John 7:14–36

¹⁴About the middle of the feast Jesus went up ^hinto the temple and began teaching. ¹⁵The Jews therefore ⁱmarveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning,⁴ when he has never studied?” ¹⁶So Jesus answered them, ^j“My teaching is not mine, but his ^kwho sent me. ^17lIf anyone’s will is to do God’s⁵ will, ^mhe will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I ⁿam speaking on my own authority. ¹⁸The one who speaks on his own authority ^oseeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. ^19pHas not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. ^qWhy do you seek to kill me?” ²⁰The crowd answered, ^r“You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?” ²¹Jesus answered them, “I did ^sone work, and you all marvel at it. ^22tMoses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but ^ufrom the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. ²³If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, ^vare you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man’s whole body well? ^24wDo not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

Can This Be the Christ?

²⁵Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man whom ^xthey seek to kill? ²⁶And here he is, ^yspeaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that ^zthe authorities really know that this is the Christ? ²⁷But ^awe know ^bwhere this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, ^cno one will know where he comes from.” ²⁸So Jesus proclaimed, ^das he taught in the temple, ^a“You know me, and you know where I come from. But ^eI have not come of my own accord. ^fHe who sent me is true, ^gand him you do not know. ^29hI know him, for I come ⁱfrom him, and ^jhe sent me.” ^30kSo they were seeking to arrest him, but ^lno one laid a hand on him, ^mbecause his hour had not yet come. ³¹Yet ⁿmany of the people believed in him. They said, ^o“When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?”

Officers Sent to Arrest Jesus

³²The Pharisees heard the crowd ^pmuttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent ^qofficers to arrest him. ³³Jesus then said, ^r“I will be with you a little longer, and then ^sI am going to him who sent me. ^34tYou will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” ³⁵The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? ^uDoes he intend to go to ^vthe Dispersion among ^wthe Greeks and teach the Greeks? ³⁶What does he mean by saying, ^x‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?”