Commentary - John 7:1-9

Bird's-eye view

In this passage, John sets the stage for a major confrontation in Jerusalem by highlighting the deep and profound chasm that exists between Jesus and the world. This chasm is illustrated in the most intimate of settings, His own family. Jesus is operating on a divine timetable, a kairos appointed by the Father, while His half-brothers are still living in worldly time, or chronos. They are religious, observant Jews, yet they do not believe in Him. Their advice, which sounds like a reasonable public relations strategy, is actually a temptation rooted in worldly wisdom and unbelief. They want Him to play by the world's rules of self-promotion and spectacle. Jesus' refusal reveals the fundamental antithesis between Himself and the world system. The world cannot hate His brothers because they are, in a fundamental sense, part of it. But the world hates Jesus precisely because He is not of the world, and because His very presence is a testimony against its evil deeds. This is not a simple disagreement about travel plans; it is a clash of two kingdoms, two timelines, and two allegiances.

The Lord's interaction here is a master class in spiritual discernment. He exposes the motivation behind the plausible-sounding advice of His brothers. They think they are helping, but they are actually taunting. They are urging Him to seize a moment, but He is waiting for the Father's moment. The passage demonstrates that even religious activity, like going up to a feast, can be done from a worldly mindset. The unbelief of those closest to Jesus serves to underscore the supernatural nature of true faith, which is not a product of family ties or familiarity, but a gift from God. Ultimately, Jesus will go to the feast, but He will do so on His own terms and in His own time, demonstrating that He is sovereign over all His actions, moving not according to the world's expectations, but in perfect obedience to His Father's will.

Outline

Context In John

This section follows the Bread of Life discourse in chapter 6, which resulted in many of Jesus' disciples turning away from Him. The offense of the gospel has already thinned the crowds. Now, John shows that the offense is not just for outsiders; it extends even to Jesus' own family. The setting is the Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles), one of the three major pilgrimage feasts for the Jews. This was a time of great national celebration and expectation in Jerusalem, making it a high-stakes environment for Jesus' public ministry. The threat against His life, mentioned in verse 1, is a recurring theme in John's Gospel, escalating with each confrontation. This passage, therefore, builds the tension leading up to Jesus' dramatic appearance in the temple in the middle of the feast (John 7:14), where He will once again publicly challenge the religious authorities and reveal His divine identity, further polarizing the people and solidifying the opposition that will lead to the cross.

Key Issues

My Time and Your Time

One of the central conflicts in all of Scripture is laid bare in this short exchange between Jesus and His brothers. It is the conflict between God's appointed time, His kairos, and man's ordinary, opportune time, his chronos. Jesus' brothers are thinking in terms of strategy, marketing, and seizing the moment. "If you're going to make a splash, you have to go to the big city during the big festival. Now is the time!" This is the wisdom of the world. It is pragmatic, it is plausible, and it is entirely godless.

Jesus, on the other hand, operates according to a different clock. His every move is calibrated to the Father's will and the Father's timing. "My time is not yet here." This is not an excuse; it is a declaration of allegiance. He is not a freelance messiah, drumming up business for Himself. He is a Son, sent by His Father, and He does nothing apart from His Father's direction. The world's time is "always here" because the world is always ready to promote itself, to grasp for glory, to operate on its own terms. But the Son waits for the Father. This distinction is crucial. Christian obedience is not just about doing the right thing, but about doing the right thing at the right time, for the right reason, which is the glory of God the Father.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1 And after these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him.

Jesus' movements are dictated by a divine prudence, not by fear. He was "unwilling" to walk in Judea, not "afraid." The opposition in the religious center of Jerusalem had become murderous, and it was not yet His time to be offered up. So, He continues His ministry in the outlying region of Galilee. This is not cowardice; it is sovereign control over the timeline of redemption. The Lamb of God will go to Jerusalem to die, but He will go when the Father's hour has come, not a moment before, and not when His enemies dictate.

2 Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near.

John provides the setting. The Feast of Booths was a joyous, week-long festival commemorating God's provision for Israel in the wilderness. It was a time of immense national and religious fervor in Jerusalem. For anyone seeking to make a name for himself, as Jesus' brothers will suggest, this was the prime opportunity. The stage was set, the crowds were gathering, and the atmosphere was charged with messianic expectation.

3-4 Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself publicly to the world.”

