Bible Strands
John 12:29
The crowd standing there heard it and said that it had thundered. Others said that an angel had spoken to Him.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator reports that a crowd standing near Jesus immediately after His prayer in John 12:28 perceives the heavenly voice and debates its origin. Some identify the sound as thunder, while others claim an angel spoke.
The words — The Greek ὄχλος (ochlos) identifies the assembled group, and ἔλεγεν (elegen) records their reported claim. These terms highlight the crowd's collective, unverified conclusion rather than a confirmed divine revelation.
The thread — The thunder interpretation parallels Job 37:2 and aligns with the heavenly acoustic imagery in Revelation 6:1 and 14:2. These passages consistently associate divine speech with overwhelming natural phenomena that obscure clear recognition.
Why it lands — The text presents identical sensory input producing conflicting human judgments. It requires the reader to evaluate whether to accept Jesus' correction in John 12:30 or remain divided by unexamined impressions.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.
Cross-references
- Job 37:2 Listen closely to the thunder of His voice and the rumbling that comes from His mouth.
- Revelation 6:1 Then I watched as the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!”
- Revelation 14:2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of many waters and the loud rumbling of thunder. And the sound I heard was like harpists strumming their harps.
- Exodus 19:16 On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
- Exodus 20:18 When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sounding of the ram’s horn, and the mountain enveloped in smoke, they trembled and stood at a distance.
- Job 40:9 Do you have an arm like God’s? Can you thunder with a voice like His?
- Ezekiel 10:5 The sound of the wings of the cherubim could be heard as far as the outer court, like the voice of God Almighty when He speaks.
- Acts 23:8 For the Sadducees say that there is neither a resurrection nor angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.
- Revelation 8:5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
- Revelation 11:19 Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple. And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.