Paragraph 17:13–19
Jesus asked his Father to bless his disciples with joy, protection, and sanctification.
17:13a
But: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as But here implies a slight contrast. The contrast is between the time when Jesus was on earth and the time when Jesus would soon return to heaven. Jesus could guard the disciples when he was on earth, but now he asked God to protect them (see 17:15). Many English translations leave this conjunction implicit. Here is another way to translate this conjunction:
and (Good News Translation)
now I am coming to You: This clause indicates that Jesus would soon go to God his Father in heaven. Even though it had not happened yet, Jesus used a present tense verb. In some languages it may be more natural to use a future tense verb rather than present tense. And you could also indicate that it would happen soon. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
But now I will soon come/go to you.
-or-
I am on my way to you. (Contemporary English Version)
to You: The pronoun You is singular and refers to God the Father.
17:13b
I am saying these things: There are two ways to interpret this clause:
(1) The phrase saying these things refers to what Jesus had been teaching his disciples. This particularly refers to the whole of the discourse in the upper room, John 14–16. For example:
I told them many things (New Living Translation (2004))
(Berean Standard Bible, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, King James Version, NET Bible, New International Version, Good News Translation, New Living Translation (2004), God’s Word, Contemporary English Version)
(2) The verb saying here means pray. The phrase these things refers to what Jesus had been praying. For example:
But I pray these things (New Century Version)
(Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New Century Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and most English translations. It is good if you use an expression that can include both the prayer in John 17 and the teaching in John 14–16.
while I am in the world: This phrase means “while I live on the earth” or “before I leave the earth.”
17:13c
so that they may have My joy fulfilled within them: The Greek more literally says “so that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” This is a purpose clause. Jesus’ purpose in speaking to his disciples was to give them joy. He wanted them to have all the joy that he had. See the notes and how you translated the same idea in 15:11. Here are other ways to translate this clause:
so that they might have my joy in their hearts in all its fullness (Good News Translation)
-or-
so they would be filled with my joy (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
to share my joy with them to the full (New Jerusalem Bible)
they…them: As in 17:6–12, Jesus was thinking mainly of the disciples who were there with him. But this clause would also be true for all his followers. It is good to use a term that can include both men and women. For example:
my followers (Contemporary English Version)
My joy: This phrase here means “the joy that I have.” Jesus wanted his disciples to have the joy of knowing God, as he did. See 15:11 and 16:24. In some languages it may be natural to translate joy as a verb or adjective rather than a noun. For example:
be as joyful as I am
-or-
so they would be made extremely happy with my happiness
-or-
so that they would be caused to rejoice with my own joy
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