John 1:1
Bible Verses. Also called John 1:1, In the beginning was the Word, The Word was God, Logos.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Scripture quotation from the King James Version (KJV). Read this chapter
John 1:1, the opening verse of the Gospel of John, declares that the Word, who existed in the beginning, was with God and was God. As a principal text for the deity of Jesus, it has long been disputed between proponents of the doctrine of the Trinity and groups that reject that doctrine and translate the verse differently.
About this articleAI draft from a Korean source. Notes on Korean Protestant practice. No sources listed. Not yet reviewed by a person.
- Origin
Drafted by AI from the Korean church.wiki article, then translated and adapted for English readers on 5 November 2026.
- Perspective
Includes notes on Korean Protestant practice; other traditions are noted where they differ.
- Sources
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- Review
Not yet reviewed by a person. Last edited by a person: never. Translation updated 5 November 2026. Edit history
Context
The Gospel of John does not open with a genealogy or a birth narrative of Jesus. Instead, it begins with a prologue (John 1:1-18). The phrase "In the beginning" echoes the opening words of Genesis 1:1 and carries the reader back before creation. The prologue states that the Word made all things (v. 3) and was made flesh and dwelt among us (v. 14), and in verse 18 it identifies him as the only begotten Son who has declared the Father. Verse 1 stands at the head of the entire prologue.
Interpretation
The Greek word logos, translated "Word," means speech, reason, or principle. Many interpreters hold that it recalls the Old Testament account of God creating the world by his word (Psalm 33:6) and the figure of Wisdom in Jewish wisdom literature, while also connecting with the term Greek philosophy used for the rational principle of the universe.
The verse consists of three clauses: the Word already existed in the beginning (eternity), was "with" God (a person distinct from the Father), and was God (deity). The orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, as articulated in the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed, has drawn on this verse as an important foundation. On this reading, the second and third clauses together express the confession that there are distinct persons within the one God.
Controversy and Issues
In Greek, the third clause reads theos ēn ho logos, in which the predicate noun theos ("God") lacks the article. On this basis, the New World Translation of the Jehovah's Witnesses renders the clause in English as "the Word was a god" and regards Jesus as a divine being lower than Jehovah. This view is considered similar to Arianism, which in the fourth century regarded the Son as a created being.
Major denominations and most biblical scholars criticize this translation. They argue that in Greek a predicate noun placed before the verb can convey a definite meaning or a quality even without the article, and that the verse therefore means that the Word shares the same nature as God. Critics also note an inconsistency: the New World Translation renders anarthrous theos as "God" elsewhere in the same chapter when it refers to the Father (1:6, 1:18, and elsewhere). Others explain that had the article been included, the clause could have been read in the manner of modalism, which treats the Father and the Word as the same person.
Perspective: Korean Protestant practiceHow this idea is used in Korean churches, kept from the original Korean article.
In Korean Protestant churches, the verse is frequently used as a sermon text at Christmas. It is also the first passage cited to explain the deity of Jesus in counseling people involved with heretical groups and in doctrinal instruction.
Related Passages
See also 6
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