John 7:37-52

Revised Standard Version

Rivers of Living Water

³⁷ On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and proclaimed, “If any one thirst, let him come to me and drink. ³⁸ He who believes in me, as^[a] the scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.’” ³⁹ Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Division among the People

⁴⁰ When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This is really the prophet.” ⁴¹ Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? ⁴² Has not the scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” ⁴³ So there was a division among the people over him. ⁴⁴ Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.

The Unbelief of Those in Authority

⁴⁵ The officers then went back to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” ⁴⁶ The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like this man!” ⁴⁷ The Pharisees answered them, “Are you led astray, you also? ⁴⁸ Have any of the authorities or of the Pharisees believed in him? ⁴⁹ But this crowd, who do not know the law, are accursed.” ⁵⁰ Nicode′mus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, ⁵¹ “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” ⁵² They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and you will see that no prophet is to rise from Galilee.”