Bible in 90 Days Plan

¹Now the Festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching.

²The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to put Him to death; for they were afraid of the people [who listened devotedly to His teaching, and who respected His spiritual wisdom].

³Then Satan entered Judas, the one called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve [disciples].

⁴And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him and hand Him over to them.

⁵They were delighted and agreed with him to give him money.

⁶So he consented, and began looking for a good opportunity to betray Jesus to them [at a time when He was] separated from the crowd [because the people might riot or stop them from seizing Him].

⁷Then came the preparation day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.

⁸So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover meal for us, so that we may eat it."

⁹They asked Him, "Where do You want us to prepare it?"

¹⁰He replied, "When you have entered the city, a man carrying an earthen jar of water will meet you; follow him into the house that he enters.

¹¹And say to the owner of the house, 'The Teacher asks, "Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?"'

¹²Then he will show you a large upstairs room, furnished [with carpets and dining couches]; prepare the meal there."

¹³They left and found it just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁴When the hour [for the meal] had come, Jesus reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him.

¹⁵He said to them, "I have earnestly wanted to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;

¹⁶for I say to you, I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God."

¹⁷And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, "Take this and share it among yourselves;

¹⁸for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes."

¹⁹And when He had taken bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

²⁰And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant [ratified] in My blood.

²¹But listen, the hand of the one betraying Me is with Mine on the table.

²²For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe (judgment is coming) to that man by whom He is betrayed and handed over!"

²³And they began to discuss among themselves which one of them it might be who was going to do this.

²⁴Now a dispute also arose among them as to which of them was regarded to be the greatest.

²⁵Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles have absolute power and lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called 'Benefactors.'

²⁶But it is not to be this way with you; on the contrary, the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest [and least privileged], and the [one who is the] leader, like the servant.

²⁷For who is the greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸"You are those who have remained and have stood by Me in My trials;

²⁹and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you [the privilege]

³⁰that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

³¹"Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan has demanded permission to sift [all of] you like grain;

³²but I have prayed [especially] for you [Peter], that your faith [and confidence in Me] may not fail; and you, once you have turned back again [to Me], strengthen and support your brothers [in the faith]."

³³And Peter said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death!"

³⁴Jesus said, "I say to you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will [utterly] deny three times that you know Me."

³⁵And He said to them, "When I sent you out without a money belt and [provision] bag and [extra] sandals, did you lack anything?" They answered, "Nothing."

³⁶Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money belt is to take it along, and also his [provision] bag, and he who has no sword is to sell his coat and buy one.

³⁷For I tell you that this [Scripture] which is written must be completed and fulfilled in Me: 'And He was counted with the criminals'; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment [and is settled]."

³⁸They said, "Lord, look, here are two swords." And He said to them, "It is enough."

³⁹And He came out and went, as was His habit, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed Him.

⁴⁰When He arrived at the place [called Gethsemane], He said to them, "Pray continually that you may not fall into temptation."

⁴¹And He withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed,

⁴²saying, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup [of divine wrath] from Me; yet not My will, but [always] Yours be done."

⁴³Now an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.

⁴⁴And being in agony [deeply distressed and anguished; almost to the point of death], He prayed more intently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down on the ground.

⁴⁵When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow,

⁴⁶and He said to them, "Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not fall into temptation."

⁴⁷While He was still speaking, a crowd came, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve [disciples], was leading the way for them. He approached Jesus to kiss Him.

⁴⁸And Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"

⁴⁹When those who were around Him saw what was about to happen, they said, "Lord, should we strike with the sword?"

⁵⁰And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

⁵¹But Jesus replied, "Stop! No more of this." And He touched the ear and healed him.

⁵²Then Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders [of the Sanhedrin] who had come out against Him, "Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against a robber?

⁵³Day after day when I was with you in the temple, you did not lay hands on Me; but this hour and the power and authority of darkness are yours."

⁵⁴Then they seized Him, and led Him away and brought Him to the [elegant] house of the [Jewish] high priest. And Peter was following at a [safe] distance.

⁵⁵After they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat among them.

⁵⁶And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking intently at him, said, "This man was with Him too."

⁵⁷But Peter denied it, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him!"

⁵⁸A little later someone else saw him and said, "You are one of them too." But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"

⁵⁹After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, "This man was with Him, for he is a Galilean too."

⁶⁰But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are talking about." Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed.

⁶¹The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, "Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times."

⁶²And he went out and wept bitterly [deeply grieved and distressed].

⁶³Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking and ridiculing Him [and treating Him with contempt] and beating Him.

⁶⁴They blindfolded Him and asked, "Prophesy, who is it that struck You?"

⁶⁵And they were saying many other [evil and slanderous] things against Him, blaspheming [speaking sacrilegiously and abusively about] Him.

⁶⁶When day came, the Council of the elders of the people (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) assembled, both chief priests and scribes; and they led Jesus away to the council chamber, saying,

⁶⁷"If You are the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), tell us." But He said to them, "If I tell you, you will not believe [what I say],

⁶⁸and if I ask a question, you will not answer.

⁶⁹But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God."

⁷⁰And they all said, "Are You the Son of God, then?" He replied, "It is just as you say."

⁷¹Then they asked, "What further need of testimony do we have? For we ourselves have heard it from His own mouth."

¹Then the whole assembly got up and brought Him before Pilate.

²They began to accuse Jesus, asserting, "We found this Man misleading and perverting our nation and forbidding us to pay taxes to Caesar, and claiming that He Himself is Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), a King."

³So Pilate asked Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" And He answered him, "It is just as you say."

⁴Then Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowds, "I find no guilt in this Man."

⁵But they were insistent and said, "He stirs up the people [to rebel], teaching throughout Judea, starting from Galilee even as far as here [in Jerusalem]."

⁶When Pilate heard it, he asked whether the man was a Galilean.

⁷And when he learned that He belonged to the jurisdiction of Herod [Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee], he sent Him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

⁸When Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly pleased. He had wanted to see Him for a long time because of what he had heard about Him, and was hoping to see some [miraculous] sign [even something spectacular] done by Him.

⁹And he questioned Him at some length, but Jesus made no reply.

¹⁰The chief priests and the scribes were standing there, continually accusing Him heatedly.

¹¹And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking and ridiculing Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate.

¹²Now that very day Herod and Pilate became friends with each other—before this they had been enemies.

¹³Pilate summoned the chief priests and the rulers and the people,

¹⁴and said to them, "You brought this man before me as one who corrupts and incites the people to rebellion. After examining Him before you, I have found no guilt in this Man regarding the charges which you make against Him.

¹⁵No, nor has Herod, for he sent Him back to us; and indeed, He has done nothing to deserve death.

¹⁶Therefore I will punish Him [to teach Him a lesson] and release Him."

¹⁷[Now he was obligated to release to them one prisoner at the Feast.]

¹⁸But they [loudly] shouted out all together, saying, "Away with this Man, and release Barabbas to us!"

¹⁹(He was one who had been thrown into prison for an insurrection that happened in the city, and for murder.)

²⁰Pilate addressed them again, wanting to release Jesus,

²¹but they kept shouting out, "Crucify, crucify Him!"

²²A third time he said to them, "Why, what wrong has He done? I have found no guilt [no crime, no offense] in Him demanding death; therefore I will punish Him [to teach Him a lesson] and release Him."

²³But they were insistent and unrelenting, demanding with loud voices that Jesus be crucified. And their voices began to prevail and accomplish their purpose.

