Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 3:15
That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
15. That ] The eternal life of believers is the purpose of the ‘ must ’ in Joh 3:14. For ‘should’ read may both here and in Joh 3:16.
not perish, but ] These words are not genuine here, but have been taken from the next verse. When they are struck out it is better to take ‘in Him’ with ‘have’ than with ‘believeth:’ that every one who believeth may have in Him eternal life.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
That whosoever – This shows the fulness and freeness of the gospel. All may come and be saved.Believeth in him – Whosoever puts confidence in him as able and willing to save. All who feel that they are sinners, that they have no righteousness of their own, and are willing to look to him as their only Saviour.
Should not perish – They are in danger, by nature, of perishing – that is, of sinking down to the pains of hell; of being punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power, 2Th 1:9. All who believe on Jesus shall be saved from this condemnation and be raised up to eternal life. And from this we learn:
1.That there is salvation in no other.
2.That salvation is here full and free for all who will come.
3.That it is easy. What was more easy for a poor, wounded, dying Israelite, bitten by a poisonous serpent, than to look up to a brass serpent? So with the poor, lost, dying sinner. And what more foolish than for such a wounded, dying man to refuse to look on a remedy so easy and effectual? So nothing is more foolish man for a lost and dying sinner to refuse to look on Gods only Son, exalted on a cross to die for the sins of men, and able to save to the uttermost all who come to God by him.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 15. That whosoever believeth] Bp. Pearce supposes that this verse is only the conclusion of the 16th, and that it has been inserted in this place by mistake. The words contain the reason of the subject in the following verse, and seem to break in upon our Lord’s argument before he had fully stated it. The words, , may not perish but, are omitted by some very ancient MSS. and versions.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Here our Lord openeth the instrumental cause of justification and salvation, that is, believing ,
in him. It is one thing to believe in him as a teacher, another thing to believe in him as a Saviour. The object of the first is a proposition; we believe a person when we assent and give credit to what he saith, because he saith it. The object of the latter is the person and merits of the Mediator. As the looking up to the brazen serpent healed the person, not by any physical operation, but from the goodness of God, as it was an act of obedience to the Divine institution for that end; so neither doth faith in the Mediator justify and obtain pardon for any soul from any meritorious virtue in that act, but from Gods gracious ordination, that so it shall be; he hath so ordained, that whosoever shall rest upon Christ, and receive him by faith as his Mediator and Saviour, should not perish, but live for ever. There are other things besides faith necessary to salvation, such are repentance, love, and new obedience; nor is faith only mentioned because they are ingredients into it, but because faith is the root of all those, and that from which they must necessarily flow; for it is as impossible that any should truly hope, and trust in, and rest upon Christ for that life which he hath only promised to those that obey him, as it is impossible that any should indeed trust in and rest upon a man who hath promised a reward upon a condition for that reward, without any care to fulfil that condition. But by this and other places, where faith alone in Christ is mentioned as necessary to salvation. Nicodemus was taught, that no obedience to the works of the law without this faith in the Mediator would bring the soul to eternal life and salvation.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
That whosoever believeth in him,…. Whether Jew or Gentile, a greater, or a lesser sinner, and of whatsoever state and condition, age or sex; and though ever so weak a believer, provided his faith, is of the right kind: not an historical or temporary one, a mere assent to the truth of things respecting his person, office, and work; but such a faith, by which a soul sees a glory, fulness, and suitableness in him as a Saviour; goes to him, ventures on him, commits itself to him, lays hold on him, and receives him, leans and relies upon him, and trusts in him, and lives upon him; and which is the faith of God’s elect; a gift of his grace, and the operation of his Spirit; and which works by love, and is attended with the fruits of righteousness: now the end of Christ’s crucifixion and death is, that such an one
should not perish; though he is in a lost and perishing condition in Adam, and by nature, and sees himself to be so, and comes to Christ as such; and though his frames and comforts are perishing, and he sometimes fears he shall be utterly lost; and though he is subject to slips and falls, and great spiritual decays; and shall perish as to the outward man by death; yet he shall never perish eternally, or be punished with everlasting destruction, as the wicked will:
but have eternal life; not by his works, but as the gift of God: and which he that truly believes; has already in the covenant of grace, in Christ his head, in faith and hope; and has the earnest and pledge of it, the Spirit of God; and the beginning of it, which is the knowledge of God in Christ; and shall hereafter possess it fully, and in person, to all eternity: even a life of perfect holiness and knowledge; a life of never ending pleasure; a life free from all the sorrows, distresses, and imperfections of this; and which will always continue.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
That whosoever believeth may in him have eternal life ( ). Final use of with present active subjunctive of , that he may keep on having eternal life (a frequent phrase in John, always in John occurs with , 16 times in the Gospel, 6 in 1John, ageless or endless life, beginning now and lasting forever). It is more than endless, for it is sharing in the life of God in Christ (John 5:26; John 17:3; 1John 5:12). So here (in him) is taken with rather than with . The interview with Nicodemus apparently closes with verse 15. In verses 16-21 we have past tenses constantly as is natural for the reflection of John, but unnatural for Jesus speaking. There are phrases like the Prologue (verse John 3:19; John 1:9-11). “Only begotten” does not occur elsewhere in the words of Jesus, but is in John 1:14; John 1:18; 1John 4:9. John often puts in explanatory comments (John 1:16-18; John 12:37-41).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Believeth in Him [ ] . The best texts read ejn aujtw, construing with have eternal life, and rendering may in Him have eternal life. So Rev..
