John 3:14

John 3:14 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
• New International Version (NIV)Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
• English Standard Version (ESV)And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
• New King James Version (NKJV)And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

Context of John 3:14

12If you don’t believe me when I tell you about things on earth, how will you believe me when I tell you about things in heaven? 13No one has gone to heaven except the Son of Man, who came from heaven. “As Moses lifted up the snake ⌞on a pole⌟ in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up. 15Then everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.” 16God loved the world this way: He gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life.

John 3:14 word by word

καὶ καθὼς Μωϋσῆς ὕψωσεν τὸν ὄφιν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ, οὕτως ὑψωθῆναι δεῖ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• asκαθώςkathōs · as/just asG2531
• MosesΜωϋσῆς, ΜωσῆςMōseus Mōsēs Mōusēs · MosesG3475
• lifted upὑψόωhupsoō · to lift upG5312
• the serpentὄφιςophis · snakeG3789
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• the wildernessἔρημοςerēmos · desertedG2048
• even soοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
• mustδεῖdei · be necessaryG1163
• the Sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
• of manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444

Cross-references for John 3:14

• Numbers 21:7The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we criticized the Lord and you. Pray to the Lord so that he will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.
• 2 Kings 18:4He got rid of the illegal places of worship, crushed the sacred stones, and cut down the poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah. He even crushed the bronze snake that Moses had made because up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. They called it Nehushtan.
• John 8:28So Jesus told them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you’ll know that I am the one and that I can’t do anything on my own. Instead, I speak as the Father taught me.
• John 12:32When I have been lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people toward me.”
• Psalms 22:16Dogs have surrounded me. A mob has encircled me. They have pierced my hands and feet.
• Matthew 26:54How, then, are the Scriptures to be fulfilled that say this must happen?”
• Luke 18:31Jesus took the twelve apostles aside and said to them, “We’re going to Jerusalem. Everything that the prophets wrote about the Son of Man will come true.
• Luke 24:20Our chief priests and rulers had him condemned to death and crucified.
• Acts 2:23By using men who don’t acknowledge Moses’ Teachings, you crucified Jesus, who was given over ⌞to death⌟ by a plan that God had determined in advance.
• Acts 4:27“In this city Herod and Pontius Pilate made plans together with non-Jewish people and the people of Israel. They made their plans against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed.

Commentaries on John 3:14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14As Moses lifted up - He shows the reason why he descended from heaven, that he might be lifted up, i.e. crucified, for the salvation of man. kind, and be, by the appointment of God, as certain a remedy for sinful souls as the brazen serpent elevated on a pole, Numbers 21:9, was for the bodies of the Israelites, which had been bitten by the fiery serpents in the wilderness. It does not appear to me that the brazen serpent was ever intended to be considered…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14And as Moses - Jesus proceeds in this and the following verses to state the reason why he came into the world and, in order to this, he illustrates His design, and the efficacy of his coming, by a reference to the case of the brass serpent, recorded in Numbers 21:8-9. The people were bitten by flying fiery serpents. There was no cure for the bite. Moses was directed to make an image of the serpent, and place it in sight of the people, that they might look…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-15Jesus was lifted up on the cross so that all people could understand the way of salvation, look to him in faith, and have eternal life.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1614-16. And as Moses, &c.--Here now we have the "heavenly things," as before the "earthly," but under a veil, for the reason mentioned in Joh 3:12. The crucifixion of Messiah is twice after this veiled under the same lively term--"uplifting," Joh 8:28; 12:32, 33. Here it is still further veiled--though to us who know what it means, rendered vastly more instructive--by reference to the brazen serpent. The venom of the fiery serpents, shooting through the…Read the comment

Topics related to John 3:14

• Brazen Serpent
• Faith
• Immortality
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Life
• Salvation
• Symbols and Similitudes
• Types

In the dictionaries

• Moses
• Son of man
• Born
• Brass
• Call
• Condemn
• Condemnation
• Darkness
• Decrease
• Increase

Commentaries on John 3

• 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