testify = bear witness to. Greek. martureo. See notes on John 1:7 and p. 1511. seen. Greek horao. App-133 . Compare John 1:18 ; John 14:7 , John 14:9 . ye : i.e. ye teachers of Israel. witness. See note on John 1:7 . read more
If Ihave. Assuming it as a fact. App-118 . earthly things . Eze 36:25-27 . 1 Corinthians 15:40 . Colossians 3:2 . 2 Corinthians 5:1 .Philippians 1:2 , Philippians 1:10 ; Philippians 3:19 . believe. App-150 . i. See note on John 1:7 . if I tell. Supposing I tell. App-118 . heavenly = Plural of epouranios. Occurs only here and Matthew 18:35 in the Gospels. See Ephesians 1:3 , Ephesians 1:20 ; Ephesians 2:6 ; Ephesians 3:10 ; Ephesians 6:12 .Philippians 2:10 , &c. read more
And , &c. The kai (= And) here is a Hebraism, and does not mark the actual transition. There is nothing whatever in the context to show where the Paragraph breaks should be in this chapter; either in the MSS., or in the Versions. The Authorized Version varies in its different editions. The Authorized Version text in the Revised Version Parallel Bible has a at John 3:14 and John 3:16 . The Camb. Paragraph Bible (Dr. Scrivener) has no break either at verses: John 3:3 , John 3:14 or 16. The... read more
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou the teacher of Israel and understandest not these things?By this answer, Christ did not deny some element of mystery regarding the questions Nicodemus had raised, but was exclaiming at his failure to understand the basic things Christ had commanded him to do. The Lord's words to this ruler of the Jews were the blunt equivalent of "Look, you Pharisees stop rejecting John's baptism; obey God by submitting to it; but that is only part of it; you must... read more
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and bear witness of that which we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.In this verse, Jesus changed to the plural "we," a change that may be viewed (1) as inclusive of the disciples there gathered with him and also sharing in the witness of the power of the new birth, or (2) as an employment of the editorial "we" instead of the first person singular. If the former is correct, it would have the force of saying, "Nicodemus, I am... read more
I told ye earthly things and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you heavenly things?The earthly things Jesus told Nicodemus regarded the new birth, an experience received by ordinary men during their earthly sojourn. Mysterious as it is, the new birth is a common everyday fact, "earthly" in the sense of men being in actual contact with the phenomenon and aware of it constantly. Thousands of Israel had already responded; but the Pharisees never made it.Heavenly things ... is a... read more
And no one hath ascended into heaven, but he that descended out of heaven, even the Son of man who is in heaven.Here Jesus claimed his unique office as God's messenger who descended to man out of heaven, and yet, in a sense, who was still in heaven. This verse, admittedly difficult, has led to the view that heaven is a state rather than a place, and that Jesus could say the Son of man was in heaven even while he was on earth. Another view supported by this is that during the personal ministry... read more
John 3:9-10. Nicodemus answered, &c.— Our Lord's arguments were undeniable: nevertheless, Nicodemus, who had been accustomed to the pomp and ceremony of an external religion, surprised to hear that Jews (who by birth were the people of God,) must be begotten and born again, still urged that the thing was impossible; which it doubtless was, taking regeneration, as he did, for conversion to Judaism, a notion which he was led into from what Jesus had told him, Joh 3:5-6 namely, that the... read more
John 3:11. We speak that we do know,— Some have supposed, that, as Christ speaks here in the plural number, he may refer not only to the doctrine which was delivered by himself, but to the testimony which was given to the truth of it by John the Baptist, and to the preaching also of his own disciples, who all concurred in testifying the same things, the certainty of which they were assured of by the teachings of the Spirit, and by their own experience; while it was known to Christ by his... read more
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E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - John 3:10
Art thou . . . ? or Thou art, &c. Not irony. a master = the (famous) teacher; referring to his official position. Greek. didaskalos. See App-98 . John 3:4 . knowest not = hast not got to know; or perceivest not. Greek. ginosko. App-132 . See note on John 1:10 . read more