John 14-21

Contemporary English Version

Jesus Is the Way to the Father

14 Jesus said to his disciples, “Don't be worried! Have faith in God and have faith in me.^[a] ²There are many rooms in my Father's house. I wouldn't tell you this, unless it was true. I am going there to prepare a place for each of you. ³After I have done this, I will come back and take you with me. Then we will be together. ⁴You know the way to where I am going.”

⁵Thomas said, “Lord, we don't even know where you are going! How can we know the way?”

⁶^(A) “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus answered. “Without me, no one can go to the Father. ⁷If you had really known me, you would have known the Father. But from now on, you do know him, and you have seen him.”

⁸Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That is all we need.”

⁹Jesus replied:

Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don't you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father? ¹⁰Don't you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn't said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things.

¹¹Have faith in me when I say that the Father is one with me and that I am one with the Father. Or else have faith in me simply because of the things I do. ¹²I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father. ¹³Ask me, and I will do whatever you ask. This way the Son will bring honor to the Father. ¹⁴I will do whatever you ask me to do.

The Holy Spirit Is Promised

¹⁵^(B) Jesus said to his disciples:

If you love me, you will do as I command. ¹⁶Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit who will help^[b] you and always be with you. ¹⁷The Spirit will show you what is true. The people of this world cannot accept the Spirit, because they don't see or know him. But you know the Spirit, who is with you and will keep on living in you.

¹⁸I won't leave you like orphans. I will come back to you. ¹⁹In a little while the people of this world won't be able to see me, but you will see me. And because I live, you will live. ²⁰Then you will know I am one with the Father. You will know you are one with me, and I am one with you. ²¹^(C) If you love me, you will do what I have said, and my Father will love you. I will also love you and show you what I am like.

²²The other Judas, not Judas Iscariot,^[c] then spoke up and asked, “Lord, what do you mean by saying that you will show us what you are like, but you will not show the people of this world?”

²³Jesus replied:

If anyone loves me, they will obey me. Then my Father will love them, and we will come to them and live in them. ²⁴But anyone who doesn't love me, won't obey me. What they have heard me say doesn't really come from me, but from the Father who sent me.

²⁵I have told you these things while I am still with you. ²⁶But the Holy Spirit will come and help^[d] you, because the Father will send the Spirit to take my place. The Spirit will teach you everything and will remind you of what I said while I was with you.

²⁷I give you peace, the kind of peace only I can give. It isn't like the peace this world can give. So don't be worried or afraid.

²⁸You have already heard me say I am going and I will also come back to you. If you really love me, you should be glad I am going back to the Father, because he is greater than I am.

²⁹I am telling you this before I leave, so when it does happen, you will have faith in me. ³⁰I cannot speak with you much longer, because the ruler of this world is coming. But he has no power over me. ³¹I obey my Father, so everyone in the world might know that I love him.

It is time for us to go now.

Jesus Is the True Vine

15 Jesus said to his disciples:

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ²He cuts away every branch of mine that doesn't produce fruit. But he trims clean every branch that does produce fruit, so that it will produce even more fruit. ³You are already clean because of what I have said to you.

⁴Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you. Just as a branch cannot produce fruit unless it stays joined to the vine, you cannot produce fruit unless you stay joined to me. ⁵I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I stay joined to you, then you will produce lots of fruit. But you cannot do anything without me. ⁶If you don't stay joined to me, you will be thrown away. You will be like dry branches that are gathered up and burned in a fire.

⁷Stay joined to me and let my teachings become part of you. Then you can pray for whatever you want, and your prayer will be answered. ⁸When you become fruitful disciples of mine, my Father will be honored. ⁹I have loved you, just as my Father has loved me. So remain faithful to my love for you. ¹⁰If you obey me, I will keep loving you, just as my Father keeps loving me, because I have obeyed him.

¹¹I have told you this to make you as completely happy as I am. ¹²^(D) Now I tell you to love each other, as I have loved you. ¹³The greatest way to show love for friends is to die for them. ¹⁴And you are my friends, if you obey me. ¹⁵Servants don't know what their master is doing, and so I don't speak to you as my servants. I speak to you as my friends, and I have told you everything my Father has told me.

¹⁶You did not choose me. I chose you and sent you out to produce fruit, the kind of fruit that will last. Then my Father will give you whatever you ask for in my name.^[e] ¹⁷So I command you to love each other.

