6:38a

For I have come down from heaven: In some languages it may be natural to start a new sentence here. For example:

The reason that I say this is because I came from heaven (NET Bible)

heaven: The word heaven refers to the place where God lives. See Key Biblical Terms Heaven, Sky A2 and the note on 6:31b. Jesus was implying that he came from God.

6:38b

not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me: This expression tells the purpose of Jesus coming to earth. It expresses the purpose with a negative statement and then a positive statement.

not to do My own will: Jesus did not come to earth to please himself or act as he wished. In some languages it may be natural to translate the noun phrase My own will as a verb phrase. For example:

not to do what I want (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

but: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as but connects the negative statement “not to do my own will” to the positive statement “(to do) the will of him who sent me.” This kind of sentence emphasizes the positive statement. Languages have different ways to indicate this type of emphasis. For example:

• Use the conjunction but as in the Berean Standard Bible. For example:

to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me (Good News Translation)
-or-
not to do what I want, but to do what the one who sent me wants

• Use a conjunction other than but. This is a common way in English to show this type of emphasis. For example:

not for the purpose of doing just my own will, rather I came to do the will of him who sent me
-or-
it was not to do what I want. Instead, I came to do what the one who sent me wants.

• Do not use a conjunction. For example:

I haven’t come from heaven to do what I want to do. I’ve come to do what the one who sent me wants me to do. (God’s Word)
-or-
I have not come down from heaven to do what I myself choose to do. No, my Father has sent me. I have come to do what he wants me to do. (Easy English Bible)

• Change the order of the clauses. For example:

to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
to do what God wants me to do, not what I want to do (New Century Version)

You should translate this emphasis in the way that is most natural in your language.

to do the will of Him who sent Me: This phrase tells why Jesus came to earth. He came to please and obey God, to do what God wanted. As with “not to do my own will” in the previous phrase, it may be natural to translate the noun phrase the will of Him as a verb phrase. For example:

⌊I have come⌋ to do what the one who sent me wants me to do

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