John 12:37
in John 12Although Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still did not believe in Him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
But though he had done so many signs before them, yet they believed not on him:
KJV
But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him:
⋯
This verse in John 12
Commentary
17 notes on this verseA commentator
Cyril of AlexandriaCommentary on the Gospel of John, Book 8 (Fragments) · Written before 444.
And the Evangelist, wishing to convict their immoderate stubbornness, adds also the words: before them; showing that they did not believe even what they saw.
This site's exposition
so many signs in their presence
on John 12:37-41
John steps out of the account to answer why Israel did not believe. He reaches for Isaiah 53:1 on unbelief and Isaiah 6:10 on a hardening that follows long refusal. Verse 41 puts the throne room vision of Isaiah 6 on Jesus.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers4 voices
(Tr. liii. 2) But some mutter, and ask, What fault was it of the Jews, if it was necessary that the sayings of Esaias should be fulfilled? We answer, that God, foreseeing the future, predicted by the Prophet the unbelief of the Jews, but did not cause it. God does not compel men to sin, because He knows they will sin. He foreknows their sins, not His own. The Jews committed the sin, which He who knows all things foretold they would commit.
There are some, then, who mutter among themselves, and sometimes speak out when they can, and even break forth into turbulent debate, saying: What did the Jews do, or what fault was it of theirs, if it was a necessity "that the saying of Isaiah the prophet should be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed?" To whom our answer is, that the Lord, in His foreknowledge of the future, foretold by the prophet the unbelief of the Jews; He foretold it, but did not cause it. For God does not compel any one to sin simply because He knows already the future sins of men. For He foreknew sins that were theirs, not His own; sins that were referable to no one else, but to their own selves. Accordingly, if what He foreknew as theirs is not really theirs, then had He no true foreknowledge: but as His foreknowledge is infallible, it is doubtless no one else, but they themselves, whose sinfulness God foreknew, that are the sinners. The Jews, therefore, committed sin, with no compulsion to do so on His part, to whom sin is an object of displeasure; but He foretold their committing of it, because nothing is concealed from His knowledge. And accordingly, had they wished to do good instead of evil, they would not have been hindered; but in this which they were to do they were foreseen of Him who knows what every man will do, and what He is yet to render unto such an one according to his work.
Here he expressly foretells the opposition of the Jews to him and how they will see him and not understand who he is. He foretells how they will hear him speaking and teaching them but will be quite unable to grasp who it is that speaks with them or the new teaching he offers them. And John the Evangelist witnesses to the fulfillment of these words referring to our Savior where he says, "Though he had done so many signs before them, yet they believed not on him, that Isaiah the prophet's words might be fulfilled which he spoke, 'Lord, who has believed our report, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?' Therefore they were not able to believe, because again Isaiah said, 'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they should not see with their eyes, and understand with their heart and be converted, and I should heal them.' Isaiah said these things when he saw his glory and bore witness of him." Thus the Evangelist most certainly referred the theophany in Isaiah to Christ and to the Jews who did not receive the Lord that was seen by the prophet, according to the prediction about him.
(Hom. lxviii. 1) And thus the Evangelist tacitly explains it, when he adds, But though He had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on Him.
The Medieval Church1 voice
That they did not believe but were vexed, the Evangelist himself indicated when he said, "Though He had done so many miracles, they did not believe in Him." And of course it is a matter of no small malice not to believe so many miracles. …
10 more voices on this verse
The Medieval Church3 voices
Although he had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in him: such as the sign of the raising of Lazarus: yet they did not believe, because their malice did not permit it: Wisdom 2: "Their malice blinded them." Nor did this …
Above, the Evangelist gave many examples of Christ's glory, because of which the Jews sought to kill him out of envy. Now he deals with another of the occasions surrounding his passion, that is, the unbelief of the Jews. First, their unbelief is discussed; in …
He means the miracles related above. It was no small wickedness to disbelieve against such miracles as those.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But though he had done so many miracles before them,....
The Nineteenth Century6 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
So many miracles - This does not refer to any miracles performed on this occasion, but to all his miracles performed in view of the nation, in healing the sick, opening the eyes of the blind, raising the dead, etc. John here gives the summary or the result of all his work undeniable proof of his being the Messiah, yet the nation did not believe on him. Before them - Before the Jewish nation. Not in the presence of the people whom he was then addressing, but before the Jewish people.
A commentator
J.C. Ryle1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1869)
proposed
The lesson of the words is generally applicable to the whole professing Church of Christ. Its time for doing good in the world is short and limited. The throne of grace will not always be standing—it will be removed one day, and the throne of judgment will be set up in its place. The door of salvation by faith in Christ will not always be open—it will be shut one day forever, and the number of God's elect will be completed.
THE BLINDNESS of Israel concerning our Lord was sadly remarkable. It was a blindness of the eyes, for they saw his many miracles, and yet believed not: their ears also seemed to be stopped, for they heard his words and did not understand them; and their hearts also were heavy, for they did not relent under the plaintive admonitions of a Saviour's love. Their hearts were cruel towards the Messiah; they hated him without a cause.
