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John 6:70

ESV Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.”
NIV Then Jesus replied, 'Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!'
NASB Jesus answered them, 'Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.'
CSB Jesus replied to them, "Didn't I choose you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil."
NLT Then Jesus said, 'I chose the twelve of you, but one is a devil.'
KJV Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?

What does John 6:70 mean?

Peter's statement in the last few verses proclaimed Jesus as divine (John 6:68–69). This is one of the seven "witnesses" to Jesus' godly nature given in the gospel of John. While most people walked away from Jesus, abandoning His teachings when they became hard to accept (John 6:60, 66), Peter did not. His reasoning for this is both simple and straightforward: there is no other source for truth, so how could he look anywhere else (John 6:68–69)?

And yet, in his declaration, Peter made a faulty assumption. His statement used the term "we," which in that context means the inner circle of twelve men learning from Christ. But this group includes Judas Iscariot, who would eventually become a traitor and betray Jesus to His death.

Other Scripture points out that Jesus knew the real motives of everyone around Him (John 2:24–25; Mark 2:8). This is what allowed Him to say, in no uncertain terms, that the people who sought Him out in Capernaum weren't there for truth—they were there for free food (John 6:26). God's reasons for doing what He does, or allowing what He allows, are ultimately His alone. Christ knows that Judas is not really a believer, but He has kept Him in the inner circle, in order to complete His mission.
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