John 8:21 (ASV)

Passage

He said therefore again unto them, I go away, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sin: whither I go, ye cannot come.

Nearby Context

John 8:19 They said therefore unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye know neither me, nor my Father: if ye knew me, ye would know my Father also.

John 8:20 These words spake he in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man took him; because his hour was not yet come.

John 8:21 He said therefore again unto them, I go away, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sin: whither I go, ye cannot come.

John 8:22 The Jews therefore said, Will he kill himself, that he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come?

John 8:23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "said", "therefore", "again", "away", "shall", "seek", and "whither". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "said" and "therefore", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "These words spake he in the treasury..." into verse 22's "The Jews therefore said Will he kill...", so "said" and "therefore" belong inside that flow. In John context, the local focus is the identity of Jesus, new birth, eternal life, and belief and unbelief.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "said" and "therefore" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.