1 John 3:22-23

3:22 and ¹  whatever we ask we receive from him, because ²  we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him. 3:23 Now ³  this is his commandment: ⁴  that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he gave ⁵  us the commandment.

1 John 5:3

5:3 For ⁶  this is the love of God: ⁷  that we keep his commandments. ⁸  And his commandments do not weigh us down,

Psalms 119:6

119:6 Then I would not be ashamed,

if ⁹  I were focused on ¹⁰  all your commands.

Psalms 119:32

119:32 I run along the path of your commands,

for you enable me to do so. ¹¹ 

Luke 6:46

6:46 “Why ¹²  do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ ¹³  and don’t do what I tell you? ¹⁴ 

John 14:15

Teaching on the Holy Spirit

14:15 “If you love me, you will obey ¹⁵  my commandments. ¹⁶ 

John 14:21-24

14:21 The person who has my commandments and obeys ¹⁷  them is the one who loves me. ¹⁸  The one ¹⁹  who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal ²⁰  myself to him.”

14:22 “Lord,” Judas (not Judas Iscariot) ²¹  said, ²²  “what has happened that you are going to reveal ²³  yourself to us and not to the world?” 14:23 Jesus replied, ²⁴  “If anyone loves me, he will obey ²⁵  my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and take up residence with him. ²⁶  14:24 The person who does not love me does not obey ²⁷  my words. And the word ²⁸  you hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.

John 15:10

15:10 If you obey ²⁹  my commandments, you will remain ³⁰  in my love, just as I have obeyed ³¹  my Father’s commandments and remain ³²  in his love.

John 15:14

15:14 You are my friends ³³  if you do what I command you.

John 15:1

The Vine and the Branches

15:1 “I am the true vine ³⁴  and my Father is the gardener. ³⁵ 

John 4:1-2

Departure From Judea

4:1 Now when Jesus ³⁶  knew that the Pharisees ³⁷  had heard that he ³⁸  was winning ³⁹  and baptizing more disciples than John 4:2 (although Jesus himself was not baptizing, but his disciples were), ⁴⁰ 

Hebrews 5:9

5:9 And by being perfected in this way, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,

Revelation 22:14

22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes so they can have access ⁴¹  to the tree of life and can enter into the city by the gates.

[3:22]  ¹ tn The conjunction καί (kai) which begins 3:22 is epexegetical (explanatory), relating a further implication of the “confidence” (παρρησίαν, parrhsian) which believers have before God when their heart (conscience) does not condemn them. They can ask things of God with the expectation of receiving their requests.

[3:22]  ² tn The ὅτι (Joti) is clearly causal, giving the reason why believers receive what they ask.

[3:23]  ³ tn The καί (kai) is epexegetical/explanatory (or perhaps resumptive) of the commandment(s) mentioned in the preceding verse.

[3:23]  ⁴ tn This verse begins with the phrase καὶ αὕτη ἐστίν (kai {auth estin; cf. the similar phrase in 3:11 and 1:5), which is explained by the following ἵνα (Jina) clause, “that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ.” The ἵνα thus introduces a clause which is (1) epexegetical (explanatory) or (2) appositional. By analogy the similar phrase in 3:11 is also followed by an epexegetical ἵνα clause and the phrase in 1:5 by an epexegetical ὅτι (Joti) clause.

[3:23]  ⁵ sn The author of 1 John repeatedly attributes the commandments given to believers as given by God the Father, even though in John 13:34-35 it was Jesus who gave the commandment to love one another. 2 John 4-5 also attributes the commandment to love one another directly to the Father. Thus it is clear that God the Father is the subject of the verb gave here in 3:23.

[5:3]  ⁶ tn The force of the γάρ (gar) at the beginning of 5:3 is similar to another introductory formula used by the author of 1 John, καὶ αὕτη ἐστίν (kai Jauth estin; used in 1:5; 5:4, 11, and 14). The γάρ draws an inference based on the preceding statements, particularly the one in 5:2b, regarding the love of God. If in 5:2 loving God and keeping his commandments is the key to knowing that we love God’s children, it is important to define what the love of God involves, and this is what the author is doing in 5:3. In fact, as the following ἵνα (Jina) clause makes clear, loving God consists in keeping his commandments.

[5:3]  ⁷ tn Once again the genitive could be understood as (1) objective, (2) subjective, or (3) both. Here an objective sense is more likely (believers’ love for God) because in the previous verse it is clear that God is the object of believers’ love.

[5:3]  ⁸ tn Contrary to the punctuation of NA²⁷ and UBS⁴, it is best to place a full stop (period) following τηρῶμεν (thrwmen) in 5:3. The subordinate clause introduced by ὅτι (Joti) at the beginning of 5:4 is related to the second half of 5:3 which begins with καί (kai). Καί is commonly used by the author to begin a new sentence, probably by analogy with the Hebrew vav consecutive.

[119:6]  ⁹ tn Or “when.”

[119:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “I gaze at.”

[119:32]  ¹¹ tn Heb “for you make wide my heart.” The “heart” is viewed here as the seat of the psalmist’s volition and understanding. The Lord gives the psalmist the desire and moral understanding that are foundational to the willing obedience depicted metaphorically in the preceding line. In Isa 60:5 the expression “your heart will be wide” means “your heart will swell with pride,” but here the nuance appears to be different.

[6:46]  ¹² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[6:46]  ¹³ tn The double use of the vocative is normally used in situations of high emotion or emphasis. Even an emphatic confession without action means little.

[6:46]  ¹⁴ sn Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do what I tell you? Respect is not a matter of mere words, but is reflected in obedient action. This short saying, which is much simpler than its more developed conceptual parallel in Matt 7:21-23, serves in this form to simply warn and issue a call to hear and obey, as the last parable also does in vv. 47-49.

[14:15]  ¹⁵ tn Or “will keep.”

[14:15]  ¹⁶ sn Jesus’ statement If you love me, you will obey my commandments provides the transition between the promises of answered prayer which Jesus makes to his disciples in vv. 13-14 and the promise of the Holy Spirit which is introduced in v. 16. Obedience is the proof of genuine love.

[14:21]  ¹⁷ tn Or “keeps.”

[14:21]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “obeys them, that one is the one who loves me.”

[14:21]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “And the one.” Here the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated to improve the English style.

[14:21]  ²⁰ tn Or “will disclose.”

[14:22]  ²¹ tn Grk “(not Iscariot).” The proper noun (Judas) has been repeated for clarity and smoothness in English style.

[14:22]  ²² tn Grk “said to him.”

[14:22]  ²³ tn Or “disclose.”

[14:23]  ²⁴ tn Grk “answered and said to him.”

[14:23]  ²⁵ tn Or “will keep.”

[14:23]  ²⁶ tn Grk “we will come to him and will make our dwelling place with him.” The context here is individual rather than corporate indwelling, so the masculine singular pronoun has been retained throughout v. 23. It is important to note, however, that the pronoun is used generically here and refers equally to men, women, and children.

[14:24]  ²⁷ tn Or “does not keep.”

[14:24]  ²⁸ tn Or “the message.”

[15:10]  ²⁹ tn Or “keep.”

[15:10]  ³⁰ tn Or “reside.”

[15:10]  ³¹ tn Or “kept.”

[15:10]  ³² tn Or “reside.”

[15:14]  ³³ sn This verse really explains John 15:10 in another way. Those who keep Jesus’ commandments are called his friends, those friends for whom he lays down his life (v. 13). It is possible to understand this verse as referring to a smaller group within Christianity as a whole, perhaps only the apostles who were present when Jesus spoke these words. Some have supported this by comparing it to the small group of associates and advisers to the Roman Emperor who were called “Friends of the Emperor.” Others would see these words as addressed only to those Christians who as disciples were obedient to Jesus. In either case the result would be to create a sort of “inner circle” of Christians who are more privileged than mere “believers” or average Christians. In context, it seems clear that Jesus’ words must be addressed to all true Christians, not just some narrower category of believers, because Jesus’ sacrificial death, which is his act of love toward his friends (v. 13) applies to all Christians equally (cf. John 13:1).

