Discovery BoxJohn 1:21 
Context1:21 So they asked him, “Then who are you? 1 Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not!” 2 “Are you the Prophet?” 3 He answered, “No!”
John 2:22
Context2:22 So after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture 4 and the saying 5 that Jesus had spoken.
John 4:25
Context4:25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (the one called Christ); 6 “whenever he 7 comes, he will tell 8 us everything.” 9
John 4:29
Context4:29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Surely he can’t be the Messiah, 10 can he?” 11
John 4:46
Context4:46 Now he came again to Cana 12 in Galilee where he had made the water wine. 13 In 14 Capernaum 15 there was a certain royal official 16 whose son was sick.
John 7:12
Context7:12 There was 17 a lot of grumbling 18 about him among the crowds. 19 Some were saying, “He is a good man,” but others, “He deceives the common people.” 20
John 7:31
Context7:31 Yet many of the crowd 21 believed in him and said, “Whenever the Christ 22 comes, he won’t perform more miraculous signs than this man did, will he?” 23
John 8:2
Context8:2 Early in the morning he came to the temple courts again. All the people came to him, and he sat down and began to teach 24 them.
John 8:22
Context8:22 So the Jewish leaders 25 began to say, 26 “Perhaps he is going to kill himself, because he says, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’”
John 9:6
Context9:6 Having said this, 27 he spat on the ground and made some mud 28 with the saliva. He 29 smeared the mud on the blind man’s 30 eyes
John 9:25
Context9:25 He replied, 31 “I do not know whether he is a sinner. I do know one thing – that although I was blind, now I can see.”
John 9:30
Context9:30 The man replied, 32 “This is a remarkable thing, 33 that you don’t know where he comes from, and yet he caused me to see! 34
John 10:4
Context10:4 When he has brought all his own sheep 35 out, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they recognize 36 his voice.
John 13:5
Context13:5 He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel he had wrapped around himself. 37
John 15:2
Context15:2 He takes away 38 every branch that does not bear 39 fruit in me. He 40 prunes 41 every branch that bears 42 fruit so that it will bear more fruit.
John 16:18
Context16:18 So they kept on repeating, 43 “What is the meaning of what he says, 44 ‘In a little while’? 45 We do not understand 46 what he is talking about.” 47
John 18:5
Context18:5 They replied, 48 “Jesus the Nazarene.” He told them, “I am he.” (Now Judas, the one who betrayed him, was standing there with them.) 49
John 18:9
Context18:9 He said this 50 to fulfill the word he had spoken, 51 “I have not lost a single one of those whom you gave me.” 52
John 18:32
Context18:32 (This happened 53 to fulfill the word Jesus had spoken when he indicated 54 what kind of death he was going to die. 55 )
John 19:7
Context19:7 The Jewish leaders 56 replied, 57 “We have a law, 58 and according to our law he ought to die, because he claimed to be the Son of God!” 59
John 19:26
Context19:26 So when Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Woman, 60 look, here is your son!”
John 19:30
Context19:30 When 61 he had received the sour wine, Jesus said, “It is completed!” 62 Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. 63
John 19:35
Context19:35 And the person who saw it 64 has testified (and his testimony is true, and he 65 knows that he is telling the truth), 66 so that you also may believe.
John 20:20
Context20:20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 67
1 tn Grk “What then?” (an idiom).
