John Chapter 7:1-53

¹After these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill him.

² Now the Jew’s feast of tabernacles was at hand.

The Feast of Tabernacles is a feast held for 7 days starting on the 15th day of Tishrei (September/October). The feast is the celebration of the harvest and the exodus of the people of Israel out of Egypt. This feast is about leaving materialism behind and focusing on nationhood, spirituality, and hospitality. They build a structure like the ones that are built during harvest that the farmers live in during that time, called a Sukkah. This shelter is a temporary shelter with branches over the top. People at the feast dwell in them a long as possible when keeping the feast. Everyone is supposed to go if at all possible.

³ His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest.

⁴ For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world.

⁵ For neither did his brethren believe in him.

Jesus’s brother didn’t believe in him. They wanted to know why Jesus wasn’t going all over doing miracles, so everyone could see, instead of just staying near their home. His brother seem to be saying that if a person is going to do miracles, they want everyone to see them. Doing miracles for his own glory was not the goal of Jesus.

⁶ Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.

Jesus explains to his brothers that his time was not yet… which I take to mean that if Jesus were to start doing miracles all over and did things the way a person in the flesh would do them, he wouldn’t be doing the exact will of God. The religious people would have become extremely aggressive at taking him. Jesus had things to do while he made his way to the cross, things that were ordained from the foundation of the world…and Jesus was sticking to doing what God sent him to do. While man may look at these things and wonder why Jesus didn’t just do this or that, God knew what was the very best way and Jesus followed that…because the mind of the flesh gets in the way of the mind of the spirit. The brothers of Jesus didn’t understand.

⁷ The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.

When you are part of the world and live a worldly life, you don’t upset the works… but when you live a life of Holiness to God, it convicts the world of its sin and the world resents you for it because it removes the comfort of living an ungodly life. It does this by exposing the nature of man and how devoid of God it is, and that the end results of the sinful nature of man is eternal separation and hell. The life of Jesus is holy and those who encounter Jesus have the light shined onto their life… Some repent and embrace the light of Jesus, and others get angry because they can no longer enjoy sin without the realization they will one day stand before God and be judged.

⁸ Go ye up unto this feast: I go not up yet unto this feast: for my time is not yet full come.

Jesus told his brothers to go to the feast and that he wasn’t going yet, it wasn’t the right time.

⁹ When he had said these words unto them, he abode still in Galilee.

¹⁰ But when his brethren were gone up, then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.

After his brothers left for the feast, Jesus left in secret… not drawing attention to himself.

¹¹ Then the Jews sought him at the feast, and said, Where is he?

They were looking for him. It seems like they must have had a confrontation ready for the encounter with him.

¹² And there was much murmuring among the people concerning him: for some said, He is a good man: others said, Nay; but he deceiveth the people.

¹³ Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of the Jews.

They were buzzing about Jesus in secret because they feared the Jews if they spoke openly. Right now in society, the same kind of fear grips people on social media whenever they take a stand for Jesus against the huge wave of ungodliness. The fear comes from the cancel culture and how for the past 10 years everyone has been hyper focused on gaining the favorable opinions of others. It’s like we set our worth by how much other people value us, so we don’t rock the boat and risk losing friends. I get caught up in that and then feel horrible because I failed to represent Jesus in favor of what? My social worth? I repent of that… I’m taking a stand to represent Jesus. The fear of openly embracing Jesus is nothing new, it’s been used by the devil to silence people for years. Right here in this verse, these people were conditioned to remain silent about anything that challenges the Jews.

¹⁴ Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught.

It was time for Jesus to do what he came to do at this feast.

¹⁵ And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?

¹⁶ Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.

Jesus tells them where he got the knowledge he shared. He tells them if came from the one that sent him.

¹⁷ If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

The Holy Spirit always confirms or rejects doctrines being taught any time someone teaches, good or bad. Jesus states here that because his doctrine is from God, those who actually know God will know they are hearing God’s truth.

¹⁸ He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.

Jesus is pointing everyone towards God, he’s not trying to gain his own glory. He’s just delivering the word of God as he was sent to do.

¹⁹ Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?

Jesus exposes their sinful heart.

²⁰ The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?

Denial of the truth. They were angry because Jesus exposed their plans.

²¹ Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel.

²² Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.

²³ If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day?

²⁴ Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

Circumcision is carried out on the 8th day after birth in accordance with the Law of God. Sometimes this means that the circumcision has to be done on the Sabbath. Obviously, even though it isn’t written down, this instances where the circumcision is done on the Sabbath isn’t breaking the Sabbath day. The Jews accept that, but they fault Jesus for healing a man who was sick on the Sabbath day because they are judging with their flesh and not with the spirit. Also, can you imagine how dark of a heart it takes to see these healings and then fault the person healing others for breaking the law of the Sabbath day…instead of seeing the miracle and glorifying God.

²⁵ Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, whom they seek to kill?

²⁶ But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ?

²⁷ Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is.

²⁸ Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.

²⁹ But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.

³⁰ Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come.

³¹ And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done?

³² The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take him.

The Pharisees heard that the people were starting to believe in Jesus and ordered his arrest. The Pharisees had to really have been lost not to see that Jesus was the son of God… and the Pharisees were the group who were taught about the letters of the law and all the prophacies of the coming of Jesus and still, they could not see the truth.

³³ Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me.

³⁴ Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.

³⁵ Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?

³⁶ What manner of saying is this that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come?

³⁷ In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

³⁸ He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

³⁹ (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

⁴⁰ Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet.

⁴¹ Others said, This is the Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee?

⁴² Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?

⁴³ So there was a division among the people because of him.

⁴⁴ And some of them would have taken him; but no man laid hands on him.

⁴⁵ Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought him?

⁴⁶ The officers answered, Never man spake like this man.

⁴⁷ Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived?

⁴⁸ Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?

⁴⁹ But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.

The officers came back to the Pharisees having now hear Jesus so that their spirit man was now being dealt with…something they had never encountered. The Pharisees used their position as an elder as a point to convince the officers that Jesus was not to be believed and then went on to say that the believers didn’t know the law and are cursed. Calling believers ignorant for believing in Jesus is nothing new.

⁵⁰ Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,)

⁵¹ Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?

Nicodemus had also heard Jesus and here he was advocating for Jesus to be heard before they pass judgment on him. The other Pharisees go on to use their own rationalizations stating that no prophets come out of Galilee. Galilee was located in the north and Judea in the south… so the Pharisees were discrediting based on the region Jesus lived in without looking at the fact that Jesus was from the tribe of Judah.

⁵² They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.

⁵³ And every man went unto his own house.