The World's Hatred

¹⁸If the people of this world^[f] hate you, just remember that they hated me first. ¹⁹If you belonged to the world, its people would love you. But you don't belong to the world. I have chosen you to leave the world behind, and this is why its people hate you. ²⁰^(E) Remember how I told you that servants are not greater than their master. So if people mistreat me, they will mistreat you. If they do what I say, they will do what you say.

²¹People will do to you exactly what they did to me. They will do it because you belong to me, and they don't know the one who sent me. ²²If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin.

²³Everyone who hates me also hates my Father. ²⁴I have done things no one else has ever done. If they had not seen me do these things, they would not be guilty. But they did see me do these things, and they still hate me and my Father too. ²⁵^(F) This is why the Scriptures are true when they say, “People hated me for no reason.”

²⁶I will send you the Spirit who comes from the Father and shows what is true. The Spirit will help^[g] you and will tell you about me. ²⁷Then you will also tell others about me, because you have been with me from the beginning.

16 I am telling you these things, so that you will not turn away. ²You will be chased out of the synagogues. And the time will come when people will kill you and think they are doing God a favor. ³They will do these things because they don't know either the Father or me. ⁴I am saying this to you now, so that when the time comes, you will remember what I have said.

The Work of the Holy Spirit

I was with you at the first, and so I didn't tell you these things. ⁵But now I am going back to the Father who sent me, and none of you asks me where I am going. ⁶You are very sad from hearing all of this. ⁷But I tell you I am going to do what is best for you. This is why I am going away. The Holy Spirit cannot come to help^[h] you until I leave. But after I am gone, I will send the Spirit to you.

⁸The Spirit will come and show the people of this world the truth about sin and God's justice and the judgment. ⁹The Spirit will show them that they are wrong about sin, because they didn't have faith in me. ¹⁰They are wrong about God's justice, because I am going to the Father, and you won't see me again. ¹¹And they are wrong about the judgment, because God has already judged the ruler of this world.

¹²I have much more to say to you, but right now it would be more than you could understand. ¹³^(G) The Spirit shows what is true and will come and guide you into the full truth. The Spirit doesn't speak on his own. He will tell you only what he has heard from me, and he will let you know what is going to happen. ¹⁴The Spirit will bring glory to me by taking my message and telling it to you. ¹⁵Everything the Father has is mine. This is why I have said that the Spirit takes my message and tells it to you.

Sorrow Will Turn into Joy

¹⁶Jesus told his disciples, “For a little while you won't see me, but after a while you will see me.”

¹⁷They said to each other, “What does Jesus mean by saying that for a little while we won't see him, but after a while we will see him? What does he mean by saying he is going to the Father? ¹⁸What is this ‘little while’ that he is talking about? We don't know what he means.”

¹⁹Jesus knew they had some questions, so he said:

You are wondering what I meant when I said that for a little while you won't see me, but after a while you will see me. ²⁰I tell you for certain that you will cry and be sad, but the world will be happy. You will be sad, but later you will be happy.

²¹When a woman is about to give birth, she is in great pain. But after it is all over, she forgets the pain and is happy, because she has brought a child into the world. ²²You are now very sad. But later I will see you, and you will be so happy that no one will be able to change the way you feel. ²³When that time comes, you won't have to ask me about anything. I tell you for certain the Father will give you whatever you ask for in my name. ²⁴You have not asked for anything in this way before, but now you must ask in my name.^[i] Then it will be given to you, so you will be completely happy.

²⁵I have used examples to explain to you what I have been talking about. But the time will come when I will speak to you plainly about the Father and will no longer use examples like these. ²⁶You will ask the Father in my name,^[j] and I won't have to ask him for you. ²⁷God the Father loves you because you love me, and you believe I have come from him. ²⁸I came from the Father into the world, but I am leaving the world and returning to the Father.

²⁹The disciples said, “Now you are speaking plainly to us! You are not using examples. ³⁰At last we know that you understand everything, and we don't have any more questions. Now we believe you truly have come from God.”

