The Passage
John 7:32-39
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest him. 33 Jesus then said, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. 34 You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” 35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What does he mean by saying, ‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?”
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ ” 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
Word Work
Ask and answer questions. Questions unlock new discoveries and meanings. Ask questions about the passage using these words: who, what, why, when, where, or how. Jot down your answers to these questions
Word Thoughts:
As yet the Spirit had not been given does not mean that there was no work of the Holy Spirit in the world prior to Jesus’ resurrection, for already in Gen. 1:2 the Holy Spirit was present in the world, “hovering over the face of the waters” (see also Gen. 6:3; 41:38; Ex. 31:3; Num. 11:25). Some OT verses even speak of the Spirit of God at work within believers prior to the coming of Christ (see Num. 27:18; Deut. 34:9; Ezek. 2:2; 3:24; Dan. 4:8–9, 18; 5:11; Mic. 3:8; cf. Luke 1:15, 41, 67). This verse must therefore mean that “the Spirit had not been given” in the full and powerful sense that was promised for the new covenant age (see Ezek. 36:26, 27; 37:14; Joel 2:28–29; cf. John 20:22; Acts 2:1–13).
Although there is no specific Scripture passage from the OT that matches Jesus’ words here, he is apparently giving a summary of the teaching and implication of several passages that picture the inward work of God in a believer as a river of water flowing out to bring blessing to others (see Prov. 4:23; Isa. 58:11). (1)
Word Reflection:
- What stood out?
- Where is it that Jesus will go that the religious leaders cannot go?
- When does Jesus give the Spirit and why is that important?
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
End in Prayer
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