JOHN 1:38-39 NKJV

Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?”

They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?”

He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).

JOHN 1:38-39 NKJV

John 1:38 What do you seek? This question is one of the most important questions that a follower of Christ must answer. The question of Christ to these disciples is more profound than the response He received from them (“where are You staying?”). Christ was seeking to have them define their goals as new disciples. Were they looking for a revolutionary? Were they looking for an easy life? Christ, then, was not the choice. Jesus began to set forth the kind of commitment to Him that discipleship demands.

John 1:39 the tenth hour: There are six references to a time during the day in the Gospel of John (1:39; 4:6, 52; 18:28; 19:14; 20:19). The question is which system of telling time does John use? The Jews began their day either at approximately 6:00 in the morning (sunrise) or 6:00 in the evening (sunset). The Romans started the day at midnight as we do today. John, who probably wrote at Ephesus, apparently uses the Roman system. If John is not using the Roman system, then John 19:14 is in conflict with Mark 15:25. By the Jewish system of reckoning time, the tenth hour in this verse was 4:00 in the afternoon. According to the Roman system, the tenth hour was 10 A.M. Since John is evidently using the Roman system, the tenth hour here was 10:00 in the morning. Christ invited these disciples to spend virtually a whole day privately with Him during which they came to believe.