Bible Strands
John 16:12
I still have much to tell you, but you cannot yet bear to hear it.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses His disciples during the farewell discourse, positioned between His declaration of the prince of this world’s condemnation and His promise of the Spirit of truth.
The words — Ἔτι (Eti) means yet, and δύνασθε (dunasthe) means you are able, establishing the verse’s core contrast between present inability and future capacity.
The thread — The pattern of graded revelation runs through Mark 4:33, where Jesus speaks parables only to the extent the listeners could understand, and 1 Corinthians 3:1, where Paul states he could not address believers as spiritual but as infants.
Why it lands — The text states the disciples cannot yet bear further teaching, which requires readers to acknowledge their current spiritual limitation and wait for divine guidance rather than demanding immediate comprehension.
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
I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
Cross-references
- Mark 4:33 With many such parables Jesus spoke the word to them, to the extent that they could understand.
- John 15:15 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.
- 1 Corinthians 3:1 Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual, but as worldly—as infants in Christ.
- Acts 1:3 After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a span of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
- Hebrews 5:11 We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain, because you are dull of hearing.
- John 14:30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming, and he has no claim on Me.