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
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John 3: CSB
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© 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
John 3
3
Jesus and Nicodemus
1There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a Jewish leader. 2He came to Jesus at night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could do these miraculous signs that you do unless God is with him.”
3Jesus answered, “I assure you, unless someone is born anew,#3.3 Or from above it’s not possible to see God’s kingdom.”
4Nicodemus asked, “How is it possible for an adult to be born? It’s impossible to enter the mother’s womb for a second time and be born, isn’t it?”
5Jesus answered, “I assure you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, it’s not possible to enter God’s kingdom. 6Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Don’t be surprised that I said to you, ‘You must be born anew.’ 8God’s Spirit#3.8 Or wind blows wherever it wishes. You hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. It’s the same with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
9Nicodemus said, “How are these things possible?”
10“Jesus answered, “You are a teacher of Israel and you don’t know these things? 11I assure you that we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but you don’t receive 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 gone up to heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the Human One.#3.13 Or Son of Man 14Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so must the Human One#3.14 Or Son of Man be lifted up 15so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. 16God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him won’t perish but will have eternal life. 17God didn’t send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through him. 18Whoever believes in him isn’t judged; whoever doesn’t believe in him is already judged, because they don’t believe in the name of God’s only Son.
19“This is the basis for judgment: The light came into the world, and people loved darkness more than the light, for their actions are evil. 20All who do wicked things hate the light and don’t come to the light for fear that their actions will be exposed to the light. 21Whoever does the truth comes to the light so that it can be seen that their actions were done in God.”
John’s final witness
22After this Jesus and his disciples went into Judea, where he spent some time with them and was baptizing. 23John was baptizing at Aenon near Salem because there was a lot of water there, and people were coming to him and being baptized. (24John hadn’t yet been thrown into prison.)
25A debate started between John’s disciples and a certain Jew about cleansing rituals. 26They came to John and said, “Rabbi, look! The man who was with you across the Jordan, the one about whom you testified, is baptizing and everyone is flocking to him.”
27John replied, “No one can receive anything unless it is given from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said that I’m not the Christ but that I’m the one sent before him. 29The groom is the one who is getting married. The friend of the groom stands close by and, when he hears him, is overjoyed at the groom’s voice. Therefore, my joy is now complete. 30He must increase and I must decrease. 31The one who comes from above is above all things. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all things. 32He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33Whoever accepts his testimony confirms that God is true. 34The one whom God sent speaks God’s words because God gives the Spirit generously. 35The Father loves the Son and gives everything into his hands. 36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever doesn’t believe in the Son won’t see life, but the angry judgment of God remains on them.”
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