John 8:23 (DRB)

Passage

And he said to them: You are from beneath: I am from above. You are of this world: I am not of this world.

Nearby Context

John 8:21 Again therefore Jesus said to them: I go: and you shall seek me. And you shall die in your sin. Whither I go, you cannot come.

John 8:22 The Jews therefore said: Will he kill himself, because he said: Whither I go you cannot come?

John 8:23 And he said to them: You are from beneath: I am from above. You are of this world: I am not of this world.

John 8:24 Therefore I said to you that you shall die in your sins. For if you believe not that I am he, you shall die in your sin.

John 8:25 They said therefore to him: Who art thou? Jesus said to them: The beginning, who also speak unto you.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "The Jews therefore said Will he kill..." into verse 24's "Therefore I said to you that you...", so "world" and "said" 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 "world" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.