John 7:50-52 50Nicodemus said to them, the one who had gone to him before, one from among them, 51“Does our law judge a man unless it hears first from him and learn what he does?” 52They replied, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”
Nothing up to this point indicates Nicodemus had made any faith commitment to believe in Jesus, but the mention of him here suggests that God had been stirring his heart for some time. That he went to Jesus with the deep questions of chapter 3 suggests he was seeking the truth. The Holy Spirit took the words Jesus spoke to him in the night and were challenging him to rethink his life and what mattered most. At this point in chapter 7, Nicodemus asks a simple procedural question about the very law the Pharisees claimed to keep and know best. The style of the questions in the Greek assumes a negative answer to Nicodemus’ question. He was simply asking for a fair hearing and trial. He does not quote the Torah specifically but applies a general principle found in many passages that a person cannot be condemned without witnesses to the truth of a matter. The Jewish leaders and the Sanhedrin were quick to condemn without following the very law they claimed to keep.
Nicodemus’ argument is convincing enough, but the other leaders refuse to listen because of their hardened hearts. Moreover, their response is condescending and judgmental towards Nicodemus by mocking him for being like someone from Galilee. Not only is the religious stratification evident in this passage, but also the ancient racism against people from the north. The Sanhedrin is deceived in their own thinking about the Messiah and either ignored or did not know Jesus’ background and his origins in Bethlehem. The very people who claimed to keep the law and know it well were ignorant of the truth of their Scripture and how Jesus fulfilled it all. They were blinded by their own presuppositions. One of the biggest hurdles for any person to overcome is deceived thinking influenced by one’s agenda, worldview, or lack of knowledge of God’s revelation in the Bible. One does not need to be a brilliant Bible scholar like the Pharisees thought they were, but to have simple faith like the crowds in Jerusalem who listened and believed in Jesus.
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