John 5:31 BSB — MannaFest

John 5:31

If I testify about Myself, My testimony is not valid.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.

KJV

If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.

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Commentary

2 voices

Cyril of Alexandria

Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 2 (444)

The most wise Solomon, gathering together the things in which a man may very reasonably glory, and show his manner of life to be enviable, and placing them before those who are apt to learn, says, The righteous man is his own accuser in the opening of the trial, and again, Let thy neighbour praise thee and not thine own mouth, a stranger and not thine own lips.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

John Gill

1697–1771

Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748)

If I bear witness of myself,.... Which was not allowed any man to do; nor indeed is it proper that a man should be a witness in his own cause: and, according to the Jewish canons, a man might not be a witness for his wife, because she was reckoned as himself.

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)

If I testify of myself - That is, if I alone, (which indeed is impossible,) my testimony is not valid.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Albert Barnes

1798–1870

Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)

If I bear witness of myself - If I have no other evidence than my own testimony about myself. My witness - My testimony; my evidence. The proof would not be decisive. Is not true - The word “true,” here, means worthy of belief, or established by suitable evidence. See Mat 22:16; “We Know that thou art true” - that is, worthy of confidence, or that thou hast been truly sent from God, Luk 20:21; Joh 8:13, Joh 8:17. The law did not admit a man to testify in his own case, but required two witnesses, Deu 17:

J.C. Ryle

1816–1900

(1869)

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

11 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
Ἐὰν	Ean	If	G1437 →
ἐγὼ	egō	I myself	G1473 →
μαρτυρῶ	marturō	shall bear witness	G3140 →
περὶ	peri	concerning	G4012 →
ἐμαυτοῦ,	emautou	Myself,	G1473 →
ἡ	hē	the	G3588 →
μαρτυρία	marturia	testimony	G3141 →
μου	mou	of Mine	G3165 →
οὐκ	ouk	not	G3756 →
ἔστιν	estin	is	G1510 →
ἀληθής·	alēthēs	true;	G227 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Proverbs 27:2
Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—a stranger, and not your own lips.
leads to
- 2 Corinthians 10:18
  For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Proverbs 25:27
  It is not good to eat too much honey or to search out one’s own glory.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- 2 Corinthians 10:12
  We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they show their ignorance.
Through
Revelation 3:14
To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Originator of God’s creation.
leads to
- Colossians 1:15
  The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
- Revelation 1:5
  and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by…
- 2 Corinthians 1:20
  For all the promises of God are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him, our “Amen” is spoken to the glory of God.
- Colossians 1:18
  And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence.
- Revelation 3:7
  To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of the One who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut,…