John 8
8
1But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
2At sunrise he arrived again in the temple courtyard. All the people gathered around him there. He sat down to teach them. 3The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman. She had been caught committing adultery. They made her stand in front of the group. 4They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught sleeping with a man who was not her husband. 5In the Law, Moses commanded us to kill such women by throwing stones at them. Now what do you say?” 6They were trying to trap Jesus with that question. They wanted to have a reason to bring charges against him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7They kept asking him questions. So he stood up and said to them, “Has any one of you not sinned? Then you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8He bent down again and wrote on the ground.
9Those who heard what he had said began to go away. They left one at a time, the older ones first. Soon only Jesus was left. The woman was still standing there. 10Jesus stood up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Hasn’t anyone found you guilty?”
11“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then I don’t find you guilty either,” Jesus said. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
Challenge to What Jesus Says About Himself
12Jesus spoke to the people again. He said, “I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in darkness. They will have that light. They will have life.”
13The Pharisees argued with him. “Here you are,” they said, “appearing as your own witness. But your witness does not count.”
14Jesus answered, “Even if I am a witness about myself, what I say does count. I know where I came from. And I know where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. 15You judge by human standards. I don’t judge anyone. 16But if I do judge, what I decide is true. This is because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17Your own Law says that the witness of two people proves the truth about something. 18I am a witness about myself. The other witness about me is the Father, who sent me.”
19Then they asked him, “Where is your father?”
“You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20He spoke these words while he was teaching in the temple courtyard. He was near the place where the offerings were put. But no one arrested him. That’s because the time for him to die had not yet come.
Challenge to Who Jesus Claims to Be
21Once more Jesus said to them, “I am going away. You will look for me, and you will die in your sin. You can’t come where I am going.”
22This made the Jews ask, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”
23But Jesus said, “You are from below. I am from heaven. You are from this world. I am not from this world. 24I told you that you would die in your sins. This will happen if you don’t believe that I am he. If you don’t believe, you will certainly die in your sins.”
25“Who are you?” they asked.
“Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. 26“I have a lot to say that will judge you. But the one who sent me can be trusted. And I tell the world what I have heard from him.”
27They did not understand that Jesus was telling them about his Father. 28So Jesus said, “You will lift up the Son of Man. Then you will know that I am he. You will also know that I do nothing on my own. I speak just what the Father has taught me. 29The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him.” 30Even while Jesus was speaking, many people believed in him.
Challenge to the Claim to Be Children of Abraham
31Jesus spoke to the Jews who had believed him. “If you obey my teaching,” he said, “you are really my disciples. 32Then you will know the truth. And the truth will set you free.”
33They answered him, “We are Abraham’s children. We have never been slaves of anyone. So how can you say that we will be set free?”
34Jesus replied, “What I’m about to tell you is true. Everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35A slave has no lasting place in the family. But a son belongs to the family forever. 36So if the Son of Man sets you free, you will really be free. 37I know that you are Abraham’s children. But you are looking for a way to kill me. You have no room for my word. 38I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. You are doing what you have heard from your father.”
39“Abraham is our father,” they answered.
Jesus said, “Are you really Abraham’s children? If you are, you will do what Abraham did. 40But you are looking for a way to kill me. I am a man who has told you the truth I heard from God. Abraham didn’t do the things you want to do. 41You are doing what your own father does.”
“We have the right to claim to be God’s children,” they objected. “The only Father we have is God himself.”
42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me. I have come here from God. I have not come on my own. God sent me. 43Why aren’t my words clear to you? Because you can’t really hear what I say. 44You belong to your father, the devil. You want to obey your father’s wishes. From the beginning, the devil was a murderer. He has never obeyed the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his natural language. He does this because he is a liar. He is the father of lies. 45But because I tell the truth, you don’t believe me! 46Can any of you prove I am guilty of sinning? Am I not telling the truth? Then why don’t you believe me? 47Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you don’t hear is that you don’t belong to God.”
Jesus Makes Claims About Himself
48The Jews answered Jesus, “Aren’t we right when we say you are a Samaritan? Aren’t you controlled by a demon?”
49“I am not controlled by a demon,” said Jesus. “I honor my Father. You do not honor me. 50I am not seeking glory for myself. But there is one who brings glory to me. He is the judge. 51What I’m about to tell you is true. Whoever obeys my word will never die.”
52Then they cried out, “Now we know you are controlled by a demon! Abraham died. So did the prophets. But you say that whoever obeys your word will never die. 53Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died. So did the prophets. Who do you think you are?”
54Jesus replied, “If I bring glory to myself, my glory means nothing. You claim that my Father is your God. He is the one who brings glory to me. 55You do not know him. But I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him. And I obey his word. 56Your father Abraham was filled with joy at the thought of seeing my day. He saw it and was glad.”
57“You are not even 50 years old,” they said to Jesus. “And you have seen Abraham?”
58“What I’m about to tell you is true,” Jesus answered. “Before Abraham was born, I am!” 59When he said this, they picked up stones to kill him. But Jesus hid himself. He slipped away from the temple area.
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John 8: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
John 8
8
The Woman Caught in Adultery
1Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2But early in the morning he went back to the Temple. All the people came to Jesus, and he sat and taught them. 3The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought a woman there. She had been caught in adultery. They forced the woman to stand before the people. 4They said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught having physical relations with a man who is not her husband. 5The law of Moses commands that we kill with stones every woman who does this. What do you say we should do?” 6They were asking this to trick Jesus so that they could have some charge against him.
