John 14:3 (DBY)

Passage

and if I go and shall prepare you a place, I am coming again and shall receive you to myself, that where I am ye also may be.

Nearby Context

John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe on God, believe also on me.

John 14:2 In my Father's house there are many abodes; were it not so, I had told you: for I go to prepare you a place;

John 14:3 and if I go and shall prepare you a place, I am coming again and shall receive you to myself, that where I am ye also may be.

John 14:4 And ye know where I go, and ye know the way.

John 14:5 Thomas says to him, Lord, we know not where thou goest, and how can we know the way?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "prepare", "place", "coming", "again", "receive", and "myself". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "prepare", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "In my Father's house there are many..." into verse 4's "And ye know where I go and...", so "shall" and "prepare" 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 "shall" and "prepare" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.