John 7; John 8

John 7

1 After this, Jesus traveled around Galilee. He did not want to travel in Judea, because the Jews there wanted to kill him.

2 It was time for the Jewish Feast of Shelters.

3 So Jesus' brothers said to him, "You should leave here and go to Judea so your followers there can see the miracles you do.

4 Anyone who wants to be well known does not hide what he does. If you are doing these things, show yourself to the world."

5 (Even Jesus' brothers did not believe in him.)

6 Jesus said to his brothers, "The right time for me has not yet come, but any time is right for you.

7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me, because I tell it the evil things it does.

8 So you go to the feast. I will not go yet to this feast, because the right time for me has not yet come."

9 After saying this, Jesus stayed in Galilee.

10 But after Jesus' brothers had gone to the feast, Jesus went also. But he did not let people see him.

11 At the feast the Jews were looking for him and saying, "Where is that man?"

12 Within the large crowd there, many people were whispering to each other about Jesus. Some said, "He is a good man." Others said, "No, he fools the people."

13 But no one was brave enough to talk about Jesus openly, because they were afraid of the Jews.

14 When the feast was about half over, Jesus went to the Temple and began to teach.

15 The Jews were amazed and said, "This man has never studied in school. How did he learn so much?"

16 Jesus answered, "The things I teach are not my own, but they come from him who sent me.

17 If people choose to do what God wants, they will know that my teaching comes from God and not from me.

18 Those who teach their own ideas are trying to get honor for themselves. But those who try to bring honor to the one who sent him speak the truth, and there is nothing false in them.

19 Moses gave you the law, but none of you obeys that law. Why are you trying to kill me?"

20 The people answered, "A demon has come into you. We are not trying to kill you."

21 Jesus said to them, "I did one miracle, and you are all amazed.

22 Moses gave you the law about circumcision. (But really Moses did not give you circumcision; it came from our ancestors.) And yet you circumcise a baby on a Sabbath day.

23 If a baby can be circumcised on a Sabbath day to obey the law of Moses, why are you angry at me for healing a person's whole body on the Sabbath day?

24 Stop judging by the way things look, but judge by what is really right."

25 Then some of the people who lived in Jerusalem said, "This is the man they are trying to kill.

26 But he is teaching where everyone can see and hear him, and no one is trying to stop him. Maybe the leaders have decided he really is the Christ.

27 But we know where this man is from. And when the real Christ comes, no one will know where he comes from."

28 Jesus, teaching in the Temple, cried out, "Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. But I have not come by my own authority. I was sent by the One who is true, whom you don't know.

29 But I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me."

30 When Jesus said this, the people tried to take him. But no one was able to touch him, because it was not yet the right time.

31 But many of the people believed in Jesus. They said, "When the Christ comes, will he do more miracles than this man has done?"

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering these things about Jesus. So the leading priests and the Pharisees sent some Temple guards to arrest him.

33 Jesus said, "I will be with you a little while longer. Then I will go back to the One who sent me.

34 You will look for me, but you will not find me. And you cannot come where I am."

35 The Jews said to each other, "Where will this man go so we cannot find him? Will he go to the Greek cities where our people live and teach the Greek people there?

36 What did he mean when he said, 'You will look for me, but you will not find me,' and 'You cannot come where I am'?"

37 On the last and most important day of the feast Jesus stood up and said in a loud voice, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.

38 If anyone believes in me, rivers of living water will flow out from that person's heart, as the Scripture says."

39 Jesus was talking about the Holy Spirit. The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been raised to glory. But later, those who believed in Jesus would receive the Spirit.

40 When the people heard Jesus' words, some of them said, "This man really is the Prophet."

41 Others said, "He is the Christ." Still others said, "The Christ will not come from Galilee.

42 The Scripture says that the Christ will come from David's family and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived."

43 So the people did not agree with each other about Jesus.

44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one was able to touch him.

45 The Temple guards went back to the leading priests and the Pharisees, who asked, "Why didn't you bring Jesus?"

46 The guards answered, "The words he says are greater than the words of any other person who has ever spoken!"

47 The Pharisees answered, "So Jesus has fooled you also!

48 Have any of the leaders or the Pharisees believed in him? No!

49 But these people, who know nothing about the law, are under God's curse."

50 Nicodemus, who had gone to see Jesus before, was in that group. He said,

51 "Our law does not judge a man without hearing him and knowing what he has done."

52 They answered, "Are you from Galilee, too? Study the Scriptures, and you will learn that no prophet comes from Galilee."

53 And everyone left and went home.

John 8

1 Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

2 But early in the morning he went back to the Temple, and all the people came to him, and he sat and taught them.

3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. They forced her to stand before the people.

4 They said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught having sexual relations with a man who is not her husband.

