John 3:16: An Evangelist’s Dilemma

By Frank Tyler

[Editor’s Note: Few stories in the Gospel of John capture the imagination like the story of Nicodemus (John 2:23-3:21); few passages of Scripture are as important in understanding our salvation. As an evangelist I have always loved the story of Nicodemus, but was never comfortable with explanations of God’s love (John 3:16) that focus upon a New Testament or post-cross understanding. True, for you and I—with the events of the Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection historically fulfilled on a brutal Roman cross—we cannot escape the conclusion of God’s sacrificial love… but prior to the cross, how would Nicodemus, a scholar schooled in the Torah, understand Jesus’ meaning when He says, For God so (in this manner) loved the world (John 3:16)? The answer lies in understanding Jesus’ apologia to Nicodemus and his disciples. Beginning in verse 3:14, Jesus takes them back in time to God’s deliverance of Israel from the fiery serpents (Numbers 21:4-9), to a timeless and well known theme, the unfailing loyal covenantal love or “chesed” of God (Psalm 136). From this referent, Jesus challenges Nicodemus and his disciples to understand the manner of God’s love in lifting up (3:14) or giving His Son (3:16). Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s loyal covenantal love or “chesed” not just for Israel, but for the world, Jew and Gentile alike.

In a previously published article (Frank Tyler, John 3:16: The Manner of God’s Love, The True Vine Fellowship Journal 2018 (Sequim, WA: TTVF, 2018), 9-20), I wrote about the manner of God’s love in John 3:16. At that time, I understood Nicodemus as an unbeliever seeking Jesus out at night. This current article corrects my misunderstanding: Nicodemus and his disciples come to the light of God’s revelation: 1) that Nicodemus, as a new believer (John 2:23-25), might better understand what has transpired in his own life and 2) that his disciples might hear the good news from Jesus, Himself. Nothing refreshes the soul and mind like the correction of the Lord in His word. I hope you are as refreshed as I am!]

Introduction

Imagine being an evangelist and wondering whether you correctly understand John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life .[1] For years, I wrestled with four fundamental questions:

1) How could Nicodemus understand the manner of God’s love in giving His only begotten Son from a post-cross, New Testament perspective when the conversation between Nicodemus and Yeshua [2] occurred very early in Yeshua’s earthly ministry well before the cross and the recording of the New Testament? If the very notion that Nicodemus would understand God’s love from a New Testament perspective seems unfathomable, then 2) what is the manner of God’s love that Yeshua refers to in John 3:16? 3) How does Yeshua communicate that love to Nicodemus? Lastly, 4) what radical life-changing message does Yeshua share with this teacher of Israel and his disciples?

Scholars quite often see John 3:16 as commentary by the Apostle John or Yeshua on John 3:14-15. If Yeshua speaks verses 14-15 (clearly He does), and if the manner of God’s love in verse 16 reflects a post-cross New Testament understanding, then logically, John 3:16 might well be the beginning of commentary in light of Yeshua’s crucifixion and resurrection fully known and understood as a past event by the Apostle John. Likewise, if Yeshua makes commentary in verse 16, then His omniscience allows Him to speak prophetically of the manner of God’s love expressed in light of His coming crucifixion and resurrection. [3] D. A. Carson makes the following important observation:

In two passages in this Gospel, both in this chapter (3:15-21 and 3:31- 36), the words of the speaker (Jesus and John the Baptist respectively) are succeeded by the explanatory reflections of the Evangelist. Because the ancient texts did not use quotation marks or other orthographical equivalents, the exact point of transition is disputed .[4]

Thankfully, with a little imagination, you and I might discover another way to understand John 3:16 and Nicodemus’ nighttime visit with Yeshua (John 3:1-21)… and in the process answer my four questions.

A Carefully Woven Apologia

What if the Apostle John, in verses 3:12-18, records historically not only Yeshua’s words, but most importantly, a carefully integrated apologia [5] to Nicodemus and his disciples focused upon His simple straightforward promise of eternal life? Afterall, in verse 3:15, Yeshua promises Nicodemus and his disciples that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life (ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ᾿ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον) and repeats it again in verse 16.[6] If the expression should not perish amplifies Yeshua’s promise of eternal life, then surely, repetition reveals His emphatic desire for Nicodemus and his disciples to believe in Him and His promise of eternal life. Again, what if Yeshua actually spoke the entirety of John 3:12-18 to Nicodemus and his disciples as a carefully woven apologia to persuade them of His promise of eternal life?

Audience

In his transition between chapters 2 and 3, John provides the immediate context defining Yeshua’s audience.

2:23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.

2:24 But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men,

2:25 and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.

3:1 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.

3:2 This man (this one, οὗτος) came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”

(John 2:23-3:2; underlining added)

Given the Apostle John’s narrative and his use of the word man, ἀνθρώπου, ἀνθρώπῳ (John 2:25) and ἄνθρωπος (John 3:1), Nicodemus believed in His name when hesaw the signs Yeshua performed. [7] Although some have sought to demean the believers noted in verse 2:23 as possessing an inadequate sign-based faith,[8] according to John 1:12-13 those who believe in His name are born of God. Moreover, John 20:30-31 reveals that the apostle structures the entirety of his account around eight signs—the greatest sign being the crucifixion and resurrection of Yeshua (John 2:18-21 and 20:27-30)— each sufficient to bring forth life in His name (John 20:31). If signs promote defective faith, then the Apostle John systemically misleads his audience. Does the climactic sign, Yeshua’s crucifixion and resurrection, promote defective faith? No, not hardly! Robert Wilkin makes this critical observation:

Jesus committing Himself to people is not the same as Him giving them eternal life. While there are no references to Jesus committing Himself to people in John’s gospel, there are two synonymous expressions. Jesus manifested Himself (14:21) and made known those things His Father had told Him (15:14-15) to believers who obeyed Him. Both of these passages show that Jesus commits Himself only to believers who are obedient to Him.”[9]

True, Yeshua does not entrust Himself to Nicodemus… and rightly so, for Nicodemus, though the teacher of Israel, still struggles as a newly born again believer to understand Yeshua and His teachings.

Some commentators discount the plurality of Yeshua’s audience, but at the very beginning of his visit with Yeshua, Nicodemus uses the first person plural of the Greek verb to know, οἴδαμεν: we know that You are a teacher come from God (John 3:2; underlining added). Yeshua then directs his conversation to Nicodemus using the singular you, but switches to the second person plural six times in John 3:7, 11, and 12. More importantly, Yeshua opens His apologia in verse 3:12 by strategically using the second person plural you (all) four times. Unless you and I dismiss these plural pronouns as editorial devices, context strongly suggests that Yeshua addresses others beside Nicodemus.[10]

Some commentators argue that the we in John 3:2 refers to Nicodemus and his fellow Pharisees; however, Nicodemus does not seek Yeshua on an official inquiry as a Pharisee, but as a teacher struggling like a child to understand his new found faith (John 3:4, 9 and 10). Likewise, the positive consensus expressed in John 3:2 finds scant support in the interactions between Yeshua and any of the Judean authorities early on in Yeshua’s ministry. Not until after Yeshua raises Lazarus, just prior to His crucifixion, does John record: … even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God (John 12:42-43). Following the crucifixion, John notes Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea as glaring exceptions to their fellow Pharisees in claiming and burying Yeshua’s body (John 19:38-42). These developments, occurring later in Yeshua’s ministry, cannot explain the early positive consensus expressed by Nicodemus: we know that You are a teacher come from God (John 3:2).

