John 8:31-59

The Truth Will Set You Free

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, c "If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will d know the truth, and the truth e will set you free." 33 They answered him, f "We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, 'You will become free'?"

34 Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, g everyone who commits sin is a slave 1 to sin. 35 h The slave does not remain in the house forever; i the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet j you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 k I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard l from your father."

You Are of Your Father the Devil

39 They answered him, m "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, n "If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, 40 but now o you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth p that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. 41 You are doing the works your father did." They said to him, q "We were not born of sexual immorality. We have r one Father - even God." 42 Jesus said to them, s "If God were your Father, you would love me, for t I came from God and u I am here. v I came not of my own accord, but w he sent me. 43 x Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot y bear to hear my word. 44 z You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. a He was a murderer from the beginning, and b has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. c When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 d Whoever is of God hears the words of God. e The reason why you do not hear them is that f you are not of God."

Before Abraham Was, I Am

48 The Jews answered him, "Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and g have a demon?" 49 Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon, but h I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet i I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, j I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never k see death." 52 The Jews said to him, "Now we know that you have a demon! l Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet m you say, 'If anyone keeps my word, he will never n taste death.' 53 o Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?" 54 Jesus answered, p "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. q It is my Father who glorifies me, r of whom you say, 'He is our God.' 2 55 But s you have not known him. t I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be u a liar v like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56 w Your father Abraham x rejoiced y that he would see my day. z He saw it and was glad." 57 So the Jews said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?" 3 58 Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, a I am." 59 So b they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

  1. Cross References
    John 15:7 - 8
    If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.
    2 John 1:9
    Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.
  2. Cross References
    2 John 1:1
    The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth.
  3. Cross References
    John 8:36
    So if the Son sets you free, you will be free i...
    Romans 6:18
    And, having been set free from sin, have become...
    Romans 6:22
    But now that you have been set free from sin an...
    Romans 8:2
    For the law of the Spirit of life has set you f...
    1 Corinthians 7:22
    For he who was called in the Lord as a slave is...
    2 Corinthians 3:17
    Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spiri...
    Galatians 5:1
    For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm ...
    Galatians 5:13
    For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only ...
    James 1:25
    But the one who looks into the perfect law, the...
    James 2:12
    So speak and so act as those who are to be judg...
    1 Peter 2:16
    Live as people who are free, not using your fre...
  4. Cross References
    John 8:37
    I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you.
    John 8:39
    They answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did.
    Matthew 3:9
    And do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father,' for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.
    Luke 19:9
    And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.
    Romans 9:7
    And not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.
  5. Cross References
    Romans 6:16 - 20
    Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
    Titus 3:3
    For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.
    2 Peter 2:19
    They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.
  6. Cross References
    Genesis 21:10
    So she said to Abraham, "Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.
    Galatians 4:30
    But what does the Scripture say? "Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.
  7. Cross References
    Luke 15:31
    And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.
  8. Cross References
    John 8:40
    But now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did.
    John 7:1
    After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him.
  9. Cross References
    John 3:32
    He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony.
    John 5:19
    So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.
    John 6:46
    Not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father.
  10. Cross References
    John 8:41
    You are doing the works your father did." They said to him, "We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father - even God.
    John 8:44
    You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
  11. Cross References
    John 8:33
    They answered him, "We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, 'You will become free'?
    John 8:56
    Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.
  12. Cross References
    Galatians 3:7
    Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.
    Galatians 3:9
    So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
  13. Cross References
    John 8:37
    I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you.
  14. Cross References
    John 8:26
    I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.
  15. Cross References
    Hosea 2:4
    Upon her children also I will have no mercy, because they are children of whoredom.
  16. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 32:6
    Do you thus repay the Lord, you foolish and senseless people? Is not he your father, who created you, who made you and established you?
    Isaiah 63:16
    For you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us; you, O Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.
    Isaiah 64:8
    But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.
    John 8:47
    Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.
  17. Cross References
    1 John 5:1
    Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.
  18. Cross References
    1 John 5:20
    And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.
    Hebrews 10:9
    Then he added, "Behold, I have come to do your will." He does away with the first in order to establish the second.
  19. Cross References
    John 16:28
    I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.
    John 17:8
    For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.
  20. Cross References
    John 7:28
    So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, "You know me, and you know where I come from? But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know.
  21. Cross References
    John 3:17
    For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
  22. Cross References
    John 7:17
    If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.
  23. Cross References
    Jeremiah 6:10
    To whom shall I speak and give warning, that they may hear? Behold, their ears are uncircumcised, they cannot listen; behold, the word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn; they take no pleasure in it.
    1 Corinthians 2:14
    The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
  24. Cross References
    1 John 3:8
    Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.
    1 John 3:12
    We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous.
    John 8:23
    He said to them, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.
    Matthew 13:38
    The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one.
  25. Cross References
    Genesis 4:8 - 9
    Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.
    1 John 3:12
    We should not be like Cain, who was of the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own deeds were evil and his brother's righteous.
    1 John 3:15
    Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
    Romans 5:12
    Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned -
  26. Cross References
    1 John 2:4
    Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
  27. Cross References
    Genesis 3:4
    But the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.
    2 Corinthians 11:3
    But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
    Revelation 12:9
    And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world - he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
  28. Cross References
    John 18:37
    Then Pilate said to him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world - to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.
    1 John 4:6
    We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
  29. Cross References
    John 10:26
    But you do not believe because you are not part of my flock.
  30. Cross References
    John 8:41
    You are doing the works your father did." They said to him, "We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father - even God.
  31. Cross References
    John 7:20
    The crowd answered, "You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?
  32. Cross References
    John 5:23
    That all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
    John 7:18
    The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.
  33. Cross References
    John 8:54
    Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, 'He is our God.
    John 5:41
    I do not receive glory from people.
  34. Cross References
    John 5:24
    Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
    John 11:26
    And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?
  35. Cross References
    Luke 2:26
    And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
  36. Cross References
    Zechariah 1:5
    Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever?
  37. Cross References
    John 8:51
    Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.
  38. Cross References
    Matthew 16:28
    Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.
    Hebrews 2:9
    But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
  39. Cross References
    John 4:12
    Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.
  40. Cross References
    John 8:50
    Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge.
  41. Cross References
    John 13:32
    If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once.
    John 17:1
    When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.
    Acts 3:13
    The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him.
    Hebrews 5:5
    So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you".
    2 Peter 1:17
    For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.
  42. Cross References
    John 8:41
    You are doing the works your father did." They said to him, "We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father - even God.
  43. Cross References
    John 8:19
    They said to him therefore, "Where is your Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.
    John 7:28
    So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, "You know me, and you know where I come from? But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know.
  44. Cross References
    John 7:29
    I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me.
    Matthew 11:27
    All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
  45. Cross References
    1 John 1:6
    If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
  46. Cross References
    John 8:44
    You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
  47. Cross References
    John 8:39
    They answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did.
  48. Cross References
    Matthew 13:17
    For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
  49. Cross References
    Luke 17:22
    And he said to the disciples, "The days are coming when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
  50. Cross References
    Hebrews 11:13
    These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
  51. Cross References
    Exodus 3:14
    God said to Moses, " I am who I am." And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, ' I am has sent me to you.'
  52. Cross References
    John 10:31
    The Jews picked up stones again to stone him.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.