John · chapter 16 of 21
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John 16 closes Jesus' farewell discourse. He warns of persecution, explains that the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness and judgment and will guide the disciples into all truth. He promises that their sorrow will turn into joy and ends by saying that in the world they will have trouble, but he has overcome the world.
John 16 continues the words Jesus addresses to his disciples on the night before his death. After speaking of the vine and the world's hatred in chapter 15, he now explains why it is better for them that he go away: the Spirit will come. It is a chapter of preparation for the pain of the cross and for the mission that will follow.
Jesus tells his disciples these things to keep them from falling away. They will be put out of the synagogues, and the hour is coming when whoever kills them will think he is offering service to God, because they do not know the Father or him. He says this now so that when the hour comes they will remember he warned them. Now he goes to the one who sent him, and sorrow has filled their hearts.
He tells them it is to their advantage that he go away, because if he does not go, the Helper will not come; but if he goes, he will send him. When he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness and judgment: sin, because they do not believe in Jesus; righteousness, because Jesus goes to the Father and they will see him no longer; judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. He still has much to tell them, but they cannot bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide them into all truth, speak what he hears and declare the things that are to come. He will glorify Jesus.
Jesus says that in a little while they will see him no more, and again in a little while they will see him; the disciples wonder what this means. He explains: they will weep and mourn while the world rejoices, but their sorrow will turn into joy. He compares it to a woman in labor, who has pain when her hour comes but rejoices when the child is born. He will see them again, and no one will take their joy from them. On that day they will ask the Father in Jesus' name.
The disciples say that now he speaks plainly and they believe he came from God. Jesus asks whether they now believe; the hour is coming when they will be scattered and leave him alone, yet he is not alone because the Father is with him. He has said this so that in him they may have peace. In the world they will have trouble, but they should take heart, because he has overcome the world.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Jesus tells the disciples it is to their advantage that he go, because then he will send them the Helper. Although his departure hurts, it brings something better: the permanent presence of the Spirit in them.
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide the disciples into all truth, speaking what he hears from Jesus. His work is to confirm and apply Christ's message, not to invent another.
Jesus tells the disciples that now they have sorrow, but he will see them again, their hearts will rejoice and no one will take that joy from them. He announces the joy of the resurrection, which is stronger than the pain of the cross.
Jesus says he has spoken so that they may have peace in him, that in the world they will have trouble, but they should take heart, because he has overcome the world. The disciples' peace depends not on the absence of problems but on Christ's victory.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Because if he did not go, the Helper would not come; if he went, he would send him. — John 16:7
Answer: Sin, righteousness and judgment. — John 16:8
Answer: Guide them into all truth and declare to them the things that are to come. — John 16:13
Answer: A woman in labor who has pain and then rejoices because a child has been born. — John 16:21
Answer: That they would be scattered, each to his own home, and leave him alone. — John 16:32
Answer: That in the world they would have trouble, but they should take heart, because he has overcome the world. — John 16:33
Jesus does not promise a life without trouble, but peace in the midst of it. In a group you can talk honestly about present sorrows and remember that Jesus knows them in advance, that pain does not have the last word and that his victory is already secured.
We can also give thanks for the presence of the Spirit, who guides, convicts and glorifies Christ. Asking him to teach us to understand the Bible and live it, and to help us speak of Jesus with courage and humility, is a prayer very much in line with this chapter.
John 16 ends with a promise of victory in the midst of trouble. In John 17, Jesus lifts his eyes to heaven and prays to the Father for himself, for his disciples and for all who will believe.
Jesus explains each point: the sin of not believing in him, the righteousness shown because he goes to the Father, and judgment because the ruler of this world has been judged. The Spirit makes people understand their need of Christ, which in practice happens through the disciples' witness.
The disciples themselves do not understand it. Many interpreters connect it with the days between Jesus' death and resurrection, when they stopped seeing him and then saw him risen. Others also see a reference to his return and to the Spirit's presence.
It is to ask with his authority and in line with his person and will. Jesus promises that the Father will answer such prayers, but it is not a magic formula: it means praying in fellowship with him.