John 16:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.

NIV: Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.

NASB: Truly, truly I say to you that you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy!

CSB: Truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice. You will become sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy.

NLT: I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn over what is going to happen to me, but the world will rejoice. You will grieve, but your grief will suddenly turn to wonderful joy.

KJV: Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

NKJV: Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.

Earlier in this discourse, Jesus reminded His followers that they would suffer persecution (John 16:1–4) and hatred (John 15:18–19) at the hands of unbelievers (John 15:21). However, He has also promised the coming of the Holy Spirit (John 16:7–13). As part of that reassurance, Jesus made a comment about being unseen, then seen, which particularly confused the disciples (John 16:16–19).

By referring again to the hatred of the world, and the anguish of His followers, Jesus makes it clear that what is about to happen will not be pleasant. There is no sense in which Jesus tells believers, "it's not that bad," or "you should be happy about this." Rather, He teaches believers to look beyond their suffering, knowing that there is a greater purpose. In this case, the disciples will watch in horror as their Master is arrested and murdered (John 18:1–3; 19:18), only to be gloriously resurrected (John 20:19).

In the upcoming verses, Jesus will compare this to childbirth (John 16:21–22). No one with a shred of common sense tells a woman, "giving birth is not so bad," or "you shouldn't feel pain when you are in labor." However, that suffering is not without purpose, or reward. After the pain is over, there is a blessing so profound that it outweighs memories of the pain. The memories aren't gone, in any sense, but the rewarding result is joyful more so than the suffering was miserable. What the disciples will experience follows a similar pattern.

John 16:16–24 once again reminds the disciples that Christ must suffer and die for the sins of the world (Mark 8:31). The days ahead will be especially dark and frightening for those who so closely followed Jesus. Yet the outcome will be powerful and world changing. Jesus explains this using the analogy of childbirth. The process of giving birth is painful—but the reward is immeasurably valuable. Afterwards, joy over the new birth far outweighs memories of the painful birth process.

Throughout His teaching in the Last Supper (John 13:1–5), Jesus has often brought up the fact that He's giving His followers advance warnings (John 13:19; 14:25). His intent is to provide encouragement—persecution as a result of their faith is inevitable. In keeping with that reassurance, Jesus again promises the coming of the Holy Spirit. He explains that after a time of deep sorrow, His followers will experience great joy and clarity. This concludes with a beloved promise that Christ has "overcome the world."

This completes the teaching portion of Jesus' words during the Last Supper, begun in chapter 13. Christ echoes many of the themes of His earthly ministry. His focus is especially on encouragement: reminding the disciples that the hard times they will experience will end in victory. While they don't clearly understand, the Holy Spirit will lead them in the right direction. This ends with Christ's beloved declaration that He has "overcome the world." That introduces the record of Jesus' High Priestly Prayer in chapter 17, immediately before His arrest early in chapter 18.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.