John 6:44

6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, ¹  and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:65

6:65 So Jesus added, ²  “Because of this I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has allowed him to come.” ³ 

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¹ tn Or “attracts him,” or “pulls him.” The word is used of pulling or dragging, often by force. It is even used once of magnetic attraction (A. Oepke, TDNT 2:503).

sn The Father who sent me draws him. The author never specifically explains what this “drawing” consists of. It is evidently some kind of attraction; whether it is binding and irresistible or not is not mentioned. But there does seem to be a parallel with 6:65, where Jesus says that no one is able to come to him unless the Father has allowed it. This apparently parallels the use of Isaiah by John to reflect the spiritual blindness of the Jewish leaders (see the quotations from Isaiah in John 9:41 and 12:39-40).

² tn Grk “And he said”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Grk “unless it has been permitted to him by the Father.”