So they asked Him, “What sign then will You perform, so that we may see it and believe You? What will You do?
Parallel translations
- WEB They said therefore to him, “What then do you do for a sign, that we may see, and believe you? What work do you do?
- KJV They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work?
- NKJV Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?
- NASB So they said to Him, “What then are You doing as a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work are You performing?
- NLT They answered, “Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do?
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
The crowd demands a sign so they may believe, even though they had just been fed. Their request exposes the unbelief that no sign alone can cure.
Overview
Astonishingly, those who ate the multiplied loaves now ask for proof. Their question hints they want manna-like bread daily, as the next verse shows. John repeatedly demonstrates that signs do not create saving faith; the heart must be drawn by the Father to truly believe.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 19
- John 12:37Although Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still did not believe in Him.
- John 6:36But as I stated, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.
- 1 Cor 1:22Jews demand signs and Greeks search for wisdom,
- John 10:38But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.”
- John 20:25–29So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, and put my finger where the nails have been, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe.”
- Isa 7:11–14“Ask for a sign from the LORD your God, whether from the depths of Sheol or the heights of heaven.”
- Mark 15:32Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see and believe!” And even those who were crucified with Him berated Him.
- Heb 2:4and was affirmed by God through signs, wonders, various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His will.
- Matt 12:38–39Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”
- Mark 8:11Then the Pharisees came and began to argue with Jesus, testing Him by demanding from Him a sign from heaven.
- Matt 16:1–4Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came and tested Jesus by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven.
- 1 Kgs 13:3That day the man of God gave a sign, saying, “The LORD has spoken this sign: ‘Surely the altar will be split apart, and the ashes upon it will be poured out.’”
- Acts 4:30as You stretch out Your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.”
- 1 Kgs 13:5And the altar was split apart, and the ashes poured out, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.
- Luke 11:29–30As the crowds were increasing, Jesus said, “This is a wicked generation. It demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.
- John 2:18On account of this, the Jews demanded, “What sign can You show us to prove Your authority to do these things?”
- Exod 4:8And the LORD said, “If they refuse to believe you or heed the witness of the first sign, they may believe that of the second.
- Isa 5:19to those who say, “Let Him hurry and hasten His work so that we may see it! Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel come so that we may know it!”
- John 4:8(His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
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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 6:30 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.