YHN 7:17 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT If anyone desires to do his will, he will know about this teaching, whether it is from God, or I speak from myself.

UST If anyone wants to do what God wants, then that person will know that what I am teaching has come from God and not only by my own authority.

BSB If anyone desires to do His will, he will know whether [My] teaching is from God or [whether] I speak on My own.

BLB If anyone desires to do His will, he will know concerning the teaching, whether it is from God, or I speak from Myself.

AICNT If anyone desires [to do][fn] his will, he shall know whether the teaching is from God or whether I speak on my own authority.

7:17, to do: Absent from 𝔓75.

OEB If anyone has the will to do God’s will, they will find out whether my teaching is from God, or whether I speak on my own authority.

LSB If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know about the teaching, whether it is of God or I speak from Myself.

WEBBE If anyone desires to do his will, he will know about the teaching, whether it is from God or if I am speaking from myself.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET If anyone wants to do God’s will, he will know about my teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from my own authority.

LSV if anyone may will to do His will, he will know concerning the teaching, whether it is of God, or—[if] I speak from Myself.

FBV Anyone who chooses to follow what God wants will know if my teaching comes from God or if I'm only speaking for myself.

TCNT If anyone wants to do God's will, he will know whether my teaching comes from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.

T4T Those who choose to do what God wants will find out whether what I teach comes from God or whether I am speaking with only my own authority.

LEB If anyone wants to do his will, he will know about my[fn] teaching, whether it is from God or I am speaking from myself.

7:17 *Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun

BBE If any man is ready to do God's pleasure he will have knowledge of the teaching and of where it comes from — from God or from myself.

Moff No Moff YHN (JHN) 7:17 verse available

Wymth If any one is willing to do His will, he shall know about the teaching, whether it is from God or originates with me.

ASV If any man willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or whether I speak from myself.

DRA If any man do the will of him; he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

YLT if any one may will to do His will, he shall know concerning the teaching, whether it is of God, or — I do speak from myself.

Drby If any one desire to practise his will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is of [fn]God, or [that] I speak from myself.

7.17 Elohim

RV If any man willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it be of God, or whether I speak from myself.

SLT If any desire to do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or I speak from myself.

Wbstr If any man will do his will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God, or whether I speak from myself.

KJB-1769 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.

KJB-1611 If any man will doe his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speake of my selfe.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps Yf any man wyll do his wyll, he shall knowe of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speake of my selfe.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from marking of added words (and possibly capitalisation and punctuation))

Gnva If any man will doe his will, he shall knowe of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speake of my selfe.
(If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. )

Cvdl Yf eny man wyl do his will, he shal knowe, whether this doctryne be of God, or whether I speake of my self.
(If any man will do his will, he shall know, whether this doctrine be of God, or whether I speak of myself.)

TNT If eny man will do his will he shall knowe of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speake of my selfe.
(If any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speak of myself. )

Wycl If ony man wole do his wille, he schal knowe of the techyng, whethir it be of God, or Y speke of my silf.
(If any man will do his will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it be of God, or I speak of myself.)

Luth So jemand will des Willen tun, der wird innewerden, ob diese Lehre von GOtt sei, oder ob ich von mir selbst rede.
(So someone will the Will do/put, the/of_the becomes insidewerden, if/whether this/these teaching from God be, or if/whether I from to_me himself/itself speak.)

ClVg Si quis voluerit voluntatem ejus facere, cognoscet de doctrina, utrum ex Deo sit, an ego a meipso loquar.
(When/But_if who/any wanted will his to_do, cognoscet from/about teaching/instruction, whether from to_God be, an I from meipso I_will_speak. )

UGNT ἐάν τις θέλῃ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν, γνώσεται περὶ τῆς διδαχῆς, πότερον ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστιν, ἢ ἐγὼ ἀπ’ ἐμαυτοῦ λαλῶ.
(ean tis thelaʸ to thelaʸma autou poiein, gnōsetai peri taʸs didaⱪaʸs, poteron ek tou Theou estin, aʸ egō ap’ emautou lalō.)

SBL-GNT ἐάν τις θέλῃ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν, γνώσεται περὶ τῆς διδαχῆς πότερον ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν ἢ ἐγὼ ἀπʼ ἐμαυτοῦ λαλῶ.
(ean tis thelaʸ to thelaʸma autou poiein, gnōsetai peri taʸs didaⱪaʸs poteron ek tou theou estin aʸ egō apʼ emautou lalō.)

