Six days before the Passover festival, Jesus went to Bethany where Lazarus was. He was the one who Jesus had brought back to life. They made Jesus dinner. Martha served the food and Lazarus sat at the table with him. Mary brought a bottle of very expensive oil and poured it on Jesus’ feet before wiping it with her hair. The house was filled with the oil’s fragrance.

Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ disciples and the one who would betray him, said, “Why wasn’t this oil sold for three hundred coins and given to the poor?”

He didn’t say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief. He carried the money bag and stole money from it.

Jesus replied, “Leave her alone so that she can have it ready for my burial day because you will always have the poor with you, but you won’t always have me.”

A large crowd of Jews found out Jesus was there and arrived, not just to see Jesus, but also so they could see Lazarus, who had been brought back to life.

The chief priests decided to also kill Lazarus because many Jews were going and believing in Jesus because of Lazarus.

The next day, the large crowd who had come to the festival heard Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. They gathered palm tree branches and went out to meet him, yelling, “Save us! The one coming in the Lord’s name is blessed; Israel’s king!”

Jesus found a young donkey and rode it, just like it was written: ‘Don’t be afraid, Zion’s daughter. Look, your king comes riding on a young donkey.’

Jesus’s disciples didn’t initially understand this. When Jesus was praised, however, they remembered this had been written about him, and they did these things to him.

The crowd, who were with Jesus when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and brought him back to life, continued talking about him. The crowds went to meet Jesus because they had heard he had performed this miracle.

The Pharisees discussed together, “Look, you’re not getting anything done. Look, the world is following him.”

There were some Greeks who had also travelled to worship at the festival. They approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida, Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we want to see Jesus.”

Philip told Andrew, and the two of them went and told Jesus.

Jesus told them, “The time has come when the Son of Man will be glorified. I’m honestly telling you that unless a wheat seed falls to the earth and dies, it stays alone. But if it dies, it creates a lot of fruit. Whoever loves their life loses it, and whoever hates their life in this world keeps it for life that never ends. If anyone serves me, they need to follow me. My servant will also be wherever I am. The Father will honour anyone who serves me. I am feeling troubled, and what do I say? ‘Father, save me from this time’? I have come to this time for this. Father, praise your name.”

A voice said from the skies, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

The crowd heard what the voice said. It sounded like thunder. Some people said, “An angel spoke to him!”

Jesus replied, “That voice didn’t happen for me, but for you. This world’s judgement is happening now. This world’s king will be thrown out, and when I am lifted from the earth, I will gather everyone to me.”

Jesus said this to communicate how he was going to die. The crowd replied, “We heard from the law that the Christ will remain forever. Why are you saying the Son of Man must be lifted? Who is the Son of Man?”

Jesus said, “The light is with you for only a little while. Walk while you have the light so that darkness doesn’t catch you. Whoever is walking in darkness doesn’t know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light so that you can become children of light.” After Jesus said this, he left and hid from them.

Even though he did many miracles in front of them, they still didn’t believe in him. This completed the prophet Isaiah’s writings that said, ‘Lord, who believes our message? Who has the Lord’s arms been shown to?’

Because of this, they couldn’t believe the message. Again, Isaiah said, ‘He has blinded their eyes and desensitised their hearts. They don’t see with eyes and understand with their hearts and change, so I can’t heal them.’

Isaiah said this because he saw and spoke about Jesus’s glory.

Many rulers, however, believed in Jesus, but they didn’t tell anyone because of the Pharisees, who would kick them out of the temple. They loved men’s praise more than God’s.

Jesus yelled out, “Whoever believes in me doesn’t believe in me, but my sender, and the one who sees me sees my sender. I’ve come into the world as a light so that everyone who believes in me won’t stay in darkness. If anyone hears my messages and doesn’t follow them, I will not judge them. This is because I haven’t come to judge the world but save it. Whoever rejects me and doesn’t accept my message has a judge. My message that I’ve said will judge him on the last day because I don’t speak my own words, but the Father who sent me has told me what I should tell and say. I know that his command is eternal life, so I say exactly what the Father said.”

John Chapter 12 Summary

Six days before the Passover festival, Jesus visits Bethany, where Lazarus—whom he had raised from the dead—lives. Mary pours expensive oil on Jesus’ feet, wiping them with her hair, symbolising worship and preparation for his death and burial. Judas Iscariot criticises Mary and pretends to be concerned about the poor even though he actually just wants to steal the money. Jesus defends Mary. A crowd of people comes to see Jesus and Lazarus, which leads the chief priests to wanting to kill Lazarus as many Jews believe in Jesus because of Lazarus’ miracle. The next day, Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey, which matched a prophecy about Israel’s king arriving in a modest way. Crowds wave palm branches and shout praise to Jesus. Word continues to spread about Lazarus’ miracle, bringing more people to Jesus, which further frustrates the Pharisees.

Jesus talks about his coming death, comparing it to a seed that must die for fruit to grow. He teaches his followers to serve him and focus on eternal life rather than worldly life. God’s voice confirms Jesus’s mission, but many people still doubt. Some rulers believe in Jesus but don’t tell anyone because they are afraid of public rejection. Jesus says he is the light of the world sent by the Father to save humanity, and warns of judgement for anyone who rejects his message.

John Chapter 12 Bible Study Questions and Answers

1. Why do you think Mary’s act of pouring expensive oil on Jesus’s feet was so important? How can we show similar devotion to Jesus in our lives?
Answer: Mary’s act showed humility, love, and recognition of Jesus’s worth. We can honour Jesus by worshipping him with all our hearts in whatever we do, serving others, and giving generously of our resources to those in need.

2. Why do you think Judas criticised Mary’s actions, and how can we guard our hearts against similar attitudes?
Answer: Judas criticised her out of greed. To avoid this, we should focus on serving Jesus sincerely and not letting selfish motives influence or guide our actions.

3. What does Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem teach us about leadership? How can we follow his example in our own lives?
Answer: Jesus entered as a humble servant-king, not a worldly ruler. We can follow his example by leading with humility, serving others, and trusting God’s plan, rather than aiming to lead others with power.

4. Jesus said, “Whoever loves their life loses it.” What does this mean for us as Christians? How can we prioritise eternal life over worldly wants?
Answer: This means living for Christ rather than clinging to worldly comforts. We can prioritise eternal life by looking and learning about what God wants us to do, value his kingdom more than ours, and give our plans to him.

5. How can we walk in the light as Jesus instructed? What does it mean to be a ‘child of light’?
Answer: Walking in the light means living by Jesus’ teachings, showing his character in what we say and do, and sharing his love. Being a child of light involves trusting him and ‘shining’ his truth to others.

John Chapter 12 Explained

This chapter begins with a scene in Bethany, where Mary pours expensive oil on Jesus’s feet, illustrating Jesus’s coming death and burial. Her act of worship shows love and understanding of who Jesus is. Judas’s objection shows his corruption and greed, contrasted against Mary’s selflessness. Jesus states that Mary’s actions are good and appropriate. This teaches us about the value of costly worship and prioritising Jesus above anything else.

Jesus then rides a donkey into Jerusalem. This was written about in Zechariah 9:9 and shows Jesus is all about humility and peace rather than earthly power. The crowd celebrates him as King, waving palm branches and shouting, “Save us!” However, their understanding of him as their king is limited to thinking he will save them from their worldly bullies, the Romans, not the spiritual salvation he brings. Even the disciples don’t fully understand the significance of this event until much later, reminding us that God’s plans are often clearer in hindsight.

Jesus’s teaching about the grain of wheat dying is an illustration of how his death is necessary to save humanity. He invites his followers to serve him, promising them eternal life. This challenges us to think about our priorities in life and welcome the cost of following Jesus. Jesus predicts his death will be on a cross and acknowledges the inner struggle he faces, though he still will do what his Father’s wants him to do, displaying perfect obedience.

God confirms Jesus’s mission, but many still refuse to believe. John connects this unbelief to Isaiah’s prophecies, which said that that spiritual blindness prevents people from recognising Jesus’ glory. This warns us of the dangers of hardening our hearts against God’s truth.

Some rulers believe in Jesus but worry about being publicly rejected, choosing human approval over God’s approval. This highlights the cost of discipleship and the importance of prioritising believing over fear. Jesus’ final public teaching discusses his identity as the light of the world. He explains that his mission is to save people rather than judging them, but warns that rejecting his message will lead to judgement. His teachings remind us of the timeliness of accepting him as Saviour and living as children that reflect his light to those around is.

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Continue exploring John 12

If you’d like to read John 12 in other translations, here are a few BibleHub links:
For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, try John 12 in the English Standard Version.
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, try John 12 in the New International Version.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, try John 12 in the Contemporary English Version.

If you prefer to read the Bible in a hard-copy format, here are cheaper versions from Amazon:
[These are Amazon affiliate links which support the production of this blog]
For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, ESV Economy Bible
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, NIV, Economy Bible, Paperback: Accurate. Readable. Clear.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version

If you’d like to explore John in more depth, here are two commentaries I would recommend:
[These are Amazon affiliate links which support the production of this blog]
Easy to access commentaries that include life applications:
The NIV Application Commentary: John
For a commentary that goes into more depth:
The Gospel of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament)