Then after these things happened, Jesus traveled in Galilee [only], for He did not want to move around in Judea because the Jews [there] were trying to kill Him.

Then Jesus' [half-] brothers said to Him, "You should leave here and go to Judea so your disciples [there] can see the [supernatural] deeds you are performing.

For even Jesus' [half-] brothers did not believe in Him [i.e., at that time].

So, Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come [i.e., to be revealed to the world as its Savior], but it is always your time [i.e., they could go to the festival anytime without rousing opposition].

Then after saying these things, Jesus remained in Galilee [i.e., for awhile longer. See next verse].

But after His [half-] brothers had gone up to the Festival, Jesus also went up, but secretly instead of openly.

But when the Festival was about half over, Jesus went up into the Temple and began teaching.

So, Jesus answered them, "What I am teaching is not mine, but [it belongs] to Him who sent me [i.e., to God].

Jesus answered them, "I performed one [miraculous] deed and you were all amazed by it [i.e., the healing of the crippled man on the Sabbath day. See 5:1-9].

Some of the people of Jerusalem said [about Jesus], "Is not this person the one they are trying to kill?

As Jesus was teaching in the Temple, He spoke out, and said, "You people [think you] know who I am and where I come from. I have not come on my own authority, but God, who sent me, is true and you do not know Him.

Then they [i.e., the authorities] tried to arrest Jesus, but no one laid a hand on Him because His time had not yet come.

Therefore, Jesus said, "I will be with you for a little while longer, then I will go to the Father who sent me.

Now on the last and greatest day of the Festival [of Tabernacles], Jesus stood up and spoke out, "If anyone is thirsty he should come to me for a drink.

Now He said this about the Holy Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive [See Acts 2:38]. For [at that time] the Holy Spirit had not yet been given, since Jesus had not yet received splendor [in heaven].

So, a division arose among people in the crowd over Jesus.

So, [when] the Temple guards [See verse 32] returned to the leading priests and Pharisees, they were asked, "Why did you not bring Jesus here?"

[Now] Nicodemus (being a leading Pharisee, and the one who went to talk to Jesus one night), said to them,

but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. [Note: This was located on a slope just east of Jerusalem].

Then early [the next] morning Jesus went into the Temple again. All the people gathered around Him and He sat down and began teaching them.

They said to Jesus, "This woman was caught in the very act of sexual immorality.

They said this to test Him, in order to have a charge to bring against Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote [something] on the ground [i.e., in the dirt] with His finger.

And when they heard [what He had said], they [all] left, one at a time, beginning with the oldest men. So, Jesus was left alone with the woman [still standing] there where she was.

So, Jesus stood up [again] and said to her, "[My dear] woman, where are the men? Did not any of them [stay to] condemn you?"

She replied, "No sir, no one did." Then Jesus said, "[Well], I do not condemn you either. Go on your way and from now on, do not sin anymore."}}

So, Jesus spoke to them again [i.e., to the Jewish authorities. See 7:45], saying, "I am the light of the world. The person who becomes my follower will never live in [spiritual] darkness, but have the light of [i.e., for his] life [i.e., followers of Jesus will not live in error and sin but in truth and righteousness]."

Jesus replied to them, "Even if I do give testimony about myself, it is [still] true, because I know where I came from and where I am going. But you people do not know where I came from or where I am going.

So, the Jewish authorities said to Him, "Where is your father?" Jesus answered, "You people do not know me or my Father. If you [did] know me, you would know my Father also."

Jesus spoke these words in the treasury [area of the Temple]. And no one arrested Him because His time had not yet come [i.e., to be turned over to the authorities and killed].

Jesus again said to them, "I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die [condemned] in your sins. You cannot go where I am going."

Jesus replied, "You people are from below [i.e., from the earthly realm]; I am from above [i.e., from the heavenly realm]. You belong to this world; I do not belong to this world.

So, they said to Him, "Who are you?" Jesus answered, "Why am I even speaking to you at all? [Note: The Greek words of this difficult passage are not real clear]

The people [who heard this] did not understand that Jesus was speaking to them about the Father.

So, Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of man [i.e., to crucify Him], then you will know that I am [the Messiah] and that I do not do anything on my own authority, but I speak [only] those things that the Father has taught me.

Then Jesus said to those Jews who had believed [in Him], "If you people continue [obeying] my message, then you are truly my disciples.

Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

They answered Him, "Our forefather was Abraham." Jesus replied to them, "If you were Abraham's descendants, you would do the [kinds of] deeds that Abraham did.

Jesus replied, "If God were [truly] your Father you would love me, because I came from God to be here. For I did not come on my own authority, but God sent me.

The Jews answered and said to Jesus, "Were we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan [See note on 4:9], and are dominated by an evil spirit?"

Jesus answered, "I am not dominated by an evil spirit. But I give honor to my Father and you people dishonor me.

Jesus answered them, "If I were to honor myself, that honor would be worthless. [But] it is my Father who honors me [and] you say He is your God.

Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I tell you, before Abraham was born, I am." [Note: The words "I am" were probably construed as a reference to being Deity. See Ex. 3:14].

So, they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself [or "was hidden," suggesting a miraculous departure] and left the Temple [area].

As Jesus was walking along He saw a man [who had been] blind from birth.

Jesus answered, "[It was] neither his sin nor his parents' [sin], but [it happened] so that the deeds of God could be seen in his life.

He answered, "That man called Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes; then He said to me, 'Go to Siloam and wash [yourself].' So, I went and washed and my sight was [miraculously] restored."

Now it was the Sabbath day when Jesus had made the mud and restored the man's sight.

His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities who had already decided that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Christ would be expelled from the synagogue.