Should not perish, but. The best texts omit.
Have eternal life. A characteristic phrase of John for live forever. See vv. 16, 36; Joh 5:24; Joh 6:40, 47, 54; 1Jo 3:15; 1Jo 5:12.
The interview with Nicodemus closes with ver. 15; and the succeeding words are John’s. This appears from the following facts :
1. The past tenses loved and gave, in ver. 16, better suit the later point of view from which John writes, after the atoning death of Christ was an accomplished historic fact, than the drift of the present discourse of Jesus before the full revelation of that work.
2. It is in John’s manner to throw in explanatory comments of his own (i. 16 – 18; 1Jo 12:37 – 41), and to do so abruptly. See Joh 1:15, 16, and on and, Joh 1:16.
3. Ver. 19 is in the same line of thought with Joh 1:9 – 11 in the Prologue; and the tone of that verse is historic, carrying the sense of past rejection, as loved darkness; were evil.
4. The phrase believe on the name is not used elsewhere by our Lord, but by John (i. 12; Joh 2:23; 1Jo 5:13).
5. The phrase only – begotten son is not elsewhere used by Jesus of himself, but in every case by the Evangelist (i. 14, 18; 1Jo 4:9).
6. The phrase to do truth (ver. 21) occurs elsewhere only in 1Jo 1:6. 2 3
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “That whosoever believeth in him,” (hina pas ho pisteuon en autou) “In order that everyone believing in him;- The serpent was lifted up for Jews only, but Jesus was lifted up for the sins of the whole world, including all men, and excluding none, who will believe or trust in Him, as the Savior or Redeemer, Isa 45:22; Isa 53:4-6; Joh 3:17-18; Joh 5:24; 1Jn 5:11; Rev 22:17.
2) Should not perish,” (me apoletai) “May not perish,” as the inescapable consequence of sin in every person, except or unless he receives Jesus Christ as his antidote, redeemer from the venom of sin in his soul, Luk 13:3; Luk 13:5; Joh 8:24; To perish means to come to damnation in hell forever, as the rich man did, Luk 16:19-31.
