Commentaries:
Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)
He that believeth on me (o pisteuwn eiv eme). Nominative absolute as is not uncommon.
The scripture (h grafh). No precise passage can be quoted, though similar idea in several (Isaiah 55:1; Isaiah 58:11; Zechariah 13:1; Zechariah 14:8; Ezekiel 47:1; Joel 3:18). Chrysostom confines it to Isaiah 28:16 by punctuation (only the nominative absolute as the Scripture).
Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water (potamoi ek thv koiliav autou reusousin udatov zwntov). Some ancient Western writers connect pinetw of verse John 7:37 with o pisteuwn in verse John 7:38. By this arrangement autou (his) with koiliav is made to refer to Christ, not to the believer. Burney argues that koilia is a mistranslation of the Aramaic (fountain, not belly) and that the reference is to Ezekiel 47:1. C.C. Torrey refers to Zechariah 14:8. But the Eastern writers refer autou (his) to the believer who not only quenches in Christ his own thirst, but becomes a source of new streams for others (John 4:14). It is a difficult question and Westcott finally changed his view and held autou to refer to Christ. Reusousin is future active indicative of rew, old verb, to flow, here only in the N.T.
Other commentary entries containing this verse:
John 5:39
John 7:38
Revelation 7:17
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