John 1:1-18

Amplified Bible

The Deity of Jesus Christ

1 In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (^[a]Christ), and the Word was with God, and ^[b]the Word was God Himself.^(A) ²He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God. ³All things were made and came into existence through Him; and without Him not even one thing was made that has come into being. ⁴In Him was life [and the power to bestow life], and the life was the Light of men. ⁵The Light shines on in the ^[c]darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it].^(B)

The Witness of John the Baptist

⁶There came a man commissioned and sent from God, whose name was ^[d]John.^(C) ⁷This man came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe [in Christ, the Light] through him. ⁸John was not the Light, but came to testify about the Light.

⁹There it was—the true Light [the genuine, perfect, steadfast Light] which, coming into the world, enlightens everyone.^(D) ¹⁰He (Christ) was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him. ¹¹He came to that which was His own [that which belonged to Him—His world, His creation, His possession], and those who were His own [people—the Jewish nation] did not receive and welcome Him. ¹²But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the right [the authority, the privilege] to become children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name—^(E) ¹³who were born, not of blood [natural conception], nor of the will of the flesh [physical impulse], nor of the will of man [that of a natural father], but of God [that is, a divine and supernatural birth—they are born of God—spiritually transformed, renewed, sanctified].

The Word Made Flesh

¹⁴And the Word (Christ) became flesh, and lived among us; and we [actually] saw His glory, glory as belongs to the [One and] only begotten Son of the Father, [the Son who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, who is] full of grace and truth (absolutely free of deception).^(F) ¹⁵John testified [repeatedly] about Him and ^[e]has cried out [testifying officially for the record, with validity and relevance], “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ^[f]has a higher rank than I and has priority over me, for He existed before me.’” ¹⁶For out of His fullness [the superabundance of His grace and truth] we have all received grace upon grace [spiritual blessing upon spiritual blessing, favor upon favor, and gift heaped upon gift]. ¹⁷For the Law was given through Moses, but grace [the unearned, undeserved favor of God] and truth came through Jesus Christ.^(G) ¹⁸No one has seen God [His essence, His divine nature] at any time; the [One and] only begotten God [that is, the unique Son] who is in the intimate presence of the Father, He has explained Him [and interpreted and revealed the awesome wonder of the Father].^(H)

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Footnotes

John 1:1 In John the Apostle’s vision (Rev 19), he sees Christ returning as Warrior-Messiah-King, and “...His name is called The Word of God...and LORD OF LORDS.” (Rev 19:13, 16).
John 1:1 In this phrase, “God” appears first in the Greek word order, emphasizing the fact that “the Word” (Christ) was God—so “God Himself.”
John 1:5 I.e. the world immersed in sin: all that stands in opposition to God and biblical truth.
John 1:6 The births of both John the Baptist and Jesus were foretold by the angel, Gabriel (Luke 1:5-80). This passage is about John the Baptist, the son of Zacharias the priest and his wife, Elizabeth. Elizabeth was related to Mary the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:36). John the Baptist is considered to be the last of the OT prophets, and is not to be confused with John the Apostle who wrote this Gospel, three brief letters (1 John, 2 John, 3 John) and Revelation.
John 1:15 Here John the writer uses the Greek perfect tense (“has cried out”), emphasizing the truth and continuing importance of John the Baptist’s testimony.
John 1:15 Lit has become before (in front of) me, because He was first of me. The Greek is difficult because John the Baptist was making a word-play on the adverbs/adjective “after” (or “behind”), “before,” and “first.” The playful wording assumes the form of a riddle which, like some of Jesus’ parables, conceals the speaker’s meaning from those who are hostile toward him and have neither the patience nor the spiritual inclination to learn from him.