So the Jews began to ask, “Will He kill Himself, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?”
Parallel translations
- WEB The Jews therefore said, “Will he kill himself, that he says, ‘Where I am going, you can’t come’?”
- KJV Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.
- NKJV So the Jews said, “Will He kill Himself, because He says, ‘Where I go you cannot come’?”
- NASB So the Jews were saying, “Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?”
- NLT The people asked, “Is he planning to commit suicide? What does he mean, ‘You cannot come 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
The Jews wonder if Jesus means to kill Himself, since He says where He goes they cannot come. They again misread His words about returning to the Father.
Overview
Misunderstanding Jesus' reference to His departure, the leaders speculate He might be contemplating suicide. Their confusion, marked by irony, shows their inability to grasp spiritual realities. Far from taking His own life in despair, Jesus would lay it down willingly for the salvation of sinners and rise again to the Father.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- John 8:52“Now we know that You have a demon!” declared the Jews. “Abraham died, and so did the prophets, yet You say that anyone who keeps Your word will never taste death.
- John 8:48The Jews answered Him, “Are we not right to say that You are a Samaritan and You have a demon?”
- Ps 22:6But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people.
- Ps 123:4We have endured much scorn from the arrogant, much contempt from the proud.
- John 10:20Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?”
- John 7:20“You have a demon,” the crowd replied. “Who is trying to kill You?”
- Heb 12:3Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
- Heb 13:13Therefore let us go to Him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace He bore.
- John 7:35At this, the Jews said to one another, “Where does He intend to go that we will not find Him? Will He go where the Jews are dispersed among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?
- Ps 31:18May lying lips be silenced—lips that speak with arrogance against the righteous, full of pride and contempt.
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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 8:22 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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