John 8:45 (DBY)

Passage

and because I speak the truth, ye do not believe me.

Nearby Context

John 8:43 Why do ye not know my speech? Because ye cannot hear my word.

John 8:44 Ye are of the devil, as [your] father, and ye desire to do the lusts of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has not stood in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks falsehood, he speaks of what is his own; for he is a liar and its father:

John 8:45 and because I speak the truth, ye do not believe me.

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

John 8:47 He that is of God hears the words of God: therefore ye hear [them] not, because ye are not of God.

Study Lenses

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

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