2 sn According to the 1st century rabbinic interpretation of 2 Kgs 2:11, Elijah was still alive. In Mal 4:5 it is said that Elijah would be the precursor of Messiah. How does one reconcile John the Baptist’s denial here (“I am not”) with Jesus’ statements in Matt 11:14 (see also Mark 9:13 and Matt 17:12) that John the Baptist was Elijah? Some have attempted to remove the difficulty by a reconstruction of the text in the Gospel of John which makes the Baptist say that he was Elijah. However, external support for such emendations is lacking. According to Gregory the Great, John was not Elijah, but exercised toward Jesus the function of Elijah by preparing his way. But this avoids the real difficulty, since in John’s Gospel the question of the Jewish authorities to the Baptist concerns precisely his function. It has also been suggested that the author of the Gospel here preserves a historically correct reminiscence – that John the Baptist did not think of himself as Elijah, although Jesus said otherwise. Mark 6:14-16 and Mark 8:28 indicate the people and Herod both distinguished between John and Elijah – probably because he did not see himself as Elijah. But Jesus’ remarks in Matt 11:14, Mark 9:13, and Matt 17:12 indicate that John did perform the function of Elijah – John did for Jesus what Elijah was to have done for the coming of the Lord. C. F. D. Moule pointed out that it is too simple to see a straight contradiction between John’s account and that of the synoptic gospels: “We have to ask by whom the identification is made, and by whom refused. The synoptic gospels represent Jesus as identifying, or comparing, the Baptist with Elijah, while John represents the Baptist as rejecting the identification when it is offered him by his interviewers. Now these two, so far from being incompatible, are psychologically complementary. The Baptist humbly rejects the exalted title, but Jesus, on the contrary, bestows it on him. Why should not the two both be correct?” (The Phenomenon of the New Testament [SBT], 70).
3 sn The Prophet is a reference to the “prophet like Moses” of Deut 18:15, by this time an eschatological figure in popular belief. Acts 3:22 identifies Jesus as this prophet.
4 sn They believed the scripture is probably an anaphoric reference to Ps 69:9 (69:10 LXX), quoted in John 2:17 above. Presumably the disciples did not remember Ps 69:9 on the spot, but it was a later insight.
5 tn Or “statement”; Grk “word.”
6 tn Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “the one who has been anointed.”
sn The one called Christ. This is a parenthetical statement by the author. See the note on Christ in 1:20.
7 tn Grk “that one.”
8 tn Or “he will announce to us.”
9 tn Grk “all things.”
10 tn Grk “the Christ” (both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”). Although the Greek text reads χριστός (cristos) here, it is more consistent based on 4:25 (where Μεσσίας [Messias] is the lead term and is qualified by χριστός) to translate χριστός as “Messiah” here.
11 tn The use of μήτι (mhti) normally presupposes a negative answer. This should not be taken as an indication that the woman did not believe, however. It may well be an example of “reverse psychology,” designed to gain a hearing for her testimony among those whose doubts about her background would obviate her claims.
12 map For location see Map1 C3; Map2 D2; Map3 C5.
13 sn See John 2:1-11.
14 tn Grk “And in.”
15 sn Capernaum was a town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, 680 ft (204 m) below sea level. It was a major trade and economic center in the North Galilean region.
map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 C3; Map3 B2.
16 tn Although βασιλικός (basiliko") has often been translated “nobleman” it is almost certainly refers here to a servant of Herod, tetrarch of Galilee (who in the NT is called a king, Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29). Capernaum was a border town, so doubtless there were many administrative officials in residence there.
17 tn Grk “And there was.”
18 tn Or “complaining.”
19 tn Or “among the common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities mentioned in the previous verse).
20 tn Or “the crowd.”
21 tn Or “The common people” (as opposed to the religious authorities).
22 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.
23 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here it is “will he?”).
24 tn An ingressive sense for the imperfect fits well here following the aorist participle.
25 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish authorities or leaders in Jerusalem. It was the Pharisees who had begun this line of questioning in John 8:13, and there has been no clear change since then in the identity of Jesus’ opponents.
26 tn The imperfect verb has been translated with ingressive force (“began to say”) because the comments that follow were occasioned by Jesus’ remarks in the preceding verse about his upcoming departure.
27 tn Grk “said these things.”
28 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency). The textual variant preserved in the Syriac text of Ephraem’s commentary on the Diatessaron (“he made eyes from his clay”) probably arose from the interpretation given by Irenaeus in Against Heresies: “that which the Artificer, the Word, had omitted to form in the womb, he then supplied in public.” This involves taking the clay as an allusion to Gen 2:7, which is very unlikely.
29 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) was replaced by a third person pronoun and a new sentence started here in the translation.
30 tn Grk “on his.”
31 tn Grk “Then that one answered.”
32 tn Grk “The man answered and said to them.” This has been simplified in the translation to “The man replied.”
33 tn Grk “For in this is a remarkable thing.”