When the Pharisees and chief priests send officers to apprehend Yeshua in the midst of the temple, Nicodemus, alone, rebukes them:

7:51 “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?”

7:52 They answered and said to him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.”

(John 7:51-52; underlining added)

Nicodemus’ rebuke provokes an entirely cynical and dismissive response. When Yeshua heals the paralytic man (John 5:1-9), the Judean authorities condemn the man for carrying his bed on the Sabbath (John 5:10-13); when Yeshua finds the former paralytic and warns him not to sin any more, the man tells the authorities Yeshua healed him (John 5:14-15): For this reason the Jews (Judean authorities) persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath (John 5:16). Clearly, these kinds of interactions do not bode well for any positive consensus among the Pharisees or any other group within the larger body of Judean authorities, let alone one acknowledging Yeshua as a teacher come from God. From the moment of Yeshua’s initial cleansing of the temple, Nicodemus’ fellow Pharisees view Him, at best, as a country bumpkin trying to make his mark in Jerusalem, or at worst, as a provocative and dangerous renegade from the backwaters of Galilee.

In light of the contentious and dismissive behavior of his fellow Pharisees, Nicodemus achieves a remarkable consensus with his disciples, but how would he describe being born again to those entrusted to him to train up as future Pharisees within the Jewish faith? Wisely, he sought Yeshua out at night away from the rancor of his fellow Pharisees that Yeshua might explain Himself in His own words. [11] The rebuke Nicodemus offers his fellow Pharisees in John 7:51 ( Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing? ) captures the heart of all good teachers, to train their students to hear evidence before drawing conclusions. Again, imagine Nicodemus believing in Yeshua for everlasting life with a child-like faith and then, as a baby believer, struggling to articulate what he believes to his disciples. Wisely, he trusts Yeshua for the words he, himself, cannot find (John 3:2-4).[12]

In John 3:10, Yeshua concludes his conversation with Nicodemus by openly acknowledging him—not as a leader of the Sanhedrin, an ambassador of the Pharisees, or even a ruling authority within Judea—but as the teacher of Israel. The manner in which our Lord converses with Nicodemus in the presence of his disciples not only affirms Nicodemus as a highly esteemed teacher within Judaism, [13] but also begs the important question, “Who could—with perfect authority—teach and then correct the teacher of Israel?” Yeshua then shifts His primary focus from Nicodemus to his disciples: Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you (all) do not receive (λαμβάνετε; 2^nd person plural) Our witness (John 3:11). The we in John 3:2 most likely refers to Nicodemus and his disciples with Nicodemus, as a teacher, coalescing and leading a nascent, positive consensus among his students: we know that You are a teacher come from God.

John 3:12-13—The Introduction to His Apologia

Yeshua shifts His focus and draws Nicodemus and in particular, his disciples into His apologia with a tantalizing teaser perfectly tailored to rivet the attention of this biblically erudite group of Jewish scholars. Note Yeshua’s four uses of the second person plural you (all) in verse 12 specifically designed to garner the attention of His audience and to challenge them to believe in Him.

3:12 If I have told you (all) earthly things and you (all) do not believe, how will you (all) believe if I tell you (all) heavenly things?

3:13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven , that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.

(John 3:12-13; underlining added)

Do you (all) know the One you (all) have sought after at night? Proverbs 30:4 provides the key: [14]

30:4 Who has ascended into heaven, or descended ?

Who has gathered the wind in His fists?

Who has bound the waters in a garment?

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is His name, and what is His Son’s name,

If you know ? (Proverbs 30:4; underlining added)

Having just witnessed Yeshua teach and correct with perfect authority, do the disciples of the teacher of Israel understand the riddle, what is His Son’s name?

John 3:14-17—The Heart of His Apologia

Contextually, in what sense is the Son of Man God’s “one-of-a-kind” Son? [15] True, He has never not been and is fully God, but Yeshua does not use the Greek wordmonogenes to vindicate the theology underlying eternal generation. [16] Instead, He is “one-of-a-kind” in that God gave His Son explicitly as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29, 3:16), that whoever believes in Him may not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:15-16). This will prove the heart of Yeshua’s apologia in verses 12-17.

Verses 13 and 14 begin with the Greek conjunctive “kαὶ” linking both verses to the question in verse 12: If I have told you (all) earthly things and you (all) do not believe, how will you (all) believe if I tell you (all) heavenly things? Consider the following chiastic structure or parallelism:

A¹ 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

B¹ 3:15 that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

A² 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten (one-of- a-kind) Son,

B² that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

A³ 3:17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,

B³ but that (ἵνα) the world through Him might be saved.

Superscripts A¹ through A³ represent independent clauses linked by a common theme; superscripts B¹ through B³, three dependent clauses each beginning with the Greek word hina (ἵνα), again linked by a common theme. When separated into like parallelisms (A^1-3 and B^1-3) and then analyzed, the apologia to Nicodemus and his disciples becomes both clear and persuasive.

In John 3:14 (A¹) Yeshua relates the Old Testament story of God’s miraculous provision of the bronze serpent to God’s one-of-a-kind Son.

A¹ 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so (οὕτως) must the Son of Man be lifted up,

A² 3:16 For God so (οὕτως) loved the world that He gave His one-of-a-kind Son,

A³ 3:17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,

Though Nicodemus and his disciples might not correlate lifting up the Son of Man to Yeshua dying on a Roman cross, they likely heard, either directly or indirectly, John the Baptist’s public witness.

Indeed, the Apostle John never records when the delegation sent from the Pharisees to investigate John the Baptist departs from the site of the Baptist’s ministry (John 1:19-28). [17]

1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “ Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

1:30 This is He of whom I said, “After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’

1:31 I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.”

1:32 And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.

1:33 I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, “Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

1:34 And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

1:35 Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples.

1:36 And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:29-36; underlining added)

What better way to fulfill his ministry as forerunner and reveal Messiah to Israel than to continue his public witness before the very delegation sent from the Pharisees[18] to investigate his own ministry. John the Baptist reveals to Israel that Yeshua is the Son of God, theLamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. [19]

Whatever this lifting up of the Son of Man entails, Nicodemus and his disciples would likely correlate it to John the Baptist’s public witness and Old Testament prophecies describing Messiah as a lamb. Indeed, the Baptist’s statement is beautifully thought provoking and would stimulate inquisitive minds to search the Scriptures. [20] Likewise, consider Isaiah’s words:

53:4 Surely He has borne our griefs

And carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten by God, and afflicted.

