Lectionary Calendar
Saturday, November 2nd, 2024
the Week of Proper 25 / Ordinary 30
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Read the Bible

Contemporary English Version

John 7:4

No one does anything in secret, if they want others to know about them. So let the world know what you are doing!"

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Jerusalem;   Jesus, the Christ;   Jesus Continued;   Presumption;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - James;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - James the brother of jesus;   John, gospel of;   Mary;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Candlestick;   Feasts;   James;   Jesus Christ;   Tabernacles, Feast of;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Disciples;   James;   John, the Gospel of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Brethren of the Lord;   Scribes;   World;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Acceptance (2);   Dates (2);   Divinity of Christ;   Family (Jesus);   James ;   Jude, the Lord's Brother;   Mental Characteristics;   Perfection (of Jesus);   Teaching of Jesus;   Temptation;   World ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Tabernacles feast of;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Jesus of Nazareth;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Brethren of the Lord;   Jesus Christ (Part 2 of 2);   Manifest;  

Parallel Translations

Easy-to-Read Version
If you want to be well known, you must not hide what you do. So, if you can do such amazing things, let the whole world see you do them."
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
For ther is no man yt doeth eny thing secretly and he him selfe seketh to be knowen. Yf thou do soche thinges shewe thy selfe to the worlde.
Hebrew Names Version
For no one does anything in secret, and himself seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, reveal yourself to the world."
International Standard Version
For no one acts in secret if he wants to be known publicly. If you're going to do these things, you should reveal yourself to the world!"
New American Standard Bible
"For no one does anything in secret when he himself is striving to be known publicly. If You are doing these things, show Yourself to the world."
New Century Version
Anyone who wants to be well known does not hide what he does. If you are doing these things, show yourself to the world."
Update Bible Version
For no man does anything in secret, and himself seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, manifest yourself to the world.
Webster's Bible Translation
For [there is] no man [that] doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, show thyself to the world.
English Standard Version
For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world."
World English Bible
For no man does anything in secret, and himself seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, reveal yourself to the world."
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
For no man doth any thing in secret, but desireth to be publickly known: if thou dost these things, shew thyself to the world.
Weymouth's New Testament
For no one acts in secret, desiring all the while to be himself known publicly. Since you are doing these things, show yourself openly to the world."
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
for no man doith ony thing in hiddlis, and hym silf sekith to be opyn. If thou doist these thingis, schewe thi silf to the world.
English Revised Version
For no man doeth anything in secret, and himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself to the world.
Berean Standard Bible
For no one who wants to be known publicly acts in secret. Since You are doing these things, show Yourself to the world."
Amplified Bible
"No one does anything in secret when he wants to be known publicly. If You [must] do these things, show Yourself openly to the world and make Yourself known!"
American Standard Version
For no man doeth anything in secret, and himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself to the world.
Bible in Basic English
Because no man does things secretly if he has a desire that men may have knowledge of him. If you do these things, let yourself be seen by all men.
Complete Jewish Bible
for no one who wants to become known acts in secret. If you're doing these things, show yourself to the world!"
Darby Translation
for no one does anything in secret and himself seeks to be [known] in public. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself to the world:
Etheridge Translation
For there is no man who doeth any thing in concealment, and willeth himself to be in openness: if these things thou doest, show thyself to the world.
Murdock Translation
For there is no one who doeth any thing in secret, while he wisheth to become public. If thou doest these things, show thyself to the world.
King James Version (1611)
For there is no man that doth any thing in secret, and hee himselfe seeketh to be knowen openly: If thou doe these things, shew thy selfe to ye world.
New Living Translation
You can't become famous if you hide like this! If you can do such wonderful things, show yourself to the world!"
New Life Bible
If a person wants others to know what he is doing, he does things to be seen. Since You are doing such things, show Yourself to the world."
New Revised Standard
for no one who wants to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world."
Geneva Bible (1587)
For there is no man that doeth any thing secretely, and hee himselfe seeketh to be famous. If thou doest these things, shewe thy selfe to the worlde.
George Lamsa Translation
For there is no man, who does anything in secret and yet wants it to become known. If you are doing these things, show yourself to the people.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For, no one, anything in secret, doeth, and yet is seeking, himself, to be well-known. If, these things, thou art doing, manifest thyself unto the world.
Douay-Rheims Bible
For there is no man that doth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, manifest thyself to the world.
Revised Standard Version
For no man works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world."
Bishop's Bible (1568)
For there is no man that doeth any thyng in secrete, and he hym selfe seketh to be knowen openly. Yf thou do suche thynges, shewe thy selfe to the worlde.
Good News Translation
People don't hide what they are doing if they want to be well known. Since you are doing these things, let the whole world know about you!"
Christian Standard Bible®
For no one does anything in secret while he’s seeking public recognition. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.”
King James Version
For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world.
Lexham English Bible
For no one does anything in secret and yet he himself desires to be publicly recognized. If you are doing these things, reveal yourself to the world!"
Literal Translation
for no one does anything in secret and himself seeks to be in public. If You do these things, reveal Yourself to the world.
Young's Literal Translation
for no one in secret doth anything, and himself seeketh to be in public; if thou dost these things -- manifest thyself to the world;'
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
He that seketh to be openly knowne, doth nothinge in secrete. Yf thou do soch thinges, the shewe yi self before the worlde:
Mace New Testament (1729)
for no body acts in private, that designs to distinguish himself: since you do such things, shew yourself to the world.
New English Translation
For no one who seeks to make a reputation for himself does anything in secret. If you are doing these things, show yourself to the world."
New King James Version
For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."
Simplified Cowboy Version
If you want people to follow you, you can't hide out in the country where no one can see your great power. Since you are so powerful, go show yourself to the world."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."
Legacy Standard Bible
For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself publicly to the world."

