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And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
John 16:8 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB When he has come, he will convict the world about sin, about righteousness, and about judgment;
  • BSB And when He comes, He will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
  • NKJV And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
  • NASB And He, when He comes, will convict the world regarding sin, and righteousness, and judgment:
  • NLT And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment.

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

When the Spirit comes, He will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Spirit exposes the world's true spiritual condition.

Overview

Jesus describes the Spirit's convicting ministry toward the world in three areas, which the next verses unpack. This conviction confronts the world with the reality of its sin, the true righteousness found in Christ, and the certainty of judgment. The Spirit thus works through the gospel to bring conviction that can lead to repentance and faith.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • Jude 1:15To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
  • Acts 2:37Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
  • Zech 12:10And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
  • Acts 16:29–30Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,
  • 1 Cor 14:24But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all:
  • John 8:9And 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 8:46Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on John 16:8YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 16:8 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.