John 16:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?”

NIV: At this, some of his disciples said to one another, 'What does he mean by saying, 'In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,' and 'Because I am going to the Father'?'

NASB: So some of His disciples said to one another, 'What is this that He is telling us, ‘A little while, and you are not going to see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?'

CSB: Then some of his disciples said to one another, "What is this he's telling us: 'In a little while, you will not see me; again in a little while, you will see me,' and, 'Because I am going to the Father'? "

NLT: Some of the disciples asked each other, 'What does he mean when he says, ‘In a little while you won’t see me, but then you will see me,’ and ‘I am going to the Father’?

KJV: Then said some of his disciples among themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me: and, Because I go to the Father?

NKJV: Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?”

It's tempting—and unfair—for modern readers to look back at Jesus' closest followers, the Twelve, with scorn. They frequently respond to Jesus' teachings with confusion, or even resistance (Matthew 16:21–23). However, we have the benefit of hindsight; we have a clear understanding of exactly what is about to happen (Luke 1:1–4). The men hearing from Christ during this Last Supper (John 13:1–5) don't have those advantages. They won't have clarity until after everything has happened (John 2:22), and they are guided by the Holy Spirit (John 16:13).

The statement Jesus has just made is especially confusing for His disciples (John 16:16). Many of His recent comments mentioned leaving (John 16:7, 10), but now He has referred to being seen again, after a short while. What they don't know yet, is that after Jesus is arrested (John 18:1–3) and crucified (John 19:18), He will be resurrected (John 20:19), and appear to them for 40 days prior to ascending into heaven (Acts 1:3–9).

Jesus will take note of their struggle, however, and provide some clarity in the upcoming verses (John 16:19–20).

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 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.