John 7:31-53

Christian Standard Bible

³¹ However, many from the crowd believed in him and said, “When the Messiah comes, he won’t perform more signs than this man has done,^(A) will he?” ³² The Pharisees^(B) heard the crowd murmuring these things about him, and so the chief priests^(C) and the Pharisees sent servants^[a] to arrest him.

³³ Then Jesus said, “I am only with you for a short time.^(D) Then I’m going to the one who sent me.^{(E) 34} You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.”^(F)

³⁵ Then the Jews^(G) said to one another, “Where does he intend to go that we won’t find him? He doesn’t intend to go to the Jewish people dispersed^[b](H) among the Greeks^(I) and teach the Greeks, does he? ³⁶ What is this remark he made: ‘You will look for me, and you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come’^(J)?”

The Promise of the Spirit

³⁷ On the last and most important day of the festival,^(K) Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me^[c](L) and drink.^{(M) 38} The one who believes in me,^(N) as the Scripture^(O) has said, will have streams of living water^(P) flow^(Q) from deep within him.” ³⁹ He said this about the Spirit.^(R) Those who believed in Jesus were going to receive the Spirit,^(S) for the Spirit^[d] had not yet been given^[e] because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

The People Are Divided over Jesus

⁴⁰ When some from the crowd heard these words, they said, “This truly is the Prophet.”^{(T) 41} Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some said, “Surely the Messiah doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? ⁴² Doesn’t the Scripture^(U) say that the Messiah comes from David’s^(V) offspring^[f] and from the town of Bethlehem,^(W) where David lived?” ⁴³ So the crowd was divided^(X) because of him. ⁴⁴ Some of them wanted to seize him,^(Y) but no one laid hands on him.

Debate over Jesus’s Claims

⁴⁵ Then the servants^(Z) came to the chief priests^(AA) and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him?”

⁴⁶ The servants answered, “No man ever spoke like this!” ^[g](AB)

⁴⁷ Then the Pharisees responded to them, “Are you fooled^(AC) too? ⁴⁸ Have any of the rulers^(AD) or Pharisees believed in him? ⁴⁹ But this crowd, which doesn’t know the law, is accursed.”

⁵⁰ Nicodemus^(AE)—the one who came to him previously and who was one of them—said to them, ⁵¹ “Our law doesn’t judge a man before it hears from him and knows what he’s doing, does it?” ^(AF)

⁵² “You aren’t from Galilee^(AG) too, are you?” they replied. “Investigate and you will see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”^(AH)

[The earliest mss do not include 7:53–8:11.]

[⁵³ Then each one went to his house.^[h]