3) “But have eternal life.” (eche zoen aionion) “May have hold or possess eternal life,” life without end or cessation, in harmony with the nature of Jesus Christ, the giver of eternal life to everyone who believes in Him, Joh 10:27-28; 1Jn 5:13. It comes to every believer by belief, by faith placed in Jesus Christ, not by or through baptism, church membership, reformation or good works, as espoused by so many heretical Protestant sects and Roman Catholicism, Joh 1:11-13; Eph 2:8-10; Gal 3:26; Tit 3:5.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(15) Not perish, but . . .These words have been added here from the following verse. Omitting them, the sentence should be rendered, that every one who believeth may have in Him eternal life. This construction is borne out by a comparison of Joh. 5:39; Joh. 16:33; Joh. 20:31. To believe in Him is not used by St. John. (See Note on Joh. 1:12.) The thought of this verse is that as every Israelite, believing in God, had in the brazen serpent a message from God; so every man who believes in God ever has this message from God in the crucified Son of Man. The object of faith is not here expressed. The words speak only of the man who believeth, whose heart is open to spiritual truth. That man has, in Jesus Christ and Him crucified, a truth which goes to his inmost spirit, sending a new life through his whole being. To the non-believer this may be but the self-sacrifice of heroism. To the believer it is Light breaking upon the darkness of his soul; it is Life bursting the cold sepulchre of a deadened spirit; it is Love winning its way through the scales of a hardened heart; it is Mercy deeper and wider even than his sin; it is Hope bracing the man to a new life of holiness; it is the Word of God, and in Him he has eternal life. The reader will not forget that the lifting up the serpent of brass followed the confession of the people. We have sinned . . . pray unto the Lord that He take away the serpents from us (Num. 21:7).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
15. Whosoever believeth The offers of the means of salvation are universal; extended to the entire world. The salvation itself is limited only by the unbelief of man. The atonement is unlimited by God’s design; the salvation, by application of the atonement, is limited by man’s rejection. This whosoever takes in every individual person; just as the term world takes in the sum total.
Perish have eternal life Perishing and eternal life are placed in opposition, and so aid to explain each other.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Ver. 15. That whosoever believeth ] Faith is the soul’s hand ( fidei mendica manus, saith Luther); foot, whereby we come to Christ; mouth ( hic credere est edere, saith Austin); wing, whereby we soar up and fetch Christ into the heart, Joh 6:35-36 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
15. ] The corresponding clause applying to the type is left to be supplied ‘And as every one who looked on it was healed, so ’
. ] This expression, here only used by John, implies His exaltation , see ch. Joh 12:32 . It is a belief in ( abiding in , see note on Joh 3:18 ) His Person being what God by His sufferings and exaltation hath made Him to be, and being that TO ME. This involves, on the part of the believer, the anguish of the bite of the fiery serpent, and the earnest looking on Him in Whom sin is crucified, with the inner eye of faith.
. . ] Just as in the type, God did not remove the fiery serpents, or not all at once, but healing was to be found in the midst of them by looking to the brazen serpent ( , LXX), so the temptations and conflicts of sin shall not leave the believer, but in the midst of these , with the Eye of Faith fixed on the uplifted Son of Man, he has eternal life; perishes not of the bite, but .
See on this verse the remarkable passage, Wis 16:5-13 , where as much of the healing sign is opened as could be expected before the great Antitype Himself appeared.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Joh 3:15 . The words of the T.R. are omitted by Tisch [41] , W.H [42] , and R.V [43] Further, the same editors replace the words by , and the R.V [44] translates “that whosoever believeth may in Him have eternal life,” in accordance with Johannine usage, which does not support the rendering “believeth in Him”. This is the object to be accomplished by the “elevation” of the Son of Man, viz. , that whoever, Jew or Gentile, believes that there is life in Him that is thus exalted, may have life eternal.
[41] Tischendorf.
[42] Westcott and Hort.
[43] Revised Version.
[44] Revised Version.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
whosoever = every one who. As here defined. believeth in. See App-150. (See note on Joh 1:7.) L reads epi; Lm T Tr. A WI and R read en. but have. Figure of speech Pleonasm (App-6), for emph. The phrases “bath”, “have eternal life”, are the usual expressions in this Gospel for “live for ever “(App-151. a). Compare verses: Joh 3:16, Joh 3:36; Joh 5:24; Joh 6:40, Joh 6:47, Joh 6:54; 1Jn 3:15; 1Jn 3:5, 1Jn 3:11.
eternal. Greek. aionios. App-151. i: i.e. in Him. Compare 1Jn 5:12.
life. See note on Joh 1:4. App-170.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
15.] The corresponding clause applying to the type is left to be supplied-And as every one who looked on it was healed, so
. ] This expression, here only used by John, implies His exaltation,-see ch. Joh 12:32. It is a belief in (abiding in, see note on Joh 3:18) His Person being what God by His sufferings and exaltation hath made Him to be, and being that TO ME. This involves, on the part of the believer, the anguish of the bite of the fiery serpent,-and the earnest looking on Him in Whom sin is crucified, with the inner eye of faith.
. .] Just as in the type, God did not remove the fiery serpents,-or not all at once,-but healing was to be found in the midst of them by looking to the brazen serpent ( , LXX),-so the temptations and conflicts of sin shall not leave the believer,-but in the midst of these, with the Eye of Faith fixed on the uplifted Son of Man, he has eternal life; perishes not of the bite, but .
