John 16:1

“I have told you all these things so that you will not fall away. ¹ 

"All this I have told you so that you will not go astray.

"These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling.

"I have told you these things so that you won’t fall away.

"I've told you these things to prepare you for rough times ahead.

I have said these things to you so that you may not be in doubt.

"I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling.

"These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble.

“I have told you all these things so that you will not fall away. ¹ 

¹ tn Grk “so that you will not be caused to stumble.”

sn In Johannine thought the verb σκανδαλίζω (skandalizw) means to trip up disciples and cause them to fall away from Jesus’ company (John 6:61, 1 John 2:10). Similar usage is found in Didache 16:5, an early Christian writing from around the beginning of the 2nd century a.d. An example of a disciple who falls away is Judas Iscariot. Here and again in 16:4 Jesus gives the purpose for his telling the disciples about coming persecution: He informs them so that when it happens, the disciples will not fall away, which in this context would refer to the confusion and doubt which they would certainly experience when such persecution began. There may have been a tendency for the disciples to expect immediately after Jesus’ victory over death the institution of the messianic kingdom, particularly in light of the turn of events recorded in the early chapters of Acts. Jesus here forestalls such disillusionment for the disciples by letting them know in advance that they will face persecution and even martyrdom as they seek to carry on his mission in the world after his departure. This material has parallels in the Olivet Discourse (Matt 24-25) and the synoptic parallels.