A commentator
J.C. Ryle1816–1900
Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition) (1869)
proposed
The lesson of the words is generally applicable to the whole professing Church of Christ. Its time for doing good in the world is short and limited. The throne of grace will not always be standing—it will be removed one day, and the throne of judgment will be set up in its place. The door of salvation by faith in Christ will not always be open—it will be shut one day forever, and the number of God's elect will be completed. The fountain for all sin and uncleanness will not always be accessible; the way to it will one day be barred, and there will remain nothing but the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. These are solemn thoughts; but they are true. They cry aloud to sleeping Churchmen and drowsy congregations, and ought to arouse great searchings of heart. "Can nothing more be done to spread the Gospel at home and abroad? Has every means been tried for extending the knowledge of Christ crucified? Can we lay our hands on our hearts, and say that the Churches have left nothing undone in the matter of missions? Can we look forward to the Second Advent with no feelings of humiliation, and say that the talents of wealth, and influence, and opportunities have not been buried in the ground?" Such questions may well humble us, when we look, on one side, at the state of professing Christendom, and, on the other, at the state of the heathen world. We must confess with shame that the Church is not walking worthy of its light. But the lesson of the words is specially applicable to ourselves as individuals . Our own time for getting good is short and limited; let us take heed that we make good use of it. Let us "walk while we have the light." Have we Bibles? Let us not neglect to read them. Have we the preached Gospel? Let us not linger halting between two opinions, but believe to the saving of our souls. Have we Sabbaths?
THE BLINDNESS of Israel concerning our Lord was sadly remarkable. It was a blindness of the eyes, for they saw his many miracles, and yet believed not: their ears also seemed to be stopped, for they heard his words and did not understand them; and their hearts also were heavy, for they did not relent under the plaintive admonitions of a Saviour's love. Their hearts were cruel towards the Messiah; they hated him without a cause. No door was open to the heart of Israel; they had hardened their heart, they had shut their eyes, they had stopped their ears, and even he that spake as never man spake gained no access to their souls. They went so far as to crucify him, and cried as they did so, "His blood be on us, and our children,"—words so sadly verified when Jerusalem was destroyed, and her children slaughtered, sold as slaves, or scattered to the four corners of the earth. It was indeed, a terrible blindness which happened unto Israel. Her rejection of the Lord Jesus is the more amazing because Isaiah gave so clear an account of the Messiah, and so clearly pictured Jesus of Nazareth. Descriptions of him could not have been more explicit than were the prophecies of Isaiah. It would be very easy to construct an entire life of Christ out of the book of Isaiah, beginning with "a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel," and ending with "he made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death." Isaiah spake of John the Baptist as the "voice crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God," and he foretold our Lord's ministry by the way of the sea beyond Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles, where the people who sat in darkness saw great light.
Yet they believed not on him - Though the miracles were wrought for this very purpose, that they might believe in Christ, and escape the coming wrath, and every evidence given that Jesus was the Messiah, yet they did not believe; but they were blinded by their passions, and obstinately hardened their hearts against the truth.
The words behind it
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Τοσαῦτα | tosauta | So many | G5118 → | 20 times |
| δὲ | de | however | G1161 → | 2765 times |
| αὐτοῦ | autou | of Him | G846 → | 5565 times |
| σημεῖα | semeia | signs | G4592 → | 75 times |
| πεποιηκότος | pepoiekotos | having been done | G4160 → | 569 times |
| ἔμπροσθεν | emprosthen | before | G1715 → | 48 times |
| αὐτῶν | auton | them | G846 → | 5565 times |
| οὐκ | ouk | not | G3756 → | 1664 times |
| ἐπίστευον | episteuon | they were believing | G4100 → | 237 times |
| εἰς | eis | in | G1519 → | 1755 times |
| αὐτόν, | auton | Him, | G846 → | 5565 times |
ΤοσαῦταSo many
tosautaG5118 →20 times
δὲhowever
deG1161 →2765 times
αὐτοῦof Him
autouG846 →5565 times
σημεῖαsigns
semeiaG4592 →75 times
πεποιηκότοςhaving been done
pepoiekotosG4160 →569 times
ἔμπροσθενbefore
emprosthenG1715 →48 times
αὐτῶνthem
autonG846 →5565 times
οὐκnot
oukG3756 →1664 times
ἐπίστευονthey were believing
episteuonG4100 →237 times
εἰςin
eisG1519 →1755 times
αὐτόν,Him,
autonG846 →5565 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 1:11He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
it leads to
- Luke 19:14
But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want this man to rule over us.’
- Isaiah 53:2–3
He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
- John 3:32
He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony.
- Acts 7:51–52
You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
- Luke 20:13–15
‘What shall I do?’ asked the owner of the vineyard. ‘I will send my beloved son. Perhaps they will respect him.’
- Luke 19:14
Through
Matthew 11:20Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles had been performed, because they did not repent.
it leads to
- Luke 10:13–15
Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and…
- Luke 10:13–15
Through
Luke 16:31Then Abraham said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”
it leads to
- 2 Corinthians 4:3
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.
- 2 Corinthians 4:3
Through
John 11:42I knew that You always hear Me, but I say this for the benefit of the people standing here, so they may believe that You sent Me.”
it leads to
- John 3:17
For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.
- John 3:17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies22
About John
This page draws on 16 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, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; Augustine of Hippo, Tractates on John 53; Bonaventure, Commentary on John, Chapter 12; Brooke Foss Westcott, The Gospel according to St. John; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 1844: “Israel And Britain. A Note of Warning” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 8 (Fragments); Eusebius of Caesarea, PROOF OF THE GOSPEL 7.1; J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels: John (lightly modernized text, Grace Gems edition); John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea by Aquinas; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on John; Theophylact of Ohrid, Catena Aurea by Aquinas and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on John.