John 3
3
Jesus and Nicodemus
1There was a man named Nicodemus who was one of the Pharisees. He was an important Jewish leader. 2One night Nicodemus came to Jesus. He said, “Teacher, we know that you are a teacher sent from God. No one can do the miracles you do, unless God is with him.”
3Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Unless you are born again, you cannot be in God’s kingdom.”
4Nicodemus said, “But if a man is already old, how can he be born again? He cannot enter his mother’s body again. So how can he be born a second time?”
5But Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Unless you are born from water and the Spirit, you cannot enter God’s kingdom. 6A person’s body is born from his human parents. But a person’s spiritual life is born from the Spirit. 7Don’t be surprised when I tell you, ‘You must all be born again.’ 8The wind blows where it wants to go. You hear the wind blow. But you don’t know where the wind comes from or where it is going. It is the same with every person who is born from the Spirit.”
9Nicodemus asked, “How can all this be possible?”
10Jesus said, “You are an important teacher in Israel. But you still don’t understand these things? 11I tell you the truth. We talk about what we know. We tell about what we have seen. But you don’t accept what we tell you. 12I have told you about things here on earth, but you do not believe me. So surely you will not believe me if I tell you about the things of heaven! 13The only one who has ever gone up to heaven is the One who came down from heaven—the Son of Man.# Some Greek copies continue, “who is in heaven.”
14“Moses lifted up the snake in the desert.# The people of Israel were dying from snake bites. God told Moses to put a bronze snake on a pole. The people who looked at the snake were healed (Numbers 21:4–9). It is the same with the Son of Man. The Son of Man must be lifted up too. 15Then everyone who believes in him can have eternal life.
16“For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son. God gave his Son so that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but have eternal life. 17God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him. 18He who believes in God’s Son is not judged guilty. He who does not believe has already been judged guilty, because he has not believed in God’s only Son. 19People are judged by this fact: I am the Light from God that has come into the world. But men did not want light. They wanted darkness because they were doing evil things. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light. He will not come to the light because it will show all the evil things he has done. 21But he who follows the true way comes to the light. Then the light will show that the things he has done were done through God.”
Jesus and John the Baptist
22After this, Jesus and his followers went into the area of Judea. There Jesus stayed with his followers and baptized people. 23John was also baptizing in Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were going there to be baptized. 24(This was before John was put into prison.)
25Some of John’s followers had an argument with a Jew about religious washing.# The Jews washed themselves in special ways before eating, before worshiping in the Temple, and at other special times. 26So they came to John and said, “Teacher, remember the man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you spoke about? He is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
27John answered, “A man can get only what God gives him. 28You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Christ. I am only the one God sent to prepare the way for him.’ 29The bride belongs only to the bridegroom. The friend who helps the bridegroom waits and listens for him. He is glad when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That is the same pleasure I have. And my time of joy is now here. 30He must become greater. And I must become less important.
The One Who Comes from Heaven
31“The One who comes from above is greater than all. He who is from the earth belongs to the earth and talks about things on the earth. But the One who comes from heaven is greater than all. 32He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts what he says. 33The person who accepts what he says has proven that God is true. 34God sent him, and he tells the things that God says. God gives him the Spirit fully. 35The Father loves the Son and has given him power over everything. 36He who believes in the Son has eternal life. But he who does not obey the Son will never have that life. God’s anger stays with him.”
Currently Selected:
John 3: ICB
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
John 3
3
Jesus and Nicodemus
1There was a man from the Pharisees#Mk 7:3 named Nicodemus,#Jn 3:4,9; 7:50; 19:39 a ruler#Lk 8:41; 12:58 of the Jews. 2This man came to him at night and said, “Rabbi,#Jn 11:8 we know that you are a teacher#Mk 4:38; Eph 4:11 who has come from God,#Mk 1:45 for no one could perform these signs you do unless God were with him.”#Ex 3:12; Jn 15:24; Ac 10:38; Rv 21:3
3Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, unless someone is born again,#3:3 Or from above, also in v. 7#1Pt 1:3; 1Jn 2:29 he cannot see the kingdom of God.” #Mk 1:15; 9:1
4“How can anyone be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked him. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born?”
