1 But there was a man from among the Pharisees, his name Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; 2 he came to him by night, and said to him, Rabbi, we know that thou art come a teacher from God, for none can do these signs that thou doest unless God be with him. 3 Jesus answered and said to him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except any one be born anew he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4 Nicodemus says to him, How can a man be born being old? can he enter a second time into the womb of his mother and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except any one be born of water and of Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not wonder that I said to thee, It is needful that ye should be born anew. 8 The wind blows where it will, and thou hearest its voice, but knowest not whence it comes and where it goes: thus is every one that is born of the Spirit. 9 Nicodemus answered and said to him, How can these things be? 10 Jesus answered and said to him, Thou art the teacher of Israel and knowest not these things! 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and we bear witness of that which we have seen, and ye receive not our witness. 12 If I have said the earthly things to you, and ye believe not, how, if I say the heavenly things to you, will ye believe? 13 And no one has gone up into heaven, save he who came down out of heaven, the Son of man who is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, thus must the Son of man be lifted up, 15 that every one who believes on him may [not perish, but] have life eternal. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal. 17 For God has not sent his Son into the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him. 18 He that believes on him is not judged: but he that believes not has been already judged, because he has not believed on the name of the only-begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment, that light is come into the world, and men have loved darkness rather than light; for their works were evil. 20 For every one that does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light that his works may not be shewn as they are; 21 but he that practises the truth comes to the light, that his works may be manifested that they have been wrought in God. 22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he abode with them and baptised. 23 And John also was baptising in Aenon, near Salim, because there was a great deal of water there; and they came to [him] and were baptised: 24 for John was not yet cast into prison. 25 There was therefore a reasoning of the disciples of John with a Jew about purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, Rabbi, he who was with thee beyond the Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, he baptises, and all come to him. 27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing unless it be given him out of heaven. 28 Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said, I am not the Christ, but, that I am sent before him. 29 He that has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices in heart because of the voice of the bridegroom: this my joy then is fulfilled. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 He who comes from above is above all. He who has his origin in the earth is of the earth, and speaks [as] of the earth. He who comes out of heaven is above all, 32 [and] what he has seen and has heard, this he testifies; and no one receives his testimony. 33 He that has received his testimony has set to his seal that God is true; 34 for he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives not the Spirit by measure. 35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things [to be] in his hand. 36 He that believes on the Son has life eternal, and he that is not subject to the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides upon him.
John 3 Darby Translation
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Nicodemus
A Pharisee and leader of the Jews who came to Jesus at night, later asked the council to hear Jesus before judging him, and brought myrrh and aloes of about seventy-five pounds…
Cited in the guide: John 3:1; John 7:50; John 19:39