²⁴Pilate pronounced sentence that their demand be granted.

²⁵And he released the man they were asking for who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, but he handed over Jesus to their will.

²⁶When they led Him away, they seized a man, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in [to the city] from the country, and placed on him the cross to carry behind Jesus.

²⁷Following Him was a large crowd of the people, including women who were mourning and wailing for Him.

²⁸But Jesus, turning toward them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.

²⁹For behold, the days are coming when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not given birth, and the breasts that have never nursed.'

³⁰Then they will begin to say to the mountains, 'Fall on us!' and to the hills, 'Cover us!'

³¹ For if they do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

³²Two others also, who were criminals, were being led away to be executed with Him.

³³When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and one on the left.

³⁴And Jesus was saying, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." And they cast lots, dividing His clothes among themselves.

³⁵Now the people stood by, watching; but even the rulers ridiculed and sneered at Him, saying, "He saved others [from death]; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed) of God, His Chosen One."

³⁶The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him and [cruelly] offering Him sour wine,

³⁷and sarcastically saying, "If you are [really] the King of the Jews, save Yourself [from death]!"

³⁸Now there was also an inscription above Him: "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."

³⁹One of the criminals who had been hanged [on a cross beside Him] kept hurling abuse at Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us [from death]!"

⁴⁰But the other one rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?

⁴¹We are suffering justly, because we are getting what we deserve for what we have done; but this Man has done nothing wrong."

⁴²And he was saying, "Jesus, [please] remember me when You come into Your kingdom!"

⁴³Jesus said to him, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."

⁴⁴It was now about the sixth hour (noon), and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.),

⁴⁵because the sun was obscured; and the veil [of the Holy of Holies] of the temple was torn in two [from top to bottom].

⁴⁶And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit!" Having said this, He breathed His last.

⁴⁷Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, "Certainly this Man was innocent."

⁴⁸All the crowds who had gathered for this spectacle, when they saw what had happened, began to return [to their homes], beating their breasts [as a sign of mourning or repentance].

⁴⁹And all His acquaintances and the women who had accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, watching these things.

⁵⁰A man named Joseph, who was a member of the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), a good and honorable man

⁵¹(he had not consented to the Council's plan and action) a man from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who was waiting for and expecting the kingdom of God;

⁵²this man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

⁵³And [after receiving permission] he took it down and wrapped it in a linen [burial] cloth and laid Him in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had yet been laid.

⁵⁴It was the day of preparation [for the Sabbath], and the Sabbath was dawning.

⁵⁵Now the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed [closely], and saw the tomb and how His body was laid.

⁵⁶Then they went back and prepared spices and ointments and sweet-smelling herbs. And on the Sabbath they rested in accordance with the commandment [forbidding work].

¹But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, the women went to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared [to finish anointing the body].

²And they found the [large, circular] stone rolled back from the tomb,

³but when they went inside, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

⁴While they were perplexed and wondering about this, suddenly, two men in dazzling clothing stood near them;

⁵and as the women were terrified and were bowing their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why are you looking for the living One among the dead?

⁶He is not here, but has risen. Remember how He told you, while He was still in Galilee,

⁷saying that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise [from death to life]."

⁸And they remembered His words,

⁹and after returning from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven [apostles] and to all the rest.

¹⁰Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna [the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward] and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles.

¹¹But their report seemed to them like idle talk and nonsense, and they would not believe them.

¹²But Peter got up and ran to the tomb. Stooping [at the small entrance] and looking in, he saw only the linen wrappings; and he went away, wondering about what had happened.

¹³And then, that very day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem.

¹⁴And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place.

¹⁵While they were talking and discussing it, Jesus Himself came up and began walking with them.

¹⁶But their eyes were [miraculously] prevented from recognizing Him.

¹⁷Then Jesus asked them, "What are you discussing with one another as you walk along?" And they stood still, looking brokenhearted.

¹⁸One of them, named Cleopas, answered Him, "Are you the only stranger visiting Jerusalem who is unaware of the things which have happened here in these [recent] days?"

¹⁹He asked, "What things?" And they replied, "The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet powerful in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people,

²⁰and how the chief priests and our rulers handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and crucified Him.

²¹But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel and set our nation free. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened.

²²And also some of the women among us shocked us. They were at the tomb early in the morning,

²³and they did not find His body. Then they came back, saying that they had even seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive!

²⁴Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women had said, but they did not see Him."

²⁵Then Jesus said to them, "O foolish men, and slow of heart to trust and believe in everything that the prophets have spoken!

²⁶Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and [only then to] enter His glory?"

²⁷Then beginning with Moses and [throughout] all the [writings of the] prophets, He explained and interpreted for them the things referring to Himself [found] in all the Scriptures.

²⁸Then they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as if He were going farther.

²⁹But they urged Him [not to go on], saying, "Stay with us, because it is almost evening, and the day has just about ended." So He went inside to stay with them.

³⁰And it happened that as He reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them.

³¹Then their eyes were [suddenly] opened [by God] and they [clearly] recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight.

³²They said to one another, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He was talking with us on the road and opening the Scriptures to us?"

³³They got up that very hour and went back to Jerusalem, and found the eleven [apostles] gathered together and those who were with them,

³⁴saying, "The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon [Peter]!"

³⁵They began describing in detail what had happened on the road, and how Jesus was recognized by them when He broke the bread.

³⁶While they were talking about this, Jesus Himself [suddenly] stood among them and said to them, "Peace be to you."

³⁷But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a spirit.

³⁸And He said, "Why are you troubled, and why are doubts rising in your hearts?

³⁹Look at [the marks in] My hands and My feet, [and see] that it is I Myself. Touch Me and see; a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have."

⁴⁰After saying this, He showed them His hands and His feet.

⁴¹While they still did not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?"

⁴²They gave Him a piece of broiled fish,

⁴³and He took it and ate it in front of them.

⁴⁴Then He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you, everything which has been written about Me in the Law of Moses and the [writings of the] Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."

⁴⁵Then He opened their minds to [help them] understand the Scriptures,

⁴⁶and said, "And so it is written, that the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed) would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,

⁴⁷and that repentance [necessary] for forgiveness of sins would be preached in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

⁴⁸You are witnesses of these things.

⁴⁹Listen carefully: I am sending the Promise of My Father [the Holy Spirit] upon you; but you are to remain in the city [of Jerusalem] until you are clothed (fully equipped) with power from on high."

⁵⁰Then He led them out as far as Bethany, and lifted up His hands and blessed them.

⁵¹While He was blessing them, He left them and was taken up into heaven.

⁵²And they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy [fully understanding that He lives and that He is the Son of God];

⁵³and they were continually in the temple blessing and praising God.

¹In the beginning [before all time] was the Word ( Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself.

²He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God.

³All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him not even one thing was made that has come into being.

⁴In Him was life [and the power to bestow life], and the life was the Light of men.

⁵The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it].

⁶There came a man commissioned and sent from God, whose name was John.

⁷This man came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe [in Christ, the Light] through him.

⁸John was not the Light, but came to testify about the Light.

⁹There it was—the true Light [the genuine, perfect, steadfast Light] which, coming into the world, enlightens everyone.

¹⁰He (Christ) was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him.

¹¹He came to that which was His own [that which belonged to Him—His world, His creation, His possession], and those who were His own [people—the Jewish nation] did not receive and welcome Him.