5 The law of Moses commands that we stone to death every woman who does this. What do you say we should do?"

6 They were asking this to trick Jesus so that they could have some charge against him. But Jesus bent over and started writing on the ground with his finger.

7 When they continued to ask Jesus their question, he raised up and said, "Anyone here who has never sinned can throw the first stone at her."

8 Then Jesus bent over again and wrote on the ground.

9 Those who heard Jesus began to leave one by one, first the older men and then the others. Jesus was left there alone with the woman standing before him.

10 Jesus raised up again and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one judged you guilty?"

11 She answered, "No one, sir." Then Jesus said, "I also don't judge you guilty. You may go now, but don't sin anymore."] ______________________

12 Later, Jesus talked to the people again, saying, "I am the light of the world. The person who follows me will never live in darkness but will have the light that gives life."

13 The Pharisees said to Jesus, "When you talk about yourself, you are the only one to say these things are true. We cannot accept what you say."

14 Jesus answered, "Yes, I am saying these things about myself, but they are true. I know where I came from and where I am going. But you don't know where I came from or where I am going.

15 You judge by human standards. I am not judging anyone.

16 But when I do judge, my judging is true, because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me.

17 Your own law says that when two witnesses say the same thing, you must accept what they say.

18 I am one of the witnesses who speaks about myself, and the Father who sent me is the other witness."

19 They asked, "Where is your father?" Jesus answered, "You don't know me or my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father, too."

20 Jesus said these things while he was teaching in the Temple, near where the money is kept. But no one arrested him, because the right time for him had not yet come.

21 Again, Jesus said to the people, "I will leave you, and you will look for me, but you will die in your sins. You cannot come where I am going."

22 So the Jews asked, "Will Jesus kill himself? Is that why he said, 'You cannot come where I am going'?"

23 Jesus said, "You people are from here below, but I am from above. You belong to this world, but I don't belong to this world.

24 So I told you that you would die in your sins. Yes, you will die in your sins if you don't believe that I am he."

25 They asked, "Then who are you?" Jesus answered, "I am what I have told you from the beginning.

26 I have many things to say and decide about you. But I tell people only the things I have heard from the One who sent me, and he speaks the truth."

27 The people did not understand that he was talking to them about the Father.

28 So Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, you will know that I am he. You will know that these things I do are not by my own authority but that I say only what the Father has taught me.

29 The One who sent me is with me. I always do what is pleasing to him, so he has not left me alone."

30 While Jesus was saying these things, many people believed in him.

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who believed in him, "If you continue to obey my teaching, you are truly my followers.

32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."

33 They answered, "We are Abraham's children, and we have never been anyone's slaves. So why do you say we will be free?"

34 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, everyone who lives in sin is a slave to sin.

35 A slave does not stay with a family forever, but a son belongs to the family forever.

36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be truly free.

37 I know you are Abraham's children, but you want to kill me because you don't accept my teaching.

38 I am telling you what my Father has shown me, but you do what your father has told you."

39 They answered, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus said, "If you were really Abraham's children, you would do the things Abraham did.

40 I am a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God, but you are trying to kill me. Abraham did nothing like that.

41 So you are doing the things your own father did." But they said, "We are not like children who never knew who their father was. God is our Father; he is the only Father we have."

42 Jesus said to them, "If God were really your Father, you would love me, because I came from God and now I am here. I did not come by my own authority; God sent me.

43 You don't understand what I say, because you cannot accept my teaching.

44 You belong to your father the devil, and you want to do what he wants. He was a murderer from the beginning and was against the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he shows what he is really like, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

45 But because I speak the truth, you don't believe me.

46 Can any of you prove that I am guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don't you believe me?

47 The person who belongs to God accepts what God says. But you don't accept what God says, because you don't belong to God."

48 The Jews answered, "We say you are a Samaritan and have a demon in you. Are we not right?"

49 Jesus answered, "I have no demon in me. I give honor to my Father, but you dishonor me.

50 I am not trying to get honor for myself. There is One who wants this honor for me, and he is the judge.

51 I tell you the truth, whoever obeys my teaching will never die."

52 The Jews said to Jesus, "Now we know that you have a demon in you! Even Abraham and the prophets died. But you say, 'Whoever obeys my teaching will never die.'

53 Do you think you are greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died, too. Who do you think you are?"

54 Jesus answered, "If I give honor to myself, that honor is worth nothing. The One who gives me honor is my Father, and you say he is your God.

55 You don't really know him, but I know him. If I said I did not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey what he says.

56 Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see my day. He saw that day and was glad."

57 The Jews said to him, "You have never seen Abraham! You are not even fifty years old."

58 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I am!"

59 When Jesus said this, the people picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus hid himself, and then he left the Temple.