34 tn Grk “and he opened my eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
35 tn The word “sheep” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
36 tn Grk “because they know.”
37 tn Grk “with the towel with which he was girded.”
38 tn Or “He cuts off.”
sn The Greek verb αἴρω (airw) can mean “lift up” as well as “take away,” and it is sometimes argued that here it is a reference to the gardener “lifting up” (i.e., propping up) a weak branch so that it bears fruit again. In Johannine usage the word occurs in the sense of “lift up” in 8:59 and 5:8-12, but in the sense of “remove” it is found in 11:39, 11:48, 16:22, and 17:15. In context (theological presuppositions aside for the moment) the meaning “remove” does seem more natural and less forced (particularly in light of v. 6, where worthless branches are described as being “thrown out” – an image that seems incompatible with restoration). One option, therefore, would be to understand the branches which are taken away (v. 2) and thrown out (v. 6) as believers who forfeit their salvation because of unfruitfulness. However, many see this interpretation as encountering problems with the Johannine teaching on the security of the believer, especially John 10:28-29. This leaves two basic ways of understanding Jesus’ statements about removal of branches in 15:2 and 15:6: (1) These statements may refer to an unfaithful (disobedient) Christian, who is judged at the judgment seat of Christ “through fire” (cf. 1 Cor 3:11-15). In this case the “removal” of 15:2 may refer (in an extreme case) to the physical death of a disobedient Christian. (2) These statements may refer to someone who was never a genuine believer in the first place (e.g., Judas and the Jews who withdrew after Jesus’ difficult teaching in 6:66), in which case 15:6 refers to eternal judgment. In either instance it is clear that 15:6 refers to the fires of judgment (cf. OT imagery in Ps 80:16 and Ezek 15:1-8). But view (1) requires us to understand this in terms of the judgment of believers at the judgment seat of Christ. This concept does not appear in the Fourth Gospel because from the perspective of the author the believer does not come under judgment; note especially 3:18, 5:24, 5:29. The first reference (3:18) is especially important because it occurs in the context of 3:16-21, the section which is key to the framework of the entire Fourth Gospel and which is repeatedly alluded to throughout. A similar image to this one is used by John the Baptist in Matt 3:10, “And the ax is already laid at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” Since this is addressed to the Pharisees and Sadducees who were coming to John for baptism, it almost certainly represents a call to initial repentance. More importantly, however, the imagery of being cast into the fire constitutes a reference to eternal judgment, a use of imagery which is much nearer to the Johannine imagery in 15:6 than the Pauline concept of the judgment seat of Christ (a judgment for believers) mentioned above. The use of the Greek verb μένω (menw) in 15:6 also supports view (2). When used of the relationship between Jesus and the disciple and/or Jesus and the Father, it emphasizes the permanence of the relationship (John 6:56, 8:31, 8:35, 14:10). The prototypical branch who has not remained is Judas, who departed in 13:30. He did not bear fruit, and is now in the realm of darkness, a mere tool of Satan. His eternal destiny, being cast into the fire of eternal judgment, is still to come. It seems most likely, therefore, that the branches who do not bear fruit and are taken away and burned are false believers, those who profess to belong to Jesus but who in reality do not belong to him. In the Gospel of John, the primary example of this category is Judas. In 1 John 2:18-19 the “antichrists” fall into the same category; they too may be thought of as branches that did not bear fruit. They departed from the ranks of the Christians because they never did really belong, and their departure shows that they did not belong.
39 tn Or “does not yield.”
40 tn Grk “And he”; the conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has been omitted in the translation in keeping with the tendency in contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.
41 tn Or “trims”; Grk “cleanses” (a wordplay with “clean” in v. 3). Καθαίρει (kaqairei) is not the word one would have expected here, but it provides the transition from the vine imagery to the disciples – there is a wordplay (not reproducible in English) between αἴρει (airei) and καθαίρει in this verse. While the purpose of the Father in cleansing his people is clear, the precise means by which he does so is not immediately obvious. This will become clearer, however, in the following verse.
42 tn Or “that yields.”
43 tn Grk “they kept on saying.”
44 tn Grk “What is this that he says.”
