John 8
8
A Woman Caught in Adultery
1Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. 3As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.
4“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”
6They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 7They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” 8Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.
9When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”
11“No, Lord,” she said.
And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”
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Jesus, the Light of the World
12Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
13The Pharisees replied, “You are making those claims about yourself! Such testimony is not valid.”
14Jesus told them, “These claims are valid even though I make them about myself. For I know where I came from and where I am going, but you don’t know this about me. 15You judge me by human standards, but I do not judge anyone. 16And if I did, my judgment would be correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father#8:16 Some manuscripts read The One. who sent me is with me. 17Your own law says that if two people agree about something, their witness is accepted as fact.#8:17 See Deut 19:15. 18I am one witness, and my Father who sent me is the other.”
19“Where is your father?” they asked.
Jesus answered, “Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.” 20Jesus made these statements while he was teaching in the section of the Temple known as the Treasury. But he was not arrested, because his time#8:20 Greek his hour. had not yet come.
The Unbelieving People Warned
21Later Jesus said to them again, “I am going away. You will search for me but will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going.”
22The people#8:22 Greek Jewish people; also in 8:31, 48, 52, 57. asked, “Is he planning to commit suicide? What does he mean, ‘You cannot come where I am going’?”
23Jesus continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You belong to this world; I do not. 24That is why I said that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I Am who I claim to be,#8:24 Greek unless you believe that I am. See Exod 3:14. you will die in your sins.”
25“Who are you?” they demanded.
Jesus replied, “The one I have always claimed to be.#8:25 Or Why do I speak to you at all? 26I have much to say about you and much to condemn, but I won’t. For I say only what I have heard from the one who sent me, and he is completely truthful.” 27But they still didn’t understand that he was talking about his Father.
28So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man on the cross, then you will understand that I Am he.#8:28 Greek When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am. “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself. I do nothing on my own but say only what the Father taught me. 29And the one who sent me is with me—he has not deserted me. For I always do what pleases him.” 30Then many who heard him say these things believed in him.
Jesus and Abraham
31Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33“But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?”
34Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. 37Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham. And yet some of you are trying to kill me because there’s no room in your hearts for my message. 38I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. But you are following the advice of your father.”
39“Our father is Abraham!” they declared.
“No,” Jesus replied, “for if you were really the children of Abraham, you would follow his example.#8:39 Some manuscripts read if you are really the children of Abraham, follow his example. 40Instead, you are trying to kill me because I told you the truth, which I heard from God. Abraham never did such a thing. 41No, you are imitating your real father.”
They replied, “We aren’t illegitimate children! God himself is our true Father.”
42Jesus told them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. 43Why can’t you understand what I am saying? It’s because you can’t even hear me! 44For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45So when I tell the truth, you just naturally don’t believe me! 46Which of you can truthfully accuse me of sin? And since I am telling you the truth, why don’t you believe me? 47Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God. But you don’t listen because you don’t belong to God.”
48The people retorted, “You Samaritan devil! Didn’t we say all along that you were possessed by a demon?”
49 “No,” Jesus said, “I have no demon in me. For I honor my Father—and you dishonor me. 50And though I have no wish to glorify myself, God is going to glorify me. He is the true judge. 51I tell you the truth, anyone who obeys my teaching will never die!”
52The people said, “Now we know you are possessed by a demon. Even Abraham and the prophets died, but you say, ‘Anyone who obeys my teaching will never die!’ 53Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?”
54Jesus answered, “If I want glory for myself, it doesn’t count. But it is my Father who will glorify me. You say, ‘He is our God,’#8:54 Some manuscripts read You say he is your God. 55but you don’t even know him. I know him. If I said otherwise, I would be as great a liar as you! But I do know him and obey him. 56Your father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to my coming. He saw it and was glad.”
57The people said, “You aren’t even fifty years old. How can you say you have seen Abraham?#8:57 Some manuscripts read How can you say Abraham has seen you?”
58Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I Am!#8:58 Or before Abraham was even born, I have always been alive; Greek reads before Abraham was, I am. See Exod 3:14.” 59At that point they picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus was hidden from them and left the Temple.
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John 8: NLT
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John 8
8
The Woman Caught in Adultery
[ 1Then everyone went home, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2Early the next morning he went back to the Temple. All the people gathered round him, and he sat down and began to teach them. 3The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery, and they made her stand before them all. 4“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. 5#Lev 20.10; Deut 22.22–24In our Law Moses commanded that such a woman must be stoned to death. Now, what do you say?” 6They said this to trap Jesus, so that they could accuse him. But he bent over and wrote on the ground with his finger.
7As they stood there asking him questions, he straightened himself up and said to them, “Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her.” 8Then he bent over again and wrote on the ground. 9When they heard this, they all left, one by one, the older ones first. Jesus was left alone, with the woman still standing there. 10He straightened himself up and said to her, “Where are they? Is there no one left to condemn you?”