53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray;

We have turned, every one, to his own way;

And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all .

53:7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,

Yet He opened not His mouth

He was led as a lamb to the slaughter ,

And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

So He opened not His mouth.

(Isaiah 53:4-7; underlining added)

As the nation of Israel desperately searches for her Messiah under the heel of Roman oppression, Nicodemus and his disciples, as students of God’s Word, would likely study Isaiah chapters 52 and 53. Might they have correlated Isaiah’s lamb led to the slaughter with the shedding of innocent blood for the covering of sin? Clearly, they would seek out and hear, either directly or indirectly through the reporting of others, John the Baptist’s public witness. A teacher and students diligent enough to seek Yeshua out at night and risk the dire consequences that come with that meeting, would know the relevant Scriptures in order to search out and weigh the evidence of any Messianic claim—again, you and I must consider the heart’s desire of all good teachers expressed so clearly by Nicodemus, Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing (John 7:51)?[21]

The New King James Version translates the same Greek demonstrative adverbοὕτως differently in verses 14 and 16, respectively even so and so. Furthermore, in John 3:16 the English word order hides the fact that οὕτως begins verse 16.

A¹ 3:14 Καὶ καθὼς Μωσῆς ὕψωσεν τὸν ὄφιν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὕτως ὑψωθῆναι δεῖ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου

A² 3:16 Οὕτως γὰρ ἠγάπησεν ὁ θεὸς τὸν κόσμον, ὥστε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ τὸν μονογενῆ ἔδωκεν

If you and I allow for the postpositive gar (γὰρ), then we might more accurately translate the independent clause of John 3:16 ( A²) as: “For in this manner God loved the world that He gave His one-of-a-kind Son.” Note that the Greek οὕτως is now translated consistently as an adverb of manner in both verses 14 and 16.[22]

A¹ 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, in this manner (οὕτως) must the Son of Man be lifted up,

A² 3:16 For in this manner ( οὕτως) God loved the world that He gave His one-of-a-kind Son,

In this manner must the Son of Man be lifted up —For in this manner God loved the world; the relationship between these two independent clauses, denoted as A¹ and A², is utterly purposeful: Yeshua uses an example of God’s loyal covenantal love (“chesed”) for Israel (John 3:14; Numbers 21:5-9) to help Nicodemus and his disciples understand God’s love for the world in giving His Son (John 3:16). In both instances, the manner of God’s love remains loyal covenantal love expressed in the fulfillment of His covenantal promises.

Nicodemus and his disciples would easily grasp the manner of God’s love for Israel in delivering His children from the death dealing consequences of the serpent’s bite (Numbers 21:5-9)… for as the Psalmist extols: To Him who led His people through the wilderness, For His mercy (chesed) endures forever (Psalm 136:16). [23] The New King James Version translates the Hebrew word “chesed” as mercy; however, the NET Bible reads: to the one who led his people through the wilderness, for his loyal love endures (underlining added). “In this hymn the psalmist affirms that God is praiseworthy because of his enduring loyal love, sovereign authority, and compassion. Each (of the 26 verses) …of the psalm concludes with the refrain ‘for his loyal love endures’… or ‘is forever.’” [24] According to The Jewish Study Bible:

This psalm is known in Jewish liturgy as the Great Hallel and has been incorporated into the Passover Seder. Like (Psalm) 135, it is part of the introductory prayer to the morning service on Sabbath and festivals. The psalm is probably written to be chanted responsively, with the refrain after each line.[25]

That the Great Hallel is woven into the fabric of “Jewish liturgy” and likely “chanted responsively” means Nicodemus and his disciples understand God’s “chesed” or loyal covenantal love, especially in relationship to Israel’s years wandering in the wilderness. This same Hebrew phrase His mercy endures forever (לְעֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽו) is used in 40 verses, 26 times in Psalm 136 alone. [26] Again, Nicodemus and his disciples understand the manner of God’s loyal covenantal love or “chesed” and could easily correlate it to God’s deliverance from the fiery serpents in the wilderness. The challenge comes for Nicodemus and his disciples in understanding this same manner of love, “chesed,” in relationship to the world.

The three subordinate ἵνα clauses boldly reveal the propositional content of God’s loyal covenantal love through Yeshua’s promise of everlasting life. What does Yeshua mean by the expression whoever believes?

B¹ 3:15 that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

B² that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

B³ but that (ἵνα) the world through Him might be saved.

(underlining added)

In both clauses (B¹ and B²) the New King James translates the Greek participial phrase, ὁ πιστεύων (present, active, masculine, singular preceded by the article), as whoever believes. Contextually, verse 17 correlates whoever with the world, rendering the idea, individual whoevers in the world, whether Jewish or Gentile, who believe Yeshua’s promise of everlasting life.

Because Yeshua uses a present tense participle, some translators attempt to communicate the idea of continuously believing in order to have everlasting life. The New World Translation reads, “that everyone believing in him” (verse 15) and “that everyone exercising faith in him” (verse 16). [27] True, the present tense can express continuing action; however, context alone determines whether the present active participle expresses continuous action or not.

For example, in Luke 16:18, regarding divorce and marriage, Yeshua says:Whoever divorces (ὁ ἀπολύων; present active participle) his wife and marries (γάμων; present active participle) another commits adultery (μοιχεύει; present active participle); and whoever marries (γαμῶν; present active participle) her who is divorced (ὁ ἀπολελυμένην; perfect middle participle) from her husband commits adultery ( μοιχεύει; present active participle). Ironically, the translators of the New World Translation did not translate this particular passage to express the idea of continuous action: “Everyone that divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and he that marries a woman divorced from a husband commits adultery.” [28]

For purposes of illustration, imagine a translation in which each of the present active participles expresses continuous action: “Everyone thatis divorcing his wife and is marrying another is committing adultery and he that is marrying a woman divorced from a husband is committing adultery.” If divorce and marriage are continuous actions, then how does any man divorce his wife and/or marry a divorced woman (ὁ ἀπολελυμένην; perfect middle participle)? The divorced woman does not exist, because the writs of divorce and marriage never come to fruition. The subordinate clauses in John 3:15 and 16 (B¹ and B²) operate in much the same way.

The context in which Yeshua uses the present active participles in verse 15 and 16 preclude the possibility of continuous action. The following mistranslation expresses continuous action:

3:15 that everyone believing in him may have everlasting life.

3:16 …that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life.[29]

How does one who is continuously “believing” or “exercising faith” ever come to possess everlasting life, if he or she may at a point in time cease believing? Some might argue that Yeshua expresses not the quantitative nature of the life He gives, but rather the qualitative. But surely, the first quality of everlasting life must be that it is everlasting or eternal; otherwise, Yeshua misleads Nicodemus and his disciples. The immediate context precludes the possibility of mistranslating the present active participles to express continuous action.

