They kept looking for Jesus and asking one another as they stood in the temple courts, “What do you think? Will He come to the feast at all?”
Parallel translations
- WEB Then they sought for Jesus and spoke one with another, as they stood in the temple, “What do you think — that he isn’t coming to the feast at all?”
- KJV Then sought they for Jesus, and spake among themselves, as they stood in the temple, What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?
- NKJV Then they sought Jesus, and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple, “What do you think—that He will not come to the feast?”
- NASB So they were looking for Jesus, and saying to one another as they stood in the temple area, “What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?”
- NLT They kept looking for Jesus, but as they stood around in the Temple, they said to each other, “What do you think? He won’t come for Passover, will he?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Pilgrims in the temple speculate whether Jesus will dare attend the feast. Anticipation surrounds his movements.
Overview
The crowds discuss Jesus' likely absence, aware of the danger he faces from the authorities. Their questioning heightens the dramatic tension before his final entry into Jerusalem. The scene shows Jesus as the focus of public expectation as the hour of his passion approaches.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- John 7:11So the Jews were looking for Him at the feast and asking, “Where is He?”
- John 11:7–8and then He said to the disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 11:56 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.