³¹Jesus replied:

Do you really believe me? ³²The time will come and is already here when all of you will be scattered. Each of you will go back home and leave me by myself. But the Father will be with me, and I won't be alone. ³³I have told you this, so that you might have peace in your hearts because of me. While you are in the world, you will have to suffer. But cheer up! I have defeated the world.^[k]

Jesus Prays

17 After Jesus had finished speaking to his disciples, he looked up toward heaven and prayed:

Father, the time has come for you to bring glory to your Son, in order that he may bring glory to you. ²And you gave him power over all people, so he would give eternal life to everyone you give him. ³^(H) Eternal life is to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. ⁴I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do. ⁵Now, Father, give me back the glory I had with you before the world was created.

⁶You have given me some followers from this world, and I have shown them what you are like. They were yours, but you gave them to me, and they have obeyed you. ⁷They know that you gave me everything I have. ⁸I told my followers what you told me, and they accepted it. They know I came from you, and they believe you are the one who sent me. ⁹I am praying for them, but not for those who belong to this world.^[l] My followers belong to you, and I am praying for them. ¹⁰All I have is yours, and all you have is mine, and they will bring glory to me.

¹¹Holy Father, I am no longer in the world. I am coming to you, but my followers are still in the world. So keep them safe by the power of the name you have given me. Then they will be one with each other, just as you and I are one. ¹²^(I) While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost, except the one who had to be lost. This happened so that what the Scriptures say would come true.

¹³I am on my way to you. But I say these things while I am still in the world, so my followers will have the same complete joy that I do. ¹⁴I have told them your message. But the people of this world hate them, because they don't belong to this world, just as I don't.

¹⁵Father, I don't ask you to take my followers out of the world, but keep them safe from the evil one. ¹⁶They don't belong to this world, and neither do I. ¹⁷Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours. ¹⁸I am sending them into the world, just as you sent me. ¹⁹I have given myself completely for their sake, so they may belong completely to the truth.

²⁰I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me. ²¹I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. Then the people of this world will believe that you sent me.

²²I have honored my followers in the same way you honored me, in order that they may be one with each other, just as we are one. ²³I am one with them, and you are one with me, so they may become completely one. Then this world's people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me.

²⁴Father, I want everyone you have given me to be with me, wherever I am. Then they will see the glory you have given me, because you loved me before the world was created. ²⁵Good Father, the people of this world don't know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. ²⁶I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them.

Jesus Is Betrayed and Arrested

(Matthew 26.47-56; Mark 14.43-50; Luke 22.47-53)

18 When Jesus had finished praying, he and his disciples crossed the Kidron Valley and went into a garden.^[m] ²Jesus had often met there with his disciples, and Judas knew where the place was.

^3-5Judas had promised to betray Jesus. So he went to the garden with some Roman soldiers and temple police, who had been sent by the chief priests and the Pharisees. They carried torches, lanterns, and weapons. Jesus already knew everything that was going to happen, but he asked, “Who are you looking for?”

They answered, “We are looking for Jesus from Nazareth!”

Jesus told them, “I am Jesus!”^[n] ⁶At once they all backed away and fell to the ground.

⁷Jesus again asked, “Who are you looking for?”

“We are looking for Jesus from Nazareth,” they answered.

⁸This time Jesus replied, “I have already told you that I am Jesus. If I am the one you are looking for, let these others go. ⁹Then everything will happen, just as I said, ‘I did not lose anyone you gave me.’ ”

¹⁰Simon Peter had brought along a sword. He pulled it out and struck at Malchus, the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. ¹¹^(J) Jesus told Peter, “Put your sword away. I must drink from the cup^[o] that the Father has given me.”

Jesus Is Brought to Annas

(Matthew 26.57,58; Mark 14.53,54; Luke 22.54)

¹²The Roman officer and his men, together with the temple police, arrested Jesus and tied him up. ¹³They took him first to Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. ¹⁴^(K) This was the same Caiaphas who had told the Jewish leaders, “It is better if one person dies for the people.”

Peter Says He Doesn't Know Jesus

(Matthew 26.69,70; Mark 14.66-68; Luke 22.55-57)

¹⁵Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. That disciple knew the high priest, and he followed Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest's house. ¹⁶Peter stayed outside near the gate. But the other disciple came back out and spoke to the girl at the gate. She let Peter go in, ¹⁷but asked him, “Aren't you one of that man's followers?”

“No, I am not!” Peter answered.

¹⁸It was cold, and the servants and temple police had made a charcoal fire. They were warming themselves around it, when Peter went over and stood near the fire to warm himself.

