John 13:7

Weymouth New Testament

"What I am doing," answered Jesus, "for the present you do not know, but afterwards you shall know."

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Jesus answered him, “What I’m doing you don’t realize now, but afterward you will understand.”

King James Version (1611)
Iesus answered, and said vnto him, What I doe, thou knowest not now: but thou shalt know heereafter.

King James Version
Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

English Standard Version
Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand."

New American Standard Bible
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing, you do not realize right now, but you will understand later."

New Century Version
Jesus answered, "You don't understand now what I am doing, but you will understand later."

Amplified Bible
Jesus replied to him, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but you will [fully] understand it later."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I do you do not realize now, but you will understand hereafter."

Legacy Standard Bible
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not realize now, but you will understand afterwards."

Berean Standard Bible
Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."

Contemporary English Version
Jesus answered, "You don't really know what I am doing, but later you will understand."

Complete Jewish Bible
Yeshua answered him, "You don't understand yet what I am doing, but in time you will understand."

Darby Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, What I do thou dost not know now, but thou shalt know hereafter.

Easy-to-Read Version
Jesus answered, "You don't know what I am doing now. But later you will understand."

Geneva Bible (1587)
Iesus answered and sayd vnto him, What I doe, thou knowest not nowe: but thou shalt knowe it hereafter.

George Lamsa Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, What I am doing, you do not know now, but later you will understand.

Good News Translation
Jesus answered him, "You do not understand now what I am doing, but you will understand later."

Lexham English Bible
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will understand after these things."

Literal Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, What I am doing, you do not yet know. But you will know after these things.

American Standard Version
Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt understand hereafter.

Bible in Basic English
And Jesus, answering, said to him, What I do is not clear to you now, but it will be clear to you in time to come.

Hebrew Names Version
Yeshua answered him, "You don't know what I am doing now, but you will understand later."

International Standard Version
Jesus answered him, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later on you will understand."John 13:12;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
Jeshu answered and said to him, What I do, thou knowest not now; but afterward thou shalt know.

Murdock Translation
Jesus answered, and said to him: What I do, thou understandest not now: but hereafter thou wilt understand.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Iesus aunswered, & sayde vnto hym: What I do, thou wotest not nowe, but thou shalt knowe hereafter.

English Revised Version
Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt understand hereafter.

World English Bible
Jesus answered him, "You don't know what I am doing now, but you will understand later."

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Jesus answered and said to him, What I do, thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Jhesus answerde, and seide to hym, What Y do, thou wost not now; but thou schalt wite aftirward.

Update Bible Version
Jesus answered and said to him, What I do you don't know now; but you shall understand hereafter.

Webster's Bible Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

New English Translation
Jesus replied, "You do not understand what I am doing now, but you will understand after these things."

New King James Version
Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this."

New Living Translation
Jesus replied, "You don't understand now what I am doing, but someday you will."

New Life Bible
Jesus answered him, "You do not understand now what I am doing but you will later."

New Revised Standard
Jesus answered, "You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Jesus answered, and said unto him - What, I, am doing, thou, knowest not, as yet; howbeit, thou shalt got to know, hereafter.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Jesus answered and said to him: What I do, thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

Revised Standard Version
Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not know now, but afterward you will understand."

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Iesus answered and sayde vnto him: what I do thou wotest not now but thou shalt knowe herafter.

Young's Literal Translation
Jesus answered and said to him, `That which I do thou hast not known now, but thou shalt know after these things;'

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Iesus answered and sayde vnto him: What I do, thou knowest not now, but thou shalt knowe it herafter.

Mace New Testament (1729)
Jesus answered him, you don't at present comprehend what I am about: but hereafter you shall.

THE MESSAGE
Jesus answered, "You don't understand now what I'm doing, but it will be clear enough to you later."

Simplified Cowboy Version
Jesus looked up and said, "You don't understand what I'm doing right now, but one day you will."

