John 8:46 (GNV)

Passage

Which of you can rebuke me of sinne? and if I say the trueth, why do ye not beleeue me?

Nearby Context

John 8:44 Ye are of your father the deuill, and the lustes of your father ye will doe: hee hath bene a murtherer from the beginning, and abode not in the trueth, because there is no trueth in him. When hee speaketh a lie, then speaketh hee of his owne: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.

John 8:45 And because I tell you the trueth, yee beleeue me not.

John 8:46 Which of you can rebuke me of sinne? and if I say the trueth, why do ye not beleeue me?

John 8:47 He that is of God, heareth Gods wordes: yee therefore heare them not, because ye are not of God.

John 8:48 Then answered the Iewes, and said vnto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritane, and hast a deuil?

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 45's "And because I tell you the trueth..." into verse 47's "He that is of God heareth Gods...", so "rebuke" and "sinne" 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 "rebuke" and "sinne" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.