1John 1

The Word of Life

1In the beginning was the one who is called the Word. The Word was with God and was truly God.Select John 1:1

2From the very beginning the Word was with God.Select John 1:2

3And with this Word, God created all things. Nothing was made without the Word. Everything that was createdSelect John 1:3

4received its life from him, and his life gave light to everyone.Select John 1:4

5The light keeps shining in the dark, and darkness has never put it out.Select John 1:5

6God sent a man named John,Select John 1:6

7who came to tell about the light and to lead all people to have faith.Select John 1:7

8John wasn't this light. He came only to tell about the light.Select John 1:8

9The true light that shines on everyone was coming into the world.Select John 1:9

10The Word was in the world, but no one knew him, though God had made the world with his Word.Select John 1:10

11He came into his own world, but his own nation did not welcome him.Select John 1:11

12Yet some people accepted him and put their faith in him. So he gave them the right to be the children of God.Select John 1:12

13They were not God's children by nature or because of any human desires. God himself was the one who made them his children.Select John 1:13

14The Word became a human being and lived here with us. We saw his true glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father. From him the complete gifts of undeserved grace and truth have come down to us.Select John 1:14

15John spoke about him and shouted, “This is the one I told you would come! He is greater than I am, because he was alive before I was born.”Select John 1:15

16Because of all that the Son is, we have been given one blessing after another.Select John 1:16

17The Law was given by Moses, but Jesus Christ brought us undeserved kindness and truth.Select John 1:17

18No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is truly God and is closest to the Father, has shown us what God is like.Select John 1:18

John the Baptist Tells about Jesus

20The religious authorities in Jerusalem sent priests and temple helpers to ask John who he was. He told them plainly, “I am not the Messiah.”Select John 1:20

21Then when they asked him if he were Elijah, he said, “No, I am not!” And when they asked if he were the Prophet, he also said “No!”Select John 1:21

22Finally, they said, “Who are you then? We have to give an answer to the ones who sent us. Tell us who you are!”Select John 1:22

23John answered in the words of the prophet Isaiah, “I am only someone shouting in the desert, ‘Get the road ready for the Lord!’ ”Select John 1:23

24Some Pharisees had also been sent to John.Select John 1:24

25They asked him, “Why are you baptizing people, if you are not the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet?”Select John 1:25

26John told them, “I use water to baptize people. But here with you is someone you don't know.Select John 1:26

27Even though I came first, I am not good enough to untie his sandals.”Select John 1:27

28John said this as he was baptizing east of the Jordan River in Bethany.Select John 1:28

The Lamb of God

29The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and said: Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!Select John 1:29

30He is the one I told you about when I said, “Someone else will come, who is greater than I am, because he was alive before I was born.”Select John 1:30

31I didn't know who he was. But I came to baptize you with water, so that everyone in Israel would see him.Select John 1:31

32I was there and saw the Spirit come down on him like a dove from heaven. And the Spirit stayed on him.Select John 1:32

33Before this I didn't know who he was. But the one who sent me to baptize with water had told me, “You will see the Spirit come down and stay on someone. Then you will know that he is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.”Select John 1:33

34I saw this happen, and I tell you that he is the Son of God.Select John 1:34

The First Disciples of Jesus

35The next day, John was there again, and two of his followers were with him.Select John 1:35

36When he saw Jesus walking by, he said, “Here is the Lamb of God!”Select John 1:36

37John's two followers heard him, and they went with Jesus.Select John 1:37

38When Jesus turned and saw them, he asked, “What do you want?” They answered, “Rabbi, where do you live?” The Hebrew word “Rabbi” means “Teacher.”Select John 1:38

39Jesus replied, “Come and see!” It was already about four o'clock in the afternoon when they went with him and saw where he lived. So they stayed on for the rest of the day.Select John 1:39

40One of the two men who had heard John and had gone with Jesus was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter.Select John 1:40

41The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother and tell him, “We have found the Messiah!” The Hebrew word “Messiah” means the same as the Greek word “Christ.”Select John 1:41

42Andrew brought his brother to Jesus. And when Jesus saw him, he said, “Simon son of John, you will be called Cephas.” This name can be translated as “Peter.”Select John 1:42

Jesus Chooses Philip and Nathanael

44The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. There he met Philip, who was from Bethsaida, the hometown of Andrew and Peter. Jesus said to Philip, “Follow me.”Select John 1:44

45Philip then found Nathanael and said, “We have found the one that Moses and the Prophets wrote about. He is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.”Select John 1:45

46Nathanael asked, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Philip answered, “Come and see.”Select John 1:46

47When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said, “Here is a true descendant of our ancestor Israel. And he isn't deceitful.”Select John 1:47

48“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”Select John 1:48

49Nathanael said, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God and the King of Israel!”Select John 1:49

50Jesus answered, “Did you believe me just because I said that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see something even greater.Select John 1:50

51I tell you for certain you will see heaven open and God's angels going up and coming down on the Son of Man.”Select John 1:51