John 10:35 (WEB)

Passage

If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture can’t be broken),

Nearby Context

John 10:33 The Jews answered him, “We don’t stone you for a good work, but for blasphemy: because you, being a man, make yourself God.”

John 10:34 Jesus answered them, “Isn’t it written in your law, ‘I said, you are gods?’Psalm 82:6

John 10:35 If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture can’t be broken),

John 10:36 do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’

John 10:37 If I don’t do the works of my Father, don’t believe me.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "called", "gods", "word", "came", "scripture", and "broken". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "called" and "gods", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 34's "Jesus answered them Isn t it written..." into verse 36's "do you say of him whom the...", so "called" and "gods" 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 "called" and "gods" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.