1 N ow there was a certain man among the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler (a leader, an authority) among the Jews,

But there was a man from among the Pharisees, his name Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews;

2 W ho came to Jesus at night and said to Him, Rabbi, we know and are certain that You have come from God a Teacher; for no one can do these signs (these wonderworks, these miracles—and produce the proofs) that You do unless God is with him.

he came to him by night, and said to him, Rabbi, we know that thou art come a teacher from God, for none can do these signs that thou doest unless God be with him.

3 J esus answered him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that unless a person is born again (anew, from above), he cannot ever see (know, be acquainted with, and experience) the kingdom of God.

Jesus answered and said to him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except any one be born anew he cannot see the kingdom of God.

4 N icodemus said to Him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter his mother’s womb again and be born?

Nicodemus says to him, How can a man be born being old? can he enter a second time into the womb of his mother and be born?

5 J esus answered, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, unless a man is born of water and '> even] the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except any one be born of water and of Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6 W hat is born of the flesh is flesh; and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 M arvel not at My telling you, You must all be born anew (from above).

Do not wonder that I said to thee, It is needful that ye should be born anew.

8 T he wind blows (breathes) where it wills; and though you hear its sound, yet you neither know where it comes from nor where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

The wind blows where it will, and thou hearest its voice, but knowest not whence it comes and where it goes: thus is every one that is born of the Spirit.

9 N icodemus answered by asking, How can all this be possible?

Nicodemus answered and said to him, How can these things be?

10 J esus replied, Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet do not know nor understand these things?

Jesus answered and said to him, Thou art the teacher of Israel and knowest not these things!

11 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, We speak only of what we know; we have actually seen what we are testifying to. And still you do not receive our testimony.

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and we bear witness of that which we have seen, and ye receive not our witness.

12 I f I have told you of things that happen right here on the earth and yet none of you believes Me, how can you believe (trust Me, adhere to Me, rely on Me) if I tell you of heavenly things?

If I have said the earthly things to you, and ye believe not, how, if I say the heavenly things to you, will ye believe?

13 A nd yet no one has ever gone up to heaven, but there is One Who has come down from heaven—the Son of Man, Who is (dwells, has His home) in heaven.

And no one has gone up into heaven, save he who came down out of heaven, the Son of man who is in heaven.

14 A nd just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, thus must the Son of man be lifted up,

15 I n order that everyone who believes in Him may not perish, but have eternal life and live forever!

that every one who believes on him may have life eternal.

16 F or God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He gave up His only begotten ( unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes on him may not perish, but have life eternal.

17 F or God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge (to reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him.

For God has not sent his Son into the world that he may judge the world, but that the world may be saved through him.

18 H e who believes in Him is not judged; but he who does not believe (cleave to, rely on, trust in Him) is judged already because he has not believed in and trusted in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

He that believes on him is not judged: but he that believes not has been already judged, because he has not believed on the name of the only-begotten Son of God.

19 T he judgment (indictment, the test by which men are judged, the ground for the sentence) lies in this: the Light has come into the world, and people have loved the darkness rather than and more than the Light, for their works (deeds) were evil.

And this is the judgment, that light is come into the world, and men have loved darkness rather than light; for their works were evil.

20 F or every wrongdoer hates (loathes, detests) the Light, and will not come out into the Light but shrinks from it, lest his works (his deeds, his activities, his conduct) be exposed and reproved.

For every one that does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light that his works may not be shewn as they are;

21 B ut he who practices truth comes out into the Light; so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they are—wrought with God.

but he that practises the truth comes to the light, that his works may be manifested that they have been wrought in God.

22 A fter this, Jesus and His disciples went into the land (the countryside) of Judea, where He remained with them, and baptized.

After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he abode with them and baptised.

23 B ut John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, for there was an abundance of water there, and the people kept coming and being baptized.

And John also was baptising in Aenon, near Salim, because there was a great deal of water there; and they came to and were baptised:

24 F or John had not yet been thrown into prison.

for John was not yet cast into prison.

25 T herefore there arose a controversy between some of John’s disciples and a Jew in regard to purification.

There was therefore a reasoning of the disciples of John with a Jew about purification.

26 S o they came to John and reported to him, Rabbi, the Man Who was with you on the other side of the Jordan '> at the Jordan crossing]—and to Whom you yourself have borne testimony—notice, here He is baptizing too, and everybody is flocking to Him!

And they came to John and said to him, Rabbi, he who was with thee beyond the Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, he baptises, and all come to him.

27 J ohn answered, A man can receive nothing '> take unto himself nothing] except as it has been granted to him from heaven.

John answered and said, A man can receive nothing unless it be given him out of heaven.

28 Y ou yourselves are my witnesses that I stated, I am not the Christ (the Anointed One, the Messiah), but I have been sent before Him.

Ye yourselves bear me witness that I said, I am not the Christ, but, that I am sent before him.

29 H e who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the groomsman who stands by and listens to him rejoices greatly and heartily on account of the bridegroom’s voice. This then is my pleasure and joy, and it is now complete.

He that has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices in heart because of the voice of the bridegroom: this my joy then is fulfilled.

30 H e must increase, but I must decrease.

He must increase, but I must decrease.

31 H e Who comes from above (heaven) is above all; he who comes from the earth belongs to the earth, and talks the language of earth. He Who comes from heaven is above all others.

He who comes from above is above all. He who has his origin in the earth is of the earth, and speaks of the earth. He who comes out of heaven is above all,

32 I t is to what He has seen and heard that He bears testimony, and yet no one accepts His testimony.

what he has seen and has heard, this he testifies; and no one receives his testimony.

33 W hoever receives His testimony has set his seal of approval to this: God is true..

He that has received his testimony has set to his seal that God is true;

34 F or since He Whom God has sent speaks the words of God, God does not give Him His Spirit sparingly or by measure, but boundless is the gift God makes of His Spirit!

for he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives not the Spirit by measure.

35 T he Father loves the Son and has given (entrusted, committed) everything into His hand.

The Father loves the Son, and has given all things in his hand.

36 A nd he who believes in (has faith in, clings to, relies on) the Son has (now possesses) eternal life. But whoever disobeys (is unbelieving toward, refuses to trust in, disregards, is not subject to) the Son will never see (experience) life, but the wrath of God abides on him.

He that believes on the Son has life eternal, and he that is not subject to the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides upon him.