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Anticipating Hostility at Sukkot

After these events, Yeshua was walking about in the Galilee. He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Judean leaders wanted to kill Him. Now the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles[a] was near. Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go to Judea, so Your disciples also may see the works You are doing. No one who wants to be well known does everything in secret. If You are doing these things, show Yourself to the world!” For not even His brothers were trusting in Him.

Therefore Yeshua said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always at hand. The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify that its works are evil. You go on up to the Feast. I’m not going to this feast, because My time hasn’t yet fully come.” After saying these things, He stayed in the Galilee.

10 But after His brothers went to the Feast, He also went, not openly but secretly. 11 Then the Judean leaders were searching for Him at the Feast and kept asking, “Where is that fellow?” 12 There was a lot of murmuring about Him in the crowds. Some were saying, “He is good.” But others were saying, “Not so! He leads the people astray.” 13 Yet no one spoke openly about Him for fear of the Judean leaders.

Teaching at the Temple

14 About halfway through the Feast, Yeshua went up to the Temple and began teaching. 15 Then the Judean leaders were amazed, saying, “How does this man know so much, having never been taught?”[b]

16 Yeshua answered, “My teaching is not from Me, but from Him who sent Me. 17 If anyone wants to do His will, he will know whether My teaching comes from God or it is Myself speaking. 18 Whoever speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him, He is true and there is no unrighteousness in Him. 19 Hasn’t Moses given you the Torah? Yet none of you keeps it. Why are you trying to kill Me?”

20 The crowd answered, “You have a demon! Who’s trying to kill you?”

21 Yeshua answered, “I did one good work, and all of you are amazed. 22 Because Moses has given you circumcision (though it is not from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a man on Shabbat. 23 If a man receives circumcision on Shabbat so that the Torah of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry that I healed a man’s whole body on Shabbat? 24 Do not judge by appearance, but judge righteously.”

25 Then some of the people from Jerusalem were saying, “Isn’t this the person they’re trying to kill? 26 Look, He speaks openly and they’re saying nothing to Him. Can it be that the leaders know He is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this person is from. But the Messiah, whenever He may come, no one knows where He is from.”

28 Then, while teaching in the Temple courts, Yeshua cried out, “You know both who I am and where I am from! I have not come on My own, but the One who sent Me is true. You do not know Him, 29 but I know Him because I am from Him and He sent Me.”

30 Then they were trying to seize Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come. 31 Yet many from the crowd believed in Him and were saying, “When the Messiah comes, He won’t perform more signs than this person has, will He?” 32 The Pharisees heard people in the crowd murmuring these things about Him, and the ruling kohanim and Pharisees sent guards to arrest Him.

33 Yeshua said, “I am with you only a little while longer, and then I am going to the One who sent Me. 34 You will look for Me but will not find Me. Where I am, you cannot come.”

35 The Judean leaders then said among themselves, “Where is this person about to go that we shall not find Him? He’s not going to the Diaspora to teach the Greeks, is He? 36 What did He mean by saying, ‘You will look for Me but will not find Me. Where I am, you cannot come’?”

Satisfying Spiritual Thirst

37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Yeshua stood up and cried out loudly, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture says, ‘out of his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” [c] 39 Now He said this about the Ruach, whom those who trusted in Him were going to receive; for the Ruach[d] was not yet given, since Yeshua was not yet glorified.

40 When they heard these words, some of the crowd said, “This man really is the Prophet.” 41 Others were saying, “This is the Messiah.” Still others were saying, “The Messiah doesn’t come from the Galilee, does He? 42 Didn’t the Scripture say that the Messiah comes from the seed of David and from Bethlehem, David’s town?” [e] 43 So a division arose in the crowd because of Yeshua. 44 Some wanted to capture Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

Religious Adversaries

45 Then the guards returned to the ruling kohanim and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring Him?”

46 “Never has anyone spoken like this man,” the guards answered.

