1 John 5:6

1 John 5:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.
• New International Version (NIV)This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.
• English Standard Version (ESV)This 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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth.

Context of 1 John 5:6

4For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. 5And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross—not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. 7So we have these three witnesses— 8the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree.

1 John 5:6 word by word

οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ ἐλθὼν δι᾽ ὕδατος καὶ αἵματος, Ἰησοῦς Χριστός· οὐκ ἐν τῷ ὕδατι μόνον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τῷ ὕδατι καὶ ἐν τῷ αἵματι· καὶ τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστιν τὸ μαρτυροῦν, ὅτι τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστιν ἡ ἀλήθεια·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• he that cameἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• byδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
• waterὕδωρhudōr hudatos · waterG5204
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• bloodαἷμαaima · bloodG129
• JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
• Christὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547
• notοὐou · noG3756
• byἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• onlyμόνονmonon · onlyG3440
• butἀλλάalla · butG235
• the Spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
• that beareth witnessμαρτυρέωmartureō · to testifyG3140
• becauseὅτιhoti · that/since: sinceG3754
• truthἀλήθειαalētheia · truthG225

Cross-references for 1 John 5:6

• John 19:34One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out.
• Isaiah 45:3And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness— secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name.
• Ezekiel 36:25“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols.
• John 1:31I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.”
• John 3:5Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.
• John 4:10Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”
• John 7:38Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”
• Acts 8:36As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?”
• Ephesians 5:25For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her
• 1 Peter 3:21And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
• 1 John 1:7But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
• 1 John 4:10This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
• Leviticus 17:11for the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible.
• Zechariah 9:11Because of the covenant I made with you, sealed with blood, I will free your prisoners from death in a waterless dungeon.
• Matthew 26:28for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many.
• Mark 14:24And he said to them, “This is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice for many.

Commentaries on 1 John 5:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6This is he that came by water and blood - Jesus was attested to be the Son of God and promised Messiah by water, i.e. his baptism, when the Spirit of God came down from heaven upon him, and the voice from heaven said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Jesus Christ came also by blood. He shed his blood for the sins of the world; and this was in accordance with all that the Jewish prophets had written concerning him. Here the apostle says…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6This is he - This Son of God referred to in the previous verse. The object of the apostle in this verse, in connection with 1 John 5:8, is to state the nature of the evidence that Jesus is the Son of God. He refers to three well-known things on which he probably had insisted much in his preaching - the water, and the blood, and the Spirit. These, he says, furnished evidence on the very point which he was illustrating, by showing that that Jesus on whom…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. 6This is the One who came by water and blood: A teacher named Cerinthus, who lived at the same time as John, taught a false idea. He said that “the Christ” came down as a spirit on the man Jesus at his baptism, but left him before Jesus died. John teaches the truth. The baptism and death of Jesus confirmed his identity as the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus of Nazareth was and is truly the Christ, the Son of God, from the beginning and forever.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. This--the Person mentioned in 1Jo 5:5. This Jesus. he that came by water and blood--"by water," when His ministry was inaugurated by baptism in the Jordan, and He received the Father's testimony to His Messiahship and divine Sonship. Compare 1Jo 5:5, "believeth that Jesus is the Son of God," with Joh 1:33, 34, "The Spirit ... remaining on Him ... I saw and bare record that this is the Son of God"; and 1Jo 5:8, below, "there are three that bear witness…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 John 5:6

• Atonement
• Blood
• Holy Spirit
• Jesus, the Christ
• Trinity

In the dictionaries

• Christ
• Jesus
• Christ, Messiah
• Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus
• Jesus Christ
• Idol
• Blood and Water
• Christ, Offices of
• Hope
• Johannine Theology

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