John 1
1
Christ Comes to the World
1Before the world began, there was the Word.# The Greek word is “logos,” meaning any kind of communication. It could be translated “message.” Here, it means Christ. Christ was the way God told people about himself. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3All things were made through him. Nothing was made without him. 4In him there was life. That life was light for the people of the world. 5The Light shines in the darkness. And the darkness has not overpowered# This can also be translated, “understood.” the Light.
6There was a man named John# John the Baptist, who preached to people about Christ’s coming (Matthew 3; Luke 3). who was sent by God. 7He came to tell people about the Light. Through him all people could hear about the Light and believe. 8John was not the Light, but he came to tell people about the Light. 9The true Light was coming into the world. The true Light gives light to all.
10The Word was in the world. The world was made through him, but the world did not know him. 11He came to the world that was his own. But his own people did not accept him. 12But some people did accept him. They believed in him. To them he gave the right to become children of God. 13They did not become his children in the human way. They were not born because of the desire or wish of some man. They were born of God.
14The Word became a man and lived among us. We saw his glory—the glory that belongs to the only Son of the Father. The Word was full of grace and truth. 15John told about him. He said, “This is the One I was talking about. I said, ‘The One who comes after me is greater than I am. He was living before me.’”
16The Word was full of grace and truth. From him we all received more and more blessings. 17The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18No man has ever seen God. But God the only Son is very close to the Father.# This could be translated, “But the only God is very close to the Father.” Also, some Greek copies read “But the only Son is very close to the Father.” And the Son has shown us what God is like.
John Tells People About Jesus
19The Jews in Jerusalem sent some priests and Levites to John.# John the Baptist, who preached to people about Christ’s coming (Matthew 3; Luke 3). The Jews sent them to ask, “Who are you?”
20John spoke freely and did not refuse to answer. He said clearly, “I am not the Christ.”
21So they asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”# A man who spoke for God. He lived hundreds of years before Christ.
He answered, “No, I am not Elijah.”
Then they asked, “Are you the Prophet?”# They probably meant the prophet that God told Moses he would send (Deuteronomy 18:15–19).
He answered, “No, I am not the Prophet.”
22Then they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to tell those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”
23John told them in the words of the prophet Isaiah:
“I am the voice of a man
calling out in the desert:
‘Make the road straight for the Lord.’” Isaiah 40:3
24In the group of Jews who were sent, there were some Pharisees. 25They said to John: “You say you are not the Christ. You say you are not Elijah or the Prophet. Then why do you baptize people?”
26John answered, “I baptize people with water. But there is one here with you that you don’t know. 27He is the One who comes after me. I am not good enough to untie the strings of his sandals.”
28This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan River. This is where John was baptizing people.
29The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him. John said, “Look, the Lamb of God.# Name for Jesus. Jesus is like the lambs that were offered for a sacrifice to God. He takes away the sins of the world! 30This is the One I was talking about. I said, ‘A man will come after me, but he is greater than I am, because he was living before me.’ 31Even I did not know who he was. But I came baptizing with water so that the people of Israel could know who he is.”
32-33Then John said, “I did not know who the Christ was. But God sent me to baptize with water. And God told me, ‘You will see the Spirit come down and rest on a man. That man is the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’” John said, “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven. The Spirit looked like a dove and rested on him. 34I have seen this happen. So I tell people: ‘He is the Son of God.’”# Some Greek copies read “God’s Chosen One.”
The First Followers of Jesus
35The next day John# John the Baptist, who preached to people about Christ’s coming (Matthew 3; Luke 3). was there again with two of his followers. 36He saw Jesus walking by and said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”# Name for Jesus. Jesus is like the lambs that were offered for a sacrifice to God.
37The two followers heard John say this. So they followed Jesus. 38Jesus turned and saw them following him. He asked, “What do you want?”
They said, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” (“Rabbi” means “Teacher.”)
39Jesus answered, “Come with me and you will see.” So the two men went with Jesus. They saw the place where Jesus was staying and stayed there with him that day. It was then about four o’clock.
40These two men followed Jesus after they heard about him from John. One of the men was Andrew. He was Simon Peter’s brother. 41The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother, Simon. He said to Simon, “We have found the Messiah.” (“Messiah” means “Christ.”)
42Then Andrew took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at Simon and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas.” (“Cephas” means “Peter.”# The Greek name “Peter,” like the Aramaic name “Cephas,” means “rock.”)
43The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44Philip was from the town of Bethsaida, where Andrew and Peter lived. 45Philip found Nathanael and told him, “Remember that Moses wrote in the law about a man who was coming, and the prophets also wrote about him. We have found him. He is Jesus, the son of Joseph. He is from Nazareth.”
46But Nathanael said to Philip, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
Philip answered, “Come and see.”
47Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him. He said, “Here is truly a person of Israel. There is nothing false in him.”
48Nathanael asked, “How do you know me?”
Jesus answered, “I saw you when you were under the fig tree. That was before Philip told you about me.”
49Then Nathanael said to Jesus, “Teacher, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.”
50Jesus said to Nathanael, “You believe in me because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. But you will see greater things than that!” 51And Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth. You will all see heaven open. You will see ‘angels of God going up and coming down’# These words are from Genesis 28:12. on the Son of Man.”
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John 1: ICB
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Yoḥanan (John) 1
1
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with Elohim, and the Word was Elohim.
2He was in the beginning with Elohim.
3All came to be through Him,#See Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:2; Heb. 11:3; 2Pet. 3:5; Psa. 33:6 and without Him not even one came to be that came to be.
4In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
5And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6There was a man sent from Elohim, whose name was Yoḥanan.
7This one came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all might believe through him.
8He was not that Light, but that he might bear witness of that Light.
9He was the true Light, which enlightens every man, coming into the world.
10He was in the world, and the world came to be through Him, and the world did not know Him.
11He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.
12But as many as received Him, to them He gave the authority to become children of Elohim, to those believing in His Name,
13who were born, not of blood nor of the desire of flesh nor of the desire of man, but of Elohim.
14And the Word became flesh and pitched His tent among us, and we saw His esteem, esteem as of an only brought-forth of a father, complete in favour and truth.
15Yoḥanan bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has become before me, because He was before me.’ ”
16And out of His completeness we all did receive, and favour upon favour,
17for the Torah was given through Mosheh – the favour and the truth came through יהושע Messiah.
18No one has ever seen Elohim. All came to be through Him,#See John 5:37; John 6:46; 1John 4:12 The only brought-forth Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He did declare.
19Now this was the witness of Yoḥanan when the Yehuḏim sent from Yerushalayim priests and Lĕwites to ask him, “Who are you?”
20And he confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.”
21And they asked him, “What then, are you Ěliyahu?” So he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”
22Therefore they said to him, “Who are you, so that we give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?”
23He said, “I am a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of יהוה,’# Isa. 40:3 as the prophet Yeshayahu said.”
24And those sent were of the Pharisees,
25and they asked him, saying, “Why then do you immerse if you are not the Messiah, nor Ěliyahu, nor the Prophet?”
26Yoḥanan answered them, saying, “I immerse in water, but in your midst stands One whom you do not know,
27the One coming after me, who has become before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loosen.”
28This took place in Bĕyth Anyah beyond the Yardĕn, where Yoḥanan was immersing.
29On the next day Yoḥanan saw יהושע coming toward him, and said, “See, the Lamb of Elohim who takes away the sin of the world!#See Mat. 1:21; Titus 2:14; 1John 3:5; 1John 3:8
30This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has become before me, for He was before me.’#See John 1:15
31And I did not know Him, but that He might be revealed to Yisra’ĕl, therefore I came immersing in water.
32And Yoḥanan bore witness, saying, “I have seen the Spirit coming down from heaven like a dove and remain on Him.
33“And I did not know Him, but He who sent me to immerse in water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit coming down and remaining on Him, this is He who immerses in the Set-apart Spirit.’
34“And I have seen and have witnessed that this is the Son of Elohim.”
35Again the following day, Yoḥanan was standing with two of his taught ones,
36and looking at יהושע walking, he said, “See the Lamb of Elohim!”
37And the two taught ones heard him speaking, and they followed יהושע.
38And יהושע turning, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” And they said to Him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are You staying?”
39He said to them, “Come and see.” They went and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day. Now it was about the tenth hour.
40Andri, the brother of Shim‛on Kĕpha, was one of the two who heard from Yoḥanan, and followed Him.
41First he found his own brother Shim‛on, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means the Anointed).
42And he brought him to יהושע. And looking at him, יהושע said, “You are Shim‛on the son of Yonah, you shall be called Kĕpha” (which means a Stone).
43On the following day יהושע wished to go to Galil, and He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.”
44And Philip was from Bĕyth Tsaiḏa, the city of Andri and Kĕpha.
45Philip found Nethan’ĕl and said to him, “We have found Him whom Mosheh wrote of in the Torah, and the prophets: יהושע of Natsareth – the son of Yosĕph.”
46And Nethan’ĕl said to him, “Is it possible for any good matter to come out of Natsareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
47יהושע saw Nethan’ĕl coming toward Him, and said of him, “See, truly a Yisra’ĕli, in whom is no deceit!”
48Nethan’ĕl said to Him, “From where do You know me?” יהושע answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”
49Nethan’ĕl answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of Elohim! You are the Sovereign of Yisra’ĕl!”
50יהושע answered and said to him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? Greater than that you shall see.”
51And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, from now on you shall see the heaven opened, and the messengers of Elohim ascending and descending upon the Son of Aḏam.”#See Gen. 28:12
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