John 21 · Verse 22

John 21:22

Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.
John 21:22, King James Version

John 21:22 in other translations

BSBJesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
WEBJesus said to him, “If I desire that he stay until I come, what is that to you? You follow me.”
ASVJesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.
YLTJesus saith to him, ‘If him I will to remain till I come, what--to thee? be thou following me.' This word, therefore, went forth to the brethren that that disciple doth not die,
DARBYJesus says to him, If I will that he abide until I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me.
BBEJesus said to him, If it is my desire for him to be here till I come back, what is that to you? come yourself after me.
WebsterJesus saith to him, If I will that he shall tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me.

What does John 21:22 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:22-23
22-23. Jesus saith to him, If I will that he tarry fill I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me--From the fact that John alone of the Twelve survived the destruction of Jerusalem, and so witnessed the commencement of that series of events which belongs to "the last days," many good interpreters think that this is a virtual prediction of fact, and not a mere supposition. But this is very doubtful, and it seems more natural to consider our Lord as intending to give no positive indication of John's fate at all, but to signify that this was a matter which belonged to the Master of both, who would disclose or conceal it as He thought proper, and that Peter's part was to mind his own affairs. Accordingly, in "follow thou Me," the word "thou" is emphatic. Observe the absolute disposal of human life which Christ claims: "If I will that he tarry till I come," &c.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 22. That he tarry. That he live. The same word is used to express life in Php 1:24,25, 1Cor 15:6.

Till I come. Some have supposed this to refer to the destruction of Jerusalem; others to the day of judgment; others to signify that he would not die a violent death; but the plain meaning is, "If I will that he should not die at all, it is nothing to thee." In this way the apostles evidently understood it, and hence raised a report that he would not die. It is remarkable that John was the last of the apostles; that he lived to nearly the close of the first century, and then died a peaceful death at Ephesus, being the only one, as is supposed, of the apostles who did not suffer martyrdom. The testimony of antiquity is clear on this point; and though there have been many idle conjectures about this passage and about the fate of John, yet no fact of history is better attested than that John died and was buried at Ephesus.

What is that to thee? From this passage we learn,

1st. That our main business is to follow the Lord Jesus Christ.

2nd. That there are many subjects of religion on which a vain and impertinent curiosity is exercised. All such curiosity Jesus here reproves.

3rd. That Jesus will take care of all his true disciples, and that we should not be unduly solicitous about them.

4th. That we should go forward to whatever he calls us--to persecution or death--not envying the lot of any other man, and anxious only to do the will of God.

(r) "till I come" Mt 25:31, Rev 1:7, 22:20 (s) "Follow thou me" Jn 21:19

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 22 If I will that he tarry till I come - There are several opinions concerning this: the following are the principal. 1. Some have concluded from these words that John should never die. Many eminent men, ancients and moderns, have been and are of this opinion. 2. Others thought that our Lord intimated that John should live till Christ came to judge and destroy Jerusalem. On this opinion it is observed that Peter, who was the oldest of the apostles, died in the year 67, which, says Calmet, was six years before the destruction of Jerusalem; and that John survived the ruin of that city about thirty years, he being the only one of the twelve who was alive when the above desolation took place. 3. St. Augustin, Bede, and others, understood the passage thus: If I will that he remain till I come and take him away by a natural death, what is that to thee? follow thou me to thy crucifixion. On this it may be observed, that all antiquity agrees that John, if he did die, was the only disciple who was taken away by a natural death. 4. Others imagine that our Lord was only now taking Peter aside to speak something to him in private, and that Peter, seeing John following, wished to know whether he should come along with them; and that our Lord's answer stated that John should remain in that place till Christ and Peter returned to him; and to this meaning of the passage many eminent critics incline. For neatly eighteen hundred years, the greatest men in the world have been puzzled with this passage. It mould appear intolerable in me to attempt to decide, where so many eminent doctors have disagreed, and do still disagree. I rather lean to the fourth opinion. See the conclusion of the Preface to this Gospel.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on John 21:20-24

Sufferings, pains, and death, will appear formidable even to the experienced Christian; but in the hope to glorify God, to leave a sinful world, and to be present with his Lord, he becomes ready to obey the Redeemer's call, and to follow Him through death to glory. It is the will of Christ that his disciples should mind their own duty, and not be curious about future events, either as to themselves or others. Many…

Read the full comment on John 21:20-24 →

John 21:22 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

λέγειlegeiSaysG3004
αὐτῷautōto himG846
ὁho<the>G3588
Ἰησοῦς·IēsousJesus;G2424
ἐὰνeanIfG1437
αὐτὸνautonhimG846
θέλωthelōI shall desireG2309
μένεινmeneinto remainG3306
ἕωςhe'ōsuntilG2193
ἔρχομαι,erchomaiI come,G2064
τίtiwhat [is it]G5101
πρὸςprostoG4314
σέ;seyou?G4771
σύsuYou yourselfG4771
μοιmoiMeG3165
ἀκολούθει.¶akoloutheido follow.G190

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for John 21:22

  • Revelation 2:25

    But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.

  • Revelation 3:11

    Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.

  • Mark 9:1

    And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.

  • Matthew 16:27-28

    For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

  • 1 Corinthians 4:5

    Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

  • Matthew 24:44

    Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

  • James 5:7

    Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.

  • John 21:19

    This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

  • Matthew 24:3

    And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

  • 1 Corinthians 11:26

    For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.

  • Matthew 25:31

    When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:

  • Matthew 24:27

    For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
If.
Mt 16:27,28; 24:3,27,44; 25:31; Mr 9:1; 1Co 4:5; 11:26; Re 1:7; 2:25
Re 3:11; 22:7,20
follow.
19

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • John 21:21

    Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?

  • John 21:22

    Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.

  • John 21:23

    Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?

Read all of John 21

John 21:22 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Dícele Jesús: Si quiero que él quede hasta que yo venga, ¿qué á tí? Sígueme tú.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Jésus lui dit: Si je veux qu’il demeure jusqu’à ce que je vienne, que t’importe? Toi, suis-moi.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Jesus spricht zu ihm: Wenn ich will, daß er bleibe, bis ich komme, was geht es dich an? Folge du mir nach.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dicit ei Jesus: Sic eum volo manere donec veniam, quid ad te? tu me sequere.