John 8:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

NIV: When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'

NASB: Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.'

CSB: Jesus spoke to them again: "I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in the darkness but will have the light of life."

NLT: Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, 'I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.'

KJV: Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

NKJV: Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Seven times in the gospel of John, Jesus makes a powerful statement beginning with the phrase "I am." These comments echo the words of God to Moses in Exodus 3:14. There, when Moses asks who he should say has sent him to Israel, God tells Moses to tell the people "I AM WHO I AM…Say this to the people of Israel: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" This phrase implies the simplest expression of God's nature: He just is, He must be. When Jesus uses this phrasing, He is deliberately invoking that same essence.

This is the second of John's seven "I AM" statements. The first came when Jesus was preaching to the crowd in Capernaum, the morning after feeding thousands with a small boy's lunch (John 6:35). Later in this same chapter Jesus will use a slightly different version of this idea—not part of the primary seven "I AM" statements—resulting in rage from the Pharisees.

This incident occurs during the Feast of Booths in Jerusalem. Jesus has already used festival rituals as analogies for His role as Messiah (John 7:37–38). As part of this major festival, lamps would be lit using wicks made from priestly garments. In addition, light was a powerful metaphor in Hebrew thinking (Psalm 84:11; Malachi 4:2). "Light," for the Jewish person, was the ultimate ideal, a representation of salvation, knowledge, and goodness. For Jesus to claim to be the "light of the world" was no small thing. In fact, it is a claim to equality with God. Even further, the Greek of this passage indicates Jesus' claim to be "the" light, not merely "a" light. In the text's original Greek, Christ says "Egō eimi to phos tou kosmou," which explicitly claims He is the single, solitary source of "light."

Those who follow Christ, in truth, may stumble into darkness, but they will never perpetually "walk" in it (John 12:46; Psalm 36:9).

John 8:12–30 includes the second of Jesus' seven ''I AM'' statements, as recorded in the gospel of John. Jesus' reference to light was probably playing off of a ritual performed during the Feast of Booths, where lamps would be lit using wicks made from the robes of priests. This continues the dialogue of chapter 7, picking up where John 7:52 left off. The exchange between Jesus and the Pharisees will escalate, in part showing that Jesus was not afraid to directly castigate those who misled the people.

John chapter 8 includes 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. This chapter 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. Eventually, Jesus' opponents are enraged enough to attempt killing Him right then and there.

Jesus is attending the Feast of Booths in Jerusalem, and has once again come into conflict with the local religious authorities. In the previous chapter, Jesus referred to Himself as a source of living water, playing off of the festivals' ritual pouring of water in the temple. In this chapter, Jesus will use the imagery of lights, also related to festival traditions. This chapter 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 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.