RP-GNT Ἐάν τις θέλῃ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν, γνώσεται περὶ τῆς διδαχῆς, πότερον ἐκ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐστιν, ἢ ἐγὼ ἀπ' ἐμαυτοῦ λαλῶ.
(Ean tis thelaʸ to thelaʸma autou poiein, gnōsetai peri taʸs didaⱪaʸs, poteron ek tou theou estin, aʸ egō ap' emautou lalō.)

TC-GNT Ἐάν τις θέλῃ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν, γνώσεται περὶ τῆς διδαχῆς, πότερον ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστιν, ἢ ἐγὼ ἀπ᾽ ἐμαυτοῦ λαλῶ.
(Ean tis thelaʸ to thelaʸma autou poiein, gnōsetai peri taʸs didaⱪaʸs, poteron ek tou Theou estin, aʸ egō ap emautou lalō. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, orange:accents differ, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 7:10–24: Jesus went to the Feast in Jerusalem

After Jesus stayed in Galilee a while, he went up quietly by himself. The crowds there disagreed about whether Jesus was a good man. He began to teach the people gathered at the temple and the Jewish leaders were amazed at his teaching. Jesus explained that his teaching came from God. Then he made them angry by saying that none of them kept the law.

Here are some other possible section headings:

Jesus began to teach at the festival of Booths

Jesus’ teaching came from God

Paragraph 7:14–24

Jesus went up to the festival of Booths/Tabernacles in Jerusalem while it was happening. He began to teach in the temple. His teaching amazed the Jewish leaders because he never had a religious education like theirs. Jesus stated that his teaching was not his own but came directly from God. He said that the leaders were wrong to criticize him for healing people on the Sabbath. They themselves also worked on the Sabbath sometimes, when they did a circumcision ceremony.

7:17a

If anyone desires to do His will,

When someone decides to do God’s will,
Those who want to obey God

If anyone desires to do His will: This expression refers to anyone and everyone who decides to obey God, and does obey him. The word desires here means “decides or determines to do something.”

Here are other ways to translate this expression:

Whoever chooses to do the will of God (REB)

Those who choose to obey God

If anyone wants to do God’s will (NET)

to do His will: This phrase refers to obeying God. In some languages it is more natural to express His will as a phrase with a verb. For example:

do what God wants (NCV)

7:17b

he will know whether My teaching is from God

he will understand whether what I say is from God
will realize/discover that what I say is from God.

7:17c

or whether I speak on My own.

or whether I speak my own thoughts.
It is not my own ideas.

7:17b–c

he will know whether My teaching is from God or whether I speak on My own: This part of the sentence indicates that the people referred to in 7:17a receive spiritual wisdom. They are able to know if Jesus’ message was from God or not. And Jesus implied that his teaching was truly from God.

A literal translation of 7:17b–c may wrongly imply that Jesus was not sure that his teaching came from God. It may be necessary to make the correct meaning explicit. For example:

they will know that my teaching comes from God and not from men (NCV)

know: In this context the verb know refers to understanding a situation correctly. These people will make the right choice between two possible ways of understanding Jesus and his message.

Here are other ways to translate this verb:

distinguish

realize

My teaching: In some languages it is more natural to translate the noun teaching using a verb. For example:

what I teach (GNT)

is from God: This phrase means “is given by God.” What Jesus taught was what God told him to say. God sent him and gave him the message. Here is another way to translate this phrase

comes from God (GNT)

whether I speak on My own: The Greek expression that the BSB translates as speak on My own refers to speaking one’s own ideas, or on one’s own authority. It is the opposite of speaking because someone is obeying God and depending on him. See the note on 5:19b, “the Son can do nothing by Himself.”

Here are other ways to translate this clause:

if I teach my own thoughts (GW)

whether I speak on my own authority (GNT)

General Comment on 7:17

Verse 17 is one long sentence with many clauses. In some languages it may be clearer if you use more than one sentence. For example:

If anyone chooses to do God’s will, then he will know the source of what I teach. He will know whether God is the source of my teaching or whether it comes from my own mind.