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John 3:13

No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

And no one hath ascended into heaven, but he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of man, who is in heaven.

KJV

And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

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Commentary

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Hebraic traditional view

Nicodemus, and why “born again” baffled a teacher of Israel

Nicodemus is “a man of the Pharisees... a ruler of the Jews”: a member of the Sanhedrin, the seventy-one-member high council that governed Jewish religious life from Jerusalem. His night visit is respectful and searching, and he is the standing proof that the Pharisaic movement contained honest seekers; John follows his arc from this conversation to his protest on Jesus' behalf (John 7:50-52) and finally to the seventy-five pounds of burial spices (John 19:39).

Why does “ye must be born again” baffle “the teacher of Israel”? The tradition had rebirth language of its own, but for GENTILES: a convert to Judaism “has the legal status of a newborn child,” as the Talmud words the principle (Yevamot 22a). Rebirth was intelligible for an outsider entering Israel. Jesus applies it to a son of Abraham, a Pharisee, a member of the council: even Israel's teacher must be born of water and the Spirit, words that stand on Ezekiel 36:25-27's promise of clean water and a new spirit. The tradition's convert-rebirth is reception history; what Jesus claims from it is the verse's own Christian confession, new birth from above for everyone.

Sources: Yevamot 22a (Babylonian Talmud: the convert as a newborn)

Original language & word study

17 tagged words
OriginalTransliterationMeaningWord study
καὶkaiAndG2532 →
οὐδεὶςoudeisno [one]G3762 →
ἀναβέβηκενanabebēkenhas gone upG305 →
εἰςeisintoG1519 →
τὸνton<the>G3588 →
οὐρανὸνouranonheavenG3772 →
εἰeionlyG1487 →
μὴmēexceptG3361 →
ὁhothe [One]G3588 →
ἐκekout ofG1537 →
τοῦtou<the>G3588 →
οὐρανοῦouranouheavenG3772 →
καταβάς,katabashaving come down,G2597 →
ὁhotheG3588 →
υἱὸςhuiosSonG5207 →
τοῦtou<the>G3588 →
ἀνθρώπουanthrōpouof ManG444 →

The walk

Related verses

18 strongest cross-references

The gold bar shows how strongly the cross-reference sources tie the two verses together: a long bar means many compiled references make the connection, a short one means few.

Proverbs 30:4Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!Daniel 7:13In my vision in the night I continued to watch, and I saw One like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence.Acts 2:34For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right handJohn 6:38For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.Ephesians 4:9What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descended to the lower parts of the earth?John 1:18No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known.John 13:3Jesus knew that the Father had delivered all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was returning to God.1 Corinthians 15:47The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.Ephesians 4:9–10What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descended to the lower parts of the earth?John 6:62Then what will happen if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?Romans 10:6But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down)John 3:31The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all.Genesis 11:5Then the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the sons of men were building.John 6:46not that anyone has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only He has seen the Father.John 17:5And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed.Mark 16:19–20After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.John 6:42They were asking, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, ‘I have come down from heaven?’”Deuteronomy 30:12It is not in heaven, that you should need to ask, ‘Who will ascend into heaven to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey it?’

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About John

The Word Made Flesh — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)
The Word Made Flesh — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)
John: the study guide →Read chapter 3 →The featured study →
Continue: John 3 →