John 7:37-52

Christian Standard Bible

The Promise of the Spirit

³⁷ On the last and most important day of the festival,^(A) Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me^[a](B) and drink.^{(C) 38} The one who believes in me,^(D) as the Scripture^(E) has said, will have streams of living water^(F) flow^(G) from deep within him.” ³⁹ He said this about the Spirit.^(H) Those who believed in Jesus were going to receive the Spirit,^(I) for the Spirit^[b] had not yet been given^[c] 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.”^{(J) 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^(K) say that the Messiah comes from David’s^(L) offspring^[d] and from the town of Bethlehem,^(M) where David lived?” ⁴³ So the crowd was divided^(N) because of him. ⁴⁴ Some of them wanted to seize him,^(O) but no one laid hands on him.

Debate over Jesus’s Claims

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

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

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

⁵⁰ Nicodemus^(U)—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?” ^(V)

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