Jesus Is Questioned by the High Priest

(Matthew 26.59-66; Mark 14.55-64; Luke 22.66-71)

¹⁹The high priest questioned Jesus about his followers and his teaching. ²⁰But Jesus told him, “I have spoken freely in front of everyone. And I have always taught in our synagogues and in the temple, where all of our people come together. I have not said anything in secret. ²¹Why are you questioning me? Why don't you ask the people who heard me? They know what I have said.”

²²As soon as Jesus said this, one of the temple police hit him and said, “That's no way to talk to the high priest!”

²³Jesus answered, “If I have done something wrong, say so. But if not, why did you hit me?” ²⁴Jesus was still tied up, and Annas sent him to Caiaphas the high priest.

Peter Again Denies that He Knows Jesus

(Matthew 26.71-75; Mark 14.69-72; Luke 22.58-62)

²⁵While Simon Peter was standing there warming himself, someone asked him, “Aren't you one of Jesus' followers?”

Again Peter denied it and said, “No, I am not!”

²⁶One of the high priest's servants was there. He was a relative of the servant whose ear Peter had cut off, and he asked, “Didn't I see you in the garden with that man?”

²⁷Once more Peter denied it, and right then a rooster crowed.

Jesus Is Tried by Pilate

(Matthew 27.1,2,11-14; Mark 15.1-5; Luke 23.1-5)

²⁸It was early in the morning when Jesus was taken from Caiaphas to the building where the Roman governor stayed. But the crowd waited outside. Any of them who had gone inside would have become unclean and would not be allowed to eat the Passover meal.^[p]

²⁹Pilate came out and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

³⁰^(L) They answered, “He is a criminal! That's why we brought him to you.”

³¹Pilate told them, “Take him and judge him by your own laws.”

The crowd replied, “We are not allowed to put anyone to death.” ³²^(M) And so what Jesus said about his death^[q] would soon come true.

³³Pilate then went back inside. He called Jesus over and asked, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

³⁴Jesus answered, “Are you asking this on your own or did someone tell you about me?”

³⁵“You know I'm not a Jew!” Pilate said. “Your own people and the chief priests brought you to me. What have you done?”

³⁶Jesus answered, “My kingdom doesn't belong to this world. If it did, my followers would have fought to keep me from being handed over to our leaders. No, my kingdom doesn't belong to this world.”

³⁷“So you are a king,” Pilate replied.

“You are saying that I am a king,” Jesus told him. “I was born into this world to tell about the truth. And everyone who belongs to the truth knows my voice.”

³⁸Pilate asked Jesus, “What is truth?”

Jesus Is Sentenced to Death

(Matthew 27.15-31; Mark 15.6-20; Luke 23.13-25)

Pilate went back out and said, “I don't find this man guilty of anything! ³⁹And since I usually set a prisoner free for you at Passover, would you like for me to set free the king of the Jews?”

⁴⁰They shouted, “No, not him! We want Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a terrorist.^[r]

19 Pilate gave orders for Jesus to be beaten with a whip. ²The soldiers made a crown out of thorn branches and put it on Jesus. Then they put a purple robe on him. ³They came up to him and said, “Hey, you king of the Jews!” They also hit him with their fists.

⁴Once again Pilate went out. This time he said, “I will have Jesus brought out to you again. Then you can see for yourselves that I have not found him guilty.”

⁵Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said, “Here is the man!”^[s]

⁶When the chief priests and the temple police saw him, they yelled, “Nail him to a cross! Nail him to a cross!”

Pilate told them, “You take him and nail him to a cross! I don't find him guilty of anything.”

⁷The crowd replied, “He claimed to be the Son of God! Our law says that he must be put to death.”

⁸When Pilate heard this, he was terrified. ⁹He went back inside and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus did not answer.

¹⁰“Why won't you answer my question?” Pilate asked. “Don't you know I have the power to let you go free or to nail you to a cross?”

¹¹^(N) Jesus replied, “If God had not given you the power, you couldn't do anything at all to me. But the one who handed me over to you did something even worse.”

¹²Then Pilate wanted to set Jesus free. But the crowd again yelled, “If you set this man free, you are no friend of the Emperor! Anyone who claims to be a king is an enemy of the Emperor.”

