New Testament in a Year

Jesus goes to Jerusalem

7 After this Jesus traveled throughout Galilee. He didn’t want to travel in Judea, because the Jewish authorities wanted to kill him. ² When it was almost time for the Jewish Festival of Booths, ³ Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee. Go to Judea so that your disciples can see the amazing works that you do. ⁴ Those who want to be known publicly don’t do things secretly. Since you can do these things, show yourself to the world.” ⁵ His brothers said this because even they didn’t believe in him.

⁶ Jesus replied, “For you, anytime is fine. But my time hasn’t come yet. ⁷ The world can’t hate you. It hates me, though, because I testify that its works are evil. ⁸ You go up to the festival. I’m not going to this one because my time hasn’t yet come.” ⁹ Having said this, he stayed in Galilee. ¹⁰ However, after his brothers left for the festival, he went too—not openly but in secret.

¹¹ The Jewish leaders were looking for Jesus at the festival. They kept asking, “Where is he?” ¹² The crowds were murmuring about him. “He’s a good man,” some said, but others were saying, “No, he tricks the people.” ¹³ No one spoke about him publicly, though, for fear of the Jewish authorities.

Jesus teaches in the temple

¹⁴ Halfway through the festival, Jesus went up to the temple and started to teach. ¹⁵ Astonished, the Jewish leaders asked, “He’s never been taught! How has he mastered the Law?”

¹⁶ Jesus responded, “My teaching isn’t mine but comes from the one who sent me. ¹⁷ Whoever wants to do God’s will can tell whether my teaching is from God or whether I speak on my own. ¹⁸ Those who speak on their own seek glory for themselves. Those who seek the glory of him who sent me are people of truth; there’s no falsehood in them. ¹⁹ Didn’t Moses give you the Law? Yet none of you keep the Law. Why do you want to kill me?”

²⁰ The crowd answered, “You have a demon. Who wants to kill you?”

²¹ Jesus replied, “I did one work, and you were all astonished. ²² Because Moses gave you the commandment about circumcision (although it wasn’t Moses but the patriarchs), you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. ²³ If a man can be circumcised on the Sabbath without breaking Moses’ Law, why are you angry with me because I made an entire man well on the Sabbath? ²⁴ Don’t judge according to appearances. Judge with right judgment.”

²⁵ Some people from Jerusalem said, “Isn’t he the one they want to kill? ²⁶ Here he is, speaking in public, yet they aren’t saying anything to him. Could it be that our leaders actually think he is the Christ? ²⁷ We know where he is from, but when the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.”