John 8:44 Commentary and Bible Study

They resent his teaching and they argue with him, and the whole of the rest of the passage is about this, so that he is then obliged to say to them, ‘Ye are of the father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning’ – of course he was, because he brought death into the human race, spiritual death – ‘and abode not in the truth’ – literally, ‘he stood not in the truth’ he rejected it – ‘because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own.’ When he speaks a lie, it flows from his utterly, debased character – it’s his very own product – ‘for he is a liar, and the father of lies.’ The father of it! It doesn’t just mean that Satan was the first liar – the father in that sense – it means that every lie, ultimately, comes from Satan. He was the first liar, and he is the fountain of all lies. It is his own child, the lie. He formed it in the first place. Now it is very hard for human pride, but this is the explanation – ‘Ye are of your father the devil.’ You are unconverted people, you are still under his programming. The devil has captivated your mind. He was a murderer from the beginning, a murderer of human souls, to mislead them and to bring them down.