In John 3:14, Yeshua recalls the events recorded in Numbers 21 to provide context for Nicodemus and his disciples to understand who He is and the ministry God has entrusted to Him as the Son of Man.

21:8 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.”

21:9 So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. (Numbers 21:8-9; underlining added)

If in order to be saved from death, a person must continuously look at the serpent on the pole, then when does he or she ever cease looking in order to live? Was God requiring Moses to keep the fiery serpent on the pole before God’s children in perpetuity in order that they might live? No, not hardly! The moment a person looked, God saved him or her from the death dealing consequences of the serpent’s bite. Yeshua’s illustration in John 3:14 precludes the possibility of continuous action also.

Yeshua’s illustration calls to mind the death dealing consequences of Satan’s lie in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:16-17, 3:4-5, 6, 22-24). Just as the children of God looked on the fiery serpent on the pole to be saved from physical death (Numbers 21:5-9), so too, whoever believes in Yeshua and His promise of eternal life, God saves from the eternal condemnation and death brought upon all of mankind through Satan’s lie. Again, Yeshua is the one-of-a-kind Son: To believe in Him and His promise of everlasting or eternal life is to be saved… indeed, that (ἵνα) the world through Him might be saved (John 3:17). God provided the bronze serpent not to judge Israel, but to deliver Israel; likewise God provides His one-of-a-kind Son not to judge the world, but to deliver the world. Such is the expression of His loyal covenantal love for Israel and for all the world. This defining truth challenges Nicodemus and his disciples.

Though the mistranslation of John 3:15-16 by the translators of the New World Translation appears obvious to most Christians, highly regarded scholars within Christendom advocate a three-part definition of saving faith with similar problems. Consider the following brief explanation from Ligonier Ministries:

Saving faith is not a cold, empty rationalism that simply gives intellectual assent to facts. At the same time, it is not a blind entrusting of ourselves into the hands of someone else. Instead, it is a warm, intellectually vital embrace of the Savior and His promises, believing that He can and will do all that He has pledged. It is the willingness to trust Him and His Word in any and all circumstances, and an eagerness to repent when we doubt Him. [30]

Theologians commonly use three Latin words to define saving faith: 1)notitia or understanding the content of faith; 2)assensus or assent to the truth of the content of faith; and, 3) fiducia or commitment to the content to which assent is given. If saving faith requires fiducia or commitment, then when has an individual understood and assented to the propositional truth of Yeshua’s promise of everlasting life in John 3:15 and 16? Does believing His promise require of us “a warm intellectually vital embrace” of Yeshua? What might that embrace look like apart from perseverance in good works? Is it “the willingness to trust Him and His Word in any and all circumstances and an eagerness to repent when we doubt Him”? If so, then how can the Apostle John write:

1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

1:13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God . (John 1:12-13; underlining added)

To be born again is categorically not of the will of man, but of God.

Indeed, readers of John’s account will find the word for believe used roughly 100 times, yet never find the word for repent, repentance, or penance used even once… all within a book purposed for a person to believethat Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing… (to) have life in His name (John 20:30-31). Though it can be an important expression of commitment, John never confuses repentance with what God requires for individual whoevers to receive eternal life. [31] For the unbeliever, obedience to the gospel means—without a scintilla of commitment on the unbeliever’s part—taking Yeshua at His word when He promises everlasting life—nothing more and nothing less than faith alone in Yeshua alone.

Sadly, by making commitment a part of saving faith, many commentators and theologians unwittingly (or not) force repentance into John’s account. [32] But clearly, Yeshua does not mention repentance to Nicodemus and his disciples… neither does He demand “a warm intellectually vital embrace” to have everlasting life.

This three-part definition of saving faith calls to mind a dog chasing its tail. Even the most energetic and trusting dog tires in the flesh and stops chasing its tail; how can anyone know they have assented to the truth of Yeshua’s promise, when, doggedly tired, they cease from their “eagerness to repent”?[33] If saving faith in Yeshua and His promise requires catching our tails, then we can never assent to the propositional truth of Yeshua’s promise to us of everlasting life… we can never believe in Him… we can never take Him at His Word… and, we can never rest knowing we have what He alone promises to us—everlasting life.

Recall Yeshua’s words to His disciples: Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it (Luke 18:17, Mark 10:15). As He reaches out to them in the quiet of night with His apologia, Yeshua does not desire Nicodemus’ disciples to chase their tails, but instead, He desires them to take Him at His word with a simple child-like faith, that—as the one-of-a-kind Son of God—He alone takes away the sin of the world and gives them everlasting life according to His promise.

Understanding the manner of God’s love for the world (John 3:16) contextually as loyal covenantal love or “chesed” (John 3:14) begs the question: what covenantal or promissory relationship permits Nicodemus’ disciples, let alone the world, to know the manner of God’s loyal covenantal love or “chesed”? [34] Again, you and I need look no further than the immediate context.

For good reason, Yeshua reiterates the promise of everlasting life twice within His apologia.[35]

B¹ 3:15 that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ᾿ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον

B² that (ἵνα) whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

ἵνα πᾶς ὁ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν μὴ ἀπόληται, ἀλλ᾿ ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον.

Standing before Nicodemus and his disciples, Yeshua, as the lamb of God (John 1:29; Isaiah 53:4-7) lifted up in the manner of the bronze serpent (John 3:14; Numbers 21:8-9), takes away the sin of the world. He alone heralds the promise of life by which God manifests His “chesed” or loyal covenantal love for the world. [36] Indeed, by taking away the sin of the world and promising eternal life, Yeshua is God’s ultimate expression of His love or “chesed” for the world. The moment any of Nicodemus’ disciples believe in Yeshua and His promise of everlasting life, they as individuals possess everlasting life and will—following the consummation of Yeshua’s sacrifice on the cross and the sending of the Holy Spirit—enter into the blessings of the New Covenant. [37]

That Yeshua so boldly and overtly declares the promise of eternal life reflects in no uncertain terms His Messiahship as God’s prophet like Moses: I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him (Deuteronomy 18:18; underlining added). In light of Moses’ words to the nation of Israel, consider the Apostle John’s introduction to Yeshua:

1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten (one-of-a-kind) of the Father, full of grace and truth.

1:17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (John 1:14 and 1:17; underlining added)

The Apostle John juxtaposes the law… given through Moses with grace and truth (which) came through Jesus Christ, the one-of-a-kind (Son) of the Father, full of grace and truth. As God’s prophet to the nation of Israel, Moses declares the Mosaic Covenant to Israel; as God’s prophet like Moses, Yeshua declares the New Covenant to the world, both Jews and Gentiles. Again, Nicodemus would surely teach his disciples about Messiah, the prophet like Moses, from Deuteronomy chapter 18.[38]

This prophetic relationship between Yeshua and the New Covenant should not surprise you and I; consider the nature of John the Baptist’s witness.

1:7 This man (John the Baptist) came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.

