John 7:35

John 7:35, in plain English

The leaders are confused. They wonder if Jesus is going to teach the Greeks scattered abroad. They meant it as a dismissal, but they were accidentally predicting the future.

Why it's here

One of the most ironic moments in the Gospels. They are mocking the idea of Jesus going to the Gentiles, not knowing that is exactly what will happen through His followers.

Who's speaking

The Jewish leaders talk among themselves, trying to figure out Jesus' mysterious words.

Where it sits in the story

God has a sense of irony. The very thing the leaders mocked would become the defining story of Christianity: Jesus going to the nations. Sometimes the people who think they understand the least say more than they know.

The scholarly reading

The Jewish leaders misinterpret Jesus' words, speculating He might go to the diaspora (diaspora tōn Hellēnōn) to teach Greeks, ironically foreshadowing the Gentile mission of the early church.

Language and setting

The dramatic irony is profound: their misguided guess about Jesus going to the Greeks will be fulfilled through the church's mission. What they intended as a dismissive joke became prophetic truth.

Voice

The Jewish leaders speculate among themselves about Jesus' cryptic words, inadvertently prophesying the spread of the Gospel to the Gentiles.

Significance

In trying to mock Jesus' words, the leaders accidentally prophesy the future of Christianity. Jesus will indeed go to the Greeks, not in person but through His church. God turns their scorn into prophecy.

33So Jesus said, “I am with you only a little while longer, and then I am going to the One who sent Me.

34You will look for Me, but you will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.”

35At this, the Jews said to one another, “Where does He intend to go that we will not find Him? Will He go where the Jews are dispersed among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks?

36What does He mean by saying, ‘You will look for Me, but you will not find Me,’ and, ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”

37On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.

Read all of John 7 — Jesus appears at the Festival of Tabernacles and divides the crowd. Some say he's a prophet, some say he's the Messiah, and some want him arrested.