John 1:18

John 1:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
• New International Version (NIV)No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.
• English Standard Version (ESV)No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
• New King James Version (NKJV)No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

Context of John 1:18

16For we have all received from his fullness one gracious gift after another. 17For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. The only one, himself God, who is in closest fellowship with the Father, has made God known. 19Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20He confessed – he did not deny but confessed – “I am not the Christ!”

John 1:18 word by word

Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακεν πώποτε· μονογενὴς θεὸς ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ πατρός, ἐκεῖνος ἐξηγήσατο.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• No manοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762
• hath seenὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• at any timeπώποτεpōpote · everG4455
• the only begottenμονογενήςmonogenēs · uniqueG3439
• Sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
• whichὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• inεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the bosomκόλποςkolpos · bosomG2859
• of the Fatherπατήρpatēr · fatherG3962
• heἐκεῖνοςekeinos · thatG1565
• hath declaredἐξηγέομαιexēgeomai · to tellG1834

Cross-references for John 1:18

• John 6:46(Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God – he has seen the Father.)
• Exodus 33:20But he added, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and live.”
• Deuteronomy 4:12Then the Lord spoke to you from the middle of the fire; you heard speech but you could not see anything – only a voice was heard.
• Matthew 11:27All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son decides to reveal him.
• Luke 10:22All things have been given to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son decides to reveal him.”
• Colossians 1:15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,
• 1 Timothy 1:17Now to the eternal king, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever! Amen.
• 1 Timothy 6:16He alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen.
• 1 John 4:12No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us.
• John 1:14Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory – the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.
• John 3:16For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
• 1 John 4:9By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him.
• John 13:23One of his disciples, the one Jesus loved, was at the table to the right of Jesus in a place of honor.
• Proverbs 8:30then I was beside him as a master craftsman, and I was his delight day by day, rejoicing before him at all times,
• Isaiah 40:11Like a shepherd he tends his flock; he gathers up the lambs with his arm; he carries them close to his heart; he leads the ewes along.
• Lamentations 2:12Children say to their mothers, “Where are food and drink?” They faint like a wounded warrior in the city squares. They die slowly in their mothers’ arms. מ (Mem)

Commentaries on John 1:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18No man hath seen God at any time - Moses and others heard his voice, and saw the cloud and the fire, which were the symbols of his presence; but such a manifestation of God as had now taken place, in the person of Jesus Christ, had never before been exhibited to the world. It is likely that the word seen, here, is put for known, as in John 3:32; 1 John 3:2, 1 John 3:6, and 3 John 1:11; and this sense the latter clause of the verse seems to require: - No…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18No man hath seen God at any time - This declaration is probably made to show the superiority of the revelation of Jesus above that of any previous dispensation. It is said, therefore, that Jesus “had an intimate knowledge of God,” which neither Moses nor any of the ancient prophets had possessed. God is invisible: no human eyes have seen him; but Christ had a knowledge of God which might be expressed to our apprehension by saying that he saw him. He knew…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-18Verses 15-18 As to the order of time and entrance on his work, Christ came after John, but in every other way he was before him. The expression clearly shows that Jesus had existence before he appeared on earth as man. All fulness dwells in him, from which alone fallen sinners have, and shall receive, by faith, all that renders them wise, strong, holy, useful, and happy. Our receivings by Christ are all summed up in this one word, grace; we have received…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18God would not allow Moses to see him directly (Exodus 33:18–20). Only Jesus has seen the Father, so he alone completely knows him and can tell us about him (John 3:32–35; 14:9–10). but the one and only Son: The Son, who sees the Father, is himself God. The Son is not simply a messenger who knows something about God. John explicitly affirms Christ’s deity. Jesus shares the substance of God’s being.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. No man--"No one," in the widest sense. hath seen God--by immediate gaze, or direct intuition. in the bosom of the Father--A remarkable expression, used only here, presupposing the Son's conscious existence distinct from the Father, and expressing His immediate and most endeared access to, and absolute acquaintance with, Him. he--emphatic; As if he should say, "He and He only hath declared Him," because He only can.Read the comment

Topics related to John 1:18

• Confession
• God
• God Continued...
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Only Begotten
• Behold
• Believe
• Blood
• Bosom
• Dwell
• Face
• Flesh

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