John 1:3-9
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
3 [a]All things came to be through him,
and without him nothing came to be.(A)
What came to be 4 through him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;(B)
5 [b]the light shines in the darkness,(C)
and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 [c]A man named John was sent from God.(D) 7 He came for testimony,[d] to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him.(E) 8 He was not the light, but came to testify to the light.(F) 9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.(G)
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1:3 What came to be: while the oldest manuscripts have no punctuation here, the corrector of Bodmer Papyrus P75, some manuscripts, and the Ante-Nicene Fathers take this phrase with what follows, as staircase parallelism. Connection with Jn 1:3 reflects fourth-century anti-Arianism.
- 1:5 The ethical dualism of light and darkness is paralleled in intertestamental literature and in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Overcome: “comprehend” is another possible translation, but cf. Jn 12:35; Wis 7:29–30.
- 1:6 John was sent just as Jesus was “sent” (Jn 4:34) in divine mission. Other references to John the Baptist in this gospel emphasize the differences between them and John’s subordinate role.
- 1:7 Testimony: the testimony theme of John is introduced, which portrays Jesus as if on trial throughout his ministry. All testify to Jesus: John the Baptist, the Samaritan woman, scripture, his works, the crowds, the Spirit, and his disciples.
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