1 John 5:7

1 John 5:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
• New International Version (NIV)For there are three that testify:
• New King James Version (NKJV)For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.
• New Living Translation (NLT)So we have these three witnesses—

Context of 1 John 5:7

5Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 6This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: 8the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 9If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son.

1 John 5:7 word by word

ὅτι τρεῖς εἰσιν οἱ μαρτυροῦντες,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Forὅτιhoti · that/since: sinceG3754
• there areεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• threeτρεῖςtreis tria · ThreeG5140
• that bear recordμαρτυρέωmartureō · to testifyG3140
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• heavenὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• heavenοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772
• the Fatherπατήρpatēr · fatherG3962
• the Wordλόγοςlogos · wordG3056
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• the Holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
• Ghostπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
• theseοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• oneεἷςheis · oneG1520

Cross-references for 1 John 5:7

• 1 John 5:10Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son.
• John 8:13So the Pharisees said to him, "You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true."
• Psalms 33:6By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
• Isaiah 48:16Draw near to me, hear this: from the beginning I have not spoken in secret, from the time it came to be I have been there." And now the Lord God has sent me, and his Spirit.
• Isaiah 61:1The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
• Matthew 3:16And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him;
• Matthew 17:5He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him."
• Matthew 28:19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
• John 5:26For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.
• John 8:18I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me."
• John 8:54Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, 'He is our God.'
• John 10:37If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me;
• John 12:28Father, glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven: "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again."
• 1 Corinthians 12:4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;
• 2 Corinthians 13:14The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
• Revelation 1:4John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne,

Commentaries on 1 John 5:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7There are three that bear record - The Father, who bears testimony to his Son; the Word or , Logos, who bears testimony to the Father; and the Holy Ghost, which bears testimony to the Father and the Son. And these three are one in essence, and agree in the one testimony, that Jesus came to die for, and give life to, the world. But it is likely this verse is not genuine. It is wanting in every MS. of this epistle written before the invention of printing…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7For there are three that bear record in heaven … - There are three that “witness,” or that “bear witness” - the same Greek word which, in 1 John 5:8, is rendered “bear witness” - ͂ marturountesThere is no passage of the New Testament which has given rise to so much discussion in regard to its genuineness as this. The supposed importance of the verse in its bearing on the doctrine of the Trinity has contributed to this, and has given to the discussion a…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-8Verses 6-8 We are inwardly and outwardly defiled; inwardly, by the power and pollution of sin in our nature. For our cleansing there is in and by Christ Jesus, the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost. Some think that the two sacraments are here meant: baptism with water, as the outward sign of regeneration, and purifying from the pollution of sin by the Holy Spirit; and the Lord's supper, as the outward sign of the shedding Christ's…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8there are three that testify: The Holy Spirit came down on Jesus at his baptism (see John 1:32–34). The water refers to the water in which John baptized Jesus (see Matthew 3:13–15; Mark 1:9–11). The blood refers to the blood Jesus shed when he died on the cross (see Mark 15:37–39). These three (the Spirit, the water, and the blood) together proclaim that Jesus is God’s Son (1 John 5:6). After the phrase three that testify, a few very late manuscripts add…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. three--Two or three witnesses were required by law to constitute adequate testimony. The only Greek manuscripts in any form which support the words, "in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one; and there are three that bear witness in earth," are the Montfortianus of Dublin, copied evidently from the modern Latin Vulgate; the Ravianus, copied from the Complutensian Polyglot; a manuscript at Naples, with the words added…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 John 5:7

• Holy Spirit
• Jesus, the Christ
• Trinity
• Word

In the dictionaries

• Holy Ghost
• Idol
• Hope
• John, the Epistles of
• Trinity
• Truth
• testimony, testify, witness, eyewitness, evidence

Commentaries on 1 John 5

• 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
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• 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
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings