There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world1
And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
'all who come into the world' is a common rabbinic expression for 'every man'3
in the next verse the light is in the world; it is therefore natural to suppose that it should previously be described as coming . . . preferred, and it must be supposed that reference to the incarnation begins already in this verse4
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.5
The world missed its great opportunity. It did not come to know the Word when the Word was in its very midst.6
Endnotes:
1. | NKJV, John 1:6-9 |
2. | Ref-1515, John 1:6 |
3. | Ref-1515, John 1:9 |
4. | Ref-1515, John 1:9 |
5. | NKJV, John 1:10-13 |
6. | Ref-1516, John 1:10 |
Sources:
NKJV | Unless indicated otherwise, all Scripture references are from the New King James Version, copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. |
Ref-1515 | C. K. Barrett, The Gospel According to St. John (London, England: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1955, 1965). |
Ref-1516 | Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, Revised Edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1994). ISBN:0-8028-2504-4d. |