47 The Pharisees responded, “You haven’t been led astray also, have you? 48 Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in Him? 49 No, but this mob that doesn’t know the Torah—they are cursed!”

50 Nicodemus, the one who had come to Yeshua before and was one of them, said to them, 51 “Our Torah doesn’t judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he’s doing, does it?”

52 They answered him, “You aren’t from the Galilee too, are you? Search, and see that no prophet comes out of the Galilee!”[f]

53 Then everyone went to his own house.

Footnotes

  1. John 7:2 cf. Deut. 16:16.
  2. John 7:15 Lit. knows letters, not having learned.
  3. John 7:39 cf. Isa. 44:3, 55:1, 58:11; Ezek. 47; Zech. 14:8.
  4. John 7:39 Some mss. read Holy Spirit (Heb. Ruach ha-Kodesh).
  5. John 7:43 cf. Mic. 5:1(2).
  6. John 7:52 The earliest manuscripts do not include John 7:53-8:11. Others locate the passage after 7:36 or after 21:25.

Jesus Goes to the Festival of Tabernacles

After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want[a] to go about in Judea because the Jewish leaders(A) there were looking for a way to kill him.(B) But when the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles(C) was near, Jesus’ brothers(D) said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” For even his own brothers did not believe in him.(E)

Therefore Jesus told them, “My time(F) is not yet here; for you any time will do. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me(G) because I testify that its works are evil.(H) You go to the festival. I am not[b] going up to this festival, because my time(I) has not yet fully come.” After he had said this, he stayed in Galilee.

10 However, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. 11 Now at the festival the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus(J) and asking, “Where is he?”

12 Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”

Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.”(K) 13 But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the leaders.(L)

Jesus Teaches at the Festival

14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach.(M) 15 The Jews(N) there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning(O) without having been taught?”(P)

16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me.(Q) 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out(R) whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory,(S) but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law?(T) Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”(U)

20 “You are demon-possessed,”(V) the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”

21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle,(W) and you are all amazed. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision(X) (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs),(Y) you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath. 23 Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.”(Z)

Division Over Who Jesus Is

25 At that point some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill?(AA) 26 Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities(AB) really concluded that he is the Messiah?(AC) 27 But we know where this man is from;(AD) when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”

28 Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts,(AE) cried out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from.(AF) I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true.(AG) You do not know him, 29 but I know him(AH) because I am from him and he sent me.”(AI)

30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him,(AJ) because his hour had not yet come.(AK) 31 Still, many in the crowd believed in him.(AL) They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs(AM) than this man?”

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.

33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time,(AN) and then I am going to the one who sent me.(AO) 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.”(AP)

35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered(AQ) among the Greeks,(AR) and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”(AS)

37 On the last and greatest day of the festival,(AT) Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.(AU) 38 Whoever believes(AV) in me, as Scripture has said,(AW) rivers of living water(AX) will flow from within them.”[c](AY) 39 By this he meant the Spirit,(AZ) whom those who believed in him were later to receive.(BA) Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.(BB)

40 On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.”(BC)

41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.”

Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee?(BD) 42 Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants(BE) and from Bethlehem,(BF) the town where David lived?” 43 Thus the people were divided(BG) because of Jesus. 44 Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.(BH)

Unbelief of the Jewish Leaders

45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”

46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,”(BI) the guards replied.

47 “You mean he has deceived you also?”(BJ) the Pharisees retorted. 48 “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him?(BK) 49 No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them.”

50 Nicodemus,(BL) who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?”

52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”(BM)


[The earliest manuscripts and many other ancient witnesses do not have John 7:53—8:11. A few manuscripts include these verses, wholly or in part, after John 7:36, John 21:25, Luke 21:38 or Luke 24:53.]

53 Then they all went home,

Footnotes

  1. John 7:1 Some manuscripts not have authority
  2. John 7:8 Some manuscripts not yet
  3. John 7:38 Or me. And let anyone drink 38 who believes in me.” As Scripture has said, “Out of him (or them) will flow rivers of living water.”