[15:1]  ³⁴ sn I am the true vine. There are numerous OT passages which refer to Israel as a vine: Ps 80:8-16, Isa 5:1-7, Jer 2:21, Ezek 15:1-8, 17:5-10, 19:10-14, and Hos 10:1. The vine became symbolic of Israel, and even appeared on some coins issued by the Maccabees. The OT passages which use this symbol appear to regard Israel as faithless to Yahweh (typically rendered as “Lord” in the OT) and/or the object of severe punishment. Ezek 15:1-8 in particular talks about the worthlessness of wood from a vine (in relation to disobedient Judah). A branch cut from a vine is worthless except to be burned as fuel. This fits more with the statements about the disciples (John 15:6) than with Jesus’ description of himself as the vine. Ezek 17:5-10 contains vine imagery which refers to a king of the house of David, Zedekiah, who was set up as king in Judah by Nebuchadnezzar. Zedekiah allied himself to Egypt and broke his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar (and therefore also with God), which would ultimately result in his downfall (17:20-21). Ezek 17:22-24 then describes the planting of a cedar sprig which grows into a lofty tree, a figurative description of Messiah. But it is significant that Messiah himself is not described in Ezek 17 as a vine, but as a cedar tree. The vine imagery here applies to Zedekiah’s disobedience. Jesus’ description of himself as the true vine in John 15:1 ff. is to be seen against this background, but it differs significantly from the imagery surveyed above. It represents new imagery which differs significantly from OT concepts; it appears to be original with Jesus. The imagery of the vine underscores the importance of fruitfulness in the Christian life and the truth that this results not from human achievement, but from one’s position in Christ. Jesus is not just giving some comforting advice, but portraying to the disciples the difficult path of faithful service. To some degree the figure is similar to the head-body metaphor used by Paul, with Christ as head and believers as members of the body. Both metaphors bring out the vital and necessary connection which exists between Christ and believers.

[15:1]  ³⁵ tn Or “the farmer.”

[4:1]  ³⁶ tc Several early and important witnesses, along with the majority of later ones (Ì^66c,75 A B C L W^s Ψ 083 ˹³ 33 Ï sa), have κύριος (kurio", “Lord”) here instead of ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsou", “Jesus”). As significant as this external support is, the internal evidence seems to be on the side of ᾿Ιησοῦς. “Jesus” is mentioned two more times in the first two verses of chapter four in a way that is stylistically awkward (so much so that the translation has substituted the pronoun for the first one; see tn note below). This seems to be sufficient reason to motivate scribes to change the wording to κύριος. Further, the reading ᾿Ιησοῦς is not without decent support, though admittedly not as strong as that for κύριος (Ì^66* א D Θ 086 ˹ 565 1241 al lat bo). On the other hand, this Gospel speaks of Jesus as Lord in the evangelist’s narrative descriptions elsewhere only in 11:2; 20:18, 20; 21:12; and probably 6:23, preferring ᾿Ιησοῦς most of the time. This fact could be used to argue that scribes, acquainted with John’s style, changed κύριος to ᾿Ιησοῦς. But the immediate context generally is weighed more heavily than an author’s style. It is possible that neither word was in the original text and scribes supplied what they thought most appropriate (see TCGNT 176). But without ms evidence to this effect coupled with the harder reading ᾿Ιησοῦς, this conjecture must remain doubtful. All in all, it is best to regard ᾿Ιησοῦς as the original reading here.

[4:1]  ³⁷ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[4:1]  ³⁸ tn Grk “Jesus”; the repetition of the proper name is somewhat redundant in English (see the beginning of the verse) and so the pronoun (“he”) has been substituted here.

[4:1]  ³⁹ tn Grk “was making.”

[4:2]  ⁴⁰ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[22:14]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “so that there will be to them authority over the tree of life.”