Monthly Archives: January 2021

(John 6:1-15) I already wrote about the feeding of the 5000, from Matthew’s version of events. That they are exactly the same event is an assumption; we know for sure that Jesus fed a multitude on at least two occasions, which we refer to as the feeding of the 5000 and the feeding of theContinue reading “Where shall we buy bread?”

(John 5:36-38) The back end of John 5 is one of those passages which can. become a bit of a blur to a reader who is less than awake, alert and eager, just because of the repeated and rearranged words and ideas. But here are just two sentences (three verses) which spoke to me. ἐγὼContinue reading “The works I do”

(John 5:9-15) I wasn’t going to cover the “after story” of the feeble man at the Pool, but changed my mind: because it raises one absolutely fundamental issue. The easy part is this: when Jesus tells the man to get up, pick up his bed and walk, he does exactly that, and walks off, whileContinue reading “Not the sharpest stick in the forest”

(John 5:2-9) This one is for those who struggle with the chunks of Greek. That’s because what matters in this passage stands out in pretty much any translation. It begins with Jesus having returned to Jerusalem for a Feast… There was in Jerusalem near the Sheep (Gate) a diving pool called in Hebrew, Bethesda (houseContinue reading “I have no one to throw me in…”

(John 4:43-54) Here is the above passage, in the NIV. It has two extraordinarily strange features; please tell me you can see them… After the two days he left for Galilee. (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.) When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomedContinue reading “Strange welcome”

(John 4:31-38) This passage sits in the middle of the story of the woman at the well, at Sychar. Before it, the woman has left her jar and headed off to tell all her neighbours about “a man who told me everything I ever did.” After this passage the Samaritans are believing, originally because ofContinue reading “Food, glorious food”

(John 3:1-21) Read Part 1 first; and then you might need help to collect your thoughts. This passage can so easily read as one of those “I say ‘tomato’, you say ‘93.8 km/hour, but only on Sundays’” kind of moments, when two people appear to be speaking past each other; and here with John alsoContinue reading “We talk about what we know (Part 2)”

(John 3:1-21) There was a man of the Pharisees, called Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This one came to Jesus by night and said… Well, he thought he was proffering an olive branch. “Rabbi, we know that you have come from God, a teacher; for no-one is able to do these signs that youContinue reading “We talk about what we know (Part 1)”

(John 2:13-22) Jesus cleansing the temple: He has a whip, He overturns tables, the disciples quote Psalm 69:9. It puts me in mind of the T-Shirt I saw once: “Jesus is coming back, and boy is He mad!” However, if we are picturing Jesus filled with wrath and wreaking destruction, we might need to readContinue reading “I predict a riot”

(John 2:1-11) In John’s Gospel, the first sign Jesus does is a rather irrelevant one. Instead of something useful (a healing, a feeding, a raising from the dead), He makes wine for a party where everyone has already had more than enough to drink. Strange… Having gathered at least some of His original disciples (ofContinue reading “What’s “need” got to do with it?”