John 10:38
in John 10But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
But if I do them, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.
KJV
But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
⋯
This verse in John 10
Commentary
19 notes on this verseA commentator
Athanasius of Alexandria296–373
On the Incarnation of the Word 18.1-3 · Written before 373.
By the works he did in the body [he] showed himself to be not man but God the Word. But these things are said about him because the actual body that ate, was born and suffered belonged to none other but the Lord. And he had become a man; it was proper for these things to be predicated of him as a man in order to show that he really had a body, and not just one in appearance.
This site's exposition
the works of My Father
on John 10:37-38
Jesus puts the works forward as the test. Where the person is refused, the works themselves are still offered as the way in, so a man may begin there. The aim is the Father in the Son, and the Son in the Father.
This site's exposition
believe the works themselves
John Wesley reads this as the gloss on verse 30. Adam Clarke follows the argument through: the works prove the Father is in the Son, and so that the two are one. Wesley adds that knowledge comes before faith in some and after it in others.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers5 voices
(Tract. xlviii. 10) The Son doth not say, The Father is in Me, and I in Him, in the sense in which men who think and act aright may say the like; meaning that they partake of God's grace, and are enlightened by His Spirit. The Only-begotten Son of God is in the Father, and the Father in Him, as an equal in an equal.
"If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye will not believe me, believe the works; that ye may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in Him." The Son says not, "the Father is in me, and I in Him," as men can say it. For if we think well, we are in God; and if we live well, God is in us: believers, by participating in His grace, and being illuminated by Himself, are in Him, and He in us. But not so is it with the only-begotten Son: He is in the Father, and the Father in Him; as one who is equal is in him whose equal he is. Recognize the prerogative of the Lord, and the privilege of the servant. The prerogative of the Lord is equality with the Father: the privilege of the servant is fellowship with the Saviour.
What room is there here for adoption, or for permission to use the name or for denial that he was born from the nature of God when the proof that he is God's Son is that he does the works that belong to the Father's nature? No creature is equal or similar to God, no nature external to his is comparable in might to him. It is only the Son, born from himself, whom we can without blasphemy liken and make equal to him.… The Son performs the Father's works and on that ground demands that we should believe that he is God's Son. This is no claim of mere arrogance; for he bases it on his works and asks us to examine them. And he bears witness that these works are not his own but his Father's. He would not have our thoughts distracted by the splendor of the deeds from the evidence for his birth. And because the Jews could not penetrate the mystery of the body that he had taken, the humanity born of Mary, and recognize the Son of God, he appeals to his deeds for confirmation of his right to the name.… First, he would not have them believe that he is the Son of God, except on the evidence of God's works, which he does. Next, if he does the works yet seems unworthy in his bodily humility to bear the divine name, he demands that they believe the works. Why should the mystery of his human birth hinder our recognition of his birth as God when he that is divinely born fulfills every divine task by the agency of that manhood that he has assumed? If we do not believe the man for the works' sake when he tells us that he is the Son of God, let us believe the works when they—which are beyond a doubt the works of God—are clearly done by the Son of God. For the Son of God possesses by virtue of his birth everything that is God's. […]
It must therefore be by the works that the Father is in the Son, and the Son in the Father; and so it is by the works that we understand that the Father is one with the Son. All along he therefore strenuously aimed at this conclusion, that while they were of one power and essence, they should still be believed to be two. For otherwise, unless they were believed to be two, the Son could not possibly be believed to have any existence at all.
A commentator
Cyril of AlexandriaCommentary on the Gospel of John, Book 7 (Fragments) · Written before 444.
proposed
Therefore, as there is but One Godhead in Father and Son and Holy Spirit, we say that the Father is seen in the Son, and the Son in the Father. And it is necessary to know this other point also, that it is not the wishing the same things as the Father, nor the possessing one will with Him, that makes the Son say: I am in the Father, and the Father in Me, and: I and the Father are One; but because, being the genuine Offspring of the Essence of the Father, He shows forth the Father in Himself, and Himself also is shown forth in the Father. For He says that He wills and speaks and effects the same things as the Father, and easily performs what He wishes, even as the Father doth, in order that He may be acknowledged in all respects Consubstantial with Him, and a true Fruit of His Essence; and not merely as having a relative unity with Him, only in similarity of will and the laws of love; which unity we say belongs also to His creatures.
11 more voices on this verse
The Church Fathers2 voices
What He saith is of this kind: "If those who have received this honor by grace, are not found fault with for calling themselves gods, how can He who hath this by nature deserve to be rebuked?" Yet He spake not so, but proved it at a later time, having first relaxed and yielded somewhat in His discourse, and said, "Whom the Father hath sanctified and sent." And when He had softened their anger, He bringeth forward the plain assertion. For a while, that His speech might be received, He spoke in a humbler strain, but afterwards He raised it higher, saying, "If I do not the works of My Father, believe Me not; but if I do, though ye believe not Me, believe the works." Seest thou how He proveth what I said, that He is in nothing inferior to the Father, but in every way equal to Him? For since it was impossible to see His Essence, from the equality and sameness of the works He affordeth a proof of unvaryingness as to Power. And what, tell me, shall we believe? "That I am in the Father, and the Father in Me." "For I am nothing other than what the Father is, yet still Son; He nothing other than what I am, yet still Father. And if any man know Me, he knoweth the Father, and if he knoweth the Father, he hath learnt also the Son." Now were the power inferior, then also what relateth to the knowledge would be false, for it is not possible to become acquainted with one substance or power by means of another.