1:8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

1:9 That wasthe true Light which (coming into the world) gives light to every man. (John 1:7-9; underlining added)

The true Light… gives light to every man as God’s Prophet. Just as Moses revealed the light of God’s revelation through the Mosaic Covenant, so too Yeshua, God’s prophet like Moses, reveals the light of God’s revelation through the New Covenant. Seven hundred years earlier, Isaiah prophesized regarding Yeshua being a light to the Gentiles and restorer of Israel:

42:6 “I, the LORD, have called You in righteousness,

And will hold Your hand;

I will keep You and give You as a covenant to the people,

As a light to the Gentiles ,

49:6 Indeed He says,

“It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant

To raise up the tribes of Jacob,

And to restore the preserved ones of Israel;

I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles,

That You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth .

49:8 Thus says the LORD:

“In an acceptable time I have heard You,

And in the day of salvation I have helped You;

I will preserve You and give You

As a covenant to the people,

To restore the earth,

To cause them to inherit the desolate heritages ;

(Isaiah 42:6 and 49:6, 8; underlining added)

Upon seeing the baby Yeshua in the temple, Simeon blesses God: For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel ” (Luke 2:30-32; underlining added). Yeshua heralds the Father’s promise of eternal life; He is the Father’s one-of-a-kind Son, a light to the Gentiles offering eternal life, and a restorer of the believing remanent of Israel according to the New Covenant.

Like Simeon, Nicodemus and his disciples were very much aware of these same passages from Isaiah prophesying Israel’s Messiah. What they could not have imagined is how the world (individual whoevers, Jews and Gentiles) will enter into the blessing of the New Covenant and experience the loyal covenantal love of God apart from the restoration of the nation of Israel. [39] The Apostle John summarizes the dilemma well: 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 (John 1:11-12; underlining added). How? Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of God, who as the lamb of God, takes away the sin of the world; believe the Messianic promise of eternal life He so boldly heralds and have what He alone can promise and fulfill, eternal life. Indeed, the Apostle Paul recounts: … I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life (1 Timothy 1:16; underlining added). Or, as the Apostle John succinctly reminds his flock: And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life (1 John 2:25).

John 3:18—The Conclusion of His Apologia

That He heralds the Messianic promise of eternal life twice within His apologia emphasizes Yeshua’s “chesed” and desire to save Nicodemus’ disciples. He now concludes His apologia with a warning: “ He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one-of-a-kind Son of God (John 3:18).

Again the concept of believing in His name rises to the forefront of Yeshua’s message to Nicodemus and his disciples. As previously noted, some commentators argue that believing in His name reveals defective or insufficient faith likely based upon believing Yeshua’s signs (see footnotes 7 and 29). However, throughout His time spent with Nicodemus and his disciples, Yeshua performs no sign and yet concludes his apologia by exhorting them to believe in His name; more importantly, He juxtaposes believing in Him (He who believes in Him is not condemned) with believing in His name ( he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one-of-a-kind Son of God ). “To believe in Yeshua” is “to believe in His name”—neither expression implies defective faith.

On three other occasions, the concept of believing in Yeshua’ name arises; consider the following verses:

1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

2:23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.

20:31 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.

(John 1:12, 2:23, and 20:31; underlining added)

None of these verses imply defective faith on the part of anyone who believes in the name of Yeshua. For Nicodemus, his disciples or any yet unnamed individual whoevers (like you and me) the promise of eternal life Yeshua declares in John 3:15 and 3:16 is genuine and fully sufficient to bring forth life in His name. It remains to this day the exclusive and sadly too often illusive content of saving faith, the vindication of our Savior’s suffering, and God’s greatest expression of loyal covenantal love.

Commendation for Coming to the Light

Knowing the very real risks Nicodemus and his disciples have taken in coming to Him, Yeshua now refines the nature of the condemnation and commends them for coming to the Light.

3:19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

3:20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.

3:21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

(John 3:19-21; underlining added)

Imagine Nicodemus, the teacher of Israel, bringing his disciples with him while he humbly sought out Yeshua to better understand his new-found child-like faith. Imagine Nicodemus’ students as candidates studying for their doctoral degree as Pharisees. Having invested their lives in the study of Torah, they now risk all to accompany their teacher on a clandestine nighttime visit to hear the words of a renegade rabbi named Yeshua who, on His most recent visit to Jerusalem, drove out the animals from the temple, overturned the money changers tables, and then accused the Judean authorities of making His Father’s house a house of merchandise (John 2:15-16). How commendable they are can be measured in the distinct possibility that had Nicodemus’ fellow Pharisees humbled themselves and sought Yeshua out as Nicodemus and his disciples did, Israel might have received her Messiah and thrown off Roman oppression in the first century.

Sadly, Nicodemus’ fellow Pharisees loved darkness rather than light; nonetheless, Nicodemus’ disciples accompanied their teacher out of the darkness to the light of God’s revelation manifest in His one-of-a-kind Son; they sought to hear and know what Yeshua was doing before judging Him (John 7:51); they did the truth that their deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. Again, Nicodemus and his disciples come to Yeshua as individuals, not as representatives of the Pharisees or the larger body of Judean authorities. Yeshua blesses them with one of His greatest apologias designed explicitly that the ones seeking Him out might believe and know the manner of God’s love through Messiah’s promise of eternal life. You and I know for sure that Nicodemus believed in Yeshua; we can only hope that as a result of his time with Yeshua this teacher of Israel grew and matured in his faith and that some of his students escaped the darkness to the light of God’s truth on that quiet night so long ago. [40] Again, the loyal covenantal love of God has no finer expression than our Savior’s cross and our Father’s one-of-a-kind Son heralding His promise of eternal life.

Conclusion: Answering the Four Questions

John 3:16: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life , remains the gospel in a nutshell; nonetheless, returning to the impetus for writing this article, for years this evangelist wrestled with four fundamental questions:

1) How could Nicodemus understand the manner of God’s love in giving His one-of-a-kind Son from a post-cross, New Testament perspective when the conversation between Nicodemus and Yeshua occurred very early in Yeshua’s earthly ministry well before the cross and the recording of the New Testament? Nicodemus simply could not have understood the manner of God’s love from a post-cross, New Testament perspective. For this reason, Yeshua provides Nicodemus and his disciples an illustration from Israel’s wilderness wanderings (Numbers 21:4-9) illuminating God’s loyal covenantal love or “chesed.”

2) What is the manner of God’s love that Yeshua refers to in John 3:16?

In light of God’s “chesed” for Israel, Yeshua challenges Nicodemus and his disciples to understand God’s “chesed” for them and for all the whoevers of the world. The manner of God’s love remains the same for both Israel and the world. God’s unfailing forever love always fulfills His promises.

3) How does Yeshua communicate that love to Nicodemus and his disciples?

After a long and tiring day of ministry, Yeshua receives Nicodemus and his disciples at night and explains to them the very things Nicodemus, as the teacher of Israel, longed to understand and share with his students. Israel has always known God’s love through His promises to the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. As a result of their nighttime quest, Nicodemus and his disciples now know the wonderous love of God personally through Yeshua’s patience, compassion, and willingness to address their concerns, but most importantly, through His apologia and promise to them of everlasting life as the one-of-a-kind Son of God.

