Yohanes 1:32

1:32 Then ¹  John testified, ²  “I saw the Spirit descending like a dove ³  from heaven, ⁴  and it remained on him. ⁵ 

Yohanes 2:20

2:20 Then the Jewish leaders ⁶  said to him, “This temple has been under construction ⁷  for forty-six years, ⁸  and are you going to raise it up in three days?”

Yohanes 3:5

3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, ⁹  unless a person is born of water and spirit, ¹⁰  he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

Yohanes 8:39

8:39 They answered him, ¹¹  “Abraham is our father!” ¹²  Jesus replied, ¹³  “If you are ¹⁴  Abraham’s children, you would be doing ¹⁵  the deeds of Abraham.

Yohanes 11:25

11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live ¹⁶  even if he dies,

Yohanes 13:3

13:3 Because Jesus ¹⁷  knew that the Father had handed all things over to him, ¹⁸  and that he had come from God and was going back to God,

Yohanes 13:5

13:5 He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel he had wrapped around himself. ¹⁹ 

Yohanes 20:29

20:29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are the people ²⁰  who have not seen and yet have believed.” ²¹ 

[1:32]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style generally does not.

[1:32]  ² tn Grk “testified, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[1:32]  ³ sn The phrase like a dove is a descriptive comparison. The Spirit is not a dove, but descended like one in some sort of bodily representation.

[1:32]  ⁴ tn Or “from the sky.” The Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.

[1:32]  ⁵ sn John says the Spirit remained on Jesus. The Greek verb μένω (menw) is a favorite Johannine word, used 40 times in the Gospel and 27 times in the Epistles (67 together) against 118 times total in the NT. The general significance of the verb μένω for John is to express the permanency of relationship between Father and Son and Son and believer. Here the use of the word implies that Jesus permanently possesses the Holy Spirit, and because he does, he will dispense the Holy Spirit to others in baptism. Other notes on the dispensation of the Spirit occur at John 3:5 and following (at least implied by the wordplay), John 3:34, 7:38-39, numerous passages in John 14-16 (the Paraclete passages) and John 20:22. Note also the allusion to Isa 42:1 – “Behold my servant…my chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have put my Spirit on him.”

[2:20]  ⁶ tn See the note on this phrase in v. 18.

[2:20]  ⁷ tn A close parallel to the aorist οἰκοδομήθη (oikodomhqh) can be found in Ezra 5:16 (LXX), where it is clear from the following verb that the construction had not yet been completed. Thus the phrase has been translated “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years.” Some, however, see the term ναός (naos) here as referring only to the sanctuary and the aorist verb as consummative, so that the meaning would be “this temple was built forty-six years ago” (so ExSyn 560-61). Ultimately in context the logic of the authorities’ reply appears to fit more naturally if it compares length of time for original construction with length of time to reconstruct it.

[2:20]  ⁸ sn According to Josephus (Ant. 15.11.1 [15.380]), work on this temple was begun in the 18th year of Herod the Great’s reign, which would have been ca. 19 b.c. (The reference in the Ant. is probably more accurate than the date given in J. W. 1.21.1 [1.401]). Forty-six years later would be around the Passover of a.d. 27/28.

[3:5]  ⁹ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[3:5]  ¹⁰ tn Or “born of water and wind” (the same Greek word, πνεύματος [pneumatos], may be translated either “spirit/Spirit” or “wind”).

[3:5]  sn Jesus’ somewhat enigmatic statement points to the necessity of being born “from above,” because water and wind/spirit/Spirit come from above. Isaiah 44:3-5 and Ezek 37:9-10 are pertinent examples of water and wind as life-giving symbols of the Spirit of God in his work among people. Both occur in contexts that deal with the future restoration of Israel as a nation prior to the establishment of the messianic kingdom. It is therefore particularly appropriate that Jesus should introduce them in a conversation about entering the kingdom of God. Note that the Greek word πνεύματος is anarthrous (has no article) in v. 5. This does not mean that spirit in the verse should be read as a direct reference to the Holy Spirit, but that both water and wind are figures (based on passages in the OT, which Nicodemus, the teacher of Israel should have known) that represent the regenerating work of the Spirit in the lives of men and women.

[8:39]  ¹¹ tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”

[8:39]  ¹² tn Or “Our father is Abraham.”

[8:39]  ¹³ tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”

[8:39]  ¹⁴ tc Although most mss (C W Θ Ψ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï) have the imperfect ἦτε (hte, “you were”) here, making this sentence a proper second class condition, the harder reading, ἐστε (este, “you are”), is found in the better witnesses (Ì^66,75 א B D L 070 pc lat).

[8:39]  ¹⁵ tc Some important mss (Ì⁶⁶ B* [700]) have the present imperative ποιεῖτε (poieite) here: “If you are Abraham’s children, then do,” while many others (א² C K L N Δ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 565 579 892 pm) add the contingent particle ἄν (an) to ἐποιεῖτε (epoieite) making it a more proper second class condition by Attic standards. The simple ἐποιεῖτε without the ἄν is the hardest reading, and is found in some excellent witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ א* B² D W Γ Θ 070 0250 1424 pm).

[8:39]  tn Or “you would do.”

[11:25]  ¹⁶ tn That is, will come to life.

[13:3]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “Because he knew”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:3]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “had given all things into his hands.”

[13:5]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “with the towel with which he was girded.”

[20:29]  ²⁰ tn Grk “are those.”

[20:29]  ²¹ tn Some translations treat πιστεύσαντες (pisteusante") as a gnomic aorist (timeless statement) and thus equivalent to an English present tense: “and yet believe” (RSV). This may create an effective application of the passage to the modern reader, but the author is probably thinking of those people who had already believed without the benefit of seeing the risen Jesus, on the basis of reports by others or because of circumstantial evidence (see John 20:8).