(vii. de Trin. 26) What place hath adoption, or the mere conception of a name then, that we should not believe Him to be the Son of God by nature, when He tells us to believe Him to be the Son of God, because the Father's nature showed itself in Him by His works? A creature is not equal and like to God: no other nature has power comparable to the divine. He declares that He is carrying on not His own work, but the Father's, lest in the greatness of the works, the nativity of His nature be forgotten. And as under the sacrament of the assumption of a human body in the womb of Mary, the Son of God was not discerned, this must be gathered from His work; But if I do, though ye believe not Me, believe the works. Why doth the sacrament of a human birth hinder the understanding of the divine, when the divine birth accomplishes all its work by aid of the human? Then He tells them what they should gather from His works; That ye may know and believe, that the Father is in Me, and I in Him. The same declaration again, I am the Son of God: I and the Father are one.
The Medieval Church3 voices
Secondly, he says that they are convicted by his very works: but if I do them, the same works the Father does, then even though you do not believe me, who appears as a son of man, believe the works, i.e., these works show that …
And you will know and believe that I am nothing other than the Father. For while remaining the Son and being distinct in Person, I have one and the same Essence; just as the Father also, while remaining the Father and being distinct in Person, …
"But if I do, and if you will not believe me," that is, my word: "believe the works," that is, through the works believe in me, "that you may believe and know that the Father is in me, and I in the Father": and thus …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
That ye may know and believe - In some a more exact knowledge precedes, in others it follows faith. I am in the Father and the Father in me. I and the Father are one - These two sentences illustrate each other.
But if I do,....
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
Believe the works - Though ye do not now credit what I have said to you, yet consider my works, and then ye will see that these works prove that I am in the Father and the Father in me; and, consequently, that I and the Father are one. This seems to be the force of our Lord’s argument; and every man must see and feel that it is conclusive.
A commentator
J.C. Ryle1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1869)
We should observe, in these verses, the extreme wickedness of human nature. The unbelieving Jews at Jerusalem was neither moved by our Lord's miracles, nor by His preaching. They were determined not to receive Him as their Messiah. Once more it is written that "they took up stones to stone Him." Our Lord had done the Jews no injury. He was no robber, murderer, or rebel against the law of the land. He was one whose whole life was love, and who "went about doing good." (Acts 10:38.) There was no fault or inconsistency in His character.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
though ye believe not me, believe the works--There was in Christ's words, independently of any miracles, a self-evidencing truth, majesty and grace, which those who had any spiritual susceptibility were unable to resist (Joh 7:46; But, for those who wanted this, "the works" were a mighty help.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase+unbalanced-parens
A commentator
J.C. Ryle1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1869)
proposed
We should observe, in these verses, the extreme wickedness of human nature. The unbelieving Jews at Jerusalem was neither moved by our Lord's miracles, nor by His preaching. They were determined not to receive Him as their Messiah. Once more it is written that "they took up stones to stone Him." Our Lord had done the Jews no injury. He was no robber, murderer, or rebel against the law of the land. He was one whose whole life was love, and who "went about doing good." (Acts 10:38.) There was no fault or inconsistency in His character. There was no crime that could be laid to His charge. So perfect and spotless a man had never walked on the face of this earth. But yet the Jews hated Him, and thirsted for His blood. How true are the words of Scripture—"They hated Him without a cause." (John 15:25.) How just the remark of an old divine—"Unconverted men would kill God Himself if they could only get at Him." The true Christian has surely no right to wonder if he meets with the same kind of treatment as our blessed Lord. In fact, the more like he is to his Master, and the more holy and spiritual his life, the more probable is it that he will have to endure hatred and persecution. Let him not suppose that any degree of consistency will deliver him from this cross. It is not his faults, but his graces, which call forth the enmity of men. The world hates to see anything of God's image. The children of the world are vexed and pierced in conscience when they see others better than themselves. Why did Cain hate his brother Abel, and slay him? "Because," says John, "his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous." (1 John 3:12.) Why did the Jews hate Christ? Because He exposed their sins and false doctrines; and they knew in their own hearts that he was right and they were wrong.
How the passage was read
On John 10:22-39On John 10:22-39
The feast Jesus was keeping
“The Feast of Dedication” is the festival modern Jews call Hanukkah: an eight-day winter feast, beginning on the 25th of the month Kislev (falling in December), that remembers the cleansing and rededication of the Temple in 164 BC. Antiochus IV, the Greek-Syrian king, had defiled the altar; Judas Maccabeus and his brothers retook Jerusalem, rebuilt the altar, and ordained the annual celebration (1 Maccabees 4:36–59). Today it is kept by lighting one more candle each night on a nine-branched lampstand, which is why it is also called the Festival of Lights; the lamp-lighting custom is discussed in the Talmud (Shabbat 21b).