¹²But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the right [the authority, the privilege] to become children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name—

¹³who were born, not of blood [natural conception], nor of the will of the flesh [physical impulse], nor of the will of man [that of a natural father], but of God [that is, a divine and supernatural birth—they are born of God—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified].

¹⁴And the Word (Christ) became flesh, and lived among us; and we [actually] saw His glory, glory as belongs to the [One and] only begotten Son of the Father, [the Son who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, who is] full of grace and truth (absolutely free of deception).

¹⁵John testified [repeatedly] about Him and has cried out [testifying officially for the record, with validity and relevance], "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I and has priority over me, for He existed before me.'"

¹⁶For out of His fullness [the superabundance of His grace and truth] we have all received grace upon grace [spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift].

¹⁷For the Law was given through Moses, but grace [the unearned, undeserved favor of God] and truth came through Jesus Christ.

¹⁸No one has seen God [His essence, His divine nature] at any time; the [One and] only begotten God [that is, the unique Son] who is in the intimate presence of the Father, He has explained Him [and interpreted and revealed the awesome wonder of the Father].

¹⁹This is the testimony of John [the Baptist] when the Jews sent priests and Levites to him from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

²⁰And he confessed [truthfully] and did not deny [that he was only a man], but acknowledged, "I am not the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)!"

²¹They asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" And he said, "I am not." "Are you the [promised] Prophet?" And he answered, "No."

²²Then they said to him, "Who are you? Tell us, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"

²³He said, "I am the voice of one shouting in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."

²⁴Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.

²⁵They asked him, "Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"

²⁶John answered them, "I baptize [only] in water, but among you there stands One whom you do not recognize and of whom you know nothing.

²⁷It is He [the preeminent One] who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie [even as His slave]."

²⁸These things occurred in Bethany across the Jordan [at the Jordan River crossing], where John was baptizing.

²⁹The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

³⁰This is He on behalf of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I and has priority over me, for He existed before me.'

³¹I did not recognize Him [as the Messiah]; but I came baptizing in water so that He would be [publicly] revealed to Israel."

³²John gave [further] evidence [testifying officially for the record, with validity and relevance], saying, "I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him.

³³I did not recognize Him [as the Messiah], but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, 'He upon whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this One is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'

³⁴I myself have [actually] seen [that happen], and my testimony is that this is the Son of God!"

³⁵Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples,

³⁶and he looked at Jesus as He walked along, and said, "Look! The Lamb of God!"

³⁷The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.

³⁸And Jesus turned and saw them following Him, and asked them, "What do you want?" They answered Him, "Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?"

³⁹He said to them, "Come, and you will see." So they went [with Him] and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.

⁴⁰One of the two who heard what John said and [as a result] followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.

⁴¹He first looked for and found his own brother Simon and told him, "We have found the Messiah" (which translated means the Christ).

⁴²Andrew brought Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas (which is translated Peter)."

⁴³The next day Jesus decided to go into Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me [as My disciple, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher, and walking the same path of life that I walk]."

⁴⁴Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.

⁴⁵Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the One Moses in the Law and also the Prophets wrote about—Jesus from Nazareth, the son of Joseph [according to public record]."

⁴⁶Nathanael answered him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip replied, "Come and see."

⁴⁷Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Here is an Israelite indeed [a true descendant of Jacob], in whom there is no guile nor deceit nor duplicity!"

⁴⁸Nathanael said to Jesus, "How do You know [these things about] me?" Jesus answered, "Before Philip called you, when you were still under the fig tree, I saw you."

⁴⁹Nathanael answered, "Rabbi (Teacher), You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel."

⁵⁰Jesus replied, "Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe [in Me]? You will see greater things than this."

⁵¹Then He said to him, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man [the bridge between heaven and earth]."

¹On the third day there was a wedding at Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there;

²and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.

³When the wine was all gone, the mother of Jesus said to Him, " They have no more wine."

⁴Jesus said to her, "[Dear] woman, what is that to you and to Me? My time [to act and to be revealed] has not yet come."

⁵His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."

⁶Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification (ceremonial washing), containing twenty or thirty gallons each.

⁷Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the waterpots with water." So they filled them up to the brim.

⁸Then He said to them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter [of the banquet]." So they took it to him.

⁹And when the headwaiter tasted the water which had turned into wine, not knowing where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew) he called the bridegroom,

¹⁰and said to him, "Everyone else serves his best wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then he serves that which is not so good; but you have kept back the good wine until now."

¹¹This, the first of His signs (attesting miracles), Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and revealed His glory [displaying His deity and His great power openly], and His disciples believed [confidently] in Him [as the Messiah—they adhered to, trusted in, and relied on Him].

¹²After this He went down to Capernaum, He and His mother and brothers and His disciples; and they stayed there a few days.

¹³Now the Passover of the Jews was approaching, so Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

¹⁴And in the temple [enclosure] He found the people who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers sitting at their tables.

¹⁵He made a whip of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables;

¹⁶then to those who sold the doves He said, "Take these things away! Stop making My Father's house a place of commerce!"

¹⁷His disciples remembered that it is written [in the Scriptures], "Zeal (love, concern) for Your house [and its honor] will consume Me."

¹⁸Then the Jews retorted, "What sign (attesting miracle) can You show us as [proof of] your authority for doing these things?"

¹⁹Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

²⁰Then the Jews replied, "It took forty-six years to build this temple, and You will raise it up in three days?"

²¹But He was speaking of the temple which was His body.

²²So when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered what He had said. And they believed and trusted in and relied on the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

²³Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover feast, many believed in His name [identifying themselves with Him] after seeing His signs (attesting miracles) which He was doing.

²⁴But Jesus, for His part, did not entrust Himself to them, because He knew all people [and understood the superficiality and fickleness of human nature],

²⁵and He did not need anyone to testify concerning man [and human nature], for He Himself knew what was in man [in their hearts—in the very core of their being].

¹Now there was a certain man among the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler (member of the Sanhedrin) among the Jews,

²who came to Jesus at night and said to Him, "Rabbi (Teacher), we know [without any doubt] that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs [these wonders, these attesting miracles] that You do unless God is with him."

³Jesus answered him, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless a person is born again [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified], he cannot [ever] see and experience the kingdom of God."

⁴Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother's womb a second time and be born, can he?"

⁵Jesus answered, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot [ever] enter the kingdom of God.

⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh [the physical is merely physical], and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

⁷Do not be surprised that I have told you, 'You must be born again [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified].'

⁸The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."

⁹Nicodemus said to Him, "How can these things be possible?"

¹⁰Jesus replied, "You are the [great and well-known] teacher of Israel, and yet you do not know nor understand these things [from Scripture]?

¹¹I assure you and most solemnly say to you, we speak only of what we [absolutely] know and testify about what we have [actually] seen [as eyewitnesses]; and [still] you [reject our evidence and] do not accept our testimony.

¹²If I told you earthly things [that is, things that happen right here on earth] and you do not believe, how will you believe and trust Me if I tell you heavenly things?

¹³No one has gone up into heaven, but there is One who came down from heaven, the Son of Man [Himself—whose home is in heaven].

¹⁴Just as Moses lifted up the [bronze] serpent in the desert [on a pole], so must the Son of Man be lifted up [on the cross],

¹⁵so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life [after physical death, and will actually live forever].

¹⁶"For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life.

¹⁷For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him.

