“John 1,” Scripture Helps: New Testament (2024)
Scripture Helps
John 1
In the beginning, Jesus Christ was with the Father. One of Jesus’s titles is “the Word.” He is the life and light of all things. Through Him, the world and all things were created. Salvation comes only through Christ. John the Baptist baptized Jesus and others. Some believed in Jesus Christ and testified of Him.
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Background and Context
Why is Jesus Christ called “the Word”?
The Apostle John called Jesus Christ “the Word” several times in the New Testament. “Word” is the English translation of the Greek word logos. Logos represents spoken words and the ideas behind those words. Logos is “the means by which one person conveys his [or her] thoughts to another or puts his [or her] ideas into effect.”
President Russell M. Nelson wrote: “[‘The Word’] was another name for the Master. That terminology may seem strange, but it is appropriate. We use words to convey our expression to others. So Jesus was the Word, or expression, of His Father to the world.”
The Gospel of John emphasizes that Jesus Christ is the messenger of the Father to the world. He declares the Father’s words. From latter-day revelation we read, “In the beginning the Word was, for he was the Word, even the messenger of salvation.”
Why is it significant that Jesus Christ “was in the beginning with God”?
Of the four Gospels, only the Gospel of John teaches about Jesus Christ’s premortal life. Latter-day scriptures affirm Jesus’s premortal existence. The Savior revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith, “I was in the beginning with the Father, and am the Firstborn.” The book of Abraham describes the premortal Christ as “like unto God.” The book of Moses teaches that Jesus Christ was Heavenly Father’s “Beloved Son, … Beloved and Chosen from the beginning.”
What does it mean that “all things were made by him”?
From “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles” we learn that Jesus “was the Great Jehovah of the Old Testament, the Messiah of the New. Under the direction of His Father, He was the creator of the earth” (Gospel Library). From the book of Moses we learn that Jesus Christ created “worlds without number,” even “millions of earths like this.”
What does it mean that Jesus Christ was “full of grace and truth”?
The Greek word for “grace” is charis, which can also mean loving-kindness, goodwill, or favor. Grace is “divine help or strength … given through the mercy and love of God.”
The Greek word for “truth” is alētheia, which means dependability and uprightness in thought and deed. The Lord defines truth as “knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come.” Truth is absolute and is not influenced by circumstances. Truth does not change, just as the Lord does not change.
The following scripture passages can help us better understand how the Savior is “full of grace and truth”: 2 Nephi 2:6–10; Alma 9:26–27; and Doctrine and Covenants 93:8–17.
Why does this verse say that “no man hath seen God at any time”?
The Joseph Smith Translation reads, “No man hath seen God at any time, except he hath borne record of the Son; for except it is through him no man can be saved.” This important addition indicated by italics clarifies that the Father speaks to His children on earth to bear record of His Son, Jesus Christ. The scriptures record several occasions when the Father has introduced Jesus Christ.
What is the meaning of the term “Jews” in this and other verses in the book of John?
John used the term “Jews” 71 times in his Gospel. For each instance, we should interpret the term’s meaning within its specific context. For example, in John 2:6, “Jews” refers to the Jewish people as a race or nation. In John 1:19; 5:10; 9:22; and 18:12, “Jews” refers to Jewish authorities, including the chief priests, scribes, and elders. In John 9:18, “Jews” refers to nonbelievers.
Who was Elias?
In John 1:19–28, the Jewish leaders asked John the Baptist if he was Elias. Elias is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Elijah, which is the name of a prophet who was prophesied to someday return.
John the Baptist understood, as the priests and Levites apparently did not, that there are different meanings for the name or title Elias. John the Baptist was an Elias, which means a forerunner, and he was sent to prepare the way for the Messiah.
The Joseph Smith Translation clarifies that John the Baptist came to prepare the way for Jesus Christ. It notes that John the Baptist “denied not that he was Elias; but confessed, saying; I am not the Christ.”
Why is Jesus Christ called “the Lamb of God”?
The Apostle John is the only New Testament writer to include “the Lamb” or “the Lamb of God” as a title for the Savior. The Book of Mormon prophet Nephi also frequently referred to the Savior as “the Lamb of God.”
President Russell M. Nelson taught that as the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ fulfilled the law of sacrifice through His Atonement: “The Old Testament has many references to atonement, which called for animal sacrifice. Not any animal would do. Special considerations included:
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The selection of a firstling of the flock, without blemish [see Leviticus 5:18; 27:26].
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The sacrifice of the animal’s life by the shedding of its blood [see Leviticus 9:18].
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Death of the animal without breaking a bone [see Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12].
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And one animal could be sacrificed as a vicarious act for another [see Leviticus 16:10].
“The Atonement of Christ fulfilled these prototypes of the Old Testament. He was the firstborn Lamb of God, without blemish. His sacrifice occurred by the shedding of blood. No bones of His body were broken—noteworthy in that both malefactors crucified with the Lord had their legs broken [see John 19:31–33]. And His was a vicarious sacrifice for others.”
Did John the Baptist not know that Jesus was the Messiah?
The phrase “I knew him not” in John 1:31, 33 has made some question whether John the Baptist knew that Jesus was the Messiah. In the Joseph Smith Translation, the phrase “I knew him not” is corrected twice. In John 1:31 the word not is removed and the verse is changed to read, “I knew him, and that he should be made manifest to Israel.” In John 1:33 the word not is again removed so that it reads, “I knew him.”
These corrections affirm that John the Baptist knew Jesus was the Messiah. This makes sense considering the clear testimony John the Baptist had just given of Jesus: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, after me cometh a man which is preferred before me.”
What does “thou shalt be called Cephas” mean?
When the Savior called Peter to be His disciple, He gave Peter another name, Cephas. Cephas means “seer” or “stone.” By calling Peter a seer, Jesus alluded to Peter’s receiving the sealing keys and the authority to direct the Church after His ascension.
Similarly, Jesus Christ called Joseph Smith a seer on the day He organized His Church again on the earth. In language resembling Peter’s receiving the sealing keys, Joseph and the Church were told what the blessings of following the Lord’s seer would be.
How did Philip know that Jesus was the Messiah?
When Philip told Nathanael about Jesus, he said that he had found the person “of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write.” The Law was the first five books of Moses. The Prophets were books such as Isaiah, Micah, Jeremiah, and Zechariah. Philip and other disciples were able to recognize Jesus as the Messiah because they had searched the scriptures for signs of Him.
Why did Nathanael ask if “any good thing [could] come out of Nazareth?”
Nazareth was a small village of approximately 200 to 400 residents. It is not mentioned in the Old Testament. During the Savior’s lifetime, many people likely thought of Nazareth as insignificant. For this reason, Nathanael wondered whether any good thing could come from Nazareth. Later in the New Testament, Nazareth was known as the place where Jesus was raised.
What does it mean to be a person with “no guile”?
The Savior said that Nathanael was a person in whom there was “no guile.” The Greek word translated here as “guile” means deceit, cunning, or treachery. According to the Savior, Nathanael was a person with pure motives.
Learn More
Titles of Jesus Christ
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M. Russell Ballard, “The Light of Life,” Liahona, Jan. 2023, 4–7
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Jeffrey R. Holland, “Behold the Lamb of God,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 44–46
Sharing the Gospel
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David A. Bednar, “Come and See,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2014, 107–10
Media
Video
“The Baptism of Jesus” (3:10)
Images
composite of The Grand Council by Robert T. Barrett
Christ the Creator, by Robert T. Barrett
John the Baptist Preaching in the Wilderness, by Robert T. Barrett
John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus, by Greg K. Olsen