I can do nothing by Myself; I judge only as I hear. And My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
Parallel translations
- WEB I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous; because I don’t seek my own will, but the will of my Father who sent me.
- KJV I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
- NKJV I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.
- NASB “I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of Him who sent Me.
- NLT I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.
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
Jesus does nothing on his own; his judgment is just because he seeks the Father's will, not his own. His judgment is righteous because of his perfect submission.
Overview
Jesus again stresses his dependence on and unity with the Father. His judgments are righteous precisely because he wills only what the Father wills. This perfect alignment with the Father's will marks both his deity and his role as the trustworthy, righteous Judge.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- John 6:38For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.
- John 5:19So Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing by Himself, unless He sees the Father doing it. For whatever the Father does, the Son also does.
- John 4:34Jesus explained, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.
- John 14:10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you, I do not speak on My own. Instead, it is the Father dwelling in Me, performing His works.
- Matt 26:39Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”
- John 8:28So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own, but speak exactly what the Father has taught Me.
- Ps 40:7–8Then I said, “Here I am, I have come—it is written about me in the scroll:
- John 8:15–16You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.
- Isa 11:3–4And He will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what His eyes see, and He will not decide by what His ears hear,
- Rom 15:3For even Christ did not please Himself, but as it is written: “The insults of those who insult You have fallen on Me.”
- John 8:50I do not seek My own glory. There is One who seeks it, and He is the Judge.
- John 8:42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on My own, but He sent Me.
- John 17:4I have glorified You on earth by accomplishing the work You gave Me to do.
- Ps 96:13before the LORD, for He is coming—He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness.
- John 18:11“Put your sword back in its sheath!” Jesus said to Peter. “Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given Me?”
- Gen 18:25Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”
- Rom 2:5But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
- Hos 10:7–10Samaria will be carried off with her king like a twig on the surface of the water.
- Rom 2:2And we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
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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.
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Original language
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