¹⁸Whoever believes and has decided to trust in Him [as personal Savior and Lord] is not judged [for this one, there is no judgment, no rejection, no condemnation]; but the one who does not believe [and has decided to reject Him as personal Savior and Lord] is judged already [that one has been convicted and sentenced], because he has not believed and trusted in the name of the [One and] only begotten Son of God [the One who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, the One who alone can save him].

¹⁹This is the judgment [that is, the cause for indictment, the test by which people are judged, the basis for the sentence]: the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil.

²⁰For every wrongdoer hates the Light, and does not come to the Light [but shrinks from it] for fear that his [sinful, worthless] activities will be exposed and condemned.

²¹But whoever practices truth [and does what is right—morally, ethically, spiritually] comes to the Light, so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they are—accomplished in God [divinely prompted, done with God's help, in dependence on Him]."

²²After these things Jesus and His disciples went into the land of Judea, and there He spent time with them and baptized.

²³Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was an abundance of water there; and people were coming and were being baptized—

²⁴for John had not yet been thrown into prison.

²⁵Therefore there arose a controversy between John's disciples and a Jew in regard to purification (ceremonial washing).

²⁶So they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi (Teacher), the Man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan [at the Jordan River crossing]—and to whom you have testified—look, He is baptizing too, and everyone is going to Him!"

²⁷John replied, "A man can receive nothing [he can claim nothing at all] unless it has been granted to him from heaven [for there is no other source than the sovereign will of God].

²⁸You yourselves are my witnesses that I stated, 'I am not the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed),' but, 'I have [only] been sent ahead of Him [as His appointed forerunner and messenger to announce and proclaim His coming].'

²⁹He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens to him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this pleasure and joy of mine is now complete.

³⁰He must increase [in prominence], but I must decrease.

³¹"He who comes from [heaven] above is above all others; he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks [about things] of the earth [his viewpoint and experience are earthly]. He who comes from heaven is above all.

³²What He has [actually] seen and heard, of that He testifies; and yet no one accepts His testimony [as true].

³³Whoever receives His testimony has set his seal [of approval] to this: God is true [and he knows that God cannot lie].

³⁴For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God [proclaiming the Father's own message]; for God gives the [gift of the] Spirit without measure [generously and boundlessly]!

³⁵The Father loves the Son and has given and entrusted all things into His hand.

³⁶He who believes and trusts in the Son and accepts Him [as Savior] has eternal life [that is, already possesses it]; but he who does not believe the Son and chooses to reject Him, [disobeying Him and denying Him as Savior] will not see [eternal] life, but [instead] the wrath of God hangs over him continually."

¹So when the Lord learned that the Pharisees had been told that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John

²(although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were),

³He left Judea and returned again to Galilee.

⁴Now He had to go through Samaria.

⁵So He arrived at a Samaritan town called Sychar, near the tract of land that Jacob gave to his son Joseph;

⁶and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, tired as He was from His journey, sat down by the well. It was then about the sixth hour (noon).

⁷Then a woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink"—

⁸For His disciples had gone off into the city to buy food—

⁹The Samaritan woman asked Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?" (For Jews have nothing to do with Samaritans.)

¹⁰Jesus answered her, "If you knew [about] God's gift [of eternal life], and who it is who says, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him [instead], and He would have given you living water (eternal life)."

¹¹She said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with [no bucket and rope] and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water?

¹²Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and who used to drink from it himself, and his sons and his cattle also?"

¹³Jesus answered her, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again.

¹⁴But whoever drinks the water that I give him will never be thirsty again. But the water that I give him will become in him a spring of water [satisfying his thirst for God] welling up [continually flowing, bubbling within him] to eternal life."

¹⁵The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I will not get thirsty nor [have to continually] come all the way here to draw."

¹⁶At this, Jesus said, "Go, call your husband and come back."

¹⁷The woman answered, "I do not have a husband." Jesus said to her, "You have correctly said, 'I do not have a husband';

¹⁸for you have had five husbands, and the man you are now living with is not your husband. You have said this truthfully."

¹⁹The woman said to Him, "Sir, I see that You are a prophet.

²⁰Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews say that the place where one ought to worship is in Jerusalem [at the temple]."

²¹Jesus replied, "Woman, believe Me, a time is coming [when God's kingdom comes] when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

²²You [Samaritans] do not know what you worship; we [Jews] do know what we worship, for salvation is from the Jews.

²³But a time is coming and is already here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit [from the heart, the inner self] and in truth; for the Father seeks such people to be His worshipers.

²⁴God is spirit [the Source of life, yet invisible to mankind], and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

²⁵The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ—the Anointed); when that One comes, He will tell us everything [we need to know]."

²⁶Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you, am He (the Messiah)."

²⁷Just then His disciples came, and they were surprised to find Him talking with a woman. However, no one said, "What are You asking about?" or, "Why are You talking to her?"

²⁸Then the woman left her water jar, and went into the city and began telling the people,

²⁹"Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done! Can this be the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)?"

³⁰So the people left the city and were coming to Him.

³¹Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus [to have a meal], saying, "Rabbi (Teacher), eat."

³²But He told them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about."

³³So the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought Him something to eat?"

³⁴Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to completely finish His work.

³⁵Do you not say, 'It is still four months until the harvest comes?' Look, I say to you, raise your eyes and look at the fields and see, they are white for harvest.

³⁶Already the reaper is receiving his wages and he is gathering fruit for eternal life; so that he who plants and he who reaps may rejoice together.

³⁷For in this case the saying is true, 'One [person] sows and another reaps.'

³⁸I sent you to reap [a crop] for which you have not worked. Others have worked and you have been privileged to reap the results of their work."

³⁹Now many Samaritans from that city believed in Him and trusted Him [as Savior] because of what the woman said when she testified, "He told me all the things that I have done."

⁴⁰So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they asked Him to remain with them; and He stayed there two days.

⁴¹Many more believed in Him [with a deep, abiding trust] because of His word [His personal message to them];

⁴²and they told the woman, "We no longer believe just because of what you said; for [now] we have heard Him for ourselves and know [with confident assurance] that this One is truly the Savior of [all] the world."

⁴³After the two days He went on from there into Galilee.

⁴⁴For Jesus Himself declared that a prophet has no honor in his own country.

⁴⁵So when He arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed Him, since they had seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they too came to the feast.

⁴⁶So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee, where He had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son was sick in Capernaum.

⁴⁷Having heard that Jesus had come back from Judea to Galilee, he went to meet Him and began asking Him to come down and heal his son; for he was at the point of death.

⁴⁸Then Jesus said to him, "Unless you [people] see [miraculous] signs and wonders, you [simply] will not believe."

⁴⁹The royal official pleaded with Him, "Sir, do come down [at once] before my child dies!"

⁵⁰Jesus said to him, "Go; your son lives!" The man believed what Jesus said to him and started home.

⁵¹As he was already going down [the road], his servants met him and reported that his son was living [and was healthy].

⁵²So he asked them at what time he began to get better. They said, "Yesterday during the seventh hour the fever left him."

⁵³Then the father realized that it was at that very hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son lives"; and he and his entire household believed and confidently trusted [in Him as Savior].

⁵⁴This is the second sign (attesting miracle) that Jesus performed [in Cana] after He had come from Judea to Galilee [revealing that He is the Messiah].

