Bible Commentaries
John 8

Verse 1

Jesus Testifies of His Deity: The Living Water - In John 7:37 to John 8:1 Jesus Christ testifies of His deity by revealing Himself as the Living Water (John 7:37-39). The Feast of Tabernacles celebrated Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness and God’s divine provision. With these wanderings God provided the rock from which flowed fresh, “living” water, or clear, unpolluted water. Paul refers to this water in his epistle to the Corinthians John 10:4, “And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.”

This festival culminated on the eighth and final day as a day of rejoicing before the pilgrims returned to their homes. With the meaning of this feast in mind along with the fact that these people are about to take a long journey home, Jesus cried out that He was that Rock, that Living Water that the Israelites partook of in their wilderness journeys. For those who accepted His doctrine in John 7:1-36, Jesus offers the true living water, the infilling of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39).

John 7:37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

John 7:37 “In the last day, that great day of the feast” Comments - The people were celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:2) at this time. The Feast of Tabernacles celebrates the beginning of the wanderings of the children of Israel in the wilderness. The last, great day of the feast would have been the eighth day in which a holy convocation took place (Leviticus 23:33-36, Numbers 29:35-36).

Leviticus 23:33-36, “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD. On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein.”

Numbers 29:35-36, “On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein: But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish:”

During their wilderness journey, God provided the rock from which flowed fresh, “living” water, or clear, unpolluted water. Paul refers to this water in his epistle to the Corinthians, And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” (1 Corinthians 10:4) Each day of this festival, priests would draw water from the pool of Siloam, bring it to the Temple, and pour it out before the altar in memory of the water that God provided the Israelites in the wilderness (Mishnah, Sukkah 4.1, 9-10). [202]

[202] Andreas J. Kösterberger, John, in Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2004), 239.

Jesus arrived in Jerusalem “in the midst of the feast” (John 7:14). He taught them in the Temple for several days. This festival culminated on the eighth and final day as a day of rejoicing before the pilgrims returned to their homes. With the meaning of this feast in mind along with the fact that these people are about to take a long journey home, Jesus gives an invitation to those who thirsted for God’s Word by crying out that He was that Rock, that Living Water that the Israelites partook of in their wilderness journeys. Jesus was using the springs of fresh water that flowed up from under the hill of Jerusalem and collected in the Pool of Siloam as a type of living water that God offers everyone who wishes to drink. The people could not understand God’s Word without the infilling of the Holy Spirit to teach them. They could not make their spiritual journeys without this infilling. Thus, Jesus offers them the infilling of the Holy Spirit for their spiritual journey in life

Jesus was trying to relate to the Jews by the events emphasized at each of the Jewish feasts that He attended. For example, at the last Passover Jesus miraculously fed the five thousand and then told the people that He was the Bread of Life (John 6:0). At this same Feast of Tabernacles Jesus Christ will heal the blind man and then declared that He is the Light of the World (John 9:1-11). Prior to the final Passover referred to in John 12:1, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead as a way to declare that He was the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:0).

John 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

John 7:38 Comments Scholars recognize the difficulty in identify an exact Old Testament Scripture that Jesus is quoting in John 7:38. They offer a number of suggestions, with Isaiah 58:11 being a popular option.

Isaiah 58:11, “And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.”

The phrase “living water” is a symbolic reference to the Holy Spirit, which is referred to in verse 13-14. It literally referred to fresh, pure moving water. It was water from a spring that had not been touched with pollutants. Note this same phrase used by Jeremiah

Jeremiah 2:13, “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters , and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”

Note how Jesus has used the phrase “living water” with the woman of Samaria.

John 4:10, “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water .”

John 7:39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

John 7:37-39 Comments - The Meaning of the Living Water In John 7:37-39 Jesus refers to the coming of the Holy Spirit. Although Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life, the Light of the World, and the Good Shepherd, He did not call Himself the Living Water because this title refers to the office and ministry of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the divine Trinity. Jesus will speak to His disciples at length on the office of the Holy Spirit in John 14-16, and He will breath upon them after His resurrection and impart into them the Holy Spirit (John 20:22-23).

