John 1:33

1:33 And I did not recognize him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining – this is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

John 4:10

4:10 Jesus answered ¹  her, “If you had known ²  the gift of God and who it is who said to you, ‘Give me some water ³  to drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” ⁴ 

John 5:36

5:36 “But I have a testimony greater than that from John. For the deeds ⁵  that the Father has assigned me to complete – the deeds ⁶  I am now doing – testify about me that the Father has sent me.

John 6:22

6:22 The next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the lake ⁷  realized that only one small boat ⁸  had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded ⁹  it with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone.

John 8:44

8:44 You people ¹⁰  are from ¹¹  your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires. ¹²  He ¹³  was a murderer from the beginning, and does not uphold the truth, ¹⁴  because there is no truth in him. Whenever he lies, ¹⁵  he speaks according to his own nature, ¹⁶  because he is a liar and the father of lies. ¹⁷ 

John 13:1

Washing the Disciples’ Feet

13:1 Just before the Passover feast, Jesus knew that his time ¹⁸  had come to depart ¹⁹  from this world to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now loved them to the very end. ²⁰ 

John 19:24

19:24 So the soldiers said to one another, “Let’s not tear it, but throw dice ²¹  to see who will get it.” ²²  This took place ²³  to fulfill the scripture that says, “They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they threw dice.” ²⁴  So the soldiers did these things.

John 20:17

20:17 Jesus replied, ²⁵  “Do not touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

John 21:15

Peter’s Restoration

21:15 Then when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, ²⁶  do you love me more than these do?” ²⁷  He replied, ²⁸  “Yes, Lord, you know I love you.” ²⁹  Jesus ³⁰  told him, “Feed my lambs.”

John 21:23

21:23 So the saying circulated ³¹  among the brothers and sisters ³²  that this disciple was not going to die. But Jesus did not say to him that he was not going to die, but rather, “If I want him to live ³³  until I come back, ³⁴  what concern is that of yours?”

[4:10]  ¹ tn Grk “answered and said to her.”

[4:10]  ² tn Or “if you knew.”

[4:10]  ³ tn The phrase “some water” is supplied as the understood direct object of the infinitive πεῖν (pein).

[4:10]  ⁴ tn This is a second class conditional sentence in Greek.

[5:36]  ¹ tn Or “works.”

[5:36]  ² tn Grk “complete, which I am now doing”; the referent of the relative pronoun has been specified by repeating “deeds” from the previous clause.

[6:22]  ¹ tn Or “sea.” See the note on “lake” in v. 16.

[6:22]  ² tc Most witnesses have after “one” the phrase “which his disciples had entered” (ἐκεῖνο εἰς ὃ ἐνέβησαν οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ, ekeino ei" }o enebhsan Joi maqhtai autou) although there are several permutations of this clause ([א* D] Θ [˹³ 33] Ï [sa]). The witnesses that lack this expression are, however, significant and diffused (Ì⁷⁵ א² A B L N W Ψ 1 565 579 1241 al lat). The clarifying nature of the longer reading, the multiple variants from it, and the weighty testimony for the shorter reading all argue against the authenticity of the longer text in any of its variations.

[6:22]  ³ tn Grk “entered.”

[8:44]  ¹ tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify that the Greek pronoun and verb are plural.

[8:44]  ² tn Many translations read “You are of your father the devil” (KJV, ASV, RSV, NASB) or “You belong to your father, the devil” (NIV), but the Greek preposition ἐκ (ek) emphasizes the idea of source or origin. Jesus said his opponents were the devil’s very offspring (a statement which would certainly infuriate them).

[8:44]  ³ tn Grk “the desires of your father you want to do.”

[8:44]  ⁴ tn Grk “That one” (referring to the devil).

[8:44]  ⁵ tn Grk “he does not stand in the truth” (in the sense of maintaining, upholding, or accepting the validity of it).

[8:44]  ⁶ tn Grk “Whenever he speaks the lie.”

[8:44]  ⁷ tn Grk “he speaks from his own.”

[8:44]  ⁸ tn Grk “because he is a liar and the father of it.”

[13:1]  ¹ tn Grk “his hour.”

[13:1]  ² tn Grk “that he should depart.” The ἵνα (Jina) clause in Koine Greek frequently encroached on the simple infinitive (for the sake of greater clarity).

[13:1]  ³ tn Or “he now loved them completely,” or “he now loved them to the uttermost” (see John 19:30). All of John 13:1 is a single sentence in Greek, although in English this would be unacceptably awkward. At the end of the verse the idiom εἰς τέλος (eis telos) was translated literally as “to the end” and the modern equivalents given in the note above, because there is an important lexical link between this passage and John 19:30, τετέλεσται (tetelestai, “It is ended”).

[19:24]  ¹ tn Grk “but choose by lot” (probably by using marked pebbles or broken pieces of pottery). A modern equivalent, “throw dice,” was chosen here because of its association with gambling.

[19:24]  ² tn Grk “to see whose it will be.”

[19:24]  ³ tn The words “This took place” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[19:24]  ⁴ tn Grk “cast lots.” See the note on “throw dice” earlier in the verse.

[20:17]  ¹ tn Grk “Jesus said to her.”