¹Later on there was a Jewish feast (festival), and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

²Now in Jerusalem, near the Sheep Gate, there is a pool, which is called in Hebrew (Jewish Aramaic) Bethesda, having five porticoes (alcoves, colonnades).

³In these porticoes lay a great number of people who were sick, blind, lame, withered, [waiting for the stirring of the water;

⁴for an angel of the Lord went down into the pool at appointed seasons and stirred up the water; the first one to go in after the water was stirred was healed of his disease.]

⁵There was a certain man there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.

⁶When Jesus noticed him lying there [helpless], knowing that he had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, "Do you want to get well?"

⁷The invalid answered, "Sir, I have no one to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am coming [to get into it myself], someone else steps down ahead of me."

⁸Jesus said to him, "Get up; pick up your pallet and walk."

⁹Immediately the man was healed and recovered his strength, and picked up his pallet and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath.

¹⁰So the Jews kept saying to the man who had been healed, "It is the Sabbath, and you are not permitted to pick up your pallet [because it is unlawful]."

¹¹He answered them, "The Man who healed me and gave me back my strength was the One who said to me, 'Pick up your pallet and walk.'"

¹²They asked him, "Who is the Man who told you, 'Pick up your pallet and walk'?"

¹³Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away [unnoticed] since there was a crowd in that place.

¹⁴Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "See, you are well! Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you."

¹⁵The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

¹⁶For this reason the Jews began to persecute Jesus continually because He was doing these things on the Sabbath.

¹⁷But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now [He has never ceased working], and I too am working."

¹⁸This made the Jews more determined than ever to kill Him, for not only was He breaking the Sabbath [from their viewpoint], but He was also calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

¹⁹So Jesus answered them by saying, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself [of His own accord], unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever things the Father does, the Son [in His turn] also does in the same way.

²⁰For the Father dearly loves the Son and shows Him everything that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be filled with wonder.

²¹Just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life [and allows them to live on], even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.

²²For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment [that is, the prerogative of judging] to the Son [placing it entirely into His hands],

²³so that all will give honor (reverence, homage) to the Son just as they give honor to the Father. [In fact] the one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who has sent Him.

²⁴"I assure you and most solemnly say to you, the person who hears My word [the one who heeds My message], and believes and trusts in Him who sent Me, has (possesses now) eternal life [that is, eternal life actually begins—the believer is transformed], and does not come into judgment and condemnation, but has passed [over] from death into life.

²⁵I assure you and most solemnly say to you, a time is coming and is [here] now, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear it will live.

²⁶For just as the Father has life in Himself [and is self-existent], even so He has given to the Son to have life in Himself [and be self-existent].

²⁷And He has given Him authority to execute judgment, because He is a Son of Man [sinless humanity, qualifying Him to sit in judgment over mankind].

²⁸Do not be surprised at this; for a time is coming when all those who are in the tombs will hear His voice,

²⁹and they will come out—those who did good things [will come out] to a resurrection of [new] life, but those who did evil things [will come out] to a resurrection of judgment [that is, to be sentenced].

³⁰"I can do nothing on my own initiative or authority. Just as I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just (fair, righteous, unbiased), because I do not seek My own will, but only the will of Him who sent Me.

³¹"If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not valid.

³²There is another [My Father] who testifies about Me, and I know [without any doubt] that His testimony on My behalf is true and valid.

³³You have sent [an inquiry] to John [the Baptist] and he has testified [as an eyewitness] to the truth.

³⁴But the testimony I receive is not from man [a merely human witness]; but I say these things so that you may be saved [that is, have eternal life].

³⁵John was the lamp that kept on burning and shining [to show you the way], and you were willing for a while to rejoice in his light.

³⁶But the testimony which I have is far greater than the testimony of John; for the works that the Father has given Me to finish—the very same works [that is, the miracles and proofs of My deity] that I am [now] doing—testify about Me, [by providing evidence] that the Father has sent Me.

³⁷And the Father who sent Me has Himself testified about Me. You have never heard His voice nor seen His form [His majesty and greatness—what He is like].

³⁸You do not have His word (Scripture) abiding in you [actually living in your hearts and minds], because you do not believe in Him whom He has sent.

³⁹ You search and keep on searching and examining the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and yet it is those [very Scriptures] that testify about Me;

⁴⁰and still you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.

⁴¹I do not receive glory and approval from men;

⁴²but I know you and recognize that you do not have the love of God in yourselves.

⁴³I have come in My Father's name and with His power, and you do not receive Me [because your minds are closed]; but if another comes in his own name and with no authority or power except his own, you will receive him and give your approval to an imposter.

⁴⁴How can you believe [in Me], when you [seek and] receive glory and approval from one another, and yet you do not seek the glory and approval which comes from the one and only God?

⁴⁵Do not think that I [am the One who] will accuse you before the Father. There [already] is one who accuses you: Moses, [the very one] in whom you have placed your hope [for salvation].

⁴⁶For if you believed and relied on [the Scriptures written by] Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me [personally].

⁴⁷But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

¹After this, Jesus went to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Sea of Tiberias).

²A large crowd was following Him because they had seen the signs (attesting miracles) which He continually performed on those who were sick.

³And Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down there with His disciples.

⁴Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was approaching.

⁵Jesus looked up and saw that a large crowd was coming toward Him, and He said to Philip, "Where will we buy bread for these people to eat?"

⁶But He said this to test Philip, because He knew what He was about to do.

⁷Philip answered, "Two hundred denarii (200 days' wages) worth of bread is not enough for each one to receive even a little."

⁸One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him,

⁹"There is a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many people?"

¹⁰Jesus said, "Have the people sit down [to eat]." Now [the ground] there was [covered with] an abundance of grass, so the men sat down, about5,000 in number.

¹¹Then Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to those who were seated; the same also with the fish, as much as they wanted.

¹²When they had eaten enough, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the leftover pieces so that nothing will be lost."

¹³So they gathered them up, and they filled twelve large baskets with pieces from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.

¹⁴When the people saw the sign (attesting miracle) that He had done, they began saying, "This is without a doubt the promised Prophet who is to come into the world!"

¹⁵Then Jesus, knowing that they were going to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountainside by Himself.

¹⁶When evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,

¹⁷and they got into a boat and started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It was already dark, and Jesus had still not come [back] to them.

¹⁸The sea was getting rough and rising high because a strong wind was blowing.

¹⁹Then, when they had rowed three or four miles [and were near the center of the sea], they saw Jesus walking on the sea and approaching the boat; and they were [terribly] frightened.

²⁰But Jesus said to them, "It is I (I Am); do not be afraid."

²¹Then they were willing to take Him on board the boat, and immediately the boat reached the [shore of the] land to which they were going.

²²The next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the sea realized that there had been only one small boat there, and that Jesus had not boarded the boat with His disciples, but that His disciples had gone away alone.

²³[Now some] other small boats from Tiberias had come in near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks.

²⁴So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, they boarded the small boats themselves and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

²⁵And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they asked Him, "Rabbi, when did You get here?"

²⁶Jesus answered, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, you have been searching for Me, not because you saw the signs (attesting miracles), but because you ate the loaves and were filled.

²⁷Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures [and leads] to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you; for God the Father has authorized Him and put His seal on Him."

²⁸Then they asked Him, "What are we to do, so that we may habitually be doing the works of God?"

²⁹Jesus answered, "This is the work of God: that you believe [adhere to, trust in, rely on, and have faith] in the One whom He has sent."

