but you will not find Me
The phrase "you will not find Me" is a sobering declaration. The Greek "heuriskō" means to find or discover. This implies that despite their efforts, the Jewish leaders will not succeed in their search. This can be understood as a prophetic statement about the spiritual blindness and hardness of heart that prevents them from recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. It serves as a warning about the consequences of unbelief and the importance of seeking God with a sincere heart.

and where I am
The phrase "where I am" refers to Jesus' divine origin and ultimate destination. The Greek "eimi" is a present tense verb, indicating a continuous state of being. This suggests Jesus' eternal existence and His unity with the Father. In a spiritual sense, it points to the heavenly realm, the place of divine presence and glory. This phrase invites believers to contemplate the mystery of Christ's incarnation and His role as the bridge between heaven and earth.

you cannot come
The phrase "you cannot come" is a definitive statement about the limitations of human effort in reaching God without divine intervention. The Greek "dynamai" means to be able or to have power. This highlights the inability of the audience to access the divine realm on their own terms. It underscores the necessity of faith and the grace of God in salvation. This serves as a reminder of the exclusivity of Christ as the way to the Father, emphasizing the need for a personal relationship with Him to enter into eternal life.

(1) Origen and Grotius refer it to a hostile search for him which would not be gratified; but the whole story of the arrest which follows, as well as the quotation of these words in John 13:33, prove that this was not his meaning.

(2) Augustine and others imagine penitential seeking when it would be too late. This is not justified by the connection. The limitation of the day of grace for seeking souls is not the theme of this address, and it is, save under special circumstances, no teaching of the New Testament.

(3) The ideas of Hengstenberg and others, so largely built on the great texts in Proverbs 1:28 and Amos 8:12, show that the Messiah would be sought by them when they had utterly rejected Jesus. We do not believe that a genuine search for the Lord will ever be disappointed, but a vicious and vain search may be possible when the opportunity for due approach has gone by forever. Moments, catastrophes, did arrive in their tragic history when they had passionately desired, but in vain, to see one of the days of the Son of man. The individuals who turned to him found the veil which concealed him taken away (2 Corinthians 3:16). The nation as a whole was blinded; they crucified their King, the Lord of glory; and they brought uttermost extinction on themselves as a nation. "They sought their Messiah in vain" (Weiss). Where I am - in the glory in which I dwell, and to which I belong, and to which I am now inviting you - you cannot come. "The door will be shut;" you will not "have known the day of your visitation." "How often would I have gathered you, but ye would not!" The seeking cannot be the search of penitence, but of unavailing despair. You have the opportunity now. In a little while I go, and then you will find it impossible to follow me.

Parallel Commentaries ...