See on this verse the remarkable passage, Wis 16:5-13, where as much of the healing sign is opened as could be expected before the great Antitype Himself appeared.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 3:15. , that) The goodness to us of the Son in Joh 3:15, and of the Father in Joh 3:16, is described in the same words. [The grace of the Son is what is most frequently noted, and the love of the Father (2Co 13:14, the benediction).-V. g.] Comp. ch. Joh 6:37, All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me: and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out; notes, ch. Joh 10:28-29, Neither shall any pluck them out of My hand:-none is able to pluck them out of My Fathers hand:- , who believeth) Now Jesus begins a plainer style of speech. Faith, in the case of those needing to be saved, is what looking to the uplifted serpent was in the case of those needing to be healed.- , in Him) as lifted up. The cross [is] the ladder to heaven.- , should not perish) by the poison of sin.- , eternal life) by regeneration and faith. This mention of eternal life is made at the earliest time in each instance, in the discourses of the Saviour, and occurs in this passage first. He takes it for granted as very well known from the Old Testament: ch. Joh 5:39, Search the Scriptures: for in them ye think ye have eternal life. See Dan 12:2, Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, etc.; Luk 10:25, [The lawyers question] Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Joh 3:15
Joh 3:15
that whosoever believeth may in him have eternal life.-Jesus was lifted up [on the cross] and slain that he might be buried and rise again that men might believe on him. When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself, but as the Father taught me, I speak these things. (Joh 8:28). And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto myself. (Joh 12:32). The lifting up was the killing according to the prophecies concerning him. He died [lifted from the earth to the cross] that he might rise again Who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead; even Jesus Christ our Lord. (Rom 1:4). This believing in him on these testimonies led them to so follow him as with him to enjoy life eternal. Looking upon the serpent was the expression required in this instance and it is given here as an illustration of the sinner looking to Christ for salvation. The test of his faith is that he is baptized into Christ. Being baptized into Christ was the birth of water and the Spirit into the kingdom of God.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
whosoever: Joh 3:16, Joh 3:36, Joh 1:12, Joh 6:40, Joh 6:47, Joh 11:25, Joh 11:26, Joh 12:44-46, Joh 20:31, Isa 45:22, Mar 16:16, Act 8:37, Act 16:30, Act 16:31, Rom 5:1, Rom 5:2, Rom 10:9-14, Gal 2:16, Gal 2:20, Heb 7:25, Heb 10:39, 1Jo 5:1, 1Jo 5:11-13
not: Joh 5:24, Joh 10:28-30, Mat 18:11, Luk 19:10, Act 13:41, 1Co 1:18, 2Co 4:3
eternal: Joh 17:2, Joh 17:3, Rom 5:21, Rom 6:22, Rom 6:23, 1Jo 2:25, 1Jo 5:13, 1Jo 5:20
Reciprocal: Num 21:9 – A serpent of 2Ki 18:4 – the brazen serpent Isa 11:10 – which shall Isa 51:6 – my salvation Mat 19:16 – eternal Mat 25:46 – the righteous Luk 6:19 – sought Joh 8:51 – If Joh 9:35 – Dost Act 20:21 – faith Act 26:22 – the prophets Act 28:5 – felt Rom 3:21 – being Rom 4:11 – father 2Co 5:15 – that they Gal 3:22 – to 1Ti 1:16 – believe 1Ti 2:4 – will 1Ti 4:10 – the saviour Tit 1:2 – eternal
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
5
The literal sight of Jesus on the cross is not what saves sinners, for only a few men of the world could see it. Hence the Lord makes his comparison on the principle of believing, for the death of the Son of God on the cross will benefit no one who does not have faith in that great sacrifice.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Vv. 15 finishes the application of the type. To the look of the dying Israelite the faith of the sinner in the crucified one corresponds; to the life restored to the wounded one, the salvation granted to the believer. , whosoever extends to the whole of humanity the application of the Israelitish type, while emphatically individualizing the act of faith ().The reading of the T. R. , to or on Him, is the one which best suits the context (the look turned towards …); faith looks to its object. If we consider how little the Alexandrian authorities agree among themselves, the received reading will be acknowledged as, on the whole, the best supported one. Tischendorf (8th ed.) reads , after the Vatican MS.; in that case, this limiting phrase may be connected with , as Weiss and Keil connect it, rather than with . But, in this context, the connection with remains, nevertheless, the most natural relation. The Alexandrian authorities reject the words should not perish, but; they may certainly have been introduced here from Joh 3:16. Even in that case we are struck with the rhythmic relation between the last words of these two verses; it is the sign of the stirring of feeling and elevation of thought (Introd., p. 137). We comprehend, indeed, what an impression this first revelation of His future suffering of punishment must have produced on Jesus Himself; comp. Joh 12:27.