Some scholars see John 4:13-14 as a reference to initial salvation through the work of the Holy Spirit while John 7:37-39 refers to the infilling of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. However, John 7:37-39 can certainly apply to both salvation as well as a daily infilling of the Holy Spirit’s anointing.

John 4:13-14, “Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”

Note these words from Frances J. Roberts regarding this passage of Scripture:

“ Behold, I have placed within thee a spring of living water. For My Spirit shall be a continual flowing forth of life from thine innermost being . This I have promised to all My children, and this ye may experience as ye claim it by faith. For all My promises are received by faith. None are gained by merit, nor are they awards for human achievements.

“It is My Life that I am giving you. It is not an emotion; it is not a virtue, though these may follow subsequently. It is Myself. Divine grace, heavenly love, infinite mercy, fathomless peace, - all these shall spring forth unbeckoned and irrepressible out of the deeps within thee because My Spirit has taken residence there.”

“If there be dryness within thy soul and ye have not this life flowing forth, ye need not grieve, neither chide thyself for being empty. Fill up the empty place with praise. Thou mayest by praise open to Me the gates of the temple of thy soul. The King shall enter and bring His glory. The Rose of Sharon shall bloom in thy heart and His fragrance shall be shed abroad.” [203]

[203] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 42.

“Let thy praises rise in the daytime and in the night. Yea, when thou are utterly spent, then shall My speech fall upon thee. Then shalt thou lie down in peace and rise up in joy, and thou shalt be partaker of a perpetual fountain. As it is written: Out of thine innermost being shall gush forth rivers of living water.” [204]

[204] Frances J. Roberts, Come Away My Beloved (Ojai, California: King’s Farspan, Inc., 1973), 44.

John 7:40 “Of a truth this is the Prophet” - Comments - This prophet was spoken of by Moses:

Deuteronomy 18:15, “The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;”

John 7:42 Comments - Note a direct reference to the city of Bethlehem:

Micah 5:2, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

This is confirmed in Matthew 2:4-6.

Matthew 2:4-6, “And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.

Note other indirect references to the seed and lineage of David:

2 Samuel 7:12, “And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.”

Psalms 89:3-4, “I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.”

Psalms 132:11, “The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.”

John 7:41-42 Comments The Reasonings Among the Jews Concerning Jesus Christ - Some Jews heard Jesus Christ and felt sure that He was the Messiah. Others evaluated His background and concluded that was not their Deliverer. God could have had Jesus Christ to be raised in the city of Bethlehem. God was trying man’s heart. The message of the Kingdom of God that Jesus preached to the people spoke to men’s hearts and not to their minds. These people were touched in their hearts (John 7:40), but they followed the reasonings of their minds in John 7:41-42.

Verses 1-59

The Fifth Miracle (Divine Service) (Jesus Testifies that He is the Source of True Life in Serving God) At the Feast of Tabernacles in John 7:1 to John 10:21, while teaching in the Temple Jesus reveals a new aspect of His divinity which emphasizes the next phrase of man’s spiritual journey, revealing man’s redemptive need to follow Jesus in divine service. At the wedding feast, Jesus alluded to His predestined time of Passion and atonement through the shedding of His blood for a new and better covenant (John 2:1-11). Jesus next revealed Himself to Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman as He who has been called and sent by God as the Saviour of the World (John 2:12 to John 4:54). Jesus then reveals the four-fold testimony of John the Baptist, His miracles, God the Father, and the Old Testament Scriptures, who have justified Jesus Christ as the Son of God (John 5:1-47). Jesus revealed Himself as the Bread of Life by which mankind partakes through the Word of God and daily communion with Him (John 6:1-71), a revelation that reflects man’s need for indoctrination during his spiritual journey. John 7:1 to John 10:21 now reveals various aspects of Jesus’ divinity that reflect Him in divine service leading God’s people. Jesus now offers Himself as the Living Water through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit who has come to dwell in every believer (John 7:37-39) so that God’s children can walk in the light of divine leadership, being enlightened in the spirit of man. Proverbs 20:27 says, “The spirit of man is the candle of the LORD, searching all the inward parts of the belly.” Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus is the Light of the World (John 8:12), who shepherds every man who is filled with the Holy Spirit as He guides him into eternal life (John 10:14). Thus, this passage of Scripture places emphasis upon the role of divine service that Jesus offers those who follow Him, leading men to the final goal of glorification emphasized in the next section (John 10:22 to John 11:54), our resurrection and glorification with Him in Heaven.

