Having said this
This phrase indicates a conclusion to a preceding discourse or statement. In the context of John 7, Jesus had been speaking to His brothers about the timing of His public appearance at the Feast of Tabernacles. The Greek word used here, "eipōn," is a form of "legō," which means to speak or say. This highlights the authority and intentionality behind Jesus' words. In the broader scriptural context, Jesus' words are always purposeful, reflecting divine wisdom and timing. His decision to remain in Galilee after speaking underscores His obedience to the Father's will rather than succumbing to human pressure or expectations.

He remained
The Greek word for "remained" is "emeinen," derived from "menō," which means to stay, abide, or continue. This word is significant in the Gospel of John, often used to describe a deep, abiding relationship with God (e.g., John 15:4-7). Here, it emphasizes Jesus' deliberate choice to stay in Galilee, reflecting His commitment to divine timing and purpose. Historically, Galilee was a region where Jesus spent much of His ministry, a place of both acceptance and rejection. His remaining there signifies His focus on fulfilling His mission in God's timing, not man's.

in Galilee
Galilee, a region in northern Israel, was known for its mixed population and relative distance from the religious epicenter of Jerusalem. It was a place where Jesus performed many miracles and taught extensively. The choice to remain in Galilee rather than go to Judea, where the Feast was taking place, highlights Jesus' strategic approach to His ministry. Galilee was often looked down upon by the Judean religious elite, yet it was here that Jesus found fertile ground for His teachings. This decision also reflects the prophetic fulfillment of Isaiah 9:1-2, where Galilee is described as a place of great light. Jesus' presence in Galilee symbolizes the light of the Gospel reaching those who were considered outsiders by the religious authorities of the time.

(9) He abode still in Galilee.--We find Him in Jerusalem between the 16th and 20th of Tishri (John 7:14), and He could not therefore have remained behind them more than three or four days. We have no record of any companion with Him until John 9:2; but it is probable that some at least of the Apostolic band remained with Him in Galilee and went with Him to Jerusalem. (Comp. Note on Luke 9:51.) If John returned to Jerusalem after the discourse at Capernaum (comp. Introduction), we have an explanation of the brevity with which he treats the period between Passover and Tabernacles.

Verse 9. - Having said these things to them, he abode in Galilee. Such a respite cannot mean a few days only. Not until after this period, and possibly after the brethren had started on the pilgrimage, did "he steadfastly set his face to go up to Jerusalem." A great question arises as to the possibility of harmonizing this journey with the great intercalated portion of Luke's Gospel (Luke 9:51-18:31). This is not the place to consider the numerous and complicated problems involved. One thing is certain - that the synoptists all describe the final departure from Galilee, which followed a period of partial retirement from the multitude, and of instructions, miracles, and advice rendered in the inner circle of his immediate followers. They also (Matthew 17:24; Matthew 19:1; Matthew 20:17; and Mark 10:1 especially) indicate that, on our Lord's journey to Jerusalem after closing his Galilaean ministry, he went into Judaea, and thence to the land of Peraea on the other side of the Jordan. This latter statement is perfectly in harmony with John's representation (John 10:40), where, after an extended journey in Judaea and the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, we hear that he spent three months beyond Jordan Numerous critics, whose views are well entitled to consideration, urge that on this occasion our Lord did resume his Galilaean ministry and effect his final departure as described in Matthew 19:1. Now, the circumstantial way in which Luke describes incidents upon the last journey to Jerusalem leads many to look for the full chronological detail of this last transaction. It contains, however, many incidents between John 9:51 and John 18:31, where the final events of the last approach to Jerusalem are brought into chronological relations with the other three Gospels, which could not all have been connected with the journey to the Feast of Tabernacles. Edersheim and Weiss alike infer that, since Luke says nothing of the Feast of Tabernacles, he has reckoned in this period the events appertaining to the Peraean ministry and the return to the Feast of Dedication, as well as the final determination to challenge the authorities at Jerusalem, with his assertion of true Messiahship, and the last approach to Jerusalem. Luke does not describe the route taken, but implies on several occasions Christ's growing determination to confront Jerusalem; and also implies that he had visited it "often" (Luke 13:31-34), with the purpose of gathering it under his gracious sway and protection. There are, moreover, a few incidents mentioned which synchronize with the journey to the Feast of Tabernacles. He went through Samaria instead of by the frequented Peraean route on the other side of Jordan (Luke 9:52). There the Samaritans refuse to receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem, and the Boanerges are rebuked for their Elijah-like desire. The incident of the cure of ten lepers, one of them a Samaritan, probably belongs to the same journey; and, above all, the interesting fragment of the visit to Martha and Mary at a certain village. This village may, as Edersheim suggests, have been the retirement from which our Lord emerged in the midst of the Feast of Tabernacles. Many other of the narratives belong to the closing period of our Lord's life. The most difficult event to harmonize with the suggestions of this passage of John and with the subsequent hints of chronological arrangement, is the choice of the seventy disciples, which Weiss regards as a kind of misapprehension, but which Edersheim (loc cit.,vol. 2:135) believes to have been one of the great events of this journey to the Feast of Tabernacles. It must be admitted that it is strangely inconsistent with the journey which was conducted as it were "in secret." It would be more natural to believe that it was one of the incidents of the ministry in Peraea, of which Mark gives traces, and for which John provides the true place (John 10:40). Lunge and Godet argue that between the departure from the capital (ch. 9.) and the Feast of Dedication, our Lord resumed his work in Galilee, and there pursued the abundant ministry recorded between Luke 10. and 18. (see notes of Godet and Lunge, 10:22; 10:40); and that the final departure from Galilee was with a great convoy. Ewald and Meyer regard this as a violent attempt at harmonistic arrangement of the details before us. To resume the narrative -

Parallel Commentaries ...


Having said
εἰπὼν (eipōn)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

[this],
Ταῦτα (Tauta)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

[Jesus] remained
ἔμεινεν (emeinen)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 3306: To remain, abide, stay, wait; with acc: I wait for, await. A primary verb; to stay.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

Galilee.
Γαλιλαίᾳ (Galilaia)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1056: Of Hebrew origin; Galiloea, a region of Palestine.


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NT Gospels: John 7:9 Having said these things to them he (Jhn Jo Jn)