Contextual Overview

1 Jesus decided to leave Judea and to start going through Galilee because the Jewish leaders of the people wanted to kill him. 2 It was almost time for the Festival of Shelters, 3 and Jesus' brothers said to him, "Why don't you go to Judea? Then your disciples can see what you are doing. 4 No one does anything in secret, if they want others to know about them. So let the world know what you are doing!" 5 Even Jesus' own brothers had not yet become his followers. 6 Jesus answered, "My time hasn't yet come, but your time is always here. 7 The people of this world cannot hate you. They hate me, because I tell them that they do evil things. 8 Go on to the festival. My time hasn't yet come, and I am not going." 9 Jesus said this and stayed on in Galilee. 10 After Jesus' brothers had gone to the festival, he went secretly, without telling anyone.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

there: Proverbs 18:1, Proverbs 18:2, Matthew 6:1, Matthew 6:2, Matthew 6:5, Matthew 6:16, Matthew 23:5, Luke 6:45

show: John 18:20, 1 Kings 22:13, Matthew 4:6, Acts 2:4-12

Reciprocal: Matthew 6:3 - let Luke 4:23 - do John 6:15 - take John 11:54 - went

Cross-References

Genesis 2:5
no grass or plants were growing anywhere. God had not yet sent any rain, and there was no one to work the land.
Genesis 6:3
Then the Lord said, "I won't let my life-giving breath remain in anyone forever. No one will live for more than one hundred twenty years."
Genesis 6:7
and he said, "I'll destroy every living creature on earth! I'll wipe out people, animals, birds, and reptiles. I'm sorry I ever made them."
Genesis 6:13
So he told Noah: Cruelty and violence have spread everywhere. Now I'm going to destroy the whole earth and all its people.
Genesis 6:17
I'm going to send a flood that will destroy everything that breathes! Nothing will be left alive.
Genesis 7:10
Seven days later a flood began to cover the earth.
Genesis 7:11
Noah was six hundred years old when the water under the earth started gushing out everywhere. The sky opened like windows, and rain poured down for forty days and nights. All this began on the seventeenth day of the second month of the year.
Genesis 7:17
For forty days the rain poured down without stopping. And the water became deeper and deeper, until the boat started floating high above the ground.
Genesis 7:21
Not a bird, animal, reptile, or human was left alive anywhere on earth.
Genesis 8:10
Seven days later Noah sent the dove out again.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

For there is no man that doeth anything in secret,.... For so they reckoned his doing miracles in such a corner of the land, and in so obscure a place as Galilee:

and he himself seeketh to be known openly; suggesting hereby, that Christ was an ambitious person, and sought popular applause, and honour and glory from men, when nothing was more foreign from him; see John 5:41.

If thou do these things; for they question whether the miracles he wrought were real; and suspected that they were deceptions of the sight, and delusions; or at least they questioned their being done by him; and rather thought that they were done by diabolical influence, by Beelzebub the prince of devils: but if they were real ones, they advise him, saying,

shew thyself to the world; or do these openly, and in the presence of the great men of the world; the princes of it, the rulers of the people, the chief priests and sanhedrim; and before all the males of Israel; who at this feast would come up from all parts of the land, and are for their multitude called the world: the reason of this their advice was, that if his miracles were real, and he was the person he would be thought to be, the doing of them before such, would gain him great credit and esteem; and if not, he might be detected by such numbers, and by men of such penetration as were among them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For there is no man ... - The brethren of Jesus supposed that he was influenced as others are. As it is a common thing among men to seek popularity, so they supposed that he would also seek it; and as a great multitude would be assembled at Jerusalem at this feast, they supposed it would be a favorable time to make himself known. What follows shows that this was said, probably, not in sincerity, but in derision; and to the other sufferings of our Lord was to be added, what is so common to Christians, derision from his relatives and friends on account of his pretensions. If our Saviour was derided, we also may expect to be by our relatives; and, having his example, we should be content to bear it.

If thou do ... - It appears from this that they did not really believe that he performed miracles; or, if they did believe it, they did not suppose that he was the Christ. Yet it seems hardly credible that they could suppose that his miracles were real, and yet not admit that he was the Messiah. Besides, there is no evidence that these relatives had been present at any of his miracles, and all that they knew of them might have been from report. See the notes at Mark 3:21. On the word brethren in John 7:5, see the Matthew 13:55 note, and Galatians 1:19 note.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse John 7:4. No man that doeth any thing in secret, c.] They took it for granted that Christ was influenced by the same spirit which themselves felt and that therefore he should use every opportunity of exhibiting himself to the public, that he might get into repute; and they hoped that a part of his honour would be reflected back upon themselves, as being his near relations. They seem to have said: "It is too little to employ thyself in working miracles in Galilee, in the country, and in small villages, among an ignorant and credulous people, from whom thou canst not get much credit: go to Jerusalem, the capital, and among the learned doctors, in the presence of the whole nation assembled at this feast, work thy miracles, and get thyself a name."


 
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