One of the prerequisites in divine service for every child of God is to be filled with the Holy Spirit, an invitation that Jesus gives in John 7:37-39. Jesus then reveals Himself as “the Light of the world” (John 8:12), the “Door of the sheepfold” (John 10:1), and the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:14). Jesus Himself fulfills His divine service when He tells the Jews that He was sent from God to do His will (John 7:16-18; John 7:28-29; John 7:33) and that He seeks to glorify the Father (John 8:50). He asks the people to pursue this same role of divine service by continuing in His Word (John 8:31-32). It is through the illumination of God’s Word by the Holy Spirit that we walk in the light of God’s plan and divine calling for our individual lives through His divine protection and provision. Leading up to His fifth miracle of healing the blind man (John 9:1-7), Jesus testifies of His divine calling by declaring Himself as the Light of the World, saying, “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) Jesus has also been called to serve as the Great Shepherd, as the One who guides in eternal life on earth as well as in Heaven. After the miracle of healing the blind man, Jesus testified that He was the “Door of the sheepfold” (John 10:1), and the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:14). This miracle and Jesus’ subsequent testimonies of His deity reflect the believer’s need to follow Jesus in divine service. Our response to this fifth miracle is to serve Jesus Christ and follow Him as our Light and Shepherd as a result of our faith in Jesus Christ. If we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, we will be filled with the Holy Spirit (John 7:38-39) to empower us to follow Him in divine service.

The Feast of Tabernacles celebrates the beginning of Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness. The motifs of living water, guidance by light under the shepherding of Moses are all used by Jesus to declare various aspects of His deity that reflect these Old Testament typologies. The Living Water Motif - With these wanderings God provided the rock from which flowed fresh, “living” water; that is, clear, unpolluted water. Paul refers to this water in his epistle to the Corinthians, “And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” (1 Corinthians 10:4) The Feast of Tabernacles culminated on the eighth and final day as a day of rejoicing before the Jewish pilgrims returned to their homes. With the meaning of this feast in mind along with the fact that these people are about to take a long journey home, Jesus cried out that He the Living Water that the Israelites partook of when Moses struck the rock in their wilderness journeys. The Light Motif - In addition, as the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, God guided His children. This event may be reflected in Jesus as the Light of the world. [192] The Shepherd Motif - The shepherd motif is also seen in Israel’s wilderness journey. Moses has been a shepherd for forty years with his rod. As Moses guided the Israelites through the wilderness with his rod like a good shepherd, and set up their encampment to go in and out each night and day, so does Jesus as our Shepherd guide us in and out of the door of our encampment. Thus, Jesus was trying to relate to them by the events that the children of Israel encountered during their wilderness journey.

[192] Andreas Kösterberger says, “Together with the manna (ch.6) and the rivers of living water (ch. 7), the reference to Jesus as “light” in chapter 8 may be part of a ‘wilderness theme,” alluding to God’s presence with the Israelites as a pillar of fire.” Andreas J. Kösterberger, John, in Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2004), 253.

Outline - Here is a suggested outline:

1. Jesus Testifies of His Deity (His Doctrine) John 7:1-36

2. Jesus Testifies of His Deity (The Living Water) John 7:37 to John 8:1

3. Jesus Testifies of His Deity (The Light of the World) John 8:2-59

a. The Woman Caught in Adultery John 8:2-11

b. Jesus Testifies to the Jewish Leaders John 8:12-59

4. The Fifth Miracle (Healing of a Blind Man) John 9:1 to John 10:21

a. The Healing of the Blind Man John 9:1-34

b. Jesus Testifies of His Deity (The Good Shepherd) John 9:35 to John 10:21

Verses 2-11

The Woman Caught in Adultery John 8:2-11 tells us of the story of the woman caught in adultery. This event takes place the day after the Feast of Tabernacles. There in the Temple, the scribes and the Pharisees tempt Jesus to break the Law of Moses by presenting to Him a woman who was caught in adultery and should be stoned according to the Law of Moses.