¹³When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out. Then he sat down on the judge's bench at the place known as “The Stone Pavement.” In Aramaic this pavement is called “Gabbatha.” ¹⁴It was about noon on the day before Passover, and Pilate said to the crowd, “Look at your king!”

¹⁵“Kill him! Kill him!” they yelled. “Nail him to a cross!”

“So you want me to nail your king to a cross?” Pilate asked.

The chief priests replied, “The Emperor is our king!” ¹⁶Then Pilate handed Jesus over to be nailed to a cross.

Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross

(Matthew 27.32-44; Mark 15.21-32; Luke 23.26-43)

Jesus was taken away, ¹⁷and he carried his cross to a place known as “The Skull.”^[t] In Aramaic this place is called “Golgotha.” ¹⁸There Jesus was nailed to the cross, and on each side of him a man was also nailed to a cross.

¹⁹Pilate ordered the charge against Jesus to be written on a board and put above the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.” ²⁰The words were written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek.

The place where Jesus was taken wasn't far from the city, and many of the people read the charge against him. ²¹So the chief priests went to Pilate and said, “Why did you write that he is King of the Jews? You should have written, ‘He claimed to be King of the Jews.’ ”

²²But Pilate told them, “What is written will not be changed!”

²³After the soldiers had nailed Jesus to the cross, they divided up his clothes into four parts, one for each of them. But his outer garment was made from a single piece of cloth, and it did not have any seams. ²⁴^(O) The soldiers said to each other, “Let's not rip it apart. We will gamble to see who gets it.” This happened so the Scriptures would come true, which say,

“They divided up my clothes
and gambled
for my garments.”

The soldiers then did what they had decided.

²⁵Jesus' mother stood beside his cross with her sister and Mary the wife of Clopas. Mary Magdalene was standing there too.^[u] ²⁶When Jesus saw his mother and his favorite disciple with her, he said to his mother, “This man is now your son.” ²⁷Then he said to the disciple, “She is now your mother.” From then on, that disciple took her into his own home.

The Death of Jesus

(Matthew 27.45-56; Mark 15.33-41; Luke 23.44-49)

²⁸^(P) Jesus knew that he had now finished his work. And in order to make the Scriptures come true, he said, “I am thirsty!” ²⁹A jar of cheap wine was there. Someone then soaked a sponge with the wine and held it up to Jesus' mouth on the stem of a hyssop plant. ³⁰After Jesus drank the wine, he said, “Everything is done!” He bowed his head and died.

A Spear Is Stuck in Jesus' Side

³¹The next day would be both a Sabbath and the Passover. It was a special day for the Jewish people,^[v] and they did not want the bodies to stay on the crosses during this day. So they asked Pilate to break the men's legs^[w] and take their bodies down. ³²The soldiers first broke the legs of the other two men who were nailed there. ³³But when they came to Jesus, they saw he was already dead, and they did not break his legs.

³⁴One of the soldiers stuck his spear into Jesus' side, and blood and water came out. ³⁵We know this is true, because it was told by someone who saw it happen. Now you can have faith too. ³⁶^(Q) All this happened so that the Scriptures would come true, which say, “No bone of his body will be broken” ³⁷^(R) and “They will see the one in whose side they stuck a spear.”

Jesus Is Buried

(Matthew 27.57-61; Mark 15.42-47; Luke 23.50-56)

³⁸Joseph from Arimathea was one of Jesus' disciples. He had kept it secret though, because he was afraid of the Jewish leaders. But now he asked Pilate to let him have Jesus' body. Pilate gave him permission, and Joseph took it down from the cross.

³⁹^(S) Nicodemus also came with about 30 kilograms of spices made from myrrh and aloes. This was the same Nicodemus who had visited Jesus one night.^[x] ⁴⁰The two men wrapped the body in a linen cloth, together with the spices, which was how the Jewish people buried their dead. ⁴¹In the place where Jesus had been nailed to a cross, there was a garden with a tomb that had never been used. ⁴²The tomb was nearby, and since it was the time to prepare for the Sabbath, they were in a hurry to put Jesus' body there.

Jesus Is Alive

(Matthew 28.1-10; Mark 16.1-8; Luke 24.1-12)

20 On Sunday morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. ²She ran to Simon Peter and to Jesus' favorite disciple and said, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb! We don't know where they have put him.”

³Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴They ran side by side, until the other disciple ran faster than Peter and got there first. ⁵He bent over and saw the strips of linen cloth lying inside the tomb, but he did not go in.

⁶When Simon Peter got there, he went into the tomb and saw the strips of cloth. ⁷He also saw the piece of cloth that had been used to cover Jesus' face. It was rolled up and in a place by itself. ⁸The disciple who got there first then went into the tomb, and when he saw it, he believed. ⁹At that time Peter and the other disciple did not know that the Scriptures said Jesus would rise to life. ¹⁰So the two of them went back to the other disciples.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

(Mark 16.9-11)

¹¹Mary Magdalene stood crying outside the tomb. She was still weeping, when she stooped down ¹²and saw two angels inside. They were dressed in white and were sitting where Jesus' body had been. One was at the head and the other was at the foot. ¹³The angels asked Mary, “Why are you crying?”

She answered, “They have taken away my Lord's body! I don't know where they have put him.”

¹⁴As soon as Mary said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there. But she did not know who he was. ¹⁵Jesus asked her, “Why are you crying? Who are you looking for?”

She thought he was the gardener and said, “Sir, if you have taken his body away, please tell me, so I can go and get him.”

¹⁶Then Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to him, “Rabboni.” The Aramaic word “Rabboni” means “Teacher.”

¹⁷Jesus told her, “Don't hold on to me! I have not yet gone to the Father. But tell my disciples I am going to the one who is my Father and my God, as well as your Father and your God.” ¹⁸Mary Magdalene then went and told the disciples she had seen the Lord. She also told them what he had said to her.

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

(Matthew 28.16-20; Mark 16.14-18; Luke 24.36-49)

¹⁹The disciples were afraid of the Jewish leaders, and on the evening of that same Sunday they locked themselves in a room. Suddenly, Jesus appeared in the middle of the group. He greeted them ²⁰and showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they became very happy.

²¹After Jesus had greeted them again, he said, “I am sending you, just as the Father has sent me.” ²²Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³^(T) If you forgive anyone's sins, they will be forgiven. But if you don't forgive their sins, they will not be forgiven.”

Jesus and Thomas

²⁴Although Thomas the Twin was one of the twelve disciples, he wasn't with the others when Jesus appeared to them. ²⁵So they told him, “We have seen the Lord!”

But Thomas said, “First, I must see the nail scars in his hands and touch them with my finger. I must put my hand where the spear went into his side. I won't believe unless I do this!”

²⁶A week later the disciples were together again. This time, Thomas was with them. Jesus came in while the doors were still locked and stood in the middle of the group. He greeted his disciples ²⁷and said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands! Put your hand into my side. Stop doubting and have faith!”

²⁸Thomas replied, “You are my Lord and my God!”

²⁹Jesus said, “Thomas, do you have faith because you have seen me? The people who have faith in me without seeing me are the ones who are really blessed!”

Why John Wrote His Book

³⁰Jesus worked many other miracles^[y] for his disciples, and not all of them are written in this book. ³¹But these are written so that you will put your faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. If you have faith in^[z] him, you will have true life.

Jesus Appears to Seven Disciples

21 Jesus later appeared to his disciples along the shore of Lake Tiberias. ²Simon Peter, Thomas the Twin, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, and the brothers James and John,^[aa] were there, together with two other disciples. ³^(U) Simon Peter said, “I'm going fishing!”

The others said, “We will go with you.” They went out in their boat. But they didn't catch a thing that night.

⁴Early the next morning Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize who he was. ⁵Jesus shouted, “Friends, have you caught anything?”

“No!” they answered.

⁶^(V) So he told them, “Let your net down on the right side of your boat, and you will catch some fish.”

They did, and the net was so full of fish that they could not drag it up into the boat.

⁷Jesus' favorite disciple told Peter, “It's the Lord!” When Simon heard it was the Lord, he put on the clothes he had taken off while he was working. Then he jumped into the water. ⁸The boat was only about 100 meters from shore. So the other disciples stayed in the boat and dragged in the net full of fish.

⁹When the disciples got out of the boat, they saw some bread and a charcoal fire with fish on it. ¹⁰Jesus told his disciples, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.” ¹¹Simon Peter got back into the boat and dragged the net to shore. In it were 153 large fish, but still the net did not rip.

