What Does John 16:31 Mean in the King James?

Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe?

John 16:31 · KJV

The analysis reads the King James wording.

King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.

THE KEY

“Believe” is a present-tense trust: the question is whether your weight rests there now.

THE MEANING

Jesus’ question brings trust into the present: it is not merely something the reader once declared, but something alive now. The Greek word carries the sense of relying on what is trusted, so the question reaches beyond saying “I believe” to the trust beneath the words.

WHAT THIS UNDOES

The verse undoes the belief that saying “I believe” puts trust beyond question; Jesus’ question leaves the claim open in the present.

THE ROOT

πιστεύετε

pisteuete

GROWS FROM

⁨πιστ-⁩ (pist-), the shared stem of ⁨πιστεύω⁩ and ⁨πίστις⁩

Trust, confidence, reliance.

The word translated “believe” belongs to the same Greek word family as ⁨πίστις⁩ (pistis), trust. It carries reliance, a placing of one’s weight in what is trusted, so Jesus’ question presses on the trust beneath the disciples’ words.

ALSO GROWS

pistis: Trust, reliance

πίστις

This noun shares the stem of the verse’s verb and makes clear that “believe” points to reliance, not just agreement.

pistos: Firm, steady; trustworthy

πιστός

This related word brings out the steadiness associated with trust, sharpening the question of whether it is present now.

THE PATTERN

Trust is a living reliance that can be questioned, confessed in weakness, and sustained by what is heard.

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Habakkuk 2:4 · KJVLife is described as proceeding through trust, making it a lived reliance rather than a claim alone.

And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Mark 9:24 · KJVThe father speaks trust and uncertainty together, showing that trust can be real while still exposed to question.

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Romans 10:17 · KJVTrust is connected to what is heard, showing how reliance takes shape through receiving.

THE THREAD

But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

John 20:31 · KJV

“Believe” in both verses comes from the same ⁨πιστεύω⁩ (pisteuō) word family: trust, reliance. Here Jesus asks whether that trust is present now; there, trust opens toward life through his name, his nature.

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