Application - The religious Pharisees did not care about this poor woman. They wanted to make her a public, shameful display in order to trick Jesus Christ into violating the law of Moses. Religious people do not care about individual souls. They simply want to promote themselves. However, Jesus cares about souls. He loved this woman caught in adultery, and forgave her sins.

Textual Criticism John 7:53 to John 8:11 is found in numerous locations in ancient Greek manuscripts. For this reason, scholars debate as to its authenticity in the original text. It is obvious that the Greek vocabulary is more complex in this passage of Scripture. However, there are statements made within this controversial passage that are clearly connected to text outside this passage. For example, there are three references to Jesus teaching in the Temple in John 8:2; John 8:20; John 8:59.

John 8:2 And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.

John 8:2 Comments - The phrase “early in the morning” would have been the day after the festival of tabernacles had ended. This passage of Scripture makes two other references to Jesus being in the Temple while teaching the people (John 8:20; John 8:59).

John 8:20, “These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.”

John 8:59, “Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.”

John 8:5 Comments - Note what the Law says about this situation in Deuteronomy 22:22. The Law commanded that both the man and the woman be killed. These scribes and Pharisees knew this Law well. They disobeyed the Law by only bringing the woman, and not the man, to be stoned. John 8:6 says they were trying to tempt Jesus, to see if He consented to stoning her without stoning the man.

John 8:6 This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.

John 8:6 “This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him” - Comments Many of the people in the Temple were now surrounding Jesus to hear His teaching. They were watching His every move. If Jesus had condemned this woman to be stoned, the crowds would have lost their respect for Him. If Jesus disagreed with stoning her, then the scribes and Pharisees would have accused Him of teaching contrary to the Law. In a similar way, the Herodians tried to trick Jesus on another occasion when asking Him if the Jews should give tribute to Caesar or not (Matthew 22:15-22).

John 8:6 “But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not” - Comments What did Jesus write in the sand in John 8:6? Jesus could have written this passage of the Law in Deuteronomy 22:22. Their hearts were evil and they were disobeying the Law. Therefore, they themselves were with sin (John 8:7).

Deuteronomy 22:22, “If a man be found lying with a woman married to an husband, then they shall both of them die, both the man that lay with the woman, and the woman: so shalt thou put away evil from Israel.”

Sadhu Sundar Singh says that Jesus wrote the sins of each of her accusers in the sand with his finger.

“With my finger I wrote upon the ground the sinful state of each of those who, regardless of their inner vileness, brought the woman taken in adultery for condemnation, so that they left her one by one and went away abashed and ashamed. With My finger, too, I point out in secret to My servants their wounds of sin, and when they repent, with a touch of the same finger I heal them; and in the same way as a child grasps his father’s finger and by it help walks along with him, so I with My finger lead My children along the road from this world to their home of rest and everlasting peace (John xiv. 2, 3).” [205]

[205] Sadhu Sundar Singh, At the Master’s Feet, translated by Arthur Parker (London: Fleming H. Revell Co., 1922) [on-line], accessed 26 October 2008, available from http://www.ccel.org/ccel/singh/feet.html; Internet, “III Prayer,” section 3, part 6.

John 8:7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.

John 8:7 “So when they continued asking him” - Comments - Many situations in life do not require a quick answer. Often, people have deliberately come to me with a staged crisis, trying to get me to sign a check, give them some money, or something that appears to need a quick response. However, years of dealing with people have brought caution into my decision-making. I have learned to take the time to listen to God before making decisions.

The Pharisees were trying to get Jesus to teach other to break the Law. As Jesus gave the Holy Spirit a few minutes to give Him the words to say, so do we need to learn to speak slowly under false pretenses.

Jesus' response was according to the Mosaic Law and according to the commandment of love.

John 8:8 “he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her” - Comments Jesus was the only one without sin, so He was the only one qualified to stone her; yet, He chose to extend God’s grace and forgiveness unto her. John opens his Gospel saying, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17) On this occasion, Jesus respected the Law of Moses, but undergirded it with grace and truth in order to bring about the redemption that the Law was originally intended to produce in the lives of the Jews.

John 8:8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.