³⁰So they said to Him, "What sign (attesting miracle) will You do that we may see it and believe You? What [supernatural] work will You do [as proof]?

³¹Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written [in Scripture], 'He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.'"

³²Then Jesus said to them, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven.

³³For the Bread of God is He who comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world."

³⁴Then they said to Him, "Lord, always give us this bread."

³⁵Jesus replied to them, " I am the Bread of Life. The one who comes to Me will never be hungry, and the one who believes in Me [as Savior] will never be thirsty [for that one will be sustained spiritually].

³⁶But as I told you, you have seen Me and still you do not believe.

³⁷All that My Father gives Me will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, never reject anyone who follows Me].

³⁸For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.

³⁹This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but that I [give new life and] raise it up at the last day.

⁴⁰For this is My Father's will and purpose, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him [as Savior] will have eternal life, and I will raise him up [from the dead] on the last day."

⁴¹Now the Jews murmured and found fault with Him because He said, "I am the Bread that came down out of heaven."

⁴²They kept saying, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now [have the arrogance to] say, 'I have come down out of heaven'?"

⁴³So Jesus answered, "Stop murmuring among yourselves.

⁴⁴No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him [giving him the desire to come to Me]; and I will raise him up [from the dead] on the last day.

⁴⁵It is written in the prophets, 'And they will all be taught of God.' Everyone who has listened to and learned from the Father, comes to Me.

⁴⁶Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He [who was with the Father and] who is from God; He [alone] has seen the Father.

⁴⁷I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he who believes [in Me as Savior—whoever adheres to, trusts in, relies on, and has faith in Me—already] has eternal life [that is, now possesses it].

⁴⁸I am the Bread of Life [the Living Bread which gives and sustains life].

⁴⁹Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died.

⁵⁰This is the Bread that comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die.

⁵¹I am the Living Bread that came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this Bread [believes in Me, accepts Me as Savior], he will live forever. And the Bread that I will give for the life of the world is My flesh (body)."

⁵²Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, "How can this man give us His flesh to eat?"

⁵³And Jesus said to them, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood [unless you believe in Me as Savior and believe in the saving power of My blood which will be shed for you], you do not have life in yourselves.

⁵⁴The one who eats My flesh and drinks My blood [believes in Me, accepts Me as Savior] has eternal life [that is, now possesses it], and I will raise him up [from the dead] on the last day.

⁵⁵For My flesh is true [spiritual] food, and My blood is true [spiritual] drink.

⁵⁶He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood [believes in Me, accepts Me as Savior] remains in Me, and I [in the same way remain] in him.

⁵⁷Just as the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, even so the one who feeds on Me [believes in Me, accepts Me as Savior] will also live because of Me.

⁵⁸This is the Bread which came down out of heaven. It is not like [the manna that] our fathers ate and they [eventually] died; the one who eats this Bread [believes in Me, accepts Me as Savior] will live forever."

⁵⁹He said these things in a synagogue while He was teaching in Capernaum.

⁶⁰When many of His disciples heard this, they said, "This is a difficult and harsh and offensive statement. Who can [be expected to] listen to it?"

⁶¹But Jesus, aware that His disciples were complaining about it, asked them, "Does this cause you to stumble and take offense?

⁶²What then [will you think] if you see the Son of Man ascending to [the realm] where He was before?

⁶³It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh conveys no benefit [it is of no account]. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life [providing eternal life].

⁶⁴But [still] there are some of you who do not believe and have faith." For Jesus knew from the beginning who did not believe, and who would betray Him.

⁶⁵And He was saying, "This is the reason why I have told you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him [that is, unless he is enabled to do so] by the Father."

⁶⁶As a result of this many of His disciples abandoned Him, and no longer walked with Him.

⁶⁷So Jesus said to the twelve [disciples], "You do not want to leave too, do you?"

⁶⁸Simon Peter answered, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You [alone] have the words of eternal life [you are our only hope].

⁶⁹We have believed and confidently trusted, and [even more] we have come to know [by personal observation and experience] that You are the Holy One of God [the Christ, the Son of the living God]."

⁷⁰Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve [disciples]? And yet one of you is a devil (ally of Satan)."

⁷¹Now He was speaking of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, one of the twelve [disciples], was about to betray Him.

¹After this, Jesus walked [from place to place] in Galilee, for He would not walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him.

²Now the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles (Booths) was approaching.

³So His brothers said to Him, "Leave here and go to Judea, so that Your disciples [there] may also see the works that You do.

⁴No one does anything in secret when he wants to be known publicly. If You [must] do these things, show Yourself openly to the world and make Yourself known!"

⁵For not even His brothers believed in Him.

⁶So Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come; but any time is right for you.

⁷The world cannot hate you [since you are part of it], but it does hate Me because I denounce it and testify that its deeds are evil.

⁸Go up to the feast yourselves. I am not going up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come."

⁹Having said these things to them, He stayed behind in Galilee.

¹⁰But [afterward], when His brothers had gone up to the feast, He went up too, not publicly [with a caravan], but quietly [because He did not want to be noticed].

¹¹So the Jews kept looking for Him at the feast and asking, "Where is He?"

¹²There was a lot of whispered discussion and murmuring among the crowds about Him. Some were saying, "He is a good man"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He misleads the people [giving them false ideas]."

¹³Yet no one was speaking out openly and freely about Him for fear of [the leaders of] the Jews.

¹⁴When the feast was already half over, Jesus went up into the temple [court] and began to teach.

¹⁵Then the Jews were perplexed. They said, "How did this man become learned [so versed in the Scriptures and theology] without formal training?"

¹⁶Jesus answered them by saying, "My teaching is not My own, but His who sent Me.

¹⁷If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know whether the teaching is of God or whether I speak on My own accord and by My own authority.

¹⁸He who speaks on his own accord seeks glory and honor for himself. But He who seeks the glory and the honor of the One who sent Him, He is true, and there is no unrighteousness or deception in Him.

¹⁹"Did not Moses give you the Law? And yet not one of you keeps the Law. Why do you want to kill Me [for not keeping it]?"

²⁰The crowd answered, "You have a demon [You are out of Your mind]! Who wants to kill You?"

²¹Jesus replied, "I did one work, and you are all astounded.

²²For this reason Moses has given you [God's law regarding] circumcision (not that it originated with Moses, but with the patriarchs) and you circumcise a man [even] on the Sabbath.

²³If, to avoid breaking the Law of Moses, a man undergoes circumcision on the Sabbath, why are you angry with Me for making a man's whole body well on the Sabbath?

²⁴Do not judge by appearance [superficially and arrogantly], but judge fairly and righteously."

²⁵Then some of the people of Jerusalem said, "Is this not the Man they want to kill?

²⁶Look, He is speaking publicly, and they say nothing to Him! Is it possible that the rulers really know that this is the Christ?

²⁷But we know where this Man is from; whenever the Christ comes, no one will know where He is from."

²⁸Then Jesus called out as He taught in the temple, "You know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come on my own initiative [as self-appointed], but He who sent Me is true, and Him you do not know.

²⁹I know Him Myself because I am from Him [I came from His very presence] and it was He [personally] who sent Me."

³⁰So they were eager to arrest Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His time had not yet come.

³¹But many from the crowd believed in Him. And they kept saying, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs and exhibit more proofs than this Man?"

³²The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things [under their breath] about Him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent guards to arrest Him.

