Jesus in Context

Jesus Did Not Say, 'He Shall Not Die'

Language and Idiom

John explicitly corrects the rumor about the beloved disciple by distinguishing what people said Jesus meant from the words Jesus actually spoke.

Scripture: John 21:23

The Disciple Who Testifies and Wrote These Things

Witness and Testimony

The Gospel identifies the beloved disciple with the testimony behind the narrative and states that he wrote these things.

Scripture: John 21:24

We Know That His Testimony Is True

Witness and Testimony

The closing testimony shifts briefly into the first-person plural—'we know'—as the Gospel affirms the truthfulness of the beloved disciple's witness.

Scripture: John 21:24

Many Other Things Which Jesus Did

Literary and Historical Context

John closes by reminding readers that his Gospel is selective: the written narrative represents only part of what Jesus did.

Scripture: John 20:30-31; John 21:25

The World Could Not Contain the Books

Language and Idiom

John ends with deliberate rhetorical hyperbole: if everything Jesus did were written individually, even the world could not contain the resulting books.

Scripture: John 21:25

The Gospel Ends With Jesus

Literary and Historical Context

John's final words keep the focus on the deeds of Jesus, bringing a Gospel that began with the eternal Word to a close with the inexhaustible scope of what Jesus did.

Scripture: John 1:1-3; John 20:30-31; John 21:25

Beelzebul and Binding the Strong Man

Language and Idiom

Jesus answers the accusation that His power over demons comes from Beelzebul by portraying Satan as a strong man whose house must first be overpowered.

Scripture: Matthew 12:22-29; Mark 3:22-27; Luke 11:14-22

The Sign of Jonah and the Queen of the South

Historical/Cultural Context

Jesus invokes Jonah and the Queen of the South as familiar biblical examples when responding to demands for a sign.

Scripture: Matthew 12:38-42; Matthew 16:1-4; Luke 11:29-32

The Returning Unclean Spirit

Language and Idiom

Jesus describes an expelled unclean spirit returning with seven others to an empty and orderly house.

Scripture: Matthew 12:43-45; Luke 11:24-26

Jesus Redefines Family

Marriage and Family

Jesus uses the arrival of His mother and brothers to describe those who do God's will as His true family.

Scripture: Matthew 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35; Luke 8:19-21

The Sower and First-Century Farming

Agriculture

The parable of the sower draws upon familiar Galilean agriculture: broadcast sowing, footpaths, shallow rocky soil, thorns, and the variable yield of grain.

Scripture: Matthew 13:1-9; Matthew 13:18-23; Mark 4:1-9; Mark 4:13-20; Luke 8:4-15

Why Jesus Spoke in Parables

Language and Idiom

Jesus explains that His parables both reveal the mysteries of God's kingdom and expose the failure of some hearers to perceive their meaning.

Scripture: Matthew 13:10-17; Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:9-10