John 1:51

John 1:51 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.
• New International Version (NIV)He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And he said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Context of John 1:51

49Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” 50Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

John 1:51 word by word

καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ· ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὄψεσθε τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀνεῳγότα καὶ τοὺς ἀγγέλους τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναβαίνοντας καὶ καταβαίνοντας ἐπὶ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου.¶Read the interlinear

• And He saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• “Trulyἀμήνamēn · amenG281
• to you, you will seeὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• the heavensοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772
• openedἀνοίγωanoigō · to openG455
• the angelsἄγγελοςaggelos · angelG32
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• ascendingἀναβαίνωanabainō · to ascendG305
• and descendingκαταβαίνωkatabainō · to come/go downG2597
• the Sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
• of Manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444

Cross-references for John 1:51

• John 3:3Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
• John 5:19Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
• John 6:26Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.
• John 8:34Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.
• John 10:1“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.
• John 12:24Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
• John 13:16Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him.
• John 13:20Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”
• John 14:12Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.
• John 16:20Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned into joy.
• John 21:18Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.”
• Ezekiel 1:1Now it came about in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.
• Matthew 3:16After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him,
• Mark 1:10Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him;
• Luke 3:21Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened,
• Acts 7:56and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

Commentaries on John 1:51

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 51Verily, verily - Amen, amen. The doubling of this word probably came from this circumstance: that it was written both in Hebrew אמן and in Greek , signifying, it is true. Heaven open - This seems to be a figurative expression: Christ may be understood by this saying to mean, that a clear and abundant revelation of God's will should be now made unto men; that heaven itself should be laid as it were open, and all the mysteries which had been shut up and…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 51Verily, verily - In the Greek, “Amen, amen.” The word “amen” means “truly, certainly, so be it” - from the Hebrew verb to confirm, to establish, to be true. It is often used in this gospel. When repeated it expresses the speaker‘s sense of the importance of what he is saying, and the “certainty” that it is as he affirms. Ye shall see - Not, perhaps, with the bodily eyes, but you shall have “evidence” that it is so. The thing shall take place, and you…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 43-51Verses 43-51 See the nature of true Christianity, it is following Jesus; devoting ourselves to him, and treading in his steps. Observe the objection Nathanael made. All who desire to profit by the word of God, must beware of prejudices against places, or denominations of men. They should examine for themselves, and they will sometimes find good where they looked for none. Many people are kept from the ways of religion by the unreasonable prejudices they…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 51Truly, truly (Greek amēn amēn): Jesus often used this phrase to emphasize important points. In John’s Gospel, the Greek word amēn is always doubled. you will all see heaven open: Jesus made the comparison with Jacob clear (see study note on 1:47; see Genesis 28:10–22). Like Jacob, Nathanael would see God at work. Jacob saw a vision at Bethel, where God revealed himself (Genesis 28:19). Jesus himself is the new Bethel. The name Bethel means “house of God.”…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 50-5150-51. Because I said, &c.--"So quickly convinced, and on this evidence only?"--an expression of admiration.Read the comment

Topics related to John 1:51

• Angel (a Spirit)
• Jesus, the Christ

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Son of man
• Behold
• Believe
• Blood
• Dwell
• Flesh
• Guile
• Jacob

Commentaries on John 1

• 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