What does John 10:19 mean?

Many of Jesus' words were divisive (John 7:43; 9:16). To some extent, His entire existence creates separation between human beings (Psalm 53:1; Matthew 10:34–36; Acts 25:19). Jesus even claimed to be "the door" and the sole means of salvation (John 10:7–9). That implies division of people into one of only two categories: saved and unsaved.

The specific words referred to here are Jesus' comments about being killed and raised from death (John 10:15–18). This conversation happens immediately after Jesus has given sight to a man born blind (John 9). That sparked a debate where Jesus laid out three shepherding-related analogies to explain His ministry (John 10:1–14). The miracle leads some to believe Jesus is a legitimate messenger of God (John 10:21), others suggest He's a lunatic (John 10:20).

How a person responds to Christ has everything to do with their own spiritual state (John 10:1–5). Those who want to follow God will respond accordingly (John 7:17). Those who don't will find a way to resist, no matter what (John 5:39–40). Miracles and truthful teaching ought to lead people to accept Him (John 3:1–2), but a hard heart can always make excuses (Matthew 12:31; Luke 11:15).

This passage does not say how the rest of this encounter plays out; the following verses only show the two main views of the crowd. After that, the narrative will leap ahead several months.