John 8:35 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.

NIV: Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.

NASB: Now the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever.

CSB: A slave does not remain in the household forever, but a son does remain forever.

NLT: A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever.

KJV: And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.

NKJV: And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.

Jesus is explaining the enslaving nature of sin, as compared to the freedom He offers in salvation. Jesus has already claimed to be the one and only source of spiritual truth (John 8:12), and that accepting this truth would rescue a person from sin and spiritual slavery (John 8:31–32). In the prior verse, Jesus noted that those who habitually practice sin are slaves to sin—these are not people who have been "set free." In this verse, He draws out the distinction between a household servant and an actual son of the house.

Slaves—from the Greek term doula--meaning a "bondservant"—were the equivalent of employees in the ancient world. They lived in the master's house and had a certain kind of relationship with the master. However, they were not actually part of the master's family. Eventually, these bondservants would leave, or be dismissed. Only the actual children of the master had a permanent right to live in the home. The classic example of this is found in Genesis 21, where Ishmael, Abraham's son through the servant Hagar, is dismissed from the home; his son Isaac, through his wife, remains. This, according to Jesus, applies to our spiritual relationship to God.

Specifically, Jesus is referring to the crowd's earlier claim to being the children of Abraham. As Jesus will soon point out, His critics may be "in the house" of Abraham, but they are not really "children" of Abraham, since they are not spiritually part of God's family. Sooner or later, as with any other "slave," they will find themselves cast out.

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.