Here is the voice of worldly wisdom, and it comes from within His own house. His brothers, the sons of Mary and Joseph, offer Him career advice. Their logic is impeccable from a human standpoint. "If you're the real deal, you can't stay in the minor leagues of Galilee. You need to go to the capital, to the big show. Don't hide your light under a bushel." Their words are a mixture of taunt and challenge. The phrase, "If You do these things," carries a sneering tone of doubt. They are essentially daring Him to prove Himself on the world's stage, according to the world's standards of success: public spectacle and popular acclaim.

5 For not even His brothers were believing in Him.

John provides the inspired commentary on their motives. This was not the advice of loyal followers trying to help the cause. It was the prodding of skeptics. Proximity to Jesus does not create faith. Growing up with Him, eating at the same table, watching Him day in and day out, did not convince them. In fact, familiarity can breed contempt. They saw the carpenter's son, their brother, and they could not see the Son of God. This is a stark reminder that faith is a supernatural gift. It is not the result of empirical evidence or family connection. The very men who should have known Him best did not believe, which makes their eventual conversion after the resurrection all the more powerful.

6 So Jesus said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always here.

Jesus draws the fundamental distinction. He is not on their schedule. His life is governed by a divine appointment, a kairos, that has been set by the Father. Their time, chronos, is any old time. Because they are of the world, any time is a good time for them to act according to the world's principles of self-interest and opportunity. They can go up to the feast whenever they please, because their journey has no redemptive-historical significance. But Jesus' every step is freighted with eternal meaning. He cannot and will not be rushed.

7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I bear witness about it, that its deeds are evil.

Jesus now explains the deep reason for the different timelines. His brothers are at peace with the world system. The world has no quarrel with them because they do not challenge its foundational rebellion against God. They might be pious Jews, but their piety is not offensive to the world. But the world hates Jesus. Why? Because His very presence, His words, and His works constitute a searing testimony against it. He exposes the world for what it is: a system built on evil deeds, a corrupt order in rebellion against its Creator. The world loves its own, and because His brothers are still functioning as part of that system, the world has no reason to hate them. The hatred of the world is a mark of true discipleship.

8 Go up to the feast yourselves; I am not yet going up to this feast because My time has not yet been fulfilled.”

Jesus dismisses them. "You go on ahead. Your journey is just a trip. My journey is part of a divine mission." He is not saying He will not go to the feast at all, but rather that He is not going up "yet," and certainly not on their terms or for their reasons. He will not be part of their caravan of worldly piety. His timing is subject to a higher purpose, a fulfillment that has not yet arrived. He is the master of the situation, not a puppet of family pressure or public expectation.

9 Having said these things to them, He stayed in Galilee.

His actions match His words. He remains behind, demonstrating His freedom from their manipulative counsel. He is not being petulant; He is being obedient to His Father's clock. This deliberate delay sets up His later, more dramatic appearance in Jerusalem, which He will undertake secretly at first (John 7:10), further showing that His methods are not the world's methods.

Application

This passage forces us to ask some hard questions about our own motives and our own timing. How much of our Christian service is driven by the worldly wisdom of Jesus' brothers? How often do we think in terms of marketing, platform-building, and making a name for ourselves, rather than waiting for the Lord's appointed kairos? The temptation to do a good thing at the wrong time or for the wrong reason is a subtle and powerful one. The advice of Jesus' brothers sounded so reasonable, so practical. But it was satanic in its root, the same temptation to grasp for glory on human terms that the devil offered Jesus in the wilderness.

We must also take to heart the lesson about worldliness. The brothers were religious men. They were going to the feast. They were observant. But their hearts were in tune with the world. Worldliness is not primarily about what you do, but about why you do it. It is about whose approval you seek and whose clock you are on. If the world can't hate you, you should be concerned. If your life and your words present no testimony against the evil deeds of the age, you may be more like Jesus' unbelieving brothers than you would like to admit. The Christian life is a life lived in fundamental antithesis to the world.

Finally, we should be encouraged by the unbelief of His brothers, because it reminds us that faith is a miracle. James and Jude, two of these very brothers, would later become pillars of the church and authors of Scripture. What made the difference? The resurrection. God is in the business of turning skeptics into apostles. No one is beyond the reach of His grace, not even those whose familiarity has bred contempt. Our job is not to manufacture faith in others through clever arguments or impressive displays, but to bear faithful witness to Christ, trusting that God, in His perfect time, will open blind eyes.