11“No one, sir,” she answered.
“Well, then,” Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go, but do not sin again.”]#8.11 Many manuscripts and early translations do not have this passage (8.1–11); others have it after Jn 21.24; others have it after Lk 21.38; one manuscript has it after Jn 7.36.
Jesus the Light of the World
12 #
Mt 5.14; Jn 9.5 Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again. “I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”
13 #
Jn 5.31
The Pharisees said to him, “Now you are testifying on your own behalf; what you say proves nothing.”
14 “No,” Jesus answered, “even though I do testify on my own behalf, what I say is true, because I know where I came from and where I am going. You do not know where I came from or where I am going. 15You make judgements in a purely human way; I pass judgement on no one. 16But if I were to do so, my judgement would be true, because I am not alone in this; the Father who sent me is with me. 17#Deut 19.15It is written in your Law that when two witnesses agree, what they say is true. 18I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me also testifies on my behalf.”
19“Where is your father?” they asked him.
“You know neither me nor my Father,” Jesus answered. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”
20Jesus said all this as he taught in the Temple, in the room where the offering boxes were placed. And no one arrested him, because his hour had not come.
You cannot Go Where I am Going
21Again Jesus said to them, “I will go away; you will look for me, but you will die in your sins. You cannot go where I am going.”
22So the Jewish authorities said, “He says that we cannot go where he is going. Does this mean that he will kill himself?”
23Jesus answered, “You belong to this world here below, but I come from above. You are from this world, but I am not from this world. 24That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. And you will die in your sins if you do not believe that ‘I Am Who I Am’.”
25“Who are you?” they asked him.
Jesus answered, “What I have told you from the very beginning.#8.25 What I have told you from the very beginning; or Why should I speak to you at all? 26I have much to say about you, much to condemn you for. The one who sent me, however, is truthful, and I tell the world only what I have heard from him.”
27They did not understand that Jesus was talking to them about the Father. 28So he said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, you will know that ‘I Am Who I Am’; then you will know that I do nothing on my own authority, but I say only what the Father has instructed me to say. 29And he who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him.”
30Many who heard Jesus say these things believed in him.
The Truth will Set you Free
31So Jesus said to those who believed in him, “If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples; 32you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 #
Mt 3.9; Lk 3.8 “We are the descendants of Abraham,” they answered, “and we have never been anybody's slaves. What do you mean, then, by saying, ‘You will be free’?”
34Jesus said to them, “I am telling you the truth: everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35A slave does not belong to a family permanently, but a son belongs there for ever. 36If the Son sets you free, then you will be really free. 37I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are trying to kill me, because you will not accept my teaching. 38I talk about what my Father has shown me, but you do what your father has told you.”
39They answered him, “Our father is Abraham.”
“If you really were Abraham's children,” Jesus replied, “you would do#8.39 If you really were… you would do; some manuscripts have If you are… do. the same things that he did. 40All I have ever done is to tell you the truth I heard from God, yet you are trying to kill me. Abraham did nothing like this! 41You are doing what your father did.”
“God himself is the only Father we have,” they answered, “and we are his true children.”
42Jesus said to them, “If God really were your Father, you would love me, because I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own authority, but he sent me. 43Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to listen to my message. 44You are the children of your father, the Devil, and you want to follow your father's desires. From the very beginning he was a murderer and has never been on the side of truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he is only doing what is natural to him, because he is a liar and the father of all lies. 45But I tell the truth, and that is why you do not believe me. 46Which one of you can prove that I am guilty of sin? If I tell the truth, then why do you not believe me? 47He who comes from God listens to God's words. You, however, are not from God, and that is why you will not listen.”
Jesus and Abraham
48They asked Jesus, “Were we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon in you?”
49 “I have no demon,” Jesus answered. “I honour my Father, but you dishonour me. 50I am not seeking honour for myself. But there is one who is seeking it and who judges in my favour. 51I am telling you the truth: whoever obeys my teaching will never die.”
52They said to him, “Now we are certain that you have a demon! Abraham died, and the prophets died, yet you say that whoever obeys your teaching will never die. 53Our father Abraham died; you do not claim to be greater than Abraham, do you? And the prophets also died. Who do you think you are?”
54Jesus answered, “If I were to honour myself, that honour would be worth nothing. The one who honours me is my Father — the very one you say is your God. 55You have never known him, but I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know him, and I obey his word. 56Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see the time of my coming; he saw it and was glad.”
57They said to him, “You are not even fifty years old — and you have seen Abraham?”#8.57 you have seen Abraham?; some manuscripts have has Abraham seen you?
58 “I am telling you the truth,” Jesus replied. “Before Abraham was born, ‘I Am’.”
59Then they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and left the Temple.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.