You will look for Me, but you will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.”
Parallel translations
- WEB You will seek me, and won’t find me; and where I am, you can’t come.”
- KJV Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.
- NKJV You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.”
- NASB You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.”
- NLT You will search for me but not find me. And you cannot go where I am going.”
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 says they will seek Him and not find Him, and where He is they cannot come. Persistent unbelief will leave them unable to reach Him.
Overview
Jesus warns that a time is coming when seeking Him will be too late for those who reject Him now. His destination, the presence of the Father, is closed to those who refuse to believe. This sober warning underscores the urgency of receiving Christ while He may be found and the tragic consequences of rejecting Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Prov 1:24–31Because you refused my call, and no one took my outstretched hand,
- John 13:33–36Little children, I am with you only a little while longer. You will look for Me, and as I said to the Jews, so now I say to you: ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’
- John 17:24Father, I want those You have given Me to be with Me where I am, that they may see the glory You gave Me because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
- Luke 13:34–35O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
- John 8:21–24Again He said to them, “I am going away, and you will look for Me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.”
- John 14:6Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
- Hos 5:6They go with their flocks and herds to seek the LORD, but they do not find Him; He has withdrawn Himself from them.
- John 14:3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and welcome you into My presence, so that you also may be where I am.
- Matt 23:39For I tell you that you will not see Me again until you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
- Luke 13:24–25“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.
- Luke 17:22–23Then He said to the disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
Resources, by level
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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 7:34 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.