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JOHN 8:33 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
John 8:32John 8:34
“They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?”
They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? — the believers misunderstand Jesus's promise, interpreting 'free' in political and social terms. They protest that as 'Abraham's seed' (sperma Abraam), they are already free, never in bondage. The historical claim is not accurate (Israel has been enslaved in Egypt, Babylon; they are currently under Roman rule), but the believers seem to mean that as descendants of Abraham, they have a privileged status before God. They are blind to their deeper bondage—to sin and to spiritual ignorance.

Church Fathers on John 8:33

Our Lord wished to try the faith of those who believed, that it might not be only a superficial belief: Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed in Him, If you continue in My word, then are you My disciples indeed. His saying, if you continue, made it manifest what was in their hearts. He knew that some believed, and would not continue. And He makes them a magnificent promise, viz. that they shall become His disciples indeed; which words are a tacit rebuke to some who had…

Chrysostom · 4th century

We have all one Master, and are fellow disciples under Him. Nor because we speak with authority, are we therefore masters; but He is the Master of all, Who dwells in the hearts of all. It is a small thing for the disciple to come to Him in the first instance: he must continue in Him: if we continue not in Him, we shall fall. A little sentence this, but a great work; if you continue. For what is it to continue in God’s word, but to yield to no temptations. Without labor, the…

Augustine · 4th century

As He said to the unbelievers alone, You shall die in your sin, so now to them who continue in the faith He proclaims absolution.

Theophylact · 11th century
Read all 18 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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John 8:33 — Community Reflections | HolyStudy