Passage
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going. How do we know the way?”
John 14:5 (LSB)
Nearby Context
John 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.
John 14:4 And you know the way where I am going.”
John 14:5 Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going. How do we know the way?”
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.
John 14:7 If you have come to know Me, you will know My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him.”
Study Lenses
The verse centers on "thomas", "said", "lord", "where", and "going". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thomas" and "said", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 4's "And you know the way where I..." into verse 6's "Jesus said to him I am the...", so "thomas" 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 "thomas" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.