As for Nicodemus, we also account for what he experienced when on the Holy Friday he saw Jesus suspended on the cross. That spectacle, instead of being for him, as for others, a stumbling-block, a ground of unbelief and despair, causes his latent faith to break forth (Joh 19:39). This fact is the answer to de Wette’s question, who asks if this anticipatory revelation of the death of the Messiah was not contrary to the pedagogic wisdom of Jesus. Weiss, who is not willing to admit that Jesus so early foresaw and predicted His death, thinks that Jesus did not express Himself in so precise a way, but that he spoke vaguely of some lifting up which would be accorded to Him during His earthly life, to the end that He might be recognized as Messiah by the Jews. But, in that case, it is necessary to suppose: 1. That John positively falsified the account of the words of Jesus; 2. That Jesus spoke of something which was never realized, for we know not what that supposed lifting-up can be; 3. There no longer remains, in this case, any relation between the prophecy of Jesus and the matter of the brazen serpent. From the cross Jesus ascends to God, from whose love this decree emanates ( must, Joh 3:14).
Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)
The purpose of Jesus’ uplifting, as was the purpose of the uplifting of the bronze serpent in the wilderness, was the salvation (deliverance) of those who believed. By comparing Himself to that serpent Jesus was teaching that whoever trusted in Him and His death would receive eternal life.
This is the first reference to eternal life in this Gospel. Eternal life refers to the life of the age to come, namely, the kingdom age and forever after. It is life that one experiences normally after resurrection that fits him or her for the kingdom. However, John presented that life as something that people can experience in measure before the kingdom begins. The eternal life that people receive at new birth is the life of the eternal Word (Joh 1:4). It comes to them by believing in the person and saving work of Jesus.
"The life Christians possess is not in any sense independent of Christ. It is a life that is ’hidden with Christ in God’ (Col 3:3). . . . The Jews divided time into the present age and the age to come, but the adjective [eternal] was used of life in the coming age, not that of the present age. ’Eternal life’ thus means ’the life proper to the age to come.’ It is an eschatological concept (cf. Joh 6:40; Joh 6:54). But as the age to come is thought of as never coming to an end the adjective came to mean ’everlasting,’ ’eternal.’ The notion of time is there. Eternal life will never cease. But there is something else there, too, and something more significant. The important thing about eternal life is not its quantity but its quality. . . . Eternal life is life in Christ, that life which removes a person from the merely earthly." [Note: Morris, p. 201.]
Some authorities believe that Joh 3:16-21 are the Apostle John’s comments, his aside, rather than a continuation of Jesus’ words to Nicodemus. [Note: E.g., Tenney, "John," pp. 49-50; Carson, p. 203; Everett F. Harrison, "The Gospel According to John," in The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 1079; Morris, p. 202; Westcott, p. 54; and Beasley-Murray, p. 51.] Others believe Jesus’ words continue through Joh 3:21. [Note: E.g., Barrett, p. 169; Tasker, p. 66; J. P. Lange, ed., A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, 12 vols., vol. 9: The Gospel According to John, by J. P. Lange, p. 134; Richard C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of St. John’s Gospel, p. 258; Arthur W. Pink, Exposition of the Gospel of John , 1:120; G. Campbell Morgan, The Gospel According to John, pp. 59-60; William Barclay, The Gospel of John , 1:128; Wiersbe, 1:298; and John G. Mitchell, An Everlasting Love: A Devotional Study of the Gospel of John, p. 57.] I prefer the second opinion on this issue. Unfortunately the Greek text does not contain quotation marks, or any punctuation for that matter, so it does not identify quotations for the reader. This section of the text is the heart of John’s record of Jesus’ early ministry (chs. 2-4).