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John 17:8

in John 17

For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

for the words which thou gavest me I have given unto them; and they received them, and knew of a truth that I came forth from thee, and they believed that thou didst send me.

KJV

For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.

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This verse in John 17

Commentary

17 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

I have given - them the words - I have delivered thy doctrine to them, so that they have had a pure teaching immediately from heaven: neither Jewish fables nor fictions of men have been mingled with it. And have known surely - Are fully convinced and acknowledge that I am the promised Messiah, and that they are to look for none other; and that my mission and doctrine are all Divine, Joh 17:7, Joh 17:8.

This site's exposition

everything You have given Me

on John 17:7-8

Everything You have given Me comes from the Father, and the words came down the same line, Father to Son to disciples. They have received them, knew with certainty that Jesus came from the Father, and believed that the Father sent Him. Two verbs stand together here, knew and believed.

This site's exposition

I have given them the words

The words are the doctrines He was sent to teach. The teaching came to them pure, with no fables or fictions of men mixed in. Ministers speak God's words to hearers, and Christ puts His words within them as food and treasure.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers4 voices

A commentator

Cyril of Alexandria

Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 11 · Written before 444.

proposed

He testified then to those who love Him, that they received and kept the words given Him by the Father, and were besides satisfied that He came, and was sent, from God; while those who were diseased with the contrary opinion were otherwise minded. For they who neither received His words nor kept their minds open to conviction, were not disposed to believe that He came from God, and was sent by Him.

A commentator

Augustine of Hippo

Tractates on John 106 · Written before 430.

proposed

But what human language will suffice to explain how the Father gave those words to the Son? The question, of course, will appear easier if we suppose Him to have received such words in His capacity as the Son of man. And yet, although thus born of the Virgin, who will undertake to relate when and how it was that He learned them, since even that very generation which He had of the Virgin who will venture to declare? But if our idea be that He received these words of the Father in His capacity as begotten of, and co-eternal with, the Father, let us then exclude all such thoughts of time as if He existed previous to His possessing them, and so received the possession of that which He had not before; for whatever God the Father gave to God the Son, He gave in the act of begetting. For the Father gave those things to the Son without which He could not be the Son, in the same manner as He gave Him being itself. For how otherwise would He give any words to the Word, wherein in an ineffable way He hath spoken all things?

A commentator

Augustine of Hippo

Tractates on John 106 · Written before 430.

proposed

He proceeds to say, "And they have kept Thy word: now they have known that all things, whatsoever Thou hast given me, are of Thee;" that is, they have known that I am of Thee. For the Father gave all things at the very time when He begat Him who was to have all things. "For I have given unto them," He says, "the words which Thou gavest me; and they have received them;" that is, they have understood and kept hold of them. For the word is received when it is perceived by the mind. "And they have known truly," He adds, "that I came out from Thee, and they have believed that Thou didst send me." In this last clause we must also supply "truly;" for when He said, "They have known truly," He intended its explanation by adding, "and they have believed." That, therefore, "they have believed truly" which "they have known truly;" just as "I came out from Thee" is the same as "Thou didst send me." When, therefore, He said, "They have known truly," lest any might suppose that such a knowledge was already acquired by sight, and not by faith, He subjoined the explanation, "And they have believed," so that we should supply "truly," and understand the saying, "They have known truly," as equivalent to "They have believed truly:" not in the way which He intimated shortly before, when He said, "Do ye now believe? The hour cometh, and is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall leave me alone." But "they have believed truly," that is, in the way it ought to be believed, without constraint, with firmness, constancy, and fortitude: no longer now to go to their own, and leave Christ alone. […]

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on the Gospel of John 81 · Written before 407.

proposed

"And they have kept Thy word." "Now they have known that all things whatsoever Thou hast given Me are of Thee." How did they "keep Thy word"? "By believing in Me, and giving no heed to the Jews. For he that believeth in Him, it saith, 'hath set to his seal that God is true.'" (c. iii. 33.) Some read, "Now I know that all things whatsoever Thou hast given Me are of Thee." But this would have no reason; for how would the Son be ignorant of the things of the Father? No the words are spoken of the disciples. "From the time," He saith, "that I told them these things, they have learnt that all that Thou hast given Me is from Thee; nothing is alien, nothing peculiar to Me, with Thee." "They therefore have known that all things, whatsoever I teach, are Thy doctrines and teachings." "And whence have they learnt it?" From My words; for so have I taught them. And not only this have I taught them, but also that "I came out from Thee." For this He was anxious to prove through all the Gospel.

