Yet no one would speak publicly about Him for fear of the Jews.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yet no one spoke openly of him for fear of the Jews.
- KJV Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews.
- NKJV However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.
- NASB However, no one was speaking openly about Him, for fear of the Jews.
- NLT But no one had the courage to speak favorably about him in public, for they were afraid of getting in trouble with the Jewish leaders.
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
No one spoke openly about Jesus because they feared the Jewish authorities. Fear of the leaders silenced honest discussion about Him.
Overview
The intimidating power of the religious establishment kept people from openly confessing any favorable view of Jesus. This fear of man recurs in John (9:22; 12:42) and stands in contrast to the bold confession Jesus calls for. It exposes how the threat of social and religious exclusion can suppress the truth, a pressure believers in every age may face.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- John 9:22His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews. For the Jews had already determined that anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
- John 19:38Afterward, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus (but secretly for fear of the Jews), asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission, so he came and removed His body.
- John 20:19It was the first day of the week, and that very evening, while the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you!” He said to them.
- John 12:42–43Nevertheless, many of the leaders believed in Him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue.
- Rev 2:13I know where you live, where the throne of Satan sits. Yet you have held fast to My name and have not denied your faith in Me, even in the day when My faithful witness Antipas was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
- Prov 29:25The fear of man is a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is set securely on high.
- 2 Tim 2:9–13for which I suffer to the extent of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God cannot be chained!
- John 3:2He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.”
- Gal 2:12–13For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself, for fear of those in the circumcision group.
- John 9:34They replied, “You were born in utter sin, and you are instructing us?” And they threw him out.
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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 7:13 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
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