[When] Jesus heard that they had thrown the beggar out, He found him and asked him, "Do you believe in the Son of man?"

Jesus said to him, "You have seen Him and He is the One who is talking with you."

And the man said, "Lord, I believe." And he knelt in front of Jesus [i.e., in reverence].

And Jesus said, "I came to this world to judge [it], so that people who can not see [spiritually] will [be able to] see; and those who [think they can] see [spiritually] will become blind."

Some Pharisees, who were with Jesus, heard [Him say] these things, and replied, "Are we blind, too?"

Jesus said to them, "If you were [really] blind [i.e., unable to see spiritually], you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim, 'We can see [fine],' you remain guilty of sin."

But the One [i.e., Jesus is referring to Himself] who enters [it] through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep [Note: "Sheep" in this section refers to Jesus' followers].

Jesus told them this parable [i.e., a brief story to illustrate his teaching] but they did not understand what it meant.

So, Jesus said to them again, "Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep [i.e., to enter the corral].

Jesus was walking in the Temple [area] in "Solomon's Portico" [Note: This was a large covered area, with rows of columns, on the outside of the Temple enclosure].

Jesus answered them, "I did tell you, but you would not believe me. The [miraculous] deeds that I am doing in my Father's name [i.e., by the Father's authority] testify about me.

Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many good deeds [i.e., miracles], performed through the Father. Which one of them are you stoning me for?"

Jesus replied to them, "Is it not written in your law [Psa. 82:6], 'I said, you people are gods'?

Then Jesus again went across [to the east side of] the Jordan River, to the place where John had first immersed people, and stayed there.

So, many people there believed in Jesus.

But when Jesus heard this, He said, "This illness will not result in [his] death, but was intended to bring honor to God, so that the Son of God would be honored by it."

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister [Mary] and [her brother] Lazarus.

Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in a day? [i.e., hours of daylight]. If a person walks during daylight, he will not stumble because he can see [by] the sun's light.

But if he walks at night he [might] stumble, because there is no light [to see by]. [Note: These words have a figurative meaning as Jesus is speaking about His mission in life].

Now Jesus had been talking about Lazarus' death, but the disciples thought He was referring to normal sleep.

So, Jesus said plainly, "Lazarus is dead.

Then Thomas, which means, "The Twin," said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go too, so we can die with Him." [i.e., by being stoned to death with Jesus. See 11:8].

So, when Jesus arrived, He found out that Lazarus had already been in his grave [i.e., a cave-like tomb] for four days.

So, when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went [out to the edge of town. See verse 30] to meet Him, but Mary [just] sat at home [i.e., probably grief-stricken].

Then Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if [only] you had been here, my brother would not have died.

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again [from the dead]."

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; the person who believes in me will live on, even though he dies [physically].

And when Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Jesus.

(Now Jesus had not yet arrived in town, but was still at the place where Martha had met Him [i.e., probably on the road near the edge of town]).

So, when Mary arrived at where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell down at His feet and said, "Lord, if [only] you had been here, my brother would not have died."

When Jesus saw her and her Jewish friends, who had come with her, crying, He felt distressed in His spirit and [visibly] troubled [Note: This last word means to shake with emotion, and seems to have been caused by His deep sympathy for these grieving people],

Jesus shed tears.

So, Jesus again felt distressed within Himself [as He] went to the grave site, which was a cave with a stone [slab] across its entrance.

Jesus said, "You people, take the stone away." [But] Martha, the dead man's sister, said to Jesus, "Lord, his body is decomposing by now, for he has been dead four days."

Jesus replied to her, "Did I not tell you that you would see God's glory [i.e., a miraculous resurrection. See verses 22-27] if you believed?"

So, they removed the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me. [Note: Jesus had already prayed for and been assured of Lazarus' resurrection].

[Immediately] the man who had died came out [of the cave] with his hands and feet [still] wrapped in bandages, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to his Jewish friends, "Unwrap him and let him go."

When many of Mary's Jewish friends, who had come to console her, saw what Jesus had done, they believed in Him.

But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.

Now he did not say this on his own [i.e., he was not aware of the significance of his words], but since he was head priest that year, he was prophesying [i.e., predicting] that Jesus should die for the nation.

So, from that day onward, the Jewish authorities began plotting [how] to kill Jesus.

So, Jesus stopped traveling publicly among the Jews [in Judea], but left there and went to a district near the desert, to a town called Ephraim, where He remained with His disciples. [Note: Ephraim was a small town about

So, they began looking for Jesus and saying among themselves, as they gathered in the Temple, "What do you think? He will not attend the Festival, will he?"

Now the leading priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where Jesus was, he was to report it, so they could arrest Him.

So, six days before the Passover Festival [began], Jesus went to Bethany, where Lazarus lived. He was the man Jesus [had] raised from the dead.

There Mary and Martha prepared a meal for Jesus. Martha served it while Lazarus was among those who reclined at the table with Him. [Note: See Matt. 23:6].

Then Mary took about a pint of expensive, aromatic perfume; [it was] genuine nard [Note: This was a sweet-smelling herb] and poured [some of] it on Jesus' feet and wiped them with her hair. The [whole] house was filled with the fragrant scent of the perfume.

But one of Jesus' disciples named Judas Iscariot, who later turned Him over [i.e., to the Jewish authorities], said,

So, Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep [the rest of] it for [use on] the day of my burial.

When a large crowd of Jews learned that Jesus was there [in Bethany], they came not only because of Him, but also to see Lazarus whom He had raised from the dead.

for because of him [i.e., his miraculous resurrection], many of the Jews rejected the priests' leadership and believed in Jesus.

On the next day a large crowd that had come [to Jerusalem] for the Passover Festival heard that Jesus [also] was coming to Jerusalem.