John 8:39–59

³⁹They answered and said to him, ‘Our father is Abraham;’ Jesus saith to them, ‘If children of Abraham ye were, the works of Abraham ye were doing; ⁴⁰and now, ye seek to kill me—a man who hath spoken to you the truth I heard from God; this Abraham did not; ⁴¹ye do the works of your father.’ They said, therefore, to him, ‘We of whoredom have not been born; one Father we have—God;’ ⁴²Jesus then said to them, ‘If God were your father, ye were loving me, for I came forth from God, and am come; for neither have I come of myself, but He sent me; ⁴³wherefore do ye not know my speech? because ye are not able to hear my word. ⁴⁴‘Ye are of a father—the devil, and the desires of your father ye will to do; he was a man-slayer from the beginning, and in the truth he hath not stood, because there is no truth in him; when one may speak the falsehood, of his own he speaketh, because he is a liar—also his father.

⁴⁵‘And because I say the truth, ye do not believe me.

⁴⁶Who of you doth convict me of sin? and if I speak truth, wherefore do ye not believe me? ⁴⁷he who is of God, the sayings of God he doth hear; because of this ye do not hear, because of God ye are not.’ ⁴⁸The Jews, therefore, answered and said to him, ‘Do we not say well, that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a demon?’ ⁴⁹Jesus answered, ‘I have not a demon, but I honour my Father, and ye dishonour me; ⁵⁰and I do not seek my own glory; there is who is seeking and is judging.

⁵¹Verily, verily, I say to you, If any one may keep my word, death he may not see—to the age.’ ⁵²The Jews, therefore, said to him, ‘Now we have known that thou hast a demon; Abraham did die, and the prophets, and thou dost say, If any one may keep my word, he shall not taste of death—to the age! ⁵³Art thou greater than our father Abraham, who died? and the prophets died; whom dost thou make thyself?’ ⁵⁴Jesus answered, ‘If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing; it is my Father who is glorifying me, of whom ye say that He is your God; ⁵⁵and ye have not known Him, and I have known Him, and if I say that I have not known Him, I shall be like you—speaking falsely; but I have known Him, and His word I keep; ⁵⁶Abraham, your father, was glad that he might see my day; and he saw, and did rejoice.’ ⁵⁷The Jews, therefore, said unto him, ‘Thou art not yet fifty years old, and Abraham hast thou seen?’ ⁵⁸Jesus said to them, ‘Verily, verily, I say to you, Before Abraham’s coming—I am;’ ⁵⁹they took up, therefore, stones that they may cast at him, but Jesus hid himself, and went forth out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

Chapter 9