³³Therefore Jesus said, "For a little while longer I am [still] with you, and then I go to Him who sent Me.

³⁴You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come."

³⁵Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does this Man intend to go that we will not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion [of Jews scattered and living] among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?

³⁶What does this statement of His mean, 'You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come'?"

³⁷Now on the last and most important day of the feast, Jesus stood and called out [in a loud voice], "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink!

³⁸He who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Me], as the Scripture has said, 'From his innermost being will flow continually rivers of living water.'"

³⁹But He was speaking of the [Holy] Spirit, whom those who believed in Him [as Savior] were to receive afterward. The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (raised to honor).

⁴⁰Listening to these words, some of the people said, "This is certainly the Prophet!"

⁴¹Others said, "This is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)!" But others said, "Surely the Christ is not going to come out of Galilee, is He?

⁴²Does the Scripture not say that the Christ comes from the descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?"

⁴³So the crowd was divided because of Him.

⁴⁴Some of them wanted to arrest Him, but no one laid hands on Him.

⁴⁵Then the guards went [back] to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why did you not bring Him [here with you]?"

⁴⁶The guards replied, "Never [at any time] has a man talked the way this Man talks!"

⁴⁷Then the Pharisees said to them, "Have you also been deluded and swept off your feet?

⁴⁸Has any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in Him?

⁴⁹But this [ignorant, contemptible] crowd that does not know the Law is accursed and doomed!"

⁵⁰Nicodemus (the one who came to Jesus before and was one of them) asked,

⁵¹"Does our Law convict someone without first giving him a hearing and finding out what he is [accused of] doing?"

⁵²They responded, "Are you also from Galilee? Search [and read the Scriptures], and see [for yourself] that no prophet comes from Galilee!"

⁵³[And everyone went to his own house.

¹But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

²Early in the morning He came back into the temple [court], and all the people were coming to Him. He sat down and began teaching them.

³Now the scribes and Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery. They made her stand in the center of the court,

⁴and they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman has been caught in the very act of adultery.

⁵Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women [to death]. So what do You say [to do with her—what is Your sentence]?"

⁶They said this to test Him, hoping that they would have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and began writing on the ground with His finger.

⁷However, when they persisted in questioning Him, He straightened up and said, "He who is without [any] sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."

⁸Then He stooped down again and started writing on the ground.

⁹They listened [to His reply], and they began to go out one by one, starting with the oldest ones, until He was left alone, with the woman [standing there before Him] in the center of the court.

¹⁰Straightening up, Jesus said to her, "Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?"

¹¹She answered, "No one, Lord!" And Jesus said, "I do not condemn you either. Go. From now on sin no more."]

¹²Once more Jesus addressed the crowd. He said, " I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."

¹³Then the Pharisees told Him, "You are testifying on Your own behalf; Your testimony is not valid."

¹⁴Jesus replied, "Even if I do testify on My own behalf, My testimony is valid, because I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from or where I am going.

¹⁵You judge according to human standards [just by what you see]. I do not judge anyone.

¹⁶But even if I do judge, My judgment is true and My decision is right; for I am not alone [in making it], but I and the Father who sent Me [make the same judgment].

¹⁷Even in your own law it is written that the testimony of two persons is true [valid and admissible].

¹⁸I am One [of the Two] who testifies about Myself, and My Father who sent Me testifies about Me."

¹⁹Then the Pharisees said to Him, "Where is this Father of Yours?" Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also."

²⁰Jesus said these things in the treasury, as He taught in the temple [courtyard]; and no one seized Him, because His time had not yet come.

²¹Then He said again to them, "I am going away, and you will look for Me, and you will die [unforgiven and condemned] in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come."

²²So the Jews were asking [among themselves], "Will He kill Himself? Is that why He says, 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?"

²³He said to them, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.

²⁴That is why I told you that you will die [unforgiven and condemned] in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am the One [I claim to be], you will die in your sins."

²⁵So they said to Him, "Who are You [anyway]?" Jesus replied, "What have I been saying to you from the beginning?

²⁶I have many things to say and judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I say to the world [only] the things that I have heard from Him."

²⁷They did not realize [or have the spiritual insight to understand] that He was speaking to them about the Father.

²⁸So Jesus said, "When you lift up the Son of Man [on the cross], you will know then [without any doubt] that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own authority, but I say these things just as My Father taught Me.

²⁹And He who sent Me is [always] with Me; He has not left Me alone, because I always do what pleases Him."

³⁰As He said these things, many believed in Him.

³¹So Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, "If you abide in My word [continually obeying My teachings and living in accordance with them, then] you are truly My disciples.

³²And you will know the truth [regarding salvation], and the truth will set you free [from the penalty of sin]."

³³They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone. What do You mean by saying, 'You will be set free'?"

³⁴Jesus answered, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, everyone who practices sin habitually is a slave of sin.

³⁵Now the slave does not remain in a household forever; the son [of the master] does remain forever.

³⁶So if the Son makes you free, then you are unquestionably free.

³⁷I know that you are Abraham's descendants; yet you plan to kill Me, because My word has no place [to grow] in you [and it makes no change in your heart].

³⁸I tell the things that I have seen at My Father's side [in His very presence]; so you also do the things that you heard from your father."

³⁹They answered, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you are [truly] Abraham's children, then do the works of Abraham and follow his example.

⁴⁰But as it is, you want to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God. This is not the way Abraham acted.

⁴¹You are doing the works of your [own] father." They said to Him, "We are not illegitimate children; we have one [spiritual] Father: God."

⁴²Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father [but He is not], you would love and recognize Me, for I came from God [out of His very presence] and have arrived here. For I have not even come on My own initiative [as self-appointed], but He [is the One who] sent Me.

⁴³Why do you misunderstand what I am saying? It is because [your spiritual ears are deaf and] you are unable to hear [the truth of] My word.

⁴⁴You are of your father the devil, and it is your will to practice the desires [which are characteristic] of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks what it natural to him, for he is a liar and the father of lies and half-truths.

⁴⁵But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me [and continue in your unbelief].

⁴⁶Which one of you [has proof and] convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?

⁴⁷Whoever is of God and belongs to Him hears [the truth of] God's words; for this reason you do not hear them: because you are not of God and you are not in fellowship with Him."

⁴⁸The Jews answered Him, "Are we not right when we say You are a Samaritan and [that You] have a demon [and are under its power]?"

⁴⁹Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon. On the contrary, I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.

⁵⁰However, I am not seeking glory for Myself. There is One who seeks [glory for Me] and judges [those who dishonor Me].

⁵¹I assure you and most solemnly say to you, if anyone keeps My word [by living in accordance with My message] he will indeed never, ever see and experience death."

⁵²The Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon [and are under its power]. Abraham died, and also the prophets; yet You say, 'If anyone keeps My word, he will never, ever taste of death.'

⁵³Are You greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too! Whom do You make Yourself out to be?"

⁵⁴Jesus answered, "If I glorify Myself, My glory is [worth] nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, 'He is our God.'

⁵⁵Yet you do not know Him, but I know Him fully. If I said I did not know Him, I would be a liar like you. But I do know Him and keep His word.

⁵⁶Your father Abraham [greatly] rejoiced to see My day (My incarnation). He saw it and was delighted."

⁵⁷Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not even fifty years old, and You [claim to] have seen Abraham?"

⁵⁸Jesus replied, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, before Abraham was born, I Am."

⁵⁹So they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus concealed Himself and left the temple.

