John 7:26-36

²⁶He is saying these things ◄publicly/in front of many people►, but our Jewish rulers are not saying anything to oppose him. Is that because they have decided that he is truly ◄the Messiah/God's chosen king►?

²⁷But he cannot be the Messiah, because we know where this man came from. When the Messiah really comes, no one will know where he comes from.”

²⁸They said that because they thought Jesus was born in Nazareth. So while Jesus was teaching people in the Temple courtyard, he shouted, “Yes, you say that you know me, and you think you know IRO where I am from. But I have come here not ◄because I appointed myself/with my own authority►. Instead, God is the one who truly sent me. You do not know him.

²⁹But I know him, because I have come from him. He is the one who sent me!”

³⁰Then they tried to seize him because he said that he had come from God. But no one put their hands on him to do that, because it was not yet the time MTY for him to die.

³¹But many of the crowd believed that he had come from God. They said, “When the Messiah comes, he certainly will not do more miracles than this man has done, will he?”

³²The Pharisees heard them whispering these things about him. So they and the chief priests sent some Temple guards to seize him.

³³Then Jesus said, “I will be with you for only a short time. Then I will return to the one who sent me.

³⁴Then you will search for me, but you will not find me. And you will not be able to come to the place where I am.”

³⁵So the Jewish leaders SYN said to themselves, “Where is this man about to go with the result that we will not be able to find him? Some Jewish people have dispersed and live among Greek people. He is not intending to go and live among them and teach them, is he?

³⁶When he said ‘You will search for me, but you will not be able to find me,’ and when he said ‘You will not be able to come to the place where I am,’ what did he mean?”