John 8:40-44

8:40 But now you are trying ¹  to kill me, a man who has told you ²  the truth I heard from God. Abraham did not do this! ³  8:41 You people ⁴  are doing the deeds of your father.”

Then ⁵  they said to Jesus, ⁶  “We were not born as a result of immorality! ⁷  We have only one Father, God himself.” 8:42 Jesus replied, ⁸  “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come from God and am now here. ⁹  I ¹⁰  have not come on my own initiative, ¹¹  but he ¹²  sent me. 8:43 Why don’t you understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot accept ¹³  my teaching. ¹⁴  8:44 You people ¹⁵  are from ¹⁶  your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires. ¹⁷  He ¹⁸  was a murderer from the beginning, and does not uphold the truth, ¹⁹  because there is no truth in him. Whenever he lies, ²⁰  he speaks according to his own nature, ²¹  because he is a liar and the father of lies. ²² 

[8:40]  ¹ tn Grk “seeking.”

[8:40]  ² tn Grk “has spoken to you.”

[8:40]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:41]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”

[8:42]  ⁹ tn Or “I came from God and have arrived.”

[8:42]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “For I.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[8:42]  ¹¹ tn Grk “from myself.”

[8:42]  ¹² tn Grk “that one” (referring to God).

[8:43]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “my word.”

[8:44]  ¹⁵ tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify that the Greek pronoun and verb are plural.

[8:44]  ¹⁶ 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]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “the desires of your father you want to do.”

[8:44]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “That one” (referring to the devil).

[8:44]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “he does not stand in the truth” (in the sense of maintaining, upholding, or accepting the validity of it).

[8:44]  ²⁰ tn Grk “Whenever he speaks the lie.”

[8:44]  ²¹ tn Grk “he speaks from his own.”

[8:44]  ²² tn Grk “because he is a liar and the father of it.”