The pronoun I is emphatic. I gave them your message is similar to I gave them the message that you gave me of verse 8, except that in 17.8 the Greek word for “message” is “words” (rēmata), while here it is “word” (Greek logos). The two terms are used synonymously.

There is a connection between I gave them your message and the world hated them, for the statement the world hated them is essentially the result of what Jesus has done in giving God’s message to his disciples. To make the connection obvious, it may be necessary to translate “I told them what you told me, and as a result, the people of the world hated them.”

The theme of the world’s hatred is repeated from 15.18-16.4a. In that section also Jesus indicates that the disciples do not belong to the world (15.19). The final part of verse 14 tells why the world hates the followers of Jesus. It may be difficult to translate literally they do not belong to the world, for this might imply that they are not really human beings. The meaning of this statement may be expressed in some languages as “they are not one with the people of the world” or “they do not think as people of the world think.”

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 .