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Bonaventure

Commentary on John, Chapter 17 · Written in the 13th century.

proposed

Because the words which you gave me, I have given to them: above in the fifteenth chapter: "All things that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you." And they kept my words, which I gave to them, and therefore your …
9 more voices on this verse

The Medieval Church2 voices

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on John · Written before 1274.

proposed

The reason this gives glory, that is, that this obedience of the disciples to the Son gives glory to the Father, is stated when he says, for I have given them the words which you gave me. First he states that knowledge comes from the …

A commentator

Theophylact of Ohrid

Commentary on John · Written before 1107.

proposed

"For the words which You gave Me, I have given to them," that is, from My words, from My teaching, for I always taught them that which is from the Father, and not only this did I teach, but I also taught that I came …

The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

The word was to them an ingrafted word. [2.] " They have kept thy word, have continued in it; they have conformed to it." Christ's commandment is then only kept when it is obeyed. Those that have to teach others the commands of Christ ought to be themselves observant of them.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Christ is a Master that delights in the proficiency of his scholars. He accepts the sincerity of their faith, and graciously passes by the infirmity of it. See how willing he is to make the best of us, and to say the best of us, thereby encouraging our faith in him, and teaching us charity to one another, [2.] As pleading it with the Father.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

3 ), but Christ only can manifest that name. By the word of Christ God is revealed to us; by the Spirit of Christ God is revealed in us. Ministers may speak the words of God to us, but Christ can give us his words, can put them in us, as food, as treasure.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens

For I have given unto them the words,....

The Nineteenth Century3 voices

These verses begin one of the most wonderful chapters in the Bible. It is a chapter in which we see our Lord Jesus Christ addressing a long prayer to God the Father. It is wonderful as a specimen of the communion that was ever kept up between the Father and the Son, during the period of the Son's ministry on earth. It is wonderful as a pattern of the intercession which the Son, as an High Priest, is ever carrying on for us in heaven.
These verses begin one of the most wonderful chapters in the Bible. It is a chapter in which we see our Lord Jesus Christ addressing a long prayer to God the Father. It is wonderful as a specimen of the communion that was ever kept up between the Father and the Son, during the period of the Son's ministry on earth. It is wonderful as a pattern of the intercession which the Son, as an High Priest, is ever carrying on for us in heaven. Not least it is wonderful as an example of the sort of things that believers should mention in prayer. What Christ asks for His people, His people should ask for themselves. It has been well and truly said by an old divine, that "the best and fullest sermon ever preached was followed by the best of prayers." It is needless to say that the chapter before us contains many deep things. It could hardly be otherwise. He that reads the words spoken by one Person of the blessed Trinity to another Person, by the Son to the Father, must surely be prepared to find much that he cannot fully understand, much that he has no line to fathom. There are sentences, words, and expressions, in the twenty-six verses of this chapter, which no one probably has ever unfolded completely. We have not minds to do it, or to understand the matters it contains, if we could. But there are great truths in the chapter which stand out clearly and plainly on its face, and to these truths we shall do well to direct our best attention. We should notice, firstly, in these verses, what a glorious account they contain of our Lord Jesus Christ's office and dignity. We read that the Father has "given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life." The keys of heaven are in Christ's hands. The salvation of every soul of mankind is at His disposal. We read, furthermore, that "it is life eternal to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent."
The words - The doctrines. Christ often represented himself as instructed and sent to teach certain great truths to men. Those he taught, and no others. See the notes at Joh 5:30.

The words behind it

24 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

John 8:42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on My own, but He sent Me.66 worksIsaiah 59:21“As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit will not depart from you, and My words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth or from the mouths of your children and grandchildren, from now on and forevermore,” says the LORD.40 worksJohn 17:14I have given them Your word and the world has hated them; for they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.17 worksJohn 12:49I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it.16 worksJohn 15:15No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.15 worksJohn 17:3Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.15 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Isaiah 51:16I have put My words in your mouth, and covered you with the shadow of My hand, to establish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”14 worksJohn 3:17For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.12 worksDeuteronomy 18:18I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put My words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.12 worksJohn 16:30Now we understand that You know all things and that You have no need for anyone to question You. Because of this, we believe that You came from God.”11 works1 Thessalonians 2:13And we continually thank God because, when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as the true word of God—the word which is now at work in you who believe.10 worksJohn 14:7If you had known Me, you would know My Father as well. From now on you do know Him and have seen Him.”10 worksRevelation 1:1This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John,10 worksPhilippians 3:8More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ10 worksJohn 16:27For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came from God.9 worksJohn 6:68Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.9 worksJohn 14:10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you, I do not speak on My own. Instead, it is the Father dwelling in Me, performing His works.9 worksJohn 17:21that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.8 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    John 15:15

    No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have…

    it leads to

    • Psalms 25:14

      The LORD confides in those who fear Him, and reveals His covenant to them.

    • 1 Corinthians 2:9–12

      Rather, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”

    • Matthew 13:11

      He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

    • James 2:23

      And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called a friend of God.

    • Colossians 1:26

      the mystery that was hidden for ages and generations but is now revealed to His saints.

  • Through

    1 Thessalonians 2:13

    And we continually thank God because, when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as the true word of God—the…

    it leads to

    • Hebrews 4:12

      For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

    • Romans 10:17

      Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

    • 1 Peter 1:23

      For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

Where this verse is studied

About John

Nicodemus Visiting Jesus, Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1899. Public domain.
Nicodemus Visiting Jesus, Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1899. Public domain.
John: the study guide →Read John 17 →
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Gospels; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Tractates on John 106; Bonaventure, Commentary on John, Chapter 17; Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 11; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); John Chrysostom, Homily on the Gospel of John 81; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on John and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on John.

Read on in John 17 →