John 17:20 means that Jesus was praying not only for the disciples standing with him but also for every person who would come to trust him through their message. In the verse, Jesus speaks to the Father during the long prayer he offered on the night before his crucifixion, as recorded in John’s Gospel. The words reveal that his concern reached forward through the centuries to include you, and everyone who has believed because of the apostles’ testimony.
Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who will believe in me through their word…
John 17:20 (WEB)
What John 17:20 Means
The verse opens with “Not for these only,” which points back to the eleven disciples and any others gathered in the upper room. Jesus has just finished praying for them, asking the Father to protect and sanctify them. Now he widens the circle on purpose, making clear that his prayer does not end with the people sitting in front of him.
The phrase “those also who will believe in me through their word” identifies the next group. They are people who would hear about Jesus through the words of the apostles and their successors, and then place their trust in him. Faith in this verse is a response to the message about Christ, carried from one generation to the next.
What the verse does not do is spell out every detail of how that prayer will be answered, or promise a specific outcome for every individual. It shows the scope of Jesus’ intercession and the kind of unity he asks for in the verses that follow. The rest of the prayer then explains what that unity looks like.
The Context of John 17:20
John 17 is often called the High Priestly Prayer because Jesus speaks to the Father on behalf of his followers, much as a high priest would intercede for the people. The chapter sits between the farewell discourse of chapters 13 through 16 and the account of Jesus’ arrest in chapter 18. Traditionally the author is identified as John the apostle, and the Gospel was likely written to strengthen and clarify faith in Jesus among both Jewish and Gentile readers.
Just before verse 20, Jesus asks the Father to sanctify his disciples in the truth, because the Father’s word is truth. Verse 20 then extends that same request to those who will believe later. The verses immediately after it describe the unity Jesus desires among believers, and how that unity testifies to the world that the Father sent him. Read in that setting, verse 20 is not a stand-alone comfort but the opening of a prayer that stretches across time.
Key Phrases in John 17:20
Romans 10:14
How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher?
(WEB)
This verse explains the chain of faith that leads from hearing the gospel to calling on the Lord. It shows why people must hear a message about Christ before they can believe, which connects closely to the phrase “through their word” in John 17:20.
1 John 1:3
That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us. Yes, and our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
(WEB)
John writes here about proclaiming what he has seen and heard so that others may share in fellowship with the Father and the Son. It shows the same apostolic witness that Jesus anticipates in his prayer, passed on so that new believers can enter the same relationship.
A Short Prayer From John 17:20
Father, thank you that Jesus prayed for people like me long before I ever heard his name. I am grateful that the good news was carried to me through the words of others who trusted you and told what they had seen. Help me to speak about Christ with honesty and kindness, and to leave the results in your hands. Draw near to the people I love who do not yet believe, and let your truth reach them through the witness you have chosen to use. Keep all who trust in your Son close to you, and let your love be seen in our unity. Amen.
