John 8:33 - Printer Friendly

ESV: They answered him, "We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?"

NIV: They answered him, "We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?"

NASB: They answered Him, 'We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?'

CSB: "We are descendants of Abraham," they answered him, "and we have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?"

NLT: But we are descendants of Abraham,' they said. 'We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?'

KJV: They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free

NKJV: They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”

The "they" referred to here is a collection of Jewish religious leaders and their followers. Jesus is debating them in Jerusalem during the Feast of Booths (John 7:1–2). Prior to this moment, Jesus has claimed to be "the light of the world" (John 8:12) and therefore the only source of spiritual truth. In the prior verses, Jesus reemphasized this point by claiming that those who "abide in [His] word" are those who know the truth and are set free by that truth. Later, He will clarify that those who have not accepted this truth are still slaves to sin (John 8:34). The response from the hostile crowd is not merely bizarre, it demonstrates a lack of insight.

The "freedom" Jesus has spoken of is spiritual: those who reject Christ are still enslaved to sin. This results in both eternal damnation and earthly consequences (Romans 1:21–32). The people who remark back about their freedom seem to think that if they are not actual slaves, in a social sense, they have no need to be freed. In this way, their reaction proves that they do not understand the point Jesus is making.

The absurd side to this argument is that it ignores both Israel's history and her current situation! In the past, Israel was often subjugated to other nations—the entire book of Judges describes the nation's cycles of sin, oppression, and rescue. At one point, the vast majority of the Jewish people were carried off into captivity (Daniel 1:1; Esther 2:5–6). And, most obviously, the nation of Israel had been enslaved by the nation of Egypt prior to the events of the book of Exodus. At the very moment these words were spoken, Israel was under the absolute control of the Roman Empire. It's mind-boggling that they could claim to have "never been enslaved to anyone." Then again, so is their inability to recognize their enslavement to sin.

John 8:31–59 dovetails with John 2:13–22. There, Jesus drove corrupt businessmen from the temple. These Scriptures disprove any myths that Jesus was weak, timid, passive, or soft. In this exchange with the Pharisees, Jesus pulls no punches. Jerusalem's religious leaders, and their followers, continue to resist Jesus' preaching. They rely on arrogance and insults, to which Jesus responds with blunt, unfiltered condemnation. This culminates in Jesus making an overt statement of His own divinity, punctuating the debate by declaring ''before Abraham was, I am!''

This begins with the story of the adulterous woman, a well-known but controversial passage. Most scholars believe this story is authentic, but not originally found in this exact spot in Scripture. The rest of chapter 8 continues Jesus' preaching during the Feast of Booths, where He once again comes into conflict with local religious leaders. Here, Christ will make His second ''I am" statement, using the analogy of light, which is a common theme in Hebrew theology. This conversation will become more and more heated. Jesus' opponents become so enraged that they attempt to kill Him right then and there.

Jesus is attending the Feast of Booths in Jerusalem. There He once again conflicts with local religious authorities. Previously, Jesus referred to Himself as a source of living water (John 7:37–38). That built on the festival's ritual pouring of water in the temple. In this chapter, Jesus will do something similar with the imagery of lights also related to festival traditions. This demonstrates Jesus' willingness to be direct, even aggressive, with His critics. The next few chapters will complete Jesus' public ministry, as He prepares for His impending death.

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.