[21:15]  ¹ tc The majority of mss (A C² Θ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 Ï sy) read “Simon, the son of Jonah” here and in vv. 16 and 17, but these are perhaps assimilations to Matt 16:17. The reading “Simon, son of John” is better attested, being found in א¹ (א* only has “Simon” without mention of his father) B C* D L W lat co.

[21:15]  ² tn To whom (or what) does “these” (τούτων, toutwn) refer? Three possibilities are suggested: (1) τούτων should be understood as neuter, “these things,” referring to the boats, nets, and fishing gear nearby. In light of Peter’s statement in 21:3, “I am going fishing,” some have understood Peter to have renounced his commission in light of his denials of Jesus. Jesus, as he restores Peter and forgives him for his denials, is asking Peter if he really loves his previous vocation more than he loves Jesus. Three things may be said in evaluation of this view: (a) it is not at all necessary to understand Peter’s statement in 21:3 as a renouncement of his discipleship, as this view of the meaning of τούτων would imply; (b) it would probably be more likely that the verb would be repeated in such a construction (see 7:31 for an example where the verb is repeated); and (c) as R. E. Brown has observed (John [AB], 2:1103) by Johannine standards the choice being offered to Peter between material things and the risen Jesus would seem rather ridiculous, especially after the disciples had realized whom it was they were dealing with (the Lord, see v. 12). (2) τούτων refers to the other disciples, meaning “Do you love me more than you love these other disciples?” The same objection mentioned as (c) under (1) would apply here: Could the author, in light of the realization of who Jesus is which has come to the disciples after the resurrection, and which he has just mentioned in 21:12, seriously present Peter as being offered a choice between the other disciples and the risen Jesus? This leaves option (3), that τούτων refers to the other disciples, meaning “Do you love me more than these other disciples do?” It seems likely that there is some irony here: Peter had boasted in 13:37, “I will lay down my life for you,” and the synoptics present Peter as boasting even more explicitly of his loyalty to Jesus (“Even if they all fall away, I will not,” Matt 26:33; Mark 14:29). Thus the semantic force of what Jesus asks Peter here amounts to something like “Now, after you have denied me three times, as I told you you would, can you still affirm that you love me more than these other disciples do?” The addition of the auxiliary verb “do” in the translation is used to suggest to the English reader the third interpretation, which is the preferred one.

[21:15]  ³ tn Grk “He said to him.”

[21:15]  ⁴ tn Is there a significant difference in meaning between the two words for love used in the passage, ἀγαπάω and φιλέω (agapaw and filew)? Aside from Origen, who saw a distinction in the meaning of the two words, most of the Greek Fathers like Chrysostom and Cyril of Alexandria, saw no real difference of meaning. Neither did Augustine nor the translators of the Itala (Old Latin). This was also the view of the Reformation Greek scholars Erasmus and Grotius. The suggestion that a distinction in meaning should be seen comes primarily from a number of British scholars of the 19th century, especially Trench, Westcott, and Plummer. It has been picked up by others such as Spicq, Lenski, and Hendriksen. But most modern scholars decline to see a real difference in the meaning of the two words in this context, among them Bernard, Moffatt, Bonsirven, Bultmann, Barrett, Brown, Morris, Haenchen, and Beasley-Murray. There are three significant reasons for seeing no real difference in the meaning of ἀγαπάω and φιλέω in these verses: (1) the author has a habit of introducing slight stylistic variations in repeated material without any significant difference in meaning (compare, for example, 3:3 with 3:5, and 7:34 with 13:33). An examination of the uses of ἀγαπάω and φιλέω in the Fourth Gospel seems to indicate a general interchangeability between the two. Both terms are used of God’s love for man (3:16, 16:27); of the Father’s love for the Son (3:35, 5:20); of Jesus’ love for men (11:5, 11:3); of the love of men for men (13:34, 15:19); and of the love of men for Jesus (8:42, 16:27). (2) If (as seems probable) the original conversation took place in Aramaic (or possibly Hebrew), there would not have been any difference expressed because both Aramaic and Hebrew have only one basic word for love. In the LXX both ἀγαπάω and φιλέω are used to translate the same Hebrew word for love, although ἀγαπάω is more frequent. It is significant that in the Syriac version of the NT only one verb is used to translate vv. 15-17 (Syriac is very similar linguistically to Palestinian Aramaic). (3) Peter’s answers to the questions asked with ἀγαπάω are ‘yes’ even though he answers using the verb φιλέω. If he is being asked to love Jesus on a higher or more spiritual level his answers give no indication of this, and one would be forced to say (in order to maintain a consistent distinction between the two verbs) that Jesus finally concedes defeat and accepts only the lower form of love which is all that Peter is capable of offering. Thus it seems best to regard the interchange between ἀγαπάω and φιλέω in these verses as a minor stylistic variation of the author, consistent with his use of minor variations in repeated material elsewhere, and not indicative of any real difference in meaning. Thus no attempt has been made to distinguish between the two Greek words in the translation.

[21:15]  ⁵ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:23]  ¹ tn Grk “went out.”

[21:23]  ² tn Grk “the brothers,” but here the term refers to more than just the immediate disciples of Jesus (as it does in 20:17). Here, as R. E. Brown notes (John [AB], 2:1110), it refers to Christians of the Johannine community (which would include both men and women).

[21:23]  ³ tn Grk “to stay” or “to remain”; but since longevity is the issue in the context, “to live” conveys the idea more clearly.

[21:23]  ⁴ tn The word “back” is supplied to clarify the meaning.