¹While He was passing by, He noticed a man [who had been] blind from birth.

²His disciples asked Him, "Rabbi (Teacher), who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?"

³Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but it was so that the works of God might be displayed and illustrated in him.

⁴We must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.

⁵As long as I am in the world, I am the Light of the world [giving guidance through My word and works]."

⁶When He had said this, He spat on the ground and made mud with His saliva, and He spread the mud [like an ointment] on the man's eyes.

⁷And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went away and washed, and came back seeing.

⁸So the neighbors, and those who used to know him as a beggar, said, "Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?"

⁹Some said, "It is he." Still others said, "No, but he looks like him." But he kept saying, "I am the man."

¹⁰So they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"

¹¹He replied, "The Man called Jesus made mud and smeared it on my eyes and told me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' So I went and washed, and I received my sight!"

¹²They asked him, "Where is He?" He said, "I do not know."

¹³Then they brought the man who was formerly blind to the Pharisees.

¹⁴Now it was on a Sabbath day that Jesus made the mud and opened the man's eyes.

¹⁵So the Pharisees asked him again how he received his sight. And he said to them, "He smeared mud on my eyes, and I washed, and now I see."

¹⁶Then some of the Pharisees said, "This Man [Jesus] is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner (a non-observant Jew) do such signs and miracles?" So there was a difference of opinion among them.

¹⁷Accordingly they said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes?" And he said, "[It must be that] He is a prophet!"

¹⁸However, the Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the man's parents.

¹⁹They asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?"

²⁰His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;

²¹but as to how he now sees, we do not know; or who has opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him [and stop asking us]; he is of age, he will speak for himself and give his own account of it."

²²His parents said this because they were afraid of [the leaders of] the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone acknowledged Jesus to be the Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue (excommunicated).

²³Because of this his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

²⁴So a second time they called the man who had been [born] blind, and said to him, "Give God glory and praise [for your sight]! We know this Man [Jesus] is a sinner [separated from God]."

²⁵Then he answered, "I do not know whether He is a sinner [separated from God]; but one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see."

²⁶So they said to him, "What did He [actually] do to you? How did He open your eyes?"

²⁷He answered, "I already told you and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again and again? Do you want to become His disciples, too?"

²⁸And [at that remark] they stormed at him and jeered, "You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses!

²⁹We know [for certain] that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, we do not know where He is from."

³⁰The man replied, "Well, this is astonishing! You do not know where He comes from, and yet He opened my eyes!

³¹We know [according to your tradition] that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone fears God and does His will, He hears him.

³²Since the beginning of time it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.

³³If this Man were not from God, He would not be able to do anything [like this because God would not hear His prayer]."

³⁴They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins [from head to foot], and you [presume to] teach us?" Then they threw him out [of the synagogue].

³⁵Jesus heard that they had put him out [of the synagogue], and finding him, He asked, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

³⁶He answered, "Who is He, Sir? Tell me so that I may believe in Him."

³⁷Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him, and [in fact] He is the one who is talking with you."

³⁸And he said, "Lord, I believe [in You and Your word]!" And he worshiped Him [with reverence and awe].

³⁹Then Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment [to separate those who believe in Me from those who reject Me—to declare judgment on those who choose to be separated from God], so that the sightless would see, and those who see would become blind."

⁴⁰Some Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, "Are we also blind?"

⁴¹Jesus said to them, "If you were blind [to spiritual things], you would have no sin [and would not be blamed for your unbelief]; but since you claim to have [spiritual] sight, [you have no excuse so] your sin and guilt remain.

¹"I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up from some other place [on the stone wall], that one is a thief and a robber.

²But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep [the protector and provider].

³The doorkeeper opens [the gate] for this man, and the sheep hear his voice and pay attention to it. And [knowing that they listen] he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out [to pasture].

⁴When he has brought all his own sheep outside, he walks on ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice and recognize his call.

⁵They will never follow a stranger, but will run away from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers."

⁶Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what He was talking about.

⁷So Jesus said again, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, I am the Door for the sheep [leading to life].

⁸All who came before Me [as false messiahs and self-appointed leaders] are thieves and robbers, but the [true] sheep did not hear them.

⁹I am the Door; anyone who enters through Me will be saved [and will live forever], and will go in and out [freely], and find pasture (spiritual security).

¹⁰The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].

¹¹ I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His [own] life for the sheep.

¹²But the hired man [who merely serves for wages], who is neither the shepherd nor the owner of the sheep, when he sees the wolf coming, deserts the flock and runs away; and the wolf snatches the sheep and scatters them.

¹³The man runs because he is a hired hand [who serves only for wages] and is not concerned about the [safety of the] sheep.

¹⁴I am the Good Shepherd, and I know [without any doubt those who are] My own and My own know Me [and have a deep, personal relationship with Me]—

¹⁵even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father—and I lay down My [very own] life [sacrificing it] for the benefit of the sheep.

¹⁶I have other sheep [beside these] that are not of this fold. I must bring those also, and they will listen to My voice and pay attention to My call, and they will become one flock with one Shepherd.

¹⁷For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My [own] life so that I may take it back.

¹⁸No one takes it away from Me, but I lay it down voluntarily. I am authorized and have power to lay it down and to give it up, and I am authorized and have power to take it back. This command I have received from My Father."

¹⁹A division [of opinion] occurred again among the Jews because of these words [of His].

²⁰Many of them said, "He has a demon and He is mad [insane—He raves and rambles]. Why listen to Him?"

²¹Others were saying, "These are not the words and thoughts of one possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"

²²At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem.

²³It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple [area] in Solomon's portico.

²⁴So the Jews surrounded Him and began saying to Him, "How long are You going to keep us in suspense? If You are [really] the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), tell us so plainly and openly."

²⁵Jesus answered them, "I have told you so, yet you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name testify concerning Me [they are My credentials and the evidence declaring who I am].

²⁶But you do not believe Me [so you do not trust and follow Me] because you are not My sheep.

²⁷The sheep that are My own hear My voice and listen to Me; I know them, and they follow Me.

²⁸And I give them eternal life, and they will never, ever [by any means] perish; and no one will ever snatch them out of My hand.

²⁹ My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater and mightier than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.

³⁰I and the Father are One [in essence and nature]."

³¹Again the Jews picked up stones to stone Him.

³²Jesus answered them, "I showed you many good works [and many acts of mercy] from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?"

³³The Jews answered Him, "We are not going to stone You for a good work, but for blasphemy, because You, a mere man, make Yourself out to be God."

³⁴Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your Law, 'I said, you are gods [human judges representing God, not divine beings]'?

³⁵If He called them gods, men to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be undone or annulled or broken),

³⁶[if that is true] then do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and set apart for Himself and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?

³⁷If I do not do the works of My Father [that is, the miracles that only God could perform], then do not believe Me.

³⁸But if I am doing them, even if you do not believe Me or have faith in Me, [at least] believe the works [that I do—admit that they are the works of God], so that you may know and keep on knowing [clearly—without any doubt] that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father [that is, I am One with Him]."

³⁹So they tried again to seize Him, but He eluded their grasp.

⁴⁰He went back again across the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing, and He was staying there.

⁴¹Many came to Him, and they were saying, "John did not perform a single sign (attesting miracle), but everything John said about this Man was true and accurate."

⁴²And many there believed and confidently trusted in Him [accepting Him as Savior, and following His teaching].