Contextual Overview

¹ Now just before the Feast of the Passover this incident took place. Jesus knew that the time had come for Him to leave this world and go to the Father; and having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. ² While supper was proceeding, the Devil having by this time suggested to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, the thought of betraying Him, Jesus, ³ although He knew that the Father had put everything into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was now going to God, ⁴ rose from the table, threw off His upper garments, and took a towel and tied it round Him. ⁵ Then He poured water into a basin, and proceeded to wash the feet of the disciples and to wipe them with the towel which He had put round Him. ⁶ When He came to Simon Peter, Peter objected. "Master," he said, "are *you* going to wash my feet?" ⁷ "What I am doing," answered Jesus, "for the present you do not know, but afterwards you shall know." ⁸ "Never, while the world lasts," said Peter, "shall you wash my feet." "If I do not wash you," replied Jesus, "you have no share with me." ⁹ "Master," said Peter, "wash not only my feet, but also my hands and my head." ¹⁰ "Any one who has lately bathed," said Jesus, "does not need to wash more than his feet, but is clean all over. And you my disciples are clean, and yet this is not true of all of you."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

What: John 13:10-12, John 12:16, John 14:26, Jeremiah 32:24, Jeremiah 32:25, Jeremiah 32:43, Daniel 12:8, Daniel 12:12, Habakkuk 2:1-3, James 5:7-11

Reciprocal: Genesis 37:33 - evil beast Psalms 18:9 - darkness Psalms 89:39 - void Isaiah 45:15 - a God Jeremiah 13:2 - according Matthew 3:15 - Suffer John 13:12 - Know

Cross-References

1 Corinthians 3:3
you are still unspiritual. For so long as jealousy and strife continue among you, can it be denied that you are unspiritual and are living and acting like mere men of the world?

Galatians 5:20
enmity, strife, jealousy, outbursts of passion, intrigues, dissensions, factions, envyings;

Colossians 4:5
Behave wisely in relation to the outside world, buying up your opportunities.

1 Thessalonians 4:12
so as to live worthy lives in relation to outsiders, and not be a burden to any one.

Titus 3:3
For there was a time when we also were deficient in understanding, obstinate, deluded, the slaves of various cravings and pleasures, spending our lives in malice and envy, hateful ourselves and hating one another.

James 3:16
For where envy and rivalry are, there also are unrest and every vile deed.

James 4:1
What causes wars and contentions among you? Is it not the cravings which are ever at war within you for various pleasures?

1 Peter 2:12
Live honourable lives among the Gentiles, in order that, although they now speak against you as evil-doers, they may yet witness your good conduct, and may glorify God on the day of reward and retribution.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Jesus answered and said unto him,.... Christ replies,

what I do, thou knowest not now: Peter knew that he was about to wash his feet, and the rest of his disciples, but he did not know the meaning and mystery of it, what Christ designed by it, and what instruction they were to receive from it,

but thou shalt know hereafter; as he did, when he had performed this service, and explained it to him. This may teach us, under dark providences, the meaning of which is not yet known by us, to wait the Lord's own time, to make things clear and plain to us, and in the mean time patiently submit to the divine will.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Thou knowest not now - Though he saw the action of Jesus, yet he did not fully understand the design of it. It was a symbolical action, inculcating a lesson of humility, and intended to teach it to them in such a manner that it would be impossible for them ever to forget it. Had he simply commanded them to be humble, it would have been far less forcible and impressive than when they saw him actually performing the office of a servant.

Shalt know hereafter - Jesus at that time partially explained it John 13:14-15; but he was teaching them by this expressive act a lesson which they would continue to learn all their lives. Every day they would see more and more the necessity of humility and of kindness to each other, and would see that they were the servants of Christ and of the church, and ought not to aspire to honors and offices, but to be willing to perform the humblest service to benefit the world. And we may remark here that God often does things which we do not fully understand now, but which we may hereafter. He often afflicts us; he disappoints us; he frustrates our plans. Why it is we do not know now, but we yet shall learn that it was for our good, and designed to teach us some important lesson of humility and piety. So he will, in heaven, scatter all doubts, remove all difficulties, and show us the reason of the whole of his mysterious dealings in his leading us in the way to our future rest. We ought also, in view of this, to submit ourselves to him; to hush every murmur, and to believe that he does all things well. It is one evidence of piety when we are willing to receive affliction at the hand of God, the reason of which we cannot see, content with the belief that we may see it hereafter; or, even if we never do, still having so much confidence in God as to believe that what He does is right.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse John 13:7. What I do thou knowest not now, &c.] As if our Lord had said, Permit me to do it now, and I will shortly explain to you the nature of this action, and my motives for doing it.

Thou shalt know hereafter. — μετα ταυτα, after this business is finished. And so we find he explained the whole to them, as soon as he had finished the washing: see John 13:12-17. I cannot think that this refers to any particular instruction received on this head after the day of pentecost, as some have conjectured.