John 14:3 (DRB)

Passage

And if I shall go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself: that where I am, you also may be.

Nearby Context

John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God: believe also in me.

John 14:2 In my Father's house there are many mansions. If not, I would have told you: because I go to prepare a place for you.

John 14:3 And if I shall go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself: that where I am, you also may be.

John 14:4 And whither I go you know: and the way you know.

John 14:5 Thomas saith to him: Lord, we know not whither thou goest. And how can we know the way?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "prepare", "place", "come", "again", "take", "myself", and "where". 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 whither I go you know 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.