45 tn Grk “A little while.” Although the phrase τὸ μικρόν (to mikron) in John 16:18 could be translated simply “a little while,” it was translated “in a little while” to maintain the connection to John 16:16, where it has the latter meaning in context.
46 tn Or “we do not know.”
47 tn Grk “what he is speaking.”
48 tn Grk “They answered.”
sn The author does not state precisely who from the group of soldiers and temple police replied to Jesus at this point. It may have been the commander of the Roman soldiers, although his presence is not explicitly mentioned until 18:12. It may also have been one of the officers of the chief priests. To the answer given, “Jesus the Nazarene,” Jesus replies “I am [he].”
49 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Before he states the response to Jesus’ identification of himself, the author inserts a parenthetical note that Judas, again identified as the one who betrayed him (cf. 18:2), was standing with the group of soldiers and officers of the chief priests. Many commentators have considered this to be an awkward insertion, but in fact it heightens considerably the dramatic effect of the response to Jesus’ self-identification in the following verse, and has the added effect of informing the reader that along with the others the betrayer himself ironically falls down at Jesus’ feet (18:6).
50 tn The words “He said this” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. There is an ellipsis in the Greek text that must be supplied for the modern English reader at this point.
51 sn This expression is similar to John 6:39 and John 17:12.
52 tn Grk “Of the ones whom you gave me, I did not lose one of them.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged to reflect contemporary English style.
sn This action of Jesus on behalf of his disciples is interpreted by the author as a fulfillment of Jesus’ own words: “I have not lost a single one of those whom you gave me.” Here it is Jesus’ own words, rather than the OT scriptures, which are quoted. This same formula will be used by the author again of Jesus’ words in 18:32, but the verb is used elsewhere in the Fourth Gospel to describe the NT fulfillment of OT passages (12:38, 13:18, 15:25, 17:12, 19:24, and 19:36). It is a bit difficult to determine the exact referent, since the words of Jesus quoted in this verse are not an exact reproduction of a saying of Jesus elsewhere in John’s Gospel. Although some have identified the saying with John 6:39, the closest parallel is in 17:12, where the betrayer, Judas, is specifically excluded. The words quoted here in 18:9 appear to be a free rendition of 17:12.
53 tn The words “This happened” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
54 tn Or “making clear.”
55 sn A reference to John 12:32.
56 tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, especially members of the Sanhedrin, and their servants (mentioned specifically as “the chief priests and their servants” in John 19:6).
57 tn Grk “answered him.”
58 sn This law is not the entire Pentateuch, but Lev 24:16.
59 tn Grk “because he made himself out to be the Son of God.”
60 sn The term Woman is Jesus’ normal, polite way of addressing women (Matt 15:28, Luke 13:12; John 4:21; 8:10; 19:26; 20:15; see BDAG 208-9 s.v. γυνή 1). But it is unusual for a son to address his mother with this term. The custom in both Hebrew (or Aramaic) and Greek would be for a son to use a qualifying adjective or title. Is there significance in Jesus’ use here? Jesus probably used the term here to help establish Mary and the beloved disciple in a new “mother-son” relationship. Someone would soon need to provide for Mary since Jesus, her oldest son, would no longer be alive. By using this term Jesus distanced himself from Mary so the beloved disciple could take his place as her earthly son (cf. John 2:4). See D. A. Carson, John, 617-18, for discussion about symbolic interpretations of this relationship between Mary and the beloved disciple.
61 tn Grk “Then when.” Here οὖν (oun) has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
62 tn Or “It is accomplished,” “It is finished,” or “It is ended.” See tn on John 13:1.
63 tn Or “he bowed his head and died”; Grk “he bowed his head and gave over the spirit.”
64 tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
65 tn Grk “and that one.”
66 sn A parenthetical note by the author.
67 sn When the disciples recognized Jesus (now referred to as the Lord, cf. Mary’s words in v. 18) they were suddenly overcome with joy. This was a fulfillment of Jesus’ words to the disciples in the Farewell Discourse (16:20-22) that they would have sorrow while the world rejoiced, but that their sorrow would be turned to lasting joy when they saw him again.