John 8:8 Textual Criticism - Several later Greek manuscripts give a variant reading for John 8:8, “And again, bending down, he wrote upon the ground each one of their sins.” ( UBS 3) However, even though this variant reading is not well testified, it does show what the early church must have speculated that Jesus wrote on the ground.

John 8:9 And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

John 8:9 Comments Perhaps the eldest Jews departed first because they had sinned the most and were more aware of their failure to live according the Mosaic Law.

John 8:10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?

John 8:11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

John 8:11 Comments - When I read John 8:11, I feel the love of God for humanity. Jesus Christ came not to condemn the world, but to save it (John 3:12). He loved us while we were sinners (Romans 5:8).

John 3:17, “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

Romans 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Verses 2-59

Jesus Testifies of His Deity: The Light of the World - In John 8:2-59 Jesus is in the Temple teaching the Word of God. The Feast of Tabernacles ended the day before and may people were still in Jerusalem. There in the Temple, the scribes and the Pharisees tempt Jesus to break the Law of Moses. Thus, Jesus declares Himself as the Light of the World (John 8:12), which, according to John 8:12, requires men to follow Him as the source of instruction and guidance. This testimony follows Jesus’ testimony of His deity by the doctrine that He teaches (John 7:1-36) and precedes the miracle of Jesus opening the eyes of the blind man (John 9:1-34), which both have relevance to light, symbolizing man’s need to walk daily in God’s Word and fellowship with Jesus Christ. However, this light is revealed to the inner man through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37 to John 8:1), for the natural man cannot understand the things of God since they are spiritually discerned (1 Corinthians 2:14).

Outline Here is a proposed outline:

1. The Woman Caught in Adultery John 8:2-11

2. Jesus Testifies to the Jewish Leaders John 8:12-59

Verses 12-59

Jesus Testifies to the Jewish Leaders Perhaps the most confrontational event in John’s Gospel outside of the arrest, trial, and crucifixion of Jesus Christ is His debate with the Jewish leaders in the Temple on the day after the Feast of Tabernacles (John 8:12-59). In this passage, Jesus Christ declares Himself to be the Light of the World (John 8:12), which, according to John 8:31-32, is figurative for Jesus enlightening men to an understanding in God's Word so that they can walk as Jesus walks, in freedom from sin. This declaration by Jesus follows the testimony of His doctrine that He teaches (John 7:1-36) and it precedes the miracle of Jesus opening the eyes of the blind man (John 9:1-34), which both have relevance to Jesus as the Light of the Word, both in the figurative meaning as the understanding of divine doctrine and in the literally meaning of physical eyesight for the man that was healed.

The claim made by Jesus that He is the Light of the World (John 8:12) evokes a challenge by the Jews for Him to prove His testimony (John 8:13). Jesus does so using their own Law to offer two witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15), that of Himself and of the Father (John 8:14-18). The Jews respond to Jesus by asking Him to identify the Father (John 8:19). Jesus responds with the the claim that He came forth from the Father and He is returning to Him (John 8:21-27). He offers the Jews proof of this claim by telling them to that the miracle of the Crucifixion and Resurrection will support this claim when Jesus returning to the Father (John 8:28-29).

Deuteronomy 19:15, “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.”

Jesus continues to teach those who had opened their heart to His words by believing in Him (John 8:30). He now explains how they can walk in the revelation of Jesus as the Light of the World, which is by walking in His Word. Those who continue in His Word follow the Father and will have eternal life (John 8:31-36), while those who reject this revelation will continue to follow the devil and perish in their sins (John 8:37-47). When the Jews rejected this teaching, Jesus responded by revealing His pre-incarnate existence with Abraham (John 8:48-58), only to be rejected by them (John 8:59).

John 8:16 Comments The Jews accused Jesus of have no evidence to support His claim of deity (John 8:13). Therefore, based upon the Law (Deuteronomy 19:15), the Jews tell Jesus that His testimony lacks credibility. Jesus responds by telling the Jews that His testimony is not alone because God the Father is confirming it. Earlier in John 5:19-47, Jesus offered the Jews four testimonies of His deity in addition to Himself, which were the testimonies of John the Baptist, His works, the Father, and the Old Testament Scriptures.

John 8:17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true.

