"25 Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man whom they seek to kill? 26 And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? 27 But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from.” 28 So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, “You know me, and you know where I come from? But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know. 29 I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me.”30 So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. 31 Yet many of the people believed in him. They said, “When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?”"
John 7:25-31
From the comments of the crowd in these verses it is clear that they were conscious of the conflict that was in the air. It is difficult to decide whether they are with a dawning sense of awe or in sheer cynicism. They have been listening to Jesus speaking openly in the temple, they know that it is He whom the authorities are seeking to kill, yet He is allowed to teach on without their taking any action. Can it be, they say, that our rulers have decided after all that this is the Messiah? Perhaps there was both cynicism and tentative belief in their voices. At all events, they must have understood from His words in 28 and 29 that He was making an implicit claim to be equal with God. But it is one thing for them to say, 'Is not this the Christ?' and another for them to accept it when He Himself made the claim to be Messiah, and this seems to have goaded the authorities into action (30) - action which 'His hour' successfully forestalled, since it was not yet come. This is an important reminder to us all that a man is immortal till his work is done, and should encourage us when we tend to be fearful in the midst of adverse circumstances. The commentators suggest that the 'belief' expressed in 31 must be regarded as suspect: they were judging Him by the number of miracles He had performed, and assessing His claim to Messiahship on these grounds. But it may well be that with some there was a sincere turning to Him because, after all, wherever Christ is there is division about Him, with some reacting against Him, and some for Him. Why should not some have come to true faith through His testimony?