But Jesus knelt down and started writing on the ground with his finger. 7They continued to ask Jesus their question. So he stood up and said, “Is there anyone here who has never sinned? The person without sin can throw the first stone at this woman.” 8Then Jesus knelt down again and wrote on the ground.
9Those who heard Jesus began to leave one by one. The older men left first, and then the others. Jesus was left there alone with the woman. She was standing before him. 10Jesus stood up again and asked her, “Woman, all of those people have gone. Has no one judged you guilty?”
11She answered, “No one has judged me, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “So I also don’t judge you. You may go now, but don’t sin again.”
Jesus Is the Light of the World
12Later, Jesus talked to the people again. He said, “I am the light of the world. The person who follows me will never live in darkness. He will have the light that gives life.”
13But the Pharisees said to Jesus, “When you talk about yourself, you are the only one to say these things are true. We cannot accept these things you say.”
14Jesus answered, “Yes, I am saying these things about myself, but they are true. I know where I came from. And I know where I am going. You don’t know where I came from or where I am going. 15You judge me the way you would judge any man. I don’t judge anyone. 16But if I judge, I judge truthfully. When I judge, I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me. 17Your own law says that when two witnesses say the same thing, then you must accept what they say. 18I am one of the witnesses who speaks about myself. And the Father who sent me is my other witness.”
19They asked, “Where is your father?”
Jesus answered, “You don’t know me or my Father. But if you knew me, then you would know my Father, too.” 20Jesus said these things while he was teaching in the Temple. He was near the place where the money that the people give is kept. But no one arrested him. The right time for Jesus had not yet come.
The People Misunderstand Jesus
21Again, Jesus said to the people, “I will leave you. You will look for me, but you will die in your sins. You cannot come where I am going.”
22So the Jews asked, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he said, ‘You cannot come where I am going’?”
23But Jesus said, “You people are from here below. But I am from above. You belong to this world, but I don’t belong to this world. 24So I told you that you would die in your sins. Yes, you will die in your sins if you don’t believe that I am he.”
25They asked, “Then who are you?”
Jesus answered, “I am what I have told you from the beginning. 26I have many things to say about you and to judge you for. But I tell people only the things I have heard from the One who sent me. And he speaks the truth.”
27The people did not understand that Jesus was talking to them about the Father. 28So Jesus said to them, “You will lift up the Son of Man. Then you will know that I am he. You will know that these things I do are not by my own authority. You will know that I say only what the Father has taught me. 29The One who sent me is with me. I always do what is pleasing to him. So he has not left me alone.” 30While Jesus was saying these things, many people believed in him.
Freedom from Sin
31So Jesus said to the Jews who believed in him, “If you continue to obey my teaching, you are truly my followers. 32Then you will know the truth. And the truth will make you free.”
33They answered, “We are Abraham’s children. And we have never been slaves. So why do you say that we will be free?”
34Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Everyone who lives in sin is a slave to sin. 35A slave does not stay with a family forever, but a son belongs to the family forever. 36So if the Son makes you free, then you will be truly free. 37I know you are Abraham’s children. But you want to kill me because you don’t accept my teaching. 38I am telling you what my Father has shown me. But you do what your father has told you.”
39They answered, “Our father is Abraham.”
Jesus said, “If you were really Abraham’s children, you would do# Some Greek copies read “If you are really Abraham’s children, you will do.” the things that Abraham did. 40I am a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. But you are trying to kill me. Abraham did nothing like that. 41So you are doing the things that your own father did.”
But they said, “We are not like children who never knew who their father was. God is our Father. He is the only Father we have.”
42Jesus said to them, “If God were really your Father, you would love me. I came from God and now I am here. I did not come by my own authority. God sent me. 43You don’t understand what I say because you cannot accept my teaching. 44Your father is the devil. You belong to him and want to do what he wants. He was a murderer from the beginning. He was against the truth, for there is no truth in him. He is a liar, and he is like the lies he tells. He is the father of lies. 45But I speak the truth. That is why you don’t believe me. 46Can any of you prove that I am guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? 47He who belongs to God accepts what God says. But you don’t accept what God says, because you don’t belong to God.”
Jesus and Abraham
48The Jews answered, “We say you are a Samaritan! We say a demon has come into you. Are we not right?”
49Jesus answered, “I have no demon in me. I give honor to my Father, but you dishonor me. 50I am not trying to get honor for myself. There is One who wants this honor for me, and he is the judge. 51I tell you the truth. If anyone obeys my teaching, he will never die.”
52The Jews said to Jesus, “Now we know that you have a demon in you! Even Abraham and the prophets died. But you say, ‘Whoever obeys my teaching will never die.’ 53Do you think that you are greater than our father Abraham? Abraham died. And the prophets died, too. Who do you think you are?”
54Jesus answered, “If I give honor to myself, that honor is worth nothing. The One who gives me honor is my Father. And you say that he is your God. 55But you don’t really know him. I know him. If I said I did not know him, then I would be a liar as you are liars. But I do know him, and I obey what he says. 56Your father Abraham was very happy that he would see my day. He saw that day and was glad.”
57The Jews said to him, “What? You have never seen Abraham! You are not even 50 years old!”
58Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Before Abraham was born, I am!” 59When Jesus said this, the people picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus hid himself, and then he left the Temple.
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.