Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary John 8:21

"He said therefore again unto them, I go away, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sin: whither I go, ye cannot come." — John 8:21 (ASV)

The following discourse marks the dual destiny of Jesus and his opponents: he would return to the Father, and they would die in their sins. Jesus claimed that he belonged to a totally different world from that of his questioners. To him the difference was natural; to them it was unnatural—something they could explain only by assuming that he belonged to the realm of the dead. But Jesus had come from the presence of God, and he asserted that only by faith could they attain his level. An insurmountable barrier separated them—unbelief (v.23). Not only did they repudiate his claims, they completely rejected his person.