Chapter 25
Is This the Christ?
Verse 1: Then some of the people of Jerusalem began to say, “Is this not the man whom they are wanting to kill? | John 7:25
2 But here he is, speaking openly and boldy, and they say nothing to him. Could it be that the leaders really know that this is the Messiah? | John 7:26
3 And yet we know this man, but when the Messiah comes no one will know who he is or where he comes from.” | John 7:27
4 As he was teaching in the temple, he cried out, “You know me, and you know where I am from. I did not come on my authority. But on the one who sent me and he is true, and none of you know him. | John 7:28
5 But I know him because I am from him, and he sent me.” | John 7:29
6 Then they tried to seize Jesus and arrest him, but no-one could lay their hands on him because his hour had yet not come. | John 7:30
7 Yet many in the crowd believed on him and were asking, “When the Messiah does come, will he do more signs and wonders than this man has done?” | John 7:31
Officers Are Sent to Arrest Jesus
8 When the Pharisees heard the murmurings of the crowd concerning Jesus, their disbelief and anger lead them to conspire with chief priests and they sent the temple police to arrest him. | John 7:32
9 Jesus then said, “I shall be with you for a little while longer, and then I will be with him who sent me. | John 7:33
10 You will look for me, but you won't find me, and where I will be, you cannot come.” | John 7:34
11 The people said among themselves, “Where is he going that we would not find him? Will he go to the dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? | John 7:35
12 What does he mean by saying, ‘You will look for me, but you won't find me’ and ‘Where I will be, you cannot come’?” | John 7:36
Rivers of Living Water
13 On the last and greatest day of the festival, while Jesus was standing by, he cried out with a loud voice, “If anyone who is thirsty, let them come to me, | John 7:37
14 and let the one who believes in me drink. Father, there are many around the drinking trough, but there is nothing in the cistern.” | John 7:38, Gospel of Thomas 74
15 He said this about the word. Those who believed in him were quick to receive it, yet they had no root in themselves, and so bore no fruit. | John 7:39
Division among the People
16 When they heard these words, some of the crowd began to say, “This is truly a prophet.” | John 7:40
17 Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee, does he? | John 7:41
18 Doesn’t the scripture say that the Messiah is descended from David and comes from a town in Bethlehem, where David lived?” | John 7:42
19 On the account of Jesus, there was much division among the crowd. | John 7:43
20 Some of them wanted to seize and arrest him, but no one could apprehend him. | John 7:44
The Unbelief of Those in Authority
21 Then the temple police returned to the chief priests and Pharisees, who demanded, “Why have you not arrested him yet?” | John 7:45
22 The police replied, “No one has ever spoken like this!” | John 7:46
23 Then the Pharisees replied, “Have you been lead astray too? Have you been deceived also, have you? | John 7:47
24 Has any members of the council, leaders or of the Pharisees believed him? | John 7:48
25 But this crowd, who understand nothing about the law, let them be accursed.” | John 7:49
26 Nicodemus, who had visited Jesus before and who was a temple leader asked them, | John 7:50
27 “Does our law judge people without first giving them a proper hearing to find out what they are doing? For I tell you, it does not” | John 7:51
28 “Are you not from Galilee?”, they said to him, “You should know that no prophet is to arise from Galilee.” | John 7:52
The Woman Caught in Adultery
29 Then each of them went home, except Jesus who travelled to the Mount of Olives to pray. | John 7:53, John 8:1
30 Early in the morning he went back to the temple again. All the people assembled close to him, and he sat down and started to teach. | John 8:2
31 The scribes and the Pharisees, however, brought Jesus a man and woman who had been caught in adultery, along with the eyewitnesses, stones already in hand and, making them stand in their midst, | John 8:3
32 they said to him, “Teacher, this man and woman were caught in the very act of committing adultery. The witnesses are present, and the guilt is undeniable. | John 8:4
33 The law Moses handed down, commands us to stone them. But Rome says we cannot carry out the verdict. Now what do you say?” | John 8:5
34 They said this to test him, forcing him to choose between the law of Moses and the authority of Rome, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. | John 8:6
35 When they continued on questioning him, he straightened up, bypassed the elders, and spoke directly to the accusers holding the stones: “You have invoked Moses. Moses commands that the witnesses strike first. Therefore, step forward. | John 8:7
36 But remember the rest of the Law: if a witness is found to be malicious or part of an entrapment, they must suffer the exact punishment they intended for the accused. | John 8:8
37 If your hands are truly clean of a setup, throw the first stone. If not, the blood of these two and the wrath of Rome will be on your heads alone.” | John 8:9
38 And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When the witnesses heard this, they dropped their stones and went away, one by one, beginning with the oldest. The Pharisees, their case legally broken, followed, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. | John 8:10
39 Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”. She said, “No one, sir.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go on your way, and from now on sin no more. | John 8:11
Jesus the Light of the World
40 Once again, Jesus spoke out to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whosoever follows me shall never walk in darkness but will have the light of eternal life.” | John 8:12
41 Then the Pharisees objected, “You are testifying on your own behalf and about yourself; your testimony is invalid.” | John 8:13
42 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true because I know where I have came from and where I am going to, but you do not know where I came from nor where I am going. | John 8:14
43 You judge by human standards of the flesh; I judge no one. | John 8:15
44 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent me. | John 8:16
45 And in your father's law it has been written that the testimony of two people is valid. | John 8:17
46 I testify about myself and my Father who sent me testifies about me” | John 8:18
47 “Where is your Father?”, they demanded. Jesus answered, “You know neither me or my Father. For if you had known me, you would have known my Father as well. | John 8:19
48 The images appear to man, but the hidden light inside them is the reflection of the Father. He will reveal himself, and his image will be veiled by his light. | Gospel of Thomas 83
49 When you see your likeness, you rejoice. But when you see your images which came into existence before you, and which neither die nor are made manifest, how much you will have to bear!” | Gospel of Thomas 84
50 Jesus had spoken these words as he was teaching in the temple courts, near the treasury, but no one could arrest him, because his hour had not yet come. | John 8:20