For languages in which one cannot speak of the scripture as “saying” anything, it may be possible to translate “there is another scripture in which one can read.”

The scripture passage referred to in this verse is Zechariah 12.10. John does not follow exactly either the Hebrew text or the most commonly accepted Septuagint reading. People will look at is literally “they will look at,” The term pierced must often be made more explicit, for example, “pierced with a spear” or “stuck into with a spear.”

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 .