John 8:17 Comments Jesus is referring to Deuteronomy 19:15, “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.”

John 8:24 Comments John 8:24 contains one of the seven ε ̓ γω ́ ει ̓ μι (I Am) statements in the Gospel of John that stands without a predicate (John 4:26; John 6:20; John 8:24; John 8:28; John 8:58; John 13:19; John 18:5). This statement by Jesus saying, “If you believe not that I am He…” encompasses the progressive revelation of Himself as deity, the Son of God.

John 8:25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.

John 8:26 Comments In John 8:26 Jesus Christ tells His disciples that He had many things to speak unto them. This implies that Jesus has been giving them progressive revelation of His divinity throughout His earthly ministry as recorded in John’s Gospel as they were able to receive it. For example, Jesus made only a brief comment about His impending atonement at the wedding of Cana when He reveals that His hour had not yet come (John 2:4). He continues to reveal more and more about His divinity to His disciples. He tells them He is has been sent by the Father as the Saviour of the world, justified by the fourfold witness of John the Baptist, God the Father, His works, and the Scriptures, offering Himself as the bread of life, calling men to partake of the Holy Spirit as the Living Water so that He can guide them in life as the Light of the World, while protecting them and leading them as the Good Shepherd, bringing them to the Resurrection of Life.

John 8:27 They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.

John 8:27 Comments The primary emphasis of the Gospel of John is the testimony of God the Father that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Therefore, Jesus makes numerous references to the Father throughout this Gospel.

John 8:28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.

John 8:28 “but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things” Comments - Billy Brim said that a woman by the name of Clara Grace, a modern-day prophetess, received a vision from the Lord. In this vision, she saw the Lord Jesus Christ as a young man building his last piece of furniture before entering into the ministry. As He finished His work that day and turned to put up His tools, He looked at Clara Grace. She was then brought within Jesus Christ and received insight into the eighteen silent years of Jesus’ life from the age of twelve until He was baptized by John in the river Jordan. In this vision, Jesus Christ told her that He never laid his head to rest without first meditating about who He was and what He was in God’s divine plan. Billye Brim refers to Deuteronomy 6:7 where it tells us to speak and meditate on God’s Word when we lay down and when we awake as an example of how Jesus did the same.

Deuteronomy 6:7, “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down , and when thou risest up.”

Billy Brim makes the point that this statement made by Jesus Christ in this verse in John 8:28 includes the teachings that the Father taught Him before He entered into the ministry. She gives other Scriptures that refer to the fact that the Father taught Jesus how to walk daily and to prepare for the ministry. She says that the passage in Psalms 119:97-102 is Messianic because He is the only one who ever refrained His feet from every evil way (verse 101). In this passage, the Psalmist says, “For thou hast taught me.”

Psalms 119:97-102, “MEM. O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts. I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me .”

The Lord would wake Jesus day by day and reveal to Him His plan for that day and season. This revelation would give Jesus Christ the tongue of the learned to speak a word to him who was weary.

Isaiah 50:4-5, “The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned . The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back.”

This plan required obedience to His Heavenly Father, even when it included persecutions and death on the Cross.

Isaiah 50:6-7, “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.”

To this plan, the Lord was not rebellious (Isaiah 50:5). This is how Jesus Christ learned to wait on the Heavenly Father and hear from Him. Jesus laid down to sleep meditating on the Word of God and how He fit into God’s plan. Jesus awoke with God speaking to Him about His plan for Him that day. [206]

[206] Billye Brim, interviewed by Gloria Copeland, Believer’s Voice of Victory (Kenneth Copeland Ministries, Fort Worth, Texas), on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California), television program, 22 May 2003.

John 8:28 Comments - When He is crucified, this Pharisee will know who He is.

John 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

John 8:30 As he spake these words, many believed on him.

John 8:30 Comments John 8:30 reflects the third theme of the Gospel of John, which is a call to believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. This theme is woven throughout the Gospel of John (John 2:23; John 4:39; John 4:53; John 12:11; John 12:42; John 16:27; John 17:8; John 20:8) and culminates in the summary of the Evangelist’s testimony of seven miracles in John 20:30-31, “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”

John 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

John 8:31 Comments Many people believed in Jesus because of the miracles He performed. However, not all of them became disciples because they did not follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. There are two phases of the Christian life: conversion and discipleship. A born-again believer must begin the process of Christian maturity in God’s Word in order to become a disciple of Jesus Christ.

