translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: JHN

label: NET study note

text: The Mount of Olives is a hill running north to south about 1.8 mi (3 km) long, lying east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. It was named for the large number of olive trees that grew on it.


text: See the note on Pharisees in 1:24 .


text: An allusion to Lev 20:10 and Deut 22:22-24 .


text: The accusers themselves subtly misrepresented the law. The Mosaic law stated that in the case of adultery, both the man and woman must be put to death ( Lev 20:10 , Deut 22:22 ), but they mentioned only such women .


text: This is a parenthetical note by the author of 7:53 – 8:11 .


text: Woman was a polite form of address (see BDAG 208-9 s.v. γυνή 1), similar to “Madam” or “Ma’am” used in English in different regions.


text: The theory proposed by F. J. A. Hort ( The New Testament in the Original Greek, vol. 2, Introduction; Appendix , 87-88), that the backdrop of 8:12 is the lighting of the candelabra in the court of women, may offer a plausible setting to the proclamation by Jesus that he is the light of the world . The last time that Jesus spoke in the narrative (assuming 7:53-8:11 is not part of the original text, as the textual evidence suggests) is in 7:38 , where he was speaking to a crowd of pilgrims in the temple area. This is where he is found in the present verse, and he may be addressing the crowd again. Jesus’ remark has to be seen in view of both the prologue ( John 1:4, 5 ) and the end of the discourse with Nicodemus ( John 3:19-21 ). The coming of Jesus into the world provokes judgment: A choosing up of sides becomes necessary. The one who comes to the light, that is, who follows Jesus, will not walk in the darkness. The one who refuses to come, will walk in the darkness. In this contrast, there are only two alternatives. So it is with a person’s decision about Jesus. Furthermore, this serves as in implicit indictment of Jesus’ opponents, who still walk in the darkness, because they refuse to come to him. This sets up the contrast in chap. between the man born blind, who receives both physical and spiritual sight, and the Pharisees ( John 9:13, 15, 16 ) who have physical sight but remain in spiritual darkness.


text: Compare the charge You testify about yourself; your testimony is not true! to Jesus’ own statement about his testimony in 5:31 .


text: You people do not know where I came from or where I am going. The ignorance of the religious authorities regarding Jesus’ origin works on two levels at once: First, they thought Jesus came from Galilee (although he really came from Bethlehem in Judea) and second, they did not know that he came from heaven (from the Father), and this is where he would return. See further John 7:52 .


text: What is the meaning of Jesus’ statement “ I do not judge anyone ”? It is clear that Jesus did judge (even in the next verse). The point is that he didn’t practice the same kind of judgment that the Pharisees did. Their kind of judgment was condemnatory. They tried to condemn people. Jesus did not come to judge the world, but to save it ( 3:17 ). Nevertheless, and not contradictory to this, the coming of Jesus did bring judgment, because it forced people to make a choice. Would they accept Jesus or reject him? Would they come to the light or shrink back into the darkness? As they responded, so were they judged – just as 3:19-21 previously stated. One’s response to Jesus determines one’s eternal destiny.


text: An allusion to Deut 17:6 .


text: If you knew me you would know my Father too. Jesus’ reply is based on his identity with the Father (see also John 1:18; 14:9 ).


text: This is a parenthetical note by the author.


text: They did not understand…about his Father is a parenthetical note by the author. This type of comment, intended for the benefit of the reader, is typical of the “omniscient author” convention adopted by the author, who is writing from a postresurrection point of view. He writes with the benefit of later knowledge that those who originally heard Jesus’ words would not have had.


text: Jesus’ point is that while a slave may be part of a family or household, the slave is not guaranteed a permanent place there, while a son , as a descendant or blood relative, will always be guaranteed a place in the family ( remains forever ).


text: We were not born as a result of immorality! is ironic, because Jesus’ opponents implied that it was not themselves but Jesus who had been born as a result of immoral behavior. This shows they did not know Jesus’ true origin and were not aware of the supernatural events surrounding his birth. The author does not even bother to refute the opponents’ suggestion but lets it stand, assuming his readers will know the true story.


text: I am! is an explicit claim to deity. Although each occurrence of the phrase “I am” in the Fourth Gospel needs to be examined individually in context to see if an association with Exod 3:14 is present, it seems clear that this is the case here (as the response of the Jewish authorities in the following verse shows).


text: Jesus’ Jewish listeners understood his claim to deity, rejected it, and picked up stones to throw at him for what they considered blasphemy.