4) What radical life-changing message does Yeshua share with this teacher of Israel and his disciples? As the prophet like Moses, Yeshua reveals the New Covenant and heralds the Messianic promise of eternal life not once, but twice as the life-giving message that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting (eternal) life (John 3:15-16). This life-giving message of Yeshua is the radical life-changing message for all mankind. To this day, whether Jew or Gentile, individuals who believe in Yeshua and His promise of eternal life have eternal life and enter into the blessing of the New Covenant.

Application: Daring to Imagine

If for a moment we dare to imagine Yeshua’s apologia and the greatness of His “chesed” or loyal covenantal love for Nicodemus and his disciples, then we might discover application in our own lives.

Although the Scriptures reveal that Nicodemus believed in Yeshua’s name, Yeshua did not entrust Himself to this baby believer. Knowing his inability to reach out to his disciples and share his faith in Yeshua, Nicodemus humbled himself as a teacher and sought Yeshua out for a deeper understanding of his salvation. If the Lord trained the Apostle Paul for 14 years before entrusting him with ministry as an apostle to the Gentiles (Galatians 2:1-2), how should you and I entertain a different expectation for Nicodemus? Paul reminds the Thessalonians: But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts (1 Thessalonians 2:4). John chapter 3 is very precious for it records Nicodemus’ first steps as a baby believer to grow in his knowledge and be approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. Like Paul and Nicodemus, humility must rule our lives. You and I must never take the ministry entrusted to us for granted. We must always seek Yeshua out in prayer and His Word regarding our understanding of the gospel. Like Nicodemus and his disciples, we must do the truth by coming to the light.

Nicodemus demonstrates tremendous courage and wisdom in bringing his disciples to Yeshua at night to hear Him away from the rancor of the Judean authorities. You and I cannot know if his disciples believed in Yeshua for everlasting life; nonetheless, we can learn from Nicodemus’ example to lead unbelievers directly to the Scriptures and allow Yeshua to speak for Himself. When reaching out with the good news, you and I must rely on God’s Word and afford those with whom we share the space they need in order to weigh for themselves the truth of Yeshua and His promise of life. We must pray and trust Yeshua to speak to the heart of the unbeliever and convince them of the truth of His promise of eternal life.

The manner of God’s love for the world remains utterly consistent with His manner of love for Israel—loyal covenantal love or “chesed.” It is His secure, unrelenting, forever love that fulfills all of His promises and covenantal obligations. There is simply no room for any theology that denies the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; likewise, we must abide the greatness of His lovingkindness toward both Jew and Gentile.

The certainty of Yeshua’s promise of eternal life recalls the absolute certainty of all of God’s promises to Israel. Indeed, the Lord Himself beautifully affirms this certainty. Regarding the New Covenant, the Prophet Jeremiah writes:

31:35 Thus says the LORD,

Who gives the sun for a light by day,

The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night,

Who disturbs the sea,

And its waves roar

(The LORD of hosts is His name):

31:36 “If those ordinances depart

From before Me, says the LORD,

Then the seed of Israel shall also cease

From being a nation before Me forever.”

31:37 Thus says the LORD:

“If heaven above can be measured,

And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath,

I will also cast off all the seed of Israel

For all that they have done, says the LORD. (Jeremiah 31:35-37)

Just as there has never been and never will be any promise to Israel that God does not fulfill, whoever believes in Yeshua and His promise of eternal life has exactly what He promises—eternal life.

10:28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

10:29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.

10:30 I and My Father are one.” (John 10:28-30)

May you and I know who we are as God’s children and learn—to rest in the certainty of His love and to serve Him faithfully.

John 3:16 resides in the heart of Yeshua’s carefully thought out apologia addressed specifically to Nicodemus and his disciples; nevertheless, Yeshua promises everlasting life to whoever believes His promise. As individual whoevers, do you and I believe His promise? What do we have? Everlasting life that can never be lost! Furthermore, following the consummation of Yeshua’s sacrifice on the cross (John 19:30), the sending of the Holy Spirit (Act 1:8) and the gospel going out to Cornelius (Acts 10:45-48), we now enter into the blessing of the New Covenant as His children the very moment we receive the gift of everlasting life:

1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

1:13 who were born , not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13; underlining added)

Let us go forth and share the gift of life we live in His name: “For in this manner God loved the world that He gave his one-of-a-kind Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Copyright © 2022 by Frank Tyler; you may copy, print, and give away freely, but you may not sell.

Appendix A: Commentary on John 3:16

Though my personal struggle stands apart from the commentary literature, we ought to briefly sample some of the commentary on John 3:16 with two questions in mind: 1) Is John 3:16-21 commentary distinct from Yeshua’s dialogue with Nicodemus (John 3:1-15)? And 2) what is the manner of God’s love?

Craig S. Keener does not acknowledge John 3:16 as commentary by John; however, he writes:

Because we lack other sources by which to test it, we can comment only briefly on the essential historicity of this narrative. Its recurrent symbolic significance indicates considerable Johannine interpretation and idiom, but cannot be used to dismiss the possibility of a historical nucleus… Beyond asserting a basic historical nucleus, however, it is impossible on purely historical grounds to determine the degree to which the dominant Johannine idiom has shaped that nucleus. [41]

If you and I question the historicity of John’s account, then whether verse 16 is John’s commentary or Yeshua’ words becomes a moot concern. Is the manner of God’s love a part of John’s “historical nucleus” or just “Johannine idiom?”

Although John’s portrait of divine love expressed self-sacrificially is a distinctly Christian concept, it would not have been completely unintelligible to his non- Christian contemporaries. [42]

If the love expressed in verse 16 is “a distinctly Christian concept,” in what sense would it have been intelligible to John’s “non-Christian contemporaries?” To Jews like Nicodemus and his disciples?

Leon Morris regards verse 16 as the beginning of John’s

reflections of his own on the … subject… It is a distinctively Christian idea that God’s love is wide enough to embrace all people. His love is not confined to any national group or spiritual elite. [43]

Morris views verse 16 not as Yeshua’s words to Nicodemus, but as the beginning of the Apostle John’s reflections on John 3:14-15. Assuming John 3:16 is part of a summary, then John could offer commentary from a post-cross, New Testament perspective for a post-cross, New Testament audience. If God’s love “is a distinctively Christian idea,” then is God’s love for Israel (a national group), different than His love for the world (all people)? How so?

J. Ramsey Michaels writes,

… few interpreters would seriously argue that Jesus actually uttered the words found in verse 16-21 to Nicodemus and his companions… (nevertheless) (w)ithout a clear notice in the text that his speech is over, the reader should keep on listening as to the voice of ‘the One who came down from heaven, the Son of man,’…This is the first mention of love in the Gospel of John, and it is rather untypical in that the object of God’s love is the ‘the world’ (ton kosmon). [44]

You and I should listen to verse 16 as the words of “the Son of man,” even though this verse marks the beginning of the Apostle John’s commentary on verses 14-15. Afterall, there is no “clear notice in the text that his speech is over.” What makes this love for the world untypical? Is God’s love for Israel typical?