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

John 8:32 Comments - Andrew Wommack say that it is the truth we know that sets us free. The truth itself does not set us free until we understand how to walk in that truth by applying it to our lives. [207]

[207] Andrew Wommack, Gospel Truth (Colorado Springs, Colorado: Andrew Wommack Ministries), on Trinity Broadcasting Network (Santa Ana, California), television program.

When we are submitted to God’s Word, we will walk in the most freedom. But when we ignore the truth and walk in disobedience, we live in bondage. For example, a train is created and designed to travel down a set of railroad tracks. As long as it stays on the tracks it is free to move and prosper in what it was created to do. But if it jumps the tracks, it is bound in the soil in which it was not designed to travel. So it is with our lives. God has given each of us a destiny and a path to walk. Our greatest freedom will be to follow this divine path.

John 8:35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.

John 8:35 Comments The servant has no legal right to set himself free. He lives as a servant, legally bound in the house of another. In contrast, the son of the householder was born free in his father’s house. He is free to live in this house without bondage forever.

John 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

John 8:36 Comments Jesus came to see men entirely free from the bondage of his sinful nature, from the bondage of the devil, and from the bondages of this world. This freedom comes in its fullness by abiding in God’s Word (John 8:31-32).

John 8:31-36 Comments Jesus Came to Set Men Free - Jesus has come to set us free. He declared this in Luke 4:18-19. But in order to be set free and live free, we must know the truth. Anything that is contrary to the Word of God is deception. It is this deception that keeps mankind in bondage to sin.

John 8:39 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.

John 8:39 Comments - Even the Pharisees had the doctrine of once saved, always saved. They believed that they, as Jews and a descendent of Abraham, could never lose their relationship with God.

John 8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

John 8:41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.

John 8:41 “We be not born of fornication” - Comments - One commentator notes that this could have been a reference to the fact that the Jews believed that Jesus' birth was not divine, but conceived in fornication. However, the context of this passage makes no indication of a reference to Jesus' birth in this passage of Scripture.

John 8:39-41 Comments The Works of Abraham - The works of Abraham were that he believed God:

Galatians 3:6, “Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Galatians 3:29, “And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

John 8:44 “He was a murderer from the beginning” Comments Jesus makes a reference to the murder of Abel by his brother Cain.

John 8:44 “and the lusts of your father ye will do” Comments - The Greek text reveals a better reading when it says, “and the lusts of your father you desire to do.”

John 8:48 Comments - Men have not changed even today. Many who walk close to God and work miracles are accused by other Christians of having demons.

John 8:51 Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.

John 8:51 Comments - In John 8:51 death means spiritual separation from God, since every human will experience the death of their mortal body.

Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”

John 8:52 Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death.

John 8:53 Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself?

John 8:52-53 Comments The Jews Misunderstand Jesus - They thought that Jesus was speaking of physical death.

John 8:54 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God:

John 8:55 Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying.

John 8:55 Comments Jesus says, “Ye have not known him ( γινω ́ σκω ); but I know him ( εἴδω )…” Thus, John uses two different Greek words to convey the concept of knowing. W. E. Vine says γινω ́ σκω usually means a “progress” in knowledge, while εἴδω means a “fullness” of knowledge. [208]

[208] W. E. Vine, M. F. Unger, and W. White, Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, vol. 2 (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1996), in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2009), 346-347.

John 8:56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

John 8:56 Comments - Perhaps the phrase “My day” is a reference to when Abraham when he met Melchisedec in Genesis 14:0. Note Hebrews 7:0 for a lengthy discussion of Melchisedec. However, a more likely interpretation is the Abraham was in heaven and was aware of the time when Jesus Christ left Heaven and came to earth in the form of a child. All of Heaven was probably aware of this day when Jesus took upon Himself the form of a man.

John 8:57 Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?

John 8:57 Comments Luke tells us that Jesus was about thirty years old when He began His public ministry, saying, “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,” (Luke 3:23) He had been in the public ministry during two Passovers (John 2:23; John 6:4), or approximately two years. Thus, Jesus was in His early thirties.

