:35 The slave does not remain in the family ¹  forever, but the son remains forever. ²  8:36 So if the son ³  sets you free, you will be really free. 8:37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. ⁴  But you want ⁵  to kill me, because my teaching ⁶  makes no progress among you. ⁷  8:38 I am telling you the things I have seen while with the ⁸  Father; ⁹  as for you, ¹⁰  practice the things you have heard from the ¹¹  Father!”

8:39 They answered him, ¹²  “Abraham is our father!” ¹³  Jesus replied, ¹⁴  “If you are ¹⁵  Abraham’s children, you would be doing ¹⁶  the deeds of Abraham. 8:40 But now you are trying ¹⁷  to kill me, a man who has told you ¹⁸  the truth I heard from God. Abraham did not do this! ¹⁹  8:41 You people ²⁰  are doing the deeds of your father.”

Then ²¹  they said to Jesus, ²²  “We were not born as a result of immorality! ²³  We have only one Father, God himself.” 8:42 Jesus replied, ²⁴  “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come from God and am now here. ²⁵  I ²⁶  have not come on my own initiative, ²⁷  but he ²⁸  sent me. 8:43 Why don’t you understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot accept ²⁹  my teaching. ³⁰  8:44 You people ³¹  are from ³²  your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires. ³³  He ³⁴  was a murderer from the beginning, and does not uphold the truth, ³⁵  because there is no truth in him. Whenever he lies, ³⁶  he speaks according to his own nature, ³⁷  because he is a liar and the father of lies. ³⁸  8:45 But because I am telling you ³⁹  the truth, you do not believe me. 8:46 Who among you can prove me guilty ⁴⁰  of any sin? ⁴¹  If I am telling you ⁴²  the truth, why don’t you believe me? 8:47 The one who belongs to ⁴³  God listens and responds ⁴⁴  to God’s words. You don’t listen and respond, ⁴⁵  because you don’t belong to God.” ⁴⁶ 

8:48 The Judeans ⁴⁷  replied, ⁴⁸  “Aren’t we correct in saying ⁴⁹  that you are a Samaritan and are possessed by a demon?” ⁵⁰  8:49 Jesus answered, “I am not possessed by a demon, ⁵¹  but I honor my Father – and yet ⁵²  you dishonor me. 8:50 I am not trying to get ⁵³  praise for myself. ⁵⁴  There is one who demands ⁵⁵  it, and he also judges. ⁵⁶  8:51 I tell you the solemn truth, ⁵⁷  if anyone obeys ⁵⁸  my teaching, ⁵⁹  he will never see death.” ⁶⁰ 

8:52 Then ⁶¹  the Judeans ⁶²  responded, ⁶³  “Now we know you’re possessed by a demon! ⁶⁴  Both Abraham and the prophets died, and yet ⁶⁵  you say, ‘If anyone obeys ⁶⁶  my teaching, ⁶⁷  he will never experience ⁶⁸  death.’ ⁶⁹  8:53 You aren’t greater than our father Abraham who died, are you? ⁷⁰  And the prophets died too! Who do you claim to be?” 8:54 Jesus replied, ⁷¹  “If I glorify myself, my glory is worthless. ⁷²  The one who glorifies me is my Father, about whom you people ⁷³  say, ‘He is our God.’ 8:55 Yet ⁷⁴  you do not know him, but I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, ⁷⁵  I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey ⁷⁶  his teaching. ⁷⁷  8:56 Your father Abraham was overjoyed ⁷⁸  to see my day, and he saw it and was glad.” ⁷⁹ 

8:57 Then the Judeans ⁸⁰  replied, ⁸¹  “You are not yet fifty years old! ⁸²  Have ⁸³  you seen Abraham?” 8:58 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the solemn truth, ⁸⁴  before Abraham came into existence, ⁸⁵  I am!” ⁸⁶  8:59 Then they picked up ⁸⁷  stones to throw at him, ⁸⁸  but Jesus hid himself and went out from the temple area. ⁸⁹ 

[8:35]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ 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]  ⁴ tn Grk “seed” (an idiom).

[8:37]  ⁵ tn Grk “you are seeking.”

[8:37]  ⁶ tn Grk “my word.”

[8:37]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ 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 mss); no doubt this implication gave rise to the reading μου found in most witnesses (א D Θ Ψ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï it sy). No pronoun here is read by Ì^66,75 B C L 070 pc. This problem cannot be isolated from the second in the verse, however. See that discussion below.

[8:38]  ⁹ tn Grk “The things which I have seen with the Father I speak about.”

[8:38]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “and you.”

[8:38]  ¹¹ tc A few significant witnesses lack ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) here (Ì^66,75 B L W 070 pc), while the majority have the pronoun (א C D Θ Ψ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 565 892 Ï al lat sy). However, these mss do not agree on the placement of the pronoun: τοῦ πατρὸς ὑμῶν ποιεῖτε (tou patro" Jumwn poieite), τῷ πατρὶ ὑμῶν (tw patri Jumwn), and τῷ πατρὶ ὑμῶν ταῦτα (tw patri Jumwn tauta) all occur. If the pronoun is read, then the devil is in view and the text should be translated as “you are practicing the things you have heard from your father.” If it is not read, then the same Father mentioned in the first part of the verse is in view. In this case, ποιεῖτε should be taken as an imperative: “you [must] practice the things you have heard from the Father.” The omission is decidedly the harder reading, both because the contrast between God and the devil is now delayed until v. 41, and because ποιεῖτε could be read as an indicative, especially since the two clauses are joined by καί (kai, “and”). Thus, the pronoun looks to be a motivated reading. In light of the better external and internal evidence the omission is preferred.

