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John 8:59
ESV So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
NIV At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.
NASB Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and left the temple grounds.
CSB So they picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus was hidden and went out of the temple.
NLT At that point they picked up stones to throw at him. But Jesus was hidden from them and left the Temple.
KJV Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.
NKJV Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

What does John 8:59 mean?

In this conversation, Jesus has not only called His critics liars and children of the Devil (John 8:44), He has directly claimed the same name as God (John 8:58). If this is not true, it is blasphemy—the fact that these men so immediately picked up stones proves their opinion of which option applied (John 10:33). Scripture makes it clear that Jesus acts according to God the Father's schedule (John 7:6–8). And, at the same time, the Bible shows that God ensures that everything around Jesus complies with this timetable. This verse is another example of Jesus' enemies unsuccessfully attempting to arrest, detain, or kill Him (John 7:30, 45–46; 8:20).

Most of these "escape" occurrences are vague and are probably best interpreted in natural terms. Most likely, Jesus simply left or exited in such a way that His attackers failed to reach Him. In other cases, such as when He will be surrounded on a high ledge near the temple, there's a greater chance that His escape was enabled by supernatural means (John 10:23–24, 39). Whatever the case in this escape, Jesus has made His views on their hypocrisy and spiritual state very clear, and they have once again failed to silence Him (John 5:18; 7:1).

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