John 10:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: There was again a division among the Jews because of these words.

NIV: The Jews who heard these words were again divided.

NASB: Dissension occurred again among the Jews because of these words.

CSB: Again the Jews were divided because of these words.

NLT: When he said these things, the people were again divided in their opinions about him.

KJV: There was a division therefore again among the Jews for these sayings.

NKJV: Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings.

Many of Jesus' words were divisive (John 7:43; 9:16). To some extent, His entire existence drives separation between human beings (Matthew 10:34–36; Psalm 53:1; Acts 25:19). Jesus even claimed to be "the Door" and the sole means of salvation (John 10:7–9); that implies a 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 to suggest He's a nutcase (John 10:20).

As always, 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.

John 10:1–21 continues directly from Jesus' encounter with local religious leaders, after giving sight to a man born blind (John 9). Jesus' references here to shepherds and shepherding are pointed barbs at these hypocritical, self-serving figures. In this section, Jesus actually creates three separate metaphors; these are not meant to be understood as a single analogy. The first comes in verses 1 through 6, the second in verses 7 through 9, and the third in verses 10 through 18. In doing so, Jesus explains how He differs from the corrupt leaders He confronts. He also delivers His third and fourth ''I am'' statements, out of seven in this gospel.

This passage continues Jesus' discussion with the religious leaders of Jerusalem, seen in chapter 9. Jesus lays out three separate analogies about His ministry, using the concept of sheep and shepherds. In those statements, Jesus explains why some people refuse to accept Him, declares Himself the only means of salvation, and again predicts His sacrificial death. This leads to controversy. Later, Jesus is cornered by a mob in the temple grounds. They once again try to stone Him as He repeats His divine claims, but He escapes in some way not fully described by the text. After this, Jesus leaves the area and returns to the region where John the Baptist had once preached.

Starting in chapter 7, the gospel of John describes Jesus' preaching at the Feast of Booths in Jerusalem. Through chapters 7 and 8, He debates with critics and attempts to explain spiritual truths. On the way out of the city, Jesus gives sight to a man born blind, as shown in chapter 9. That begins an extended debate which continues in this chapter. Jesus gives analogies of His mission using shepherding as a theme. Months later, He repeats those ideas when cornered by an aggressive mob in the temple. This sets the stage for His grandest miracle, the raising of Lazarus, seen in chapter 11.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. 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”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.