[8:39]  ¹² tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”

[8:39]  ¹³ tn Or “Our father is Abraham.”

[8:39]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”

[8:39]  ¹⁵ tc Although most mss (C W Θ Ψ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï) have the imperfect ἦτε (hte, “you were”) here, making this sentence a proper second class condition, the harder reading, ἐστε (este, “you are”), is found in the better witnesses (Ì^66,75 א B D L 070 pc lat).

[8:39]  ¹⁶ tc Some important mss (Ì⁶⁶ B* [700]) have the present imperative ποιεῖτε (poieite) here: “If you are Abraham’s children, then do,” while many others (א² C K L N Δ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 565 579 892 pm) add the contingent particle ἄν (an) to ἐποιεῖτε (epoieite) making it a more proper second class condition by Attic standards. The simple ἐποιεῖτε without the ἄν is the hardest reading, and is found in some excellent witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ א* B² D W Γ Θ 070 0250 1424 pm).

[8:40]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “seeking.”

[8:40]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “has spoken to you.”

[8:40]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ 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]  ²¹ tc ‡ Important and early witnesses (א B L W 070 it sy^s,p co) lack the conjunction here, while the earliest witnesses along with many others read οὖν (oun, “therefore”; Ì^66,75 C D Θ Ψ 0250 ˹³ 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]  ²² tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:41]  ²³ 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]  ²⁴ tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”

[8:42]  ²⁵ tn Or “I came from God and have arrived.”

[8:42]  ²⁶ tn Grk “For I.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[8:42]  ²⁷ tn Grk “from myself.”

[8:42]  ²⁸ tn Grk “that one” (referring to God).

[8:43]  ²⁹ 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.

[8:43]  ³⁰ tn Grk “my word.”

[8:44]  ³¹ tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify that the Greek pronoun and verb are plural.

[8:44]  ³² 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]  ³³ tn Grk “the desires of your father you want to do.”

[8:44]  ³⁴ tn Grk “That one” (referring to the devil).

[8:44]  ³⁵ tn Grk “he does not stand in the truth” (in the sense of maintaining, upholding, or accepting the validity of it).

[8:44]  ³⁶ tn Grk “Whenever he speaks the lie.”

[8:44]  ³⁷ tn Grk “he speaks from his own.”

[8:44]  ³⁸ tn Grk “because he is a liar and the father of it.”

[8:45]  ³⁹ tn Or “because I tell you.”

[8:46]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “can convict me.”

[8:46]  ⁴¹ tn Or “of having sinned”; Grk “of sin.”

[8:46]  ⁴² tn Or “if I tell you.”

[8:47]  ⁴³ tn Grk “who is of.”

[8:47]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “to God hears” (in the sense of listening to something and responding to it).

[8:47]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “you do not hear” (in the sense of listening to something and responding to it).

[8:47]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “you are not of God.”

[8:48]  ⁴⁷ 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]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “answered and said to him.”

[8:48]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “Do we not say rightly.”

[8:48]  ⁵⁰ 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]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “I do not have a demon.”

[8:49]  ⁵² tn “Yet” is supplied to show the contrastive element present in the context.

[8:50]  ⁵³ tn Grk “I am not seeking.”

[8:50]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “my glory.”

[8:50]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “who seeks.”

[8:50]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “will be the judge.”

[8:51]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[8:51]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “If anyone keeps.”

[8:51]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “my word.”

[8:51]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “he will never see death forever.” The Greek negative here is emphatic.

[8:52]  ⁶¹ 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 Ë^1,13 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]  ⁶² 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]  ⁶³ tn Grk “said to him.”

[8:52]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “you have a demon.”

[8:52]  ⁶⁵ tn “Yet” has been supplied to show the contrastive element present in the context.

[8:52]  ⁶⁶ tn Grk “If anyone keeps.”

[8:52]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “my word.”

[8:52]  ⁶⁸ 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]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “he will never taste of death forever.” The Greek negative here is emphatic.

[8:53]  ⁷⁰ 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]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “Jesus answered.”

[8:54]  ⁷² tn Grk “is nothing.”

[8:54]  ⁷³ 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]  ⁷⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Yet” to indicate the contrast present in the context.

[8:55]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “If I say, ‘I do not know him.’”

[8:55]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “I keep.”

[8:55]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “his word.”

[8:56]  ⁷⁸ tn Or “rejoiced greatly.”

[8:56]  ⁷⁹ 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]  ⁸⁰ 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]  ⁸¹ tn Grk “said to him.”

[8:57]  ⁸² tn Grk ‘You do not yet have fifty years” (an idiom).

[8:57]  ⁸³ tn Grk “And have.”

[8:58]  ⁸⁴ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[8:58]  ⁸⁵ tn Grk “before Abraham was.”

[8:58]  ⁸⁶ 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]  ⁸⁷ tn Grk “they took up.”

[8:59]  ⁸⁸ 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]  ⁸⁹ tc Most later witnesses (A Θ^c Ë^1,13 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 א^1,2 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 mss αὐτῶν ἐπορεύετο καί [autwn eporeueto kai] is found between this phrase and παρῆγεν, strengthening the parallel with Luke 4:30) and John 9:1 (παρῆγεν; cf. παράγων [paragwn] there). The effect is to signal Jesus’ departure as a miraculous cloaking. As such, the additional statement has all the earmarks of scribal amplification. Further, the best and earliest witnesses (Ì^66,75 א* B D W Θ* lat sa) lack these words, rendering the shorter text virtually certain.