¹²Jesus said, “Come and eat!” But none of the disciples dared ask who he was. They knew he was the Lord. ¹³Jesus took the bread in his hands and gave some of it to his disciples. He did the same with the fish. ¹⁴This was the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from death.

Jesus and Peter

¹⁵When Jesus and his disciples had finished eating, he asked, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than the others do?”^[ab]

Simon Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know I do!”

“Then feed my lambs,” Jesus said.

¹⁶Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter answered, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you!”

“Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus told him.

¹⁷Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus had asked him three times if he loved him. So he told Jesus, “Lord, you know everything. You know I love you.”

Jesus replied, “Feed my sheep. ¹⁸I tell you for certain that when you were a young man, you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will hold out your hands. Then others will wrap your belt around you and lead you where you don't want to go.”

¹⁹Jesus said this to tell how Peter would die and bring honor to God. Then he said to Peter, “Follow me!”

Jesus and His Favorite Disciple

²⁰^(W) Peter turned and saw Jesus' favorite disciple following them. He was the same one who had sat next to Jesus at the meal and had asked, “Lord, who is going to betray you?” ²¹When Peter saw this disciple, he asked Jesus, “Lord, what about him?”

²²Jesus answered, “What is it to you, if I want him to live until I return? You must follow me.” ²³So the rumor spread among the other disciples that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say he would not die. He simply said, “What is it to you, if I want him to live until I return?”

²⁴This disciple is the one who told all of this. He wrote it, and we know he is telling the truth.

²⁵Jesus did many other things. If they were all written in books, I don't suppose there would be room enough in the whole world for all the books.

Footnotes

14.1 Have faith in God and have faith in me: Or “You have faith in God, so have faith in me.”
14.16 help: The Greek word may mean “comfort,” “encourage,” or “defend.”
14.22 Iscariot: See the note at 6.71.
14.26 help: See the note at 14.16.
15.16 in my name: Or “because you are my followers.”
15.18 world: See the note at 12.31.
15.26 help: See the note at 14.16.
16.7 help: See the note at 14.16.
16.23,24 in my name … in my name: Or “as my disciples … as my disciples.”
16.26 in my name: Or “because you are my followers.”
16.33 world: See the note at 12.31.
17.9 world: See the note at 12.31.
18.1 garden: The Greek word is usually translated “garden,” but probably referred to an olive orchard.
18.3-5 I am Jesus: The Greek text has “I am” (see the note at 8.24).
18.11 drink from the cup: In the Scriptures a cup is sometimes used as a symbol of suffering. To “drink from the cup” is to suffer.
18.28 would have become unclean and would not be allowed to eat the Passover meal: Jewish people who came in close contact with foreigners right before Passover were not allowed to eat the Passover meal.
18.32 about his death: Jesus had said that he would die by being “lifted up,” which meant that he would die on a cross. The Romans killed criminals by nailing them on a cross, but they did not let the Jews kill anyone in this way.
18.40 terrorist: Someone who stirred up trouble against the Romans in the hope of gaining freedom for the Jewish people.
19.5 “Here is the man!”: Or “Look at the man!”
19.17 The Skull: The place was probably given this name because it was near a large rock in the shape of a human skull.
19.25 Jesus' mother stood beside his cross with her sister and Mary the wife of Clopas. Mary Magdalene was standing there too: The Greek text may also be understood to include only three women (“Jesus' mother stood beside the cross with her sister, Mary the mother of Clopas. Mary Magdalene was standing there too.”) or merely two women (“Jesus' mother was standing there with her sister Mary of Clopas, that is, Mary Magdalene.”). “Of Clopas” may mean “daughter of” or “mother of.”
19.31 a special day for the Jewish people: Passover could be any day of the week. But according to the Gospel of John, Passover was on a Sabbath in the year that Jesus was nailed to a cross.
19.31 break the men's legs: This was the way that the Romans sometimes speeded up the death of a person who had been nailed to a cross.
19.39 Nicodemus who had visited Jesus one night: See 3.1-21.
20.30 miracles: See the note at 2.11.
20.31 put your faith in … have faith in: Some manuscripts have “keep on having faith in … keep on having faith in.”
21.2 the brothers James and John: Greek “the two sons of Zebedee.”
21.15 more than the others do: Or “more than you love these things?”