Cross references (36)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 John 19:39; John 3:10; John 7:47–50; Luke 23:13
- 2 John 5:36; Acts 10:38; Acts 2:22; John 9:30–33; John 9:16
- 3 2 Corinthians 5:17; John 3:5–6; 1 Peter 1:23–25; 1 John 3:9; 1 John 5:1
- 4 1 Corinthians 2:14; 1 Corinthians 1:18; John 4:11–12; John 3:3; John 6:53
- 5 Ezekiel 36:25–27; Ephesians 5:26; Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21; 1 Corinthians 6:11
- 6 Galatians 5:16–21; Ezekiel 36:26–27; Romans 8:4–9; 2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 Corinthians 15:47–50
- 7 Ephesians 4:22–24; John 3:3; Romans 12:1–2; 1 Peter 1:22; John 3:12
- 8 Ecclesiastes 11:4–5; 1 Corinthians 2:11; Acts 2:2; Ezekiel 37:9; 1 John 2:29
- 9 Isaiah 42:16; John 6:52; John 6:60; Luke 1:34; John 3:4
- 10 Matthew 22:29; Jeremiah 8:8–9; Ezekiel 11:19; Matthew 15:14; Ezekiel 36:25–27
- 11 John 8:38; 1 John 5:6–12; John 12:49; John 8:14; John 1:18
- 12 1 Corinthians 3:1–2; 1 Corinthians 2:7–9; Hebrews 5:11; John 3:31–36; 1 Peter 2:1–3
- 13 Proverbs 30:4; John 6:38; Acts 2:34; John 1:18; 1 Corinthians 15:47
- 14 Numbers 21:7–9; John 8:28; John 12:32–34; Luke 24:26–27; Luke 24:44–46
- 15 John 3:16; John 6:40; 1 John 5:11–13; John 3:36; John 12:44–46
- 16 Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:9–10; Romans 8:32; John 3:15; John 11:25–26
- 17 1 John 4:14; Luke 19:10; John 12:47–48; John 6:57; John 6:40
- 18 1 John 5:10; Mark 16:16; Romans 8:1; John 5:24; 1 John 5:12
- 19 John 8:12; 2 Thessalonians 2:12; John 9:39–41; Romans 2:8; John 12:43
- 20 Ephesians 5:11–13; John 7:7; Job 24:13–17; Proverbs 1:29; Proverbs 4:18
- 21 1 John 1:6; Psalm 139:23–24; 3 John 11; Ephesians 5:9; Philippians 2:13
- 22 John 4:1–3; John 3:26; John 7:3
- 23 Mark 1:4–5; Luke 3:7; Ezekiel 43:2; 1 Samuel 9:4; Matthew 3:5–6
- 24 Matthew 4:12; Matthew 14:3; Mark 6:17; Luke 3:19–20; Luke 9:7–9
- 25 John 2:6; Matthew 3:11; Hebrews 6:2; Hebrews 9:10; Hebrews 9:23
- 26 John 1:7; James 3:14–18; John 1:15; Galatians 6:12–13; John 12:19
- 27 James 1:17; 1 Corinthians 4:7; 1 Corinthians 15:10; 1 Peter 4:10–11; Amos 7:15
- 28 John 1:20; John 1:23; Luke 1:16–17; Matthew 3:11–12; Malachi 3:1
- 29 Ephesians 5:25–27; Isaiah 54:5; Hosea 2:19; Matthew 9:15; Ezekiel 16:8
- 30 Colossians 1:18; Psalm 72:17–19; Hebrews 3:2–6; Isaiah 9:7; 1 Corinthians 3:5
- 31 Matthew 28:18; John 8:23; Romans 9:5; John 6:33; 1 John 4:5
- 32 John 3:11; John 15:15; John 1:11; John 8:26; John 5:20
- 33 Ephesians 1:13; Hebrews 6:17; Titus 1:1–2; 2 Corinthians 1:18; Romans 3:3–4
- 34 Acts 10:38; Matthew 12:18; John 15:26; John 5:26; Isaiah 11:2–5
- 35 Matthew 28:18; John 5:20; Luke 10:22; John 5:22; John 17:2
- 36 John 5:24; John 1:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:9; Ephesians 5:6; John 3:15–16
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
We observe, beloved, that the intimation with which we yesterday excited your attention has brought you together with more alacrity, and in greater number than usual; but meanwhile let us, if you please, pay our debt of a discourse on the Gospel Lesson, which comes in due course.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 7 (1888)
Little children who go daily to their teachers receive their lessons, and repeat them, and never cease from this kind of acquisition, but sometimes employ nights as well as days, and this they are compelled to do for perishable and transient things.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 14 (1889)
For Christ also said, "Except ye be born again, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Now, that it is impossible for those who have once been born to enter into their mothers' wombs, is manifest to all.
… that men can be saved in no other way from the old wound of the serpent than by believing in Him who, in the likeness of sinful flesh, is lifted up from the earth upon the tree of martyrdom, and draws all things to Himself, and vivifies the dead.
These I directed, O sweet Truth, to Thy inward melody, pondering on the "fair and fit," and longing to stay and listen to Thee, and to rejoice greatly at the Bridegroom's voice, and I could not; for by the voices of my own errors was I driven forth, and by the weight of my own pride was I sinking into …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)