Rodney A. Whitacre suggests verse 16 is commentary:

This section reads like a commentary on what precedes it, but as there is no indication of a change of speaker, it could be either Jesus or the Evangelist. … Accordingly, it may be likely that here also John is stepping back to summarize and reflect on what has just been narrated. [45]

According to Whitacre, “there is no indication of a change of speaker,” but regardless of whether Yeshua or John is speaking, verse 16 is likely a summarization and reflection “on what has just been narrated.” Does this summarization or reflection express God’s love from a post-cross, New Testament perspective for both Jews and Gentiles?

To believe that Jesus is the Son of Man from heaven and that his revelation of God is true gives one eternal life,… The message is clear enough to John’s readers, including us, but within the story verses 13-15 contain a very cryptic message that, Jesus says, Nicodemus and those like him (the you in vv. 11-12 is plural) cannot receive. [46]

Are Yeshua’s words in John 3:16 cryptic to Nicodemus and his disciples because they are Jewish and/or not elect? What does this say about the manner of God’s love?

D.A. Carson writes:

Some argue that Jesus’ monologue extends to the end of v. 21, But vv. 16-21 read more plausibly as the Evangelist’s meditation. For instance, the expression ‘one and only’ (monogenes) is a word used by the Evangelist (1:14, 18 cf. 1 Jn. 4:9), and is not elsewhere placed on the lips of Jesus or of anyone else in this Gospel. Nor does Jesus normally refer to God as ho theos (‘God’). [47]

If Yeshua, Himself, uses “the expression ‘one and only’ (monogenes )” to describe His Sonship, then why would the Apostle John not pick up on this usage elsewhere? Likewise, why does the unusual usage ho theos (‘God’) preclude Yeshua speaking to Nicodemus in this manner?

From this survey it is clear that it is atypical for John to speak of God’s love for the world, but this truth is therefore made to stand out as all the more wonderful. Jews were familiar with the truth that God loved the children of Israel; here God’s love is not restricted by race. [48]

Again, is the manner of God’s love for Israel in the Old Testament different in manner from His love for the world in John 3:16?

Andreas J. Köstenberger takes a similar tact to D.A. Carson regarding John 3:16: 1) “the cross is spoken of as past;” 2) monogenes (one-of-a-kind, 3:16), and pisteuo eis onoma (believe in the name, 3:18) are expressions “used in this Gospel only by the evangelist;” and 3) poieo ten aletheian (practice the truth, 3:21) “most likely represents the evangelist’s expansion of the ‘light and darkness’ motif first sounded in the prologue (1:4-5, 8-9). In light of the overlapping terminology of 3:15 and 3:16-18, it appears that the latter verses constitute the evangelist’s expansion on Jesus’ words in 3:13-15.” [49]

If Yeshua speaks the words of John 3:16 to Nicodemus and his disciples, then why would He not prophetically link Numbers 21 (John 3:14) to His yet future crucifixion (John 3:16)? Again, if the Lord, Himself, uses monogenes in John 3:16 and pisteuo eis onoma in John 3:18, then why would the beloved disciple not rightly use His Lord’s own choice of words elsewhere in his gospel account and epistles? Likewise, why would a faithful disciple not use Yeshua’s words to Nicodemus in verse 21, poieo ten aletheian, as a basis for “the ‘light and darkness’ motif first sounded in the prologue”? Which came first Yeshua’s words or John’s gospel account?

The OT (Old Testament) makes abundantly clear that God loves all that he has made, especially his people (e.g., Exod. 34:6-7; Deut. 7:7-8; Hos. 11:1-4, 8-11). In these last days, God has demonstrated his love for the world through the gift of his one-of-a- kind Son. [50]

The truth behind Köstenberger’s assertion is unassailable; nevertheless, could the expression, “in these last days,” invite the idea of a new kind of love for the world distinct in manner from the love God has shown Israel in the past?

Raymond E. Brown sees a carefully integrated dialogue between Yeshua and Nicodemus:

We saw that vs. 16 is not to be completely dissociated from 14-15 in theme; and once again 16 starts with a connective (gar) that works against any theory of a new speaker. The last clauses of 15 and 16 are the same, and it does seem arbitrary to attribute them to different speakers…. All Jesus’ words come to us through the channels of the evangelist’s understanding and rethinking, but the Gospel presents Jesus as speaking and not the evangelist.[51]

To Brown’s thinking the whole of John’s account is a bi-product of his “understanding and rethinking.” Is Yeshua’s conversation with Nicodemus and his disciples historical dramatization or fact?

Robert N. Wilkin writes:

God the Father’s motivation in giving His only begotten Son to die for mankind was His great love for all the (“world”). … While some suggest that 3:16-21 are editorial comments by John, there is nothing to indicate that John has inserted his own remarks. These are still the words of Jesus. [52]

Wilkin affirms the historicity of Yeshua’s words to Nicodemus and His disciples. John 3:16-22 is not a commentary by the Apostle John on verses 14-15, and neither is it an historical dramatization. True, John 3:16 expresses God’s great love for all the world; nonetheless, how might Nicodemus and his disciples understand this love?

As a wise teacher once said, look to commentaries for questions not answers.

To summarize, 1) what is the manner of God’s love in John 3:16? The majority of the commentators in our small sample understand God’s love as a distinctly Christian concept or idea, atypical or untypical of His love for Israel; one commentator even argues that God’s love is a cryptic message to Nicodemus and his disciples. In John 3:14-15, Yeshua speaks to Nicodemus and his disciples promising that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life ; is this a disingenuous promise? Are he and his disciples incapable of believing in Yeshua? No, not hardly—then you and I ought not to believe that one verse later in John 3:16 this same message is now distinctively Christian, atypical or untypical, or even cryptic to Nicodemus and his disciples.[53]

And, 2) is John 3:16-21 commentary distinct from Yeshua’s dialogue with Nicodemus? According to at least five of the commentators, John 3:16-21 is not part of the dialogue between Nicodemus and Yeshua, but is most likely a commentary or reflection by Yeshua or the Apostle John. The Catholic commentator Raymond Brown acknowledges verse 16 cannot “be completely dissociated from 14-15 in theme”… with one important caveat: “All Jesus’ words come to us through the channels of the evangelist’s understanding and rethinking.” In similar fashion, Craig Keener speaks of a “basic historical nucleus” and the “dominant Johannine idiom.” Only Robert Wilkin dismisses any thought that John 3:16-21 is commentary by John with a refreshingly simple statement, “These are still the words of Jesus.”

Though you and I should not be surprised, most of these commentaries raise more questions than they answer.

Appendix B: Monogenes

Wayne Grudem writes: “Thus the word means rather the ‘one-of-a-kind’ Son or the ‘unique’ Son. (See BAGD, 527; D. Moody, ‘The Translation of John 3:16 in the Revised Standard Version,’ JBL 72 [1953], 213-19.) The idea of ‘only begotten’ in Greek would have been not monogenes, but monogennetos.”[54]

The NET Bible offers the following footnote on the Greek word “μονογενῆ,” transliterated as monogenes. “Although this word is often translated “only begotten,” such a translation is misleading, since in English it appears to express a metaphysical relationship. The word in Greek was used of an only child (a son [ Luke 7:12 ; 9:38 ] or a daughter [ Luke 8:42 ]). It was also used of something unique (only one of its kind) such as the mythological Phoenix (1 Clement 25:2). From here it passes easily to a description of Isaac ( Heb 11:17 and Josephus, Ant. 1.13.1 [1.222]) who was not Abraham’s only son, but was one-of-a-kind because he was the child of the promise. Thus the word means “one-of-a-kind” and is reserved for Jesus in the Johannine literature of the NT. While all Christians are children of God (τέκνα θεοῦ, tekna theou), Jesus is God’s Son in a unique, one-of-a-kind sense. The word is used in this way in all its uses in the Gospel of John ( 1:14 , 18 ; 3:16 , 18 ).”[55]

Appendix C: “Chesed”

The Hebrew word transliterated as “chesed” or “hesed” generates a range of translations. Consider the following renderings of the Hebrew refrain, לְעֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽו (Psalm 136).

His love endures forever —New International Version (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1995).

His lovingkindness is everlasting —New American Standard Bible (La Habra, CA: Lockman Foundation, 1995).

His love is eternal —Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Version, (Nashville: Holman Bible Publishers, 2009).

His faithful love endures forever —Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Wheaten, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2004)

His mercy endures forever —Holy Bible: New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982).

his loyal love endures —The NET Bible (www. NETBIBLE. com: Biblical Studies Press, LLC, 2005).

His steadfast love is eternal — The Jewish Study Bible: Jewish Publication Society Tanakh Translation , ed. Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

his steadfast love endures forever —The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001).

Only the NKJV translates “chesed” as mercy. All other translations render “chesed” as love (two times), lovingkindness (one time), faithful love (one time), loyal love (one time) , steadfast love (two times), that endures forever (four times, including NKJV), is everlasting (one time) , is eternal (two times), or endures (one time). This very same phrase, לְעֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽו, is used 40 times in the Old Testament: 1 Chronicles 16:34, 41; 2 Chronicles 5:13, 20:21; Ezra 3:11; Psalms 100:5, 106:1, 107:1; 118:1-4, 136:1-26, and Jeremiah 33:11. From our sample translations, the phrase לְעֹלָ֣ם חַסְדּֽו expresses the idea of a loyal, steadfast, faithful love or lovingkindness that endures forever.

The Hebrew word חַסְדּֽ, or “chesed,” is itself used about 250 times in the Old Testament. According to Charles Ryrie, “It means loyal, steadfast, or faithful love and stresses the idea of belonging together of those involved in the love relationship.” [56] R. Laird Harris picks up on the idea Ryrie calls “belonging together… in the love relationship” and describes “chesed” more specifically as it relates to God. “When we come to the hesed (“chesed”) of God, the problem is that of course God was in covenantal relation with the patriarchs and with Israel. Therefore his hesed can be called covenant hesed without contradiction. … It does not follow that God’s love is merely a factor in a covenant; rather the covenant is the sign and expression of his love.” [57] Therefore, you and I may surmise that “chesed” is loyal love expressed in relationship to others; more specifically, when God is a party, that relationship is an expression of His love revealed through a covenant or covenantal promise(s). The covenant or promise(s) and His unrelenting faithfulness to that covenant or promise(s) remain the ongoing corollary expression of His “chesed.” Whether through divine disciple or blessing, in love God always fulfills His covenants and promises.

For our purposes, we call “chesed” loyal covenantal love. This love can never be less than His covenantal promises, but may yet exceed His obligations (Jonah 4:2).

In our personal lives, marriage remains one of the most common expressions of that love. How do our spouses know that you and I love them? We covenant ourselves to them in marriage and then fulfill our covenantal responsibilities. In the Old Testament, God’s example of “chesed” reveals unfailing faithfulness in the face of unfaithfulness and failure on Israel’s part. In the New Testament, regarding the covenant of marriage, the Apostle Paul exhorts: Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:25-27). Clearly, “chesed” requires a relationship steeped in grace and mercy; may He be glorified in our endurance.

Appendix D: The Message of Life in the Old Testament

[Editor’s Note: Throughout His Word, eternal life and resurrection anchor God’s promised Messianic Kingdom in reality. As our Lord and Savior points out: …concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken …by God…, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living (Matthew 22:31-32). The following article is reprinted with permission from Dr. John Niemelä, Lifeline, December 2021 (Seymour, TN: Message of Life Ministries, 2021).]

The apostle John regarded everlasting life as Jesus’ core promise to believers: “And this is the promise which He Himself promised to us—everlasting life” (1 John 2:25).

Unfortunately, many struggle to find that same promise in the Old Testament. However, Titus 1:2 speaks of “eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.” Paul’s words suggest that the promise of eternal life appears in the Old Testament—even in Genesis, the book of beginnings.

God promised to Abraham to give the land “to you and to your seed forever” (Genesis 13:15). What good would it be for Abraham to own the land after death? Would that not be a hollow promise? Yet, Genesis 15:13-14 predicts that 400 years of slavery in a foreign land (Egypt) awaited his seed before they would return to the land. Even more directly, Genesis 15:15’s prediction of the death of Abraham “at a good old age” meant something less than age 500. Certainly, he did not expect be a second Methuselah. But even if he did, Genesis 15:15 predicted his death. How would he own land after dying?

Hebrews 11:3 says, “These all (including Abraham) died in faith, not having received the promises. Verse 39 reiterates, “And all these… did not receive the promise.” Apart from resurrection and eternal life, the promise “all the land which you see I give to you and your seed forever” would be hollow. How Abraham perceived the Lord’s promise resolves this. Hebrews 11:18-19 explains his willingness to sacrifice Isaac: he was certain of his son’s resurrection. God had already promised that Abraham would be the father of a great nation through Isaac. Resurrection and everlasting life are part and parcel of the promise to Abraham.

Paul later asserted that he was on trial “for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers” (Acts 26:6). What is that hope? It is God’s promise that God will give the land to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and their seed forever. The fulfillment of that promise requires resurrection and eternal life. Verse 7 contends that Israel worked night and day to try to attain to what was promised (resurrection). Then, in verse 8, Paul pointedly asked, “Why is it considered unbelievable by you that God raises the dead?” God’s promise to give the land forever to Abraham clearly requires resurrection and eternal life. Abraham understood the promise that way. He did not consider it unbelievable that God raises the dead. He was willing to slay his son Isaac, because God is the God of eternal life and the God of resurrection.