John 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

John 8:58 Comments - John 8:58 reveals to us that the Creator of the universe is not bound by the laws of the universe. Jesus Christ and God the Father do not live in the dimensions of time and space. In contrast, man lives in the present, remembers the past and looks forward to the future. But, God sees all of this in a glance. While man can only be in one location at a time, God is omnipresent.

If Jesus Christ would have said, “Before Abraham was, I was” or “I existed,” He would have been lying; for Jesus would have limited Himself to existing within the realm of time. But He is the Creator and He exists now, in the past and in the future, all at one time. Therefore, He had to say, “Before Abraham was, I am”. In other words, “Before Abraham existed, I am in continual existence.”

In John 8:58 Jesus makes perhaps the clearest declaration He has ever made to humanity that He Himself is God manifested in the flesh when He declares, “Before Abraham was, I am.” Since the Fall of man and the subjection of Creation unto vanity, all things have awaited the manifestation of the Son of God, the Messiah, and the Redeemer, who is to come and redeem mankind and creation from corruption. In two simple words “I am” every human being is given a choice whether to accept His redemption, or to reject it. Since the Holy Bible speaks the language of the heart, then the spirit of man will hear so simple a statement that none can misunderstand. Everyone’s heart has to make a decision whether to receive these words, or reject them. Most of humanity will reject these words, but the few that accept them will taste of the amazing experience of being regenerated, or born again.

All of creation and every human being, who have all be made subject to vanity, have cried out for redemption from their state of futility and suffering. God chose to bring mankind an answer in a form that tests his heart. This message of redemption did not come as a great oration of speech, for then only the wise would understand it. It did not come from someone who held an earthly position wealth and nobility, for then only those under his dominion would receive it, and that against their will. It did not come as a statement from a descendent of Abraham to his fellow Jew, for then only the Jews would receive it. However, it came in such simplicity that even the most unlearned could understand and believe. It came from a Person who had made himself poor so that men were not compelled to believe. It came from the lips of a sinless Man so that every race of men must recognize his own sinfulness. It came within the context of a human voice, being born of the seed of man, but declaring Himself to be eternal, so that any man of any age could receive it.

John 8:59 Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

John 8:59 Comments - Jesus withdrew from a hostile, negative environment on numerous occasions. He first withdrew from Judea into Galilee when John the Baptist was cast into prison (Matthew 4:12). The people in His hometown of Nazareth tried to kill Him, and He supernaturally passed through the crowd, and moved His residence to Capernaum (Luke 4:30-31). He passed through hostile crowds miraculously on a number of other occasions (John 8:59; John 10:39). The people of the country of the Gergesenes asked Him to depart, and He did so (Matthew 8:34 to Matthew 9:1). He was persecuted while in Galilee and withdrew Himself (Matthew 12:14-15). He hid himself several times from those who were hostile (John 5:13; John 12:36). He stopped His public ministry in Judea because the Jewish leaders sought to kill Him (John 7:1). Jesus once escaped across the Jordan River because of persecution (John 10:39-40). At one point Jesus stopped His public ministry and withdrew Himself into the wilderness (John 11:53-54). Jesus taught His disciples to do the same (Matthew 10:23).

Matthew 4:12, “Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;”

Luke 4:30-31, “But he passing through the midst of them went his way, And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.”

John 8:59, “Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.”

John 10:39, “Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand,”

Matthew 8:34 to Matthew 9:1, “And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.”

Matthew 12:14-15, “Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him. But when Jesus knew it, he withdrew himself from thence: and great multitudes followed him, and he healed them all;”

John 5:13, “And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.”

John 12:36, “While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them.”

John 7:1, “After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill him.”

John 10:39-40, “Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand, And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.”

John 11:53-54, “Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death. Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples.”

Matthew 10:23, “But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.”

Each time Jesus saved His own life, He knew that His time was not yet, and so He deliberately avoided being killed (John 7:30; John 8:20); for this power was in His hand and no man could take His life. However, when His time had come, He willingly gave Himself over into the hands of man (John 10:17-18).

John 7:30, “Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come.”

John 8:20, “These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.”

John 10:17-18, “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.”