"Come and See": A Web Commentary on the Gospel of John: Section 6 Jesus and the Sabbath

Section 6.3: Jesus Answers His Accusers: Witnesses to Jesus and his work (Jn 5.31-47)

'³¹If I bear witness about myself, my witness is not true. ³²But there is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the witness that he bears about me is true. ³³You yourselves sent off to John and he has borne witness to the truth. (³⁴I on the other hand do not receive witness from any mortal, but I say these things so that you may be saved.) ³⁵He was a burning and shining lamp -- for a short time you wanted to rejoice in his light.

'³⁶But I have a better witness than John: the very deeds that the Father has given me to accomplish. The deeds themselves that I do bear witness about me, that the Father has sent me. ³⁷And the Father who sent me himself has born witness about me. You have not ever heard his voice nor seen his appearance, ³⁸and you do not have his word abiding in you because you do not trust in the one whom he sent.

³⁹You search the Scriptures because you imagine that you will have everlasting life in them -- they are indeed bearing witness to me ⁴⁰yet you do not want to come to me to have life! ⁴¹I do not accept honour from mortals, ⁴²but I understand you: you do not have the love of God in yourselves. ⁴³I have come in my Father's name and you do not accept me but if another comes in his own name, you will accept him. ⁴⁴How can you have faith (ortrust) when you accept honour from one another and do not seek the honour that comes from God alone?

⁴⁵Don't think that I will be your accuser to my Father! Your accuser is Moses, in whom you have placed your hopes. ⁴⁶For if you trusted Moses, you would trust me, for he wrote about me. ⁴⁷But if you do not trust in his writings, how will you trust in my words?

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