New Living Translation
John 15:1
1“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener.
John 15:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
- New International Version (NIV)“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
Context of John 15:1
“I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. 3You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you.
Read all of John 15John 15:1 word by word
Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀληθινή, καὶ ὁ πατήρ μου ὁ γεωργός ἐστιν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for John 15:1
- John 1:9The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
- John 6:32Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven.
- 1 John 2:8Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.
- Genesis 49:10The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.
- Psalms 80:8You brought us from Egypt like a grapevine; you drove away the pagan nations and transplanted us into your land.
- Isaiah 4:2But in that day, the branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious; the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of all who survive in Israel.
- Isaiah 5:1Now I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a rich and fertile hill.
- Jeremiah 2:21But I was the one who planted you, choosing a vine of the purest stock—the very best. How did you grow into this corrupt wild vine?
- Jeremiah 12:10“Many rulers have ravaged my vineyard, trampling down the vines and turning all its beauty into a barren wilderness.
- Ezekiel 15:2“Son of man, how does a grapevine compare to a tree? Is a vine’s wood as useful as the wood of a tree?
- Hosea 10:1How prosperous Israel is— a luxuriant vine loaded with fruit. But the richer the people get, the more pagan altars they build. The more bountiful their harvests, the more beautiful their sacred pillars.
- Zechariah 3:8“Listen to me, O Jeshua the high priest, and all you other priests. You are symbols of things to come. Soon I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.
- Matthew 21:33“Now listen to another story. A certain landowner planted a vineyard, built a wall around it, dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a lookout tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenant farmers and moved to another country.
- Luke 13:6Then Jesus told this story: “A man planted a fig tree in his garden and came again and again to see if there was any fruit on it, but he was always disappointed.
- Isaiah 27:2“In that day, sing about the fruitful vineyard.
- Isaiah 60:21All your people will be righteous. They will possess their land forever, for I will plant them there with my own hands in order to bring myself glory.
Commentaries on John 15:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1I am the true vine - Perhaps the vines which they met with, on their road from Bethany to Gethsemane, might have given rise to this discourse. Some of the disciples were probably making remarks on the different kinds of them, and our Lord took the opportunity of improving the conversation, according to his usual manner, to the instruction of their souls. He might here term himself the true vine, or vine of the right sort, in opposition to the wild and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1I am the true vine - Some have supposed that this discourse was delivered in the room where the Lord‘s Supper was instituted, and that, as they had made use of wine, Jesus took occasion from that to say that he was the true vine, and to intimate that his blood was the real wine that was to give strength to the soul. Others have supposed that it was delivered in the temple, the entrance to which was adorned with a golden vine (Josephus), and that Jesus…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Christ the true Vine. (1-8) His love to his disciples. (9-17) foretold. (18-25) The Comforter promised. (26-27) Verses 1-8 Jesus Christ is the Vine, the true Vine. The union of the human and Divine natures, and the fulness of the Spirit that is in him, resemble the root of the vine made fruitful by the moisture from a rich soil. Believers are branches of this Vine. The root is unseen, and our life is hid with Christ; the root bears the tree, diffuses sap…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1I am: See study note on 6:35. The vine and the vineyard have traditionally represented God’s people. He "plants and tends" them in Israel (Psalm 80:8–18; Isaiah 5:1–7; Jeremiah 2:21; 12:10–11; Ezekiel 15:1–5; Hosea 10:1–2). When Jesus used this image, he made an important change. He declared that he is the true vine and that a relationship with God requires attachment to him.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-271-8. The spiritual oneness of Christ and His people, and His relation to them as the Source of all their spiritual life and fruitfulness, are here beautifully set forth by a figure familiar to Jewish ears (Is 5:1, &c.). I am the true vine--of whom the vine of nature is but a shadow. my Father is the husbandman--the great Proprietor of the vineyard, the Lord of the spiritual kingdom. (It is surely unnecessary to point out the claim to supreme divinity…Read the comment
Topics related to John 15:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on John 15
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries