The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (107 page)

Jesus Alludes to His Death

21
 Again he said to them, "I go away, and you will seek me and die in your sin;
 
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where I am going, you cannot come."
²²
Then said the Jews, "Will he kill himself, since he says, 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?"
²³
He said to them, "You are
from below
, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.
²⁴
I told you that you would die in your sins, for
you will die
in your sins unless you believe that I am he."
²⁵
They said to him, "Who are you?" Jesus said to them, "Even what I have told you from the beginning.
^t
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."
²⁷
They did not understand that he spoke to them of the Father.
²⁸
So Jesus said, "When you have
lifted up the Son
of man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as the Father taught me.
²⁹
And he who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him."
³⁰
As he spoke thus, many believed in him.

True Disciples of Jesus

31
 Jesus then said to the Jews who had believed in him, "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples,
³²
and you will know the truth, and the
truth will make you free
."
³³
They answered him
, "We are descendants of Abraham, and have
never been in bondage
to any one. How is it that you say, 'You will be made free'?"

34
 Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who commits sin is a
slave to sin
.
³⁵
The slave
does not continue in the house for ever; the son continues for ever.
³⁶
So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.
³⁷
I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you.
³⁸
I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father."

Jesus and Abraham

39
 They answered him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do what Abraham did,
⁴⁰
but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God; this is not what Abraham did.
⁴¹
You do the works of your father." They said to him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God."
 
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⁴²
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own accord, but he sent me.
⁴³
Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word.
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 according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
⁴⁵
But, because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.
⁴⁶
Which of you
convicts me of sin
? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?
⁴⁷
He who is of God hears the words of God; the reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God."

48
 The Jews answered him, "Are we not right in saying that you are
a Samaritan
and have a demon?"
⁴⁹
Jesus answered, "I have not a demon; but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me.
⁵⁰
Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it and he will be the judge.
⁵¹
Truly, truly, I say to you, if any one keeps my word, he will
never see death
."
⁵²
The Jews said to him, "Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the prophets; and you say, 'If any one keeps my word, he will never taste death.'
⁵³
Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you claim to be?"
⁵⁴
Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing; it is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say that he is your God.
⁵⁵
But you have not known him; I know him. If I said, I do not know him, I should be a liar like you; but I do know him and I keep his word.
⁵⁶
Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was
to see my day
; he saw it
 
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and was glad."
⁵⁷
The Jews then said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?"
^u
58
Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you,
before Abraham was, I am
."
 
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⁵⁹
So they took up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple.

Healing of the Blind Man

1
  As he passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth.
²
And his disciples asked him, "
Rabbi, who sinned
, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
³
Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that
the works of God
might be made manifest in him.
 
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⁴
We must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day; night comes, when no one can work.
⁵
As long as I am in the world,
I am the light
of the world."
⁶
As he said this, he spat on the ground and
made clay of the spittle
and anointed the man's eyes with the clay,
⁷
saying to him, "
Go, wash
in the pool of Silo'am" (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.
⁸
The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar, said, "Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?"
⁹
Some said, "It is he"; others said, "No, but he is like him." He said, "I am the man."
¹⁰
They said to him, "Then how were your eyes opened?"
¹¹
He answered, "
The man called Jesus
made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to Silo'am and wash'; so I went and washed and received my sight."
¹²
They said to him, "Where is he?" He said, "I do not know."

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

13
 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
¹⁴
Now it was a
sabbath day
when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.
¹⁵
The Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."
¹⁶
Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" There was a division among them.
¹⁷
So they again said to the blind man, "What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."

18
 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight,
¹⁹
and asked them, "
Is this your son
, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?"
²⁰
His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;
²¹
but how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself."
²²
His parents said this because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if any one should confess him to be Christ, he was to be
put out of the synagogue
.
²³
Therefore his parents said, "He is of age, ask him."

24
 So for the second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, "
Give God the praise
; we know that this man is a sinner."
²⁵
He answered, "Whether he is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I know, that though I was blind, now I see."
²⁶
They said to him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
²⁷
He answered them, "I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you too want to become his disciples?"
²⁸
And they reviled him, saying, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
²⁹
We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from."
³⁰
The man answered, "Why, this is a marvel! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.
³¹
We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if any one is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.
³²
Never since the world began has it been heard that any one opened the eyes
of a man born blind.
³³
If this man were not from God,
he could do nothing
."
³⁴
They answered him, "You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?" And they cast him out.

Spiritual Blindness

35
 Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, "Do you believe in
the Son of man
?"
^v
36
He answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"
³⁷
Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you."
³⁸
He said, "Lord, I believe"; and he worshiped him.
³⁹
Jesus said, "For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see
may see, and that those who see may become blind
."
⁴⁰
Some of the Pharisees near him heard this, and they said to him, "Are we also blind?"
⁴¹
Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, 'We see,' your guilt remains.

Jesus the Good Shepherd

1
  
"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter
the sheepfold
by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber;
²
but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
³
To him the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he
calls his own sheep by name
and leads them out.
⁴
When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
⁵
A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."
⁶
This figure Jesus used with them, but
they did not understand
what he was saying to them.

7
 So Jesus again said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
⁸
All who came before
me are thieves and robbers; but the sheep did not heed them.
⁹
I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
¹⁰
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may
have life
, and have it abundantly.
¹¹
I am the good shepherd
. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
¹²
He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees
the wolf
coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.
¹³
He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep.
¹⁴
I am the good shepherd;
 
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I know my own and my own know me,
¹⁵
as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.
¹⁶
And I have
other sheep
, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.
¹⁷
For this reason the Father loves me, because I
lay down my life, that I may take it again
.
¹⁸
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father."
 
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