"10 But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. 11 The Jews were looking for him at the feast, and saying, “Where is he?” 12 And there was much muttering about him among the people. While some said, “He is a good man”, others said, “No, he is leading the people astray.” 13 Yet for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him."
John 7:10-13
One thing that stands out in this passage is the sense of conflict and tension throughout. It is one of John's concerns in the chapter to convey this. It is the third recorded visit of our Lord's to Jerusalem (the others being the cleansing of the temple in chapter 2 and the miracle at Bethesda in chapter 5), and it is as if John were saying to us, 'Here is another example of what I meant in the Prologue when I spoke of the conflict between light and darkness'. The drama of the situation can be felt. Clearly there was a division among the people about Jesus. One section of them were saying 'He is a good man' - an unwitting confession, almost, in John's eyes, of His divinity; others saw in Him 'a deceiver of the people'. And when one realises that these opposing views were held and being expressed, not openly, but under cover, so to speak, for fear of the authorities, it is easy to understand how tension was building up almost to flash-point. Seldom could there have been a celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles in such a drama-charged situation. Little wonder there was a sense of expectancy that something tremendous might happen! It was into such a situation that Jesus came and began to teach in the temple.