Amplified Bible
John 17:3
3Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true [supreme and sovereign] God, and [in the same manner know] Jesus [as the] Christ whom You have sent.
John 17:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
- New International Version (NIV)Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
Context of John 17:3
1When Jesus had spoken these things, He raised His eyes to heaven [in prayer] and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, so that Your Son may glorify You. 2Just as You have given Him power and authority over all mankind, [now glorify Him] so that He may give eternal life to all whom You have given Him [to be His—permanently and forever]. Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true [supreme and sovereign] God, and [in the same manner know] Jesus [as the] Christ whom You have sent. 4I have glorified You [down here] on the earth by completing the work that You gave Me to do. 5Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory and majesty that I had with You before the world existed.
Read all of John 17John 17:3 word by word
αὕτη δέ ἐστιν ἡ αἰώνιος ζωὴ ἵνα γινώσκωσιν σὲ τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεὸν καὶ ὃν ἀπέστειλας Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Andδέde · thenG1161
- thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
- isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- lifeζωήzōē · lifeG2222
- eternalαἰώνιοςaiōnios · eternalG166
- thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
- they might knowγινώσκωginōskō · to knowG1097
- theeσύsu · youG4771
- the onlyμόνοςmonos · aloneG3441
- trueἀληθινόςalēthinos · trueG228
- Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
- ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547
- whomὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- thou hast sentἀποστέλλωapostellō · to sendG649
Cross-references for John 17:3
- John 17:25“O just and righteous Father, although the world has not known You and has never acknowledged You [and the revelation of Your mercy], yet I have always known You; and these [believers] know [without any doubt] that You sent Me;
- John 8:19Then the Pharisees said to Him, “Where is this Father of Yours?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.”
- 1 Chronicles 28:9“As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father [have personal knowledge of Him, be acquainted with, and understand Him; appreciate, heed, and cherish Him] and serve Him with a blameless heart and a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and minds, and understands every intent and inclination of the thoughts. If you seek Him [inquiring for and of Him and requiring Him as your first and vital necessity] He will let you find Him; but if you abandon (turn away from) Him, He will reject you forever.
- Psalms 9:10And those who know Your name [who have experienced Your precious mercy] will put their confident trust in You, For You, O Lord, have not abandoned those who seek You.
- Isaiah 53:11As a result of the anguish of His soul, He shall see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge [of what He has accomplished] the Righteous One, My Servant, shall justify the many [making them righteous—upright before God, in right standing with Him], For He shall bear [the responsibility for] their sins.
- Jeremiah 9:23Thus says the Lord, “Let not the one who is wise and skillful boast in his insight; let not the one who is mighty and powerful boast in his strength; let not the one who is rich boast in his [temporal satisfactions and earthly] abundance;
- Jeremiah 31:33“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” says the Lord, “I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.
- Hosea 6:3So let us know and become personally acquainted with Him; let us press on to know and understand fully the [greatness of the] Lord [to honor, heed, and deeply cherish Him]. His appearing is prepared and is as certain as the dawn, And He will come to us [in salvation] like the [heavy] rain, Like the spring rain watering the earth.”
- 1 Corinthians 15:34Be sober-minded [be sensible, wake up from your spiritual stupor] as you ought, and stop sinning; for some [of you] have no knowledge of God [you are disgracefully ignorant of Him, and ignore His truths]. I say this to your shame.
- 2 Corinthians 4:6For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give us the Light of the knowledge of the glory and majesty of God [clearly revealed] in the face of Christ.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:8dealing out [full and complete] vengeance to those who do not [seek to] know God and to those who ignore and refuse to obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus [by choosing not to respond to Him].
- Hebrews 8:11And it will not be [necessary] for each one to teach his fellow citizen, Or each one his brother, saying, ‘Know [by experience, have knowledge of] the Lord,’ For all will know [Me by experience and have knowledge of] Me, From the least to the greatest of them.
- 1 John 4:6We [who teach God’s word] are from God [energized by the Holy Spirit], and whoever knows God [through personal experience] listens to us [and has a deeper understanding of Him]. Whoever is not of God does not listen to us. By this we know [without any doubt] the spirit of truth [motivated by God] and the spirit of error [motivated by Satan].
- 1 John 5:11And the testimony is this: God has given us eternal life [we already possess it], and this life is in His Son [resulting in our spiritual completeness, and eternal companionship with Him].
- John 14:9Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time, and you do not know Me yet, Philip, nor recognize clearly who I am? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’
- 2 Chronicles 15:3Now for a long time Israel was without the true God and without a teaching priest, and without [God’s] law.
Commentaries on John 17:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3This is life eternal - The salvation purchased by Christ, and given to them who believe, is called life: Because the life of man was forfeited to Divine justice; and the sacrifice of Christ redeemed him from that death to which he was exposed. Because the souls of men were dead in trespasses and sins; and Christ quickens them by his word and Spirit. Because men who are not saved by the grace of Christ do not live, they only exist, no good purpose of life…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3This is life eternal - This is the source of eternal life; or it is in this manner that it is to be obtained. The knowledge of God and of his Son Jesus Christ is itself a source of unspeakable and eternal joy. Compare John 11:25; John 6:63; John 12:50. Might know thee - The word “know” here, as in other places, expresses more than a mere speculative acquaintance with the character and perfections of God. “It includes all the impressions on the mind and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3that they may know you: In the Hebrew language, "knowing" includes experience and intimacy. For Christians, this means loving God and obeying him. whom You have sent: Jesus came from heaven and was returning (John 17:5). So he has divine authority as God's agent.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-26(See on Joh 14:1). Had this prayer not been recorded, what reverential reader would not have exclaimed, Oh, to have been within hearing of such a prayer as that must have been, which wound up the whole of His past ministry and formed the point of transition to the dark scenes which immediately followed! But here it is, and with such signature of the Lips that uttered it that we seem rather to hear it from Himself than read it from the pen of His faithful…Read the comment
Topics related to John 17:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on John 17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Catena Aurea
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Amplified Bible — © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631
Commentaries