John 20:22

John 20:22 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:
• New International Version (NIV)And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

Context of John 20:22

20Having said this, he showed them his hands and his side. So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” After saying this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” 24But Thomas (called “Twin”), one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.

John 20:22 word by word

καὶ τοῦτο εἰπὼν ἐνεφύσησεν καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· λάβετε πνεῦμα ἅγιον.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• when he had saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• he breathed onἐμφυσάωemphusaō · to breathe intoG1720
• saithλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• unto themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• Receive yeλαμβάνωlambanō · to takeG2983
• the Holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
• Ghostπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151

Cross-references for John 20:22

• Genesis 2:7Then the Lord God formed the man out of the dust from the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.
• Job 33:4The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
• Psalms 33:6The heavens were made by the word of the Lord, and all the stars, by the breath of his mouth.
• Ezekiel 37:9He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man. Say to it: This is what the Lord God says: Breath, come from the four winds and breathe into these slain so that they may live!”
• John 14:16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.
• John 15:26“When the Counselor comes, the one I will send to you from the Father — the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father — he will testify about me.
• John 16:7Nevertheless, I am telling you the truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send him to you.
• Acts 2:4Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them.
• Acts 4:8Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders:
• Acts 8:15After they went down there, they prayed for them so that the Samaritans might receive the Holy Spirit because he had not yet come down on any of them.
• Acts 10:47“Can anyone withhold water and prevent these people from being baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”
• Acts 19:2and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” “No,” they told him, “we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
• Galatians 3:2I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard?

Commentaries on John 20:22

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22He breathed on them - Intimating, by this, that they were to be made new men, in order to be properly qualified for the work to which he had called them; for in this breathing he evidently alluded to the first creation of man, when God breathed into him the breath of lives, and he became a living soul: the breath or Spirit of God (אלהים רוח ruach Elohim ) being the grand principle and cause of his spiritual and Divine life. Receive ye the Holy Ghost…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22He breathed on them - It was customary for the prophets to use some significant act to represent the nature of their message. See Genesis 2:7. The word rendered “spirit” in the Scriptures denotes wind, air, breath, as well as Spirit. Hence, the operations of the Holy Spirit are compared to the wind, John 3:8; Acts 2:2. Receive ye the Holy Ghost - His breathing on them was a certain sign or pledge that they would be endowed with the influences of the Holy…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 19-25Verses 19-25 This was the first day of the week, and this day is afterwards often mentioned by the sacred writers; for it was evidently set apart as the Christian sabbath, in remembrance of Christ's resurrection. The disciples had shut the doors for fear of the Jews; and when they had no such expectation, Jesus himself came and stood in the midst of them, having miraculously, though silently, opened the doors. It is a comfort to Christ's disciples, when…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22Jesus commissioned his disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit. The Spirit had not yet been given earlier, because Jesus had not yet been glorified (7:39). After his resurrection, the glorified Jesus gave the Spirit to his followers. This gift fulfilled many promises that the Spirit would be sent (14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7, 13). It also points ahead to the Spirit’s powerful coming at Pentecost (Acts 1:4–5; 2:1–47).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 19-2319-23. the same day at evening, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus--plainly not by the ordinary way of entrance. and saith unto them Peace be unto you--not the mere wish that even His own exalted peace might be theirs (Joh 14:27), but conveying it into their hearts, even as He "opened their understandings to understand the scriptures" (Lu 24:45).Read the comment

Topics related to John 20:22

• Holy Spirit
• Jesus, the Christ
• Trinity

In the dictionaries

• Holy Ghost
• Reach
• Remit
• Sabbath
• Thrust
• Wrap
• Baptism of the Holy Spirit
• Body, Spiritual
• Breath; Breathe; Breathing
• Holy Spirit

Commentaries on John 20

• 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
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• 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