John 8

red bookmark icon blue bookmark icon gold bookmark icon

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

After this jJesus went away to the other side of kthe Sea of Galilee, which is lthe Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on mthe mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now nthe Passover, the ofeast of the Jews, was at hand. pLifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to qPhilip, Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat? He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. rPhilip answered him, Two hundred denarii1 worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little. One of his disciples, sAndrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, There is a boy here who has five tbarley loaves and two fish, but twhat are they for so many? 10 Jesus said, Have the people sit down. uNow there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, and vwhen he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost. 13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, wThis is indeed xthe Prophet ywho is to come into the world!

15 zPerceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus awithdrew again to bthe mountain by himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles,2 they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 cBut he said to them, It is I; do not be afraid. 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

I Am the Bread of Life

22 On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only done boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23 Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord ehad given thanks. 24 fSo when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and gwent to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, hRabbi, when did you come here? 26 Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, iyou are seeking me, not because you saw jsigns, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 kDo not work for the food that perishes, but for lthe food that endures to eternal life, which mthe Son of Man will give to you. For on nhim God the Father has oset his seal. 28 Then they said to him, What must we do, to be doing pthe works of God? 29 Jesus answered them, This is the work of God, qthat you believe in him whom rhe has sent. 30 So they said to him, sThen what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? 31 tOur fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, uHe gave them bread from heaven to eat. 32 Jesus then said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is vhe who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. 34 They said to him, wSir, give us this bread always.

35 Jesus said to them, xI am the bread of life; ywhoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 zAll that athe Father gives me will come to me, and bwhoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For cI have come down from heaven, not to do dmy own will but dthe will of him ewho sent me. 39 And fthis is the will of him who sent me, gthat I should lose nothing of hall that he has given me, but iraise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who jlooks on the Son and kbelieves in him lshould have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.

41 So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, mI am the bread that came down from heaven. 42 They said, nIs not this Jesus, othe son of Joseph, whose father and mother pwe know? How does he now say, I have come down from heaven? 43 Jesus answered them, Do not grumble among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me qdraws him. And rI will raise him up on the last day. 45 It is written in the Prophets, sAnd they will all be ttaught by God. uEveryone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me 46 vnot that anyone has seen the Father except whe who is from God; he xhas seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, ywhoever believes has eternal life. 48 zI am the bread of life. 49 aYour fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and bthey died. 50 cThis is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it dand not die. 51 I am the living bread ethat came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give ffor the life of the world is gmy flesh.

52 The Jews then hdisputed among themselves, saying, iHow can this man give us his flesh to eat? 53 So Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of jthe Son of Man and drink his blood, you khave no life in you. 54 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood lhas eternal life, and mI will raise him up on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood nabides in me, and I in him. 57 As othe living Father psent me, and qI live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. 58 rThis is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread3 the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever. 59 Jesus4 said these things in the synagogue, as he taught sat Capernaum.

The Words of Eternal Life

60 tWhen many of his disciples heard it, they said, This is a hard saying; who can listen to it? 61 But Jesus, vknowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, Do you take offense at this? 62 Then what if you were to see wthe Son of Man xascending to ywhere he was before? 63 zIt is the Spirit who gives life; athe flesh is no help at all. bThe words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64 But cthere are some of you who do not believe. (For Jesus vknew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and dwho it was who would betray him.) 65 And he said, This is why I told you ethat no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.

66 fAfter this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. 67 So Jesus said to gthe twelve, Do you want to go away as well? 68 Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have hthe words of eternal life, 69 and iwe have believed, and have come to know, that jyou are kthe Holy One of God. 70 Jesus answered them, lDid I not choose you, gthe twelve? And yet one of you is ma devil. 71 He spoke of Judas nthe son of Simon Iscariot, for ohe, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.

Jesus at the Feast of Booths

After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because pthe Jews1 were seeking to kill him. Now qthe Jews’ Feast of rBooths was at hand. sSo his brothers2 said to him, Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, tshow yourself to the world. uFor not even vhis brothers believed in him. Jesus said to them, wMy time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but xit hates me because I testify about it that yits works are evil. You go up to the feast. I am not3 going up to this feast, for zmy time has not yet fully come. After saying this, he remained in Galilee.

10 But after ahis brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. 11 bThe Jews cwere looking for him at the feast, and saying, Where is he? 12 And there was much dmuttering about him among the people. eWhile some said, He is a good man, others said, No, fhe is leading the people astray. 13 Yet gfor fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him.

14 About the middle of the feast Jesus went up hinto the temple and began teaching. 15 The Jews therefore imarveled, saying, How is it that this man has learning,4 when he has never studied? 16 So Jesus answered them, jMy teaching is not mine, but his kwho sent me. 17 lIf anyone’s will is to do God’s5 will, mhe will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I nam speaking on my own authority. 18 The one who speaks on his own authority oseeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. 19 pHas not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. qWhy do you seek to kill me? 20 The crowd answered, rYou have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you? 21 Jesus answered them, I did sone work, and you all marvel at it. 22 tMoses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but ufrom the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. 23 If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, vare you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man’s whole body well? 24 wDo not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Can This Be the Christ?

25 Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, Is not this the man whom xthey seek to kill? 26 And here he is, yspeaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that zthe authorities really know that this is the Christ? 27 But awe know bwhere this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, cno one will know where he comes from. 28 So Jesus proclaimed, das he taught in the temple, aYou know me, and you know where I come from. But eI have not come of my own accord. fHe who sent me is true, gand him you do not know. 29 hI know him, for I come ifrom him, and jhe sent me. 30 kSo they were seeking to arrest him, but lno one laid a hand on him, mbecause his hour had not yet come. 31 Yet nmany of the people believed in him. They said, oWhen the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?

Officers Sent to Arrest Jesus

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd pmuttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent qofficers to arrest him. 33 Jesus then said, rI will be with you a little longer, and then sI am going to him who sent me. 34 tYou will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come. 35 The Jews said to one another, Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? uDoes he intend to go to vthe Dispersion among wthe Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What does he mean by saying, xYou will seek me and you will not find me, and, Where I am you cannot come?

Rivers of Living Water

37 yOn the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, zIf anyone thirsts, let him acome to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, bas6 the Scripture has said, cOut of his heart will flow rivers of dliving water. 39 Now ethis he said about the Spirit, fwhom those who believed in him were to receive, gfor as yet the Spirit had not been hgiven, ibecause Jesus was not yet glorified.

Division Among the People

40 When they heard these words, jsome of the people said, This really is kthe Prophet. 41 Others said, This is lthe Christ. But some said, mIs the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes nfrom the offspring of David, and comes ofrom Bethlehem, the village pwhere David was? 43 So there was qa division among the people over him. 44 rSome of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.

45 sThe officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, Why did you not bring him? 46 The officers answered, tNo one ever spoke like this man! 47 The Pharisees answered them, uHave you also been deceived? 48 vHave any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed. 50 wNicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51 xDoes our law judge a man without first ygiving him a hearing and learning what he does? 52 They replied, zAre you from Galilee too? Search and see that ano prophet arises from Galilee.

[The earliest manuscripts do not include 7:538:11.]7

The Woman Caught in Adultery

53 [[They went each to his own house,

but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. bEarly in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and che sat down and taught them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now din the Law, Moses commanded us eto stone such women. So what do you say? This they said fto test him, gthat they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, hLet him who is without sin among you ibe the first to throw a stone at her. And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus stood up and said to her, Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? 11 She said, No one, Lord. And Jesus said, jNeither do I condemn you; go, and from now on ksin no more.]]

I Am the Light of the World

12 lAgain Jesus spoke to them, saying, mI am the light of the world. Whoever nfollows me will not owalk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 13 So the Pharisees said to him, pYou are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true. 14 Jesus answered, Even if I do bear witness about myself, qmy testimony is true, for I know rwhere I came from and swhere I am going, but tyou do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15 uYou judge according to the flesh; vI judge no one. 16 Yet even if I do judge, wmy judgment is true, for xit is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father1 who sent me. 17 yIn your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. 18 I am the one who bears witness about myself, and zthe Father who sent me bears witness about me. 19 They said to him therefore, Where is your Father? Jesus answered, aYou know neither me nor my Father. bIf you knew me, you would know my Father also. 20 These words he spoke in cthe treasury, as he taught in the temple; but dno one arrested him, because ehis hour had not yet come.

21 So he said to them again, fI am going away, and gyou will seek me, and hyou will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come. 22 So the Jews said, iWill he kill himself, since he says, Where I am going, you cannot come? 23 He said to them, jYou are from below; I am from above. kYou are of this world; lI am not of this world. 24 I told you that you mwould die in your sins, for nunless you believe that oI am he you will die in your sins. 25 So they said to him, pWho are you? Jesus said to them, Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you and much to judge, but qhe who sent me is true, and I declare rto the world swhat I have heard from him. 27 They did not understand that the had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said to them, When you have ulifted up the Son of Man, vthen you will know that wI am he, and that xI do nothing on my own authority, but yspeak just as the Father taught me. 29 And zhe who sent me is with me. zHe has not left me alone, for aI always do the things that are pleasing to him. 30 As he was saying these things, bmany believed in him.

The Truth Will Set You Free

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, cIf you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will dknow the truth, and the truth ewill set you free. 33 They answered him, fWe are offspring of Abraham 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, geveryone who practices sin is a slave2 to sin. 35 hThe slave does not remain in the house forever; ithe son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet jyou seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 kI speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard lfrom your father.

You Are of Your Father the Devil

39 They answered him, mAbraham is our father. Jesus said to them, nIf you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, 40 but now oyou seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth pthat I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41 You are doing the works your father did. They said to him, qWe were not born of sexual immorality. We have rone Fathereven God. 42 Jesus said to them, sIf God were your Father, you would love me, for tI came from God and uI am here. vI came not of my own accord, but whe sent me. 43 xWhy do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot ybear to hear my word. 44 zYou are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. aHe was a murderer from the beginning, and bdoes not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. cWhen he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 dWhoever is of God hears the words of God. eThe reason why you do not hear them is that fyou are not of God.

Before Abraham Was, I Am

48 The Jews answered him, Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and ghave a demon? 49 Jesus answered, I do not have a demon, but hI honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet iI do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, jI say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never ksee death. 52 The Jews said to him, Now we know that you have a demon! lAbraham died, as did the prophets, yet myou say, If anyone keeps my word, he will never ntaste death. 53 oAre you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be? 54 Jesus answered, pIf I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. qIt is my Father who glorifies me, rof whom you say, He is our God.3 55 But syou have not known him. tI know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be ua liar vlike you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56 wYour father Abraham xrejoiced ythat he would see my day. zHe saw it and was glad. 57 So the Jews said to him, You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?4 58 Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, aI am. 59 So bthey picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, cRabbi, dwho sinned, ethis man or fhis parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but gthat the works of God might be displayed in him. We must hwork the works of him who sent me iwhile it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, jI am the light of the world. Having said these things, khe spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. lThen he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud and said to him, Go, wash in mthe pool of Siloam (which means Sent). So he went and washed and ncame back seeing.

The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, oIs this not the man who used to sit and beg? Some said, It is he. Others said, No, but he is like him. He kept saying, I am the man. 10 So they said to him, Then how were your eyes opened? 11 He answered, pThe man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, Go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed and received my sight. 12 They said to him, Where is he? He said, I do not know.

13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 qNow it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 rSo the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. 16 Some of the Pharisees said, This man is not sfrom God, tfor he does not keep the Sabbath. But others said, uHow can a man who is a sinner do such signs? And vthere was a division among them. 17 So they said again to the blind man, What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes? He said, wHe is a prophet.

18 xThe Jews1 did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight 19 and asked them, Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see? 20 His parents answered, We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself. 22 (His parents said these things ybecause they feared the Jews, for zthe Jews had already agreed that if anyone should aconfess Jesus2 to be Christ, bhe was to be put out of the synagogue.) 23 Therefore his parents said, cHe is of age; ask him.

24 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, dGive glory to God. We know that ethis man is a sinner. 25 He answered, Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I fwas blind, now I see. 26 They said to him, What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes? 27 He answered them, gI have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples? 28 And they reviled him, saying, You are his disciple, but hwe are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, iwe do not know where he comes from. 30 The man answered, Why, this is jan amazing thing! kYou do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that lGod does not listen to sinners, but mif anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33 nIf this man were not from God, he could do nothing. 34 They answered him, oYou were born in utter sin, and would you teach us? And they pcast him out.

35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, Do you believe in qthe Son of Man?3 36 He answered, rAnd who is he, sir, that I may believe in him? 37 Jesus said to him, You have seen him, and sit is he who is speaking to you. 38 He said, Lord, I believe, and he worshiped him. 39 Jesus said, tFor judgment I came into this world, uthat those who do not see may see, and vthose who see may become blind. 40 Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, wAre we also blind? 41 Jesus said to them, If you were blind, xyou would have no guilt;4 but now that you say, We see, your guilt remains.

I Am the Good Shepherd

10 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. yA stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers. This figure of speech Jesus zused with them, but they adid not understand what he was saying to them.

So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, bI am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, che will be saved and will go in and out and dfind pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and ekill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 fI am the good shepherd. The good shepherd glays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is ha hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and ileaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and jscatters them. 13 He flees because khe is a hired hand and lcares nothing for the sheep. 14 mI am the good shepherd. nI know my own and omy own know me, 15 pjust as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and qI lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And rI have other sheep that are not of this fold. sI must bring them also, and tthey will listen to my voice. So there will be uone flock, vone shepherd. 17 wFor this reason the Father loves me, xbecause yI lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 zNo one takes it from me, but yI lay it down aof my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and bI have authority to take it up again. cThis charge I have received from my Father.

19 dThere was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, eHe has a demon, and fis insane; why listen to him? 21 Others said, These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. gCan a demon open the eyes of the blind?

I and the Father Are One

22 At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, hin the colonnade of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are ithe Christ, jtell us plainly. 25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and you do not believe. kThe works that I do lin my Father’s name bear witness about me, 26 but myou do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 nMy sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 oI give them eternal life, and pthey will never perish, and qno one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, rwho has given them to me,1 sis greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of tthe Father’s hand. 30 uI and the Father are one.

31 vThe Jews picked up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me? 33 The Jews answered him, It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but wfor blasphemy, because you, being a man, xmake yourself God. 34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in yyour Law, zI said, you are gods? 35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God cameand Scripture cannot be abroken 36 do you say of him whom bthe Father consecrated and csent into the world, You are blaspheming, because dI said, I am the Son of God? 37 eIf I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, feven though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that gthe Father is in me and I am in the Father. 39 hAgain they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.

40 He went away again across the Jordan to the place iwhere John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. 41 And many came to him. And they said, John did no sign, but jeverything that John said about this man was true. 42 And kmany believed in him there.