John 10:20

20 Many of them said, "A demon has come into him and made him crazy. Why listen to him?"

John 10:20 Meaning and Commentary

John 10:20

And many of them said, he hath a devil, and is mad
It was a notion of the Jews, that madness or distraction was from the devil, and therefore these two are here joined together, having a devil, and being mad: there is a spirit which they call Tazazith, and which, they say F26, is an evil spirit that takes away the understanding of men; and under the influence of such a "demon", the Jews thought Christ to be: and therefore say,

why hear ye him?
he is a lunatic, he is distracted, he is a madman; how can you bear to hear such ranting blasphemous stuff, which no man in his, senses would ever utter? nor is anything he says to be regarded, since he is not in his right mind; but is under the power and influence of some evil spirit, which instills these wild and frantic notions into him, and puts him upon venting them; but surely no sober man will ever heed to them.


FOOTNOTES:

F26 R. David Kimchi, Sepher Shorash rad. (Nzt) .

John 10:20 In-Context

18 No one takes it away from me; I give my own life freely. I have the right to give my life, and I have the right to take it back. This is what my Father commanded me to do."
19 Again the Jews did not agree with each other because of these words of Jesus.
20 Many of them said, "A demon has come into him and made him crazy. Why listen to him?"
21 But others said, "A man who is crazy with a demon does not say things like this. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"
22 The time came for the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter,
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.