Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary John 16:10

"of righteousness, because I go to the Father, and ye behold me no more;" — John 16:10 (ASV)

(b) The second area in which the Spirit convicts people is “righteousness” (GK 1466). He enforces the absolute standard of God’s character, to which all thought and action must be compared. Apart from a standard of righteousness, there can be no sin; and there must be an awareness of the holiness of God before a person will realize his or her own deficiency—an infinite gap that humans cannot bridge. The first step toward salvation is the awareness that a divine mediatorship is necessary.

The connection between righteousness and Jesus’ return to the Father is not immediately clear. It should probably be interpreted as meaning that his return to the right hand of God was a complete vindication of all he had done and consequently established him as the standard for all human righteousness. Apostolic preaching conveyed this concept . Whereas righteousness had previously been defined by precepts, it now has been revealed in the incarnate Son, who exemplified it perfectly in all his relationships (cf. 1Jn 3:5).