For the first part of this verse the Greek text has “as he was saying these things.” In this summary verse, as in verse 20, Good News Translation makes the pronominal reference (“he” = Jesus) explicit for stylistic reasons. It also reverses the order of the two clauses as they appear in Greek (see Revised Standard Version, for example, “As he spoke thus, many believed in him”).

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1980. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .