John 6:71 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.

NIV: (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)

NASB: Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.

CSB: He was referring to Judas, Simon Iscariot's son, one of the Twelve, because he was going to betray him.

NLT: He was speaking of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, one of the Twelve, who would later betray him.

KJV: He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.

NKJV: He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.

Judas' betrayal did not take Jesus by surprise. Even in this story, Jesus has demonstrated that He knows what other people are really thinking (John 6:26). Judas stayed with Jesus even when a large number of others left (John 6:66). Peter, in response, claims that those who have remained truly believe that Jesus is "The Holy One of God." Judas, obviously, does not, and Jesus knows this.

His reasons for telling the group that one of them is an unbeliever are unclear, at least at this point. Jesus earlier separated these twelve men from the crowd, right after the people clamored for Jesus to become king. It's possible that this was done to keep the disciples humble. Jesus' disturbing remark that one of these men, even now, was "a devil" might have been intended to have the same effect. Rather than being overly proud that they'd stayed with Jesus, the disciples needed to be reminded that, even so, things are not always as good as they seem.

John 6:60–71 shows the drastic impact of Jesus' teaching on the crowd: most walk away. When confronted with spiritual needs and a spiritual message, most people will turn it down. What society wants is spectacle, material things, and a political savior. The more Jesus insists on being the means to eternal life, the angrier the crowd becomes, until the vast majority simply abandon Him. The twelve disciples, on the other hand, seem willing to follow Jesus, though they are also struggling to accept His recent claims. Peter's declaration will be the third of John's seven witnesses to Jesus' divinity.

In chapter 6, Jesus feeds thousands of people who had been following Him. He does this by miraculously dividing the contents of a small lunch, leaving more left over than He had to begin with. At first, the crowd is amazed and they enthusiastically praise Jesus. After sending the disciples across the Sea of Galilee, and rescuing them from a storm by walking on the water, Jesus once again addresses the crowd. This time, He emphasizes the spiritual lesson behind His prior miracle. In response, most of those who had been praising Jesus turn away from Him in disappointment.

John chapter 6 occurs some months after the events of chapter 5, bringing the narrative to about one year prior to Jesus' crucifixion. As with the rest of the Gospel of John, the purpose is not to repeat information from the other three Gospels, but to focus on Jesus' status as God incarnate. This chapter continues to expand the list of Jesus' miraculous signs and the witnesses to His divine nature. Here, Jesus also gives the first of seven ''I AM'' statements found in this Gospel. Chapter 7 will once again skip ahead to a major public step in Jesus' path to the cross.

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.

Accessed 5/5/2024 9:55:46 AM