John 8:45 (ASV)

Passage

But because I say the truth, ye believe me not.

Nearby Context

John 8:43 Why do ye not understand my speech? [Even] because ye cannot hear my word.

John 8:44 Ye are of [your] father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and standeth not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.

John 8:45 But because I say the truth, ye believe me not.

John 8:46 Which of you convicteth me of sin? If I say truth, why do ye not believe me?

John 8:47 He that is of God heareth the words of God: for this cause ye hear [them] not, because ye are not of God.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "truth" and "believe". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "truth" and "believe", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 44's "Ye are of your father the devil..." into verse 46's "Which of you convicteth me of sin...", so "truth" and "believe" 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 "truth" and "believe" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.