John 7:1–18

Jesus Goes to the Feast of Booths

7After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He stayed away from Judea on purpose. He knew that the Jews there were waiting to kill him.

²The Jewish Feast of Booths was near. ³Jesus’ brothers said to him, “You should leave here and go to Judea. Then your disciples will see the kinds of things you do. ⁴No one who wants to be well known does things in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” ⁵Even Jesus’ own brothers did not believe in him.

⁶So Jesus told them, “The right time has not yet come for me. For you, any time is right. ⁷The people of the world can’t hate you. But they hate me. This is because I give witness that what they do is evil.

⁸“You go to the Feast. I am not yet going up to this Feast. For me, the right time has not yet come.”

⁹After he said this, he stayed in Galilee.

¹⁰When his brothers had left for the Feast, he went also. But he went secretly, not openly. ¹¹At the Feast the Jews were watching for him. They were asking, “Where is he?”

¹²Many people in the crowd were whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”

Others replied, “No. He fools the people.”

¹³But no one would say anything about him openly. They were afraid of the Jews.

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

¹⁴Jesus did nothing until halfway through the Feast. Then he went up to the temple courtyard and began to teach. ¹⁵The Jews were amazed. They asked, “How did this man learn so much without studying?”

¹⁶Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own. It comes from the One who sent me. ¹⁷Anyone who chooses to do what God wants him to do will find out whether my teaching comes from God or from me. ¹⁸Someone who speaks on his own does it to get honor for himself. But someone who works for the honor of the One who sent him is truthful. There is nothing false about him.