John 8:31-44

New American Standard Bible

The Truth Will Set You Free

³¹ So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “^(A)If you continue in My word, then you are truly My ^(B)disciples; ³² and ^(C)you will know the truth, and ^(D)the truth will set you free.” ³³ They answered Him, “^(E)We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”

³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly I say to you, ^(F)everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. ³⁵ Now ^(G)the slave does not remain in the house forever; ^(H)the son does remain forever. ³⁶ So if the Son ^(I)sets you free, you really will be free. ³⁷ I know that you are ^(J)Abraham’s descendants; yet ^(K)you are seeking to kill Me, because My word ^[a]has no place in you. ³⁸ I speak of the things which I have seen ^[b]with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from ^(L)your father.”

³⁹ They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is ^(M)our father.” Jesus *said to them, “^(N)If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. ⁴⁰ But as it is, ^(O)you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has ^(P)told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. ⁴¹ You are doing the deeds of ^(Q)your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born as a result of sexual immorality; ^(R)we have one Father: God.” ⁴² Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, ^(S)you would love Me, ^(T)for I came forth from God and am here; for I have ^(U)not even come ^[c]on My own, but ^[d](V)He sent Me. ⁴³ Why do you not understand ^[e](W)what I am saying? It is because you cannot ^(X)listen to My word. ^44 (Y)You are of ^(Z)your father the devil, and ^(AA)you want to do the desires of your father. ^(AB)He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because ^(AC)there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells ^[f]a lie, he ^(AD)speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of ^[g]lies.