Two things follow for the reader. This feast is not commanded anywhere in the Law of Moses: it was instituted between the Testaments, and John records Jesus walking in the Temple courts during it without a word of censure. And the setting is loaded: at the feast that celebrates the Temple's rescue from a ruler who claimed divine honors, the crowd asks Jesus plainly whether He is the Messiah (John 10:24).
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Sources: 1 Maccabees 4:36–59 (the feast's institution; studied on this site) · Shabbat 21b (Babylonian Talmud, the lamp-lighting custom) · The Maccabean Revolt (this site's study of the history)
The words behind it
23 Greek wordsEvery 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.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| εἰ | ei | If | G1487 → | 508 times |
| δὲ | de | however | G1161 → | 2765 times |
| ποιῶ, | poio | I do, | G4160 → | 569 times |
| κἂν | kan | even if | G2532 →G1437 → | 352 times |
| ἐμοὶ | emoi | Me myself | G1473 → | 839 times |
| μὴ | me | not | G3361 → | 1066 times |
| πιστεύητε, | pisteuete | you shall believe, | G4100 → | 237 times |
| τοῖς | tois | in the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| ἔργοις | ergois | works | G2041 → | 168 times |
| πιστεύετε | pisteuete | do believe | G4100 → | 237 times |
| ἵνα | ina | so that | G2443 → | 668 times |
| γνῶτε | gnote | you may know | G1097 → | 221 times |
| καὶ | kai | and | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| γινώσκητε | ginoskete | may understand | G1097 → | 221 times |
| ὅτι | hoti | that | G3754 → | 1292 times |
| ἐν | en | in | G1722 → | 2738 times |
| ἐμοὶ | emoi | Me myself [is] | G1473 → | 839 times |
| ὁ | ho | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| πατὴρ | pater | Father | G3962 → | 410 times |
| κἀγὼ | kago | and I myself | G1473 →G2532 → | 839 times |
| ἐν | en | in | G1722 → | 2738 times |
| τῷ | to | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| πατρί.¶ | patri | Father. | G3962 → | 410 times |
εἰIf
eiG1487 →508 times
δὲhowever
deG1161 →2765 times
ποιῶ,I do,
poioG4160 →569 times
κἂνeven if
ἐμοὶMe myself
emoiG1473 →839 times
μὴnot
meG3361 →1066 times
πιστεύητε,you shall believe,
pisteueteG4100 →237 times
τοῖςin the
toisG3588 →19766 times
ἔργοιςworks
ergoisG2041 →168 times
πιστεύετεdo believe
pisteueteG4100 →237 times
ἵναso that
inaG2443 →668 times
γνῶτεyou may know
gnoteG1097 →221 times
καὶand
kaiG2532 →9120 times
γινώσκητεmay understand
ginosketeG1097 →221 times
ὅτιthat
hotiG3754 →1292 times
ἐνin
enG1722 →2738 times
ἐμοὶMe myself [is]
emoiG1473 →839 times
ὁthe
hoG3588 →19766 times
πατὴρFather
paterG3962 →410 times
κἀγὼand I myself
ἐνin
enG1722 →2738 times
τῷthe
toG3588 →19766 times
πατρί.¶Father.
patriG3962 →410 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach 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 10:30I and the Father are one.”
it leads to
- John 1:1–2
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- John 17:21–23
that 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.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- John 8:58
“Truly, truly, I tell you,” Jesus declared, “before Abraham was born, I am!”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- John 14:9
Jesus replied, “Philip, I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the…
- John 5:23
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
- John 1:1–2
Through
John 14:20On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you are in Me, and I am in you.
it leads to
- John 15:5–7
I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.
- Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved…
- John 17:26
And I have made Your name known to them and will continue to make it known, so that the love You have for Me may be in them, and I in them.”
- John 15:5–7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies35
- The Animal Apocalypse
- Hanukkah: the Feast the Revolt Made
- The Apocrypha
- The Major Prophets
- David
- The Divine Council
Show the next 6 titles
- Eternal Life
- Eternal Security, and the Five Warnings of Hebrews
- The Fall Feasts
- The Words Tov and Agathosyne
- Hearing God
- Jesus on Himself
Show the next 6 titles
Show the next 6 titles
About John
This page draws on 17 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Athanasius of Alexandria, On the Incarnation of the Word 18.1-3; Augustine of Hippo, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Augustine of Hippo, Tractates on John 48; Bonaventure, Commentary on John, Chapter 10; Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 7 (Fragments); Hilary of Poitiers, ON THE TRINITY 7.26; Hilary of Poitiers, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary on the Gospel according to John; John Chrysostom, Homily on the Gospel of John 61; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Tertullian, AGAINST PRAXEAS 22; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on John and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on John.