What does John 7:26 mean?

In prior incidents, Jesus has already challenged the spirituality of Jerusalem's religious leaders (John 2:13–22; 5:39–47). He has proclaimed Himself in ways which they interpret as blasphemous (John 5:18). Almost immediately, this earned Him a death sentence in the eyes of these authority figures (John 7:1). And yet, despite their efforts, Jesus is still alive and still preaching. In fact, He is amazing people with His wisdom, in the temple of Jerusalem, during one of the holiest festivals of the year (John 7:14)! This leads the people to wonder just how committed the religious leaders are to dealing with Jesus.

At this point, the public only sees two possible options: either the authorities are too inept to deal with a blasphemer, or they have come to accept the claims Jesus is making. Those same authorities are well aware of this image problem, and it will add fuel to their fire when it comes to silencing Jesus.

As the next few verses will show, the people making these points don't necessarily believe in Jesus. They have their own doubts and misunderstandings. For now, they only know that Jesus is generating a significant level of controversy.