5Jesus answered, “Truly I tell you, unless someone is born#Mk 9:43 of water and the Spirit,#Ezk 36:25–27; Ac 22:16; Ti 3:5 he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6Whatever is born of the flesh#Php 3:3 is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit#Jn 1:33 is spirit. 7Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born#1Pt 1:3 again. 8The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going.#Jn 8:14 So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”#1Co 2:13–16
9“How can these things be?” asked Nicodemus.
10 “Are you a teacher # 3:10 Or the teacher of Israel and don’t know these things?” Jesus replied. 11“Truly I tell you,#Jn 1:51; Rv 22:21 we speak what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you do not accept our testimony. 12If I have told you about earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13No one has ascended#Jn 20:17 into heaven#Dt 30:12; Jn 6:62; Ac 2:34; Rm 10:6; 1Co 15:47; Eph 4:8–10; Rv 11:12 except the one who descended from heaven#Jn 6:38; 8:23 — the Son of Man.#3:13 Other mss add who is in heaven#Mk 2:10
14 “Just as Moses #
Ps 77:20; Mt 8:4; Heb 3:2 lifted up the snake in the wilderness,#Nm 21:4–9 so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15so that everyone who believes in him may#3:15 Other mss add not perish, but have eternal life.#Mk 10:17; Jn 12:25; Ac 13:48 16For God loved#Jn 12:43; 1Co 13:1; Gl 2:20; Col 1:13; 3:12; 1Th 1:4; 2Th 2:13,16; 1Jn 4:7–12; Jd 1 the world in this way:#3:16 Or this much He gave#3:16 Or For in this way God loved the world, and so he gave, or For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only#1Jn 4:9 Son,#Jn 5:19; Heb 1:2 so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.#Jn 12:25; Rm 5:8; 1Jn 3:16; 4:9–10 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn#Jn 8:11 the world, but to save the world through him. 18Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned,#Mt 12:41; Mk 16:16 because he has not believed in the name#Jn 10:25; 1Jn 3:23 of the one and only Son#Jn 5:19 of God. 19This is the judgment: The light#Ps 36:9; Jn 12:46 has come into the world,#Jn 18:37; 1Jn 2:8 and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. 20For everyone who does evil hates#Lk 6:27; 19:14 the light and avoids it,#3:20 Lit and does not come to the light so that his deeds#Mk 14:6; Gl 3:10; Jms 2:14–26 may not be exposed. 21But anyone who lives by#3:21 Lit who does the truth comes to the light, so that his works#Jn 5:36 may be shown to be accomplished by God.”
Jesus and John the Baptist
22After this, Jesus and his disciples went to the Judean countryside, where he spent time with them and baptized.
23John#Mk 1:4 also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were coming and being baptized, 24since John had not yet been thrown into prison.#Mk 1:14
25Then a dispute arose between John’s disciples#Mt 9:14; 11:2; 14:12; Mk 2:18; 6:29; Lk 5:33; 7:18–19; 11:1; Jn 1:35,37; 6:3 and a Jew#3:25 Other mss read and the Jews about purification.#Lv 13–14; Heb 1:3 26So they came to John and told him, “Rabbi,#Jn 11:8 the one you testified about, and who was with you across the Jordan,#Mk 10:1; Lk 3:3 is baptizing — and everyone is going to him.”#Mk 1:45
27John responded, “No one can receive anything unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah,#Mt 1:17; Eph 5:2 but I’ve been sent ahead of him.’#Lk 1:17 29He who has the bride#Rv 21:2 is the groom. But the groom’s friend, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly#3:29 Lit with joy rejoices at the groom’s voice. So this joy#Jn 15:11 of mine is complete. 30He must increase, but I must decrease.”
The One from Heaven
31The one who comes from above#Jms 1:17 is above all. The one who is from the earth is earthly and speaks in earthly terms.#3:31 Or of earthly things The one who comes from heaven is above all.#Jn 8:23; 1Jn 4:5–6 32He testifies#Jn 15:26; Ac 26:5 to what he has seen and heard, and yet no one accepts his testimony. 33The one who has accepted his testimony has affirmed that God is true.#1Jn 5:20 34For the one whom God sent speaks God’s words, since he#3:34 Other mss read since God gives the Spirit#Jn 1:33 without measure. 35The Father loves the Son#Jn 5:20; 10:17; 1Co 13:1 and has given all things into his hands.#Jn 5:19 36The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who rejects the Son#3:36 Or refuses to believe in the Son, or disobeys the Son will not see life; instead, the wrath of God remains on him.#Mk 16:16
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers