The Message

<div class="version vid97 iso6393eng" data-vid="97" data-iso6393="eng">
    <div class="book bkJHN">
        <div class="chapter ch1" data-usfm="JHN.1">
            <div class="label">1</div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Life-Light</span></div><div class="q1"><span class="content">  </span><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="label">1-2</span><span class="content">The Word was first,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="content">the Word present to God,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="content">God present to the Word.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="content">The Word was God,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="content">in readiness for God from day one.</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1 v2" data-usfm="JHN.1.1+JHN.1.2"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="label">3-5</span><span class="content">Everything was created through him;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">nothing&#8212;not one thing!&#8212;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">came into being without him.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">What came into existence was Life,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">and the Life was Light to live by.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">the darkness couldn&#8217;t put it out.</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v3 v4 v5" data-usfm="JHN.1.3+JHN.1.4+JHN.1.5"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v6 v7 v8" data-usfm="JHN.1.6+JHN.1.7+JHN.1.8"><span class="label">6-8</span><span class="content">There once was a man, his name John, sent by God to point out the way to the Life-Light. He came to show everyone where to look, who to believe in. John was not himself the Light; he was there to show the way to the Light.</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v6 v7 v8" data-usfm="JHN.1.6+JHN.1.7+JHN.1.8"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="label">9-13</span><span class="content">The Life-Light was the real thing:</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">Every person entering Life</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">he brings into Light.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">He was in the world,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">the world was there through him,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">and yet the world didn&#8217;t even notice.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">He came to his own people,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">but they didn&#8217;t want him.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">But whoever did want him,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">who believed he was who he claimed</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">and would do what he said,</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">He made to be their true selves,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">their child-of-God selves.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">These are the God-begotten,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">not blood-begotten,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">not flesh-begotten,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">not sex-begotten.</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9 v10 v11 v12 v13" data-usfm="JHN.1.9+JHN.1.10+JHN.1.11+JHN.1.12+JHN.1.13"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="label">14</span><span class="content">The Word became flesh and blood,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">and moved into the neighborhood.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">We saw the glory with our own eyes,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">the one-of-a-kind glory,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">like Father, like Son,</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">Generous inside and out,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">true from start to finish.</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JHN.1.14"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="JHN.1.15"><span class="label">15</span><span class="content">John pointed him out and called, &#8220;This is the One! The One I told you was coming after me but in fact was ahead of me. He has always been ahead of me, has always had the first word.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="JHN.1.15"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="label">16-18</span><span class="content">We all live off his generous abundance,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">gift after gift after gift.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">We got the basics from Moses,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">and then this exuberant giving and receiving,</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">This endless knowing and understanding&#8212;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">all this came through Jesus, the Messiah.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">No one has ever seen God,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">not so much as a glimpse.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">This one-of-a-kind God-Expression,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">who exists at the very heart of the Father,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">has made him plain as day.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">Thunder in the Desert</span></div><div class="m"><span class="verse v16 v17 v18" data-usfm="JHN.1.16+JHN.1.17+JHN.1.18"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v19 v20" data-usfm="JHN.1.19+JHN.1.20"><span class="label">19-20</span><span class="content">When Jews from Jerusalem sent a group of priests and officials to ask John who he was, he was completely honest. He didn&#8217;t evade the question. He told the plain truth: &#8220;I am not the Messiah.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v19 v20" data-usfm="JHN.1.19+JHN.1.20"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="JHN.1.21"><span class="label">21</span><span class="content">They pressed him, &#8220;Who, then? Elijah?&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="JHN.1.21"><span class="content">&#8220;I am not.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="JHN.1.21"><span class="content">&#8220;The Prophet?&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="JHN.1.21"><span class="content">&#8220;No.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="JHN.1.21"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v22" data-usfm="JHN.1.22"><span class="label">22</span><span class="content">Exasperated, they said, &#8220;Who, then? We need an answer for those who sent us. Tell us something&#8212;anything!&#8212;about yourself.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v22" data-usfm="JHN.1.22"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="JHN.1.23"><span class="label">23</span><span class="content">&#8220;I&#8217;m thunder in the desert: &#8216;Make the road straight for God!&#8217; I&#8217;m doing what the prophet Isaiah preached.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="JHN.1.23"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v24 v25" data-usfm="JHN.1.24+JHN.1.25"><span class="label">24-25</span><span class="content">Those sent to question him were from the Pharisee party. Now they had a question of their own: &#8220;If you&#8217;re neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet, why do you baptize?&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v24 v25" data-usfm="JHN.1.24+JHN.1.25"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v26 v27" data-usfm="JHN.1.26+JHN.1.27"><span class="label">26-27</span><span class="content">John answered, &#8220;I only baptize using water. A person you don&#8217;t recognize has taken his stand in your midst. He comes after me, but he is not in second place to me. I&#8217;m not even worthy to hold his coat for him.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v26 v27" data-usfm="JHN.1.26+JHN.1.27"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v28" data-usfm="JHN.1.28"><span class="label">28</span><span class="content">These conversations took place in Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing at the time.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The God-Revealer</span></div><div class="m"><span class="verse v28" data-usfm="JHN.1.28"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v29 v30 v31" data-usfm="JHN.1.29+JHN.1.30+JHN.1.31"><span class="label">29-31</span><span class="content">The very next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and yelled out, &#8220;Here he is, God&#8217;s Passover Lamb! He forgives the sins of the world! This is the man I&#8217;ve been talking about, &#8216;the One who comes after me but is really ahead of me.&#8217; I knew nothing about who he was&#8212;only this: that my task has been to get Israel ready to recognize him as the God-Revealer. That is why I came here baptizing with water, giving you a good bath and scrubbing sins from your life so you can get a fresh start with God.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v29 v30 v31" data-usfm="JHN.1.29+JHN.1.30+JHN.1.31"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v32 v33 v34" data-usfm="JHN.1.32+JHN.1.33+JHN.1.34"><span class="label">32-34</span><span class="content">John clinched his witness with this: &#8220;I watched the Spirit, like a dove flying down out of the sky, making himself at home in him. I repeat, I know nothing about him except this: The One who authorized me to baptize with water told me, &#8216;The One on whom you see the Spirit come down and stay, this One will baptize with the Holy Spirit.&#8217; That&#8217;s exactly what I saw happen, and I&#8217;m telling you, there&#8217;s no question about it: </span><span class="it"><span class="content">This</span></span><span class="content"> is the Son of God.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">Come, See for Yourself</span></div><div class="m"><span class="verse v32 v33 v34" data-usfm="JHN.1.32+JHN.1.33+JHN.1.34"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v35 v36" data-usfm="JHN.1.35+JHN.1.36"><span class="label">35-36</span><span class="content">The next day John was back at his post with two disciples, who were watching. He looked up, saw Jesus walking nearby, and said, &#8220;Here he is, God&#8217;s Passover Lamb.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v35 v36" data-usfm="JHN.1.35+JHN.1.36"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v37 v38" data-usfm="JHN.1.37+JHN.1.38"><span class="label">37-38</span><span class="content">The two disciples heard him and went after Jesus. Jesus looked over his shoulder and said to them, &#8220;What are you after?&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v37 v38" data-usfm="JHN.1.37+JHN.1.38"><span class="content">They said, &#8220;Rabbi&#8221; (which means &#8220;Teacher&#8221;), &#8220;where are you staying?&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v37 v38" data-usfm="JHN.1.37+JHN.1.38"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v39" data-usfm="JHN.1.39"><span class="label">39</span><span class="content">He replied, &#8220;Come along and see for yourself.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v39" data-usfm="JHN.1.39"><span class="content">They came, saw where he was living, and ended up staying with him for the day. It was late afternoon when this happened.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v39" data-usfm="JHN.1.39"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v40 v41 v42" data-usfm="JHN.1.40+JHN.1.41+JHN.1.42"><span class="label">40-42</span><span class="content">Andrew, Simon Peter&#8217;s brother, was one of the two who heard John&#8217;s witness and followed Jesus. The first thing he did after finding where Jesus lived was find his own brother, Simon, telling him, &#8220;We&#8217;ve found the Messiah&#8221; (that is, &#8220;Christ&#8221;). He immediately led him to Jesus.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v40 v41 v42" data-usfm="JHN.1.40+JHN.1.41+JHN.1.42"><span class="content">Jesus took one look up and said, &#8220;You&#8217;re John&#8217;s son, Simon? From now on your name is Cephas&#8221; (or Peter, which means &#8220;Rock&#8221;).</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v40 v41 v42" data-usfm="JHN.1.40+JHN.1.41+JHN.1.42"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v43 v44" data-usfm="JHN.1.43+JHN.1.44"><span class="label">43-44</span><span class="content">The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. When he got there, he ran across Philip and said, &#8220;Come, follow me.&#8221; (Philip&#8217;s hometown was Bethsaida, the same as Andrew and Peter.)</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v43 v44" data-usfm="JHN.1.43+JHN.1.44"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v45 v46" data-usfm="JHN.1.45+JHN.1.46"><span class="label">45-46</span><span class="content">Philip went and found Nathanael and told him, &#8220;We&#8217;ve found the One Moses wrote of in the Law, the One preached by the prophets. It&#8217;s </span><span class="it"><span class="content">Jesus</span></span><span class="content">, Joseph&#8217;s son, the one from Nazareth!&#8221; Nathanael said, &#8220;Nazareth? You&#8217;ve got to be kidding.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v45 v46" data-usfm="JHN.1.45+JHN.1.46"><span class="content">But Philip said, &#8220;Come, see for yourself.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v45 v46" data-usfm="JHN.1.45+JHN.1.46"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v47" data-usfm="JHN.1.47"><span class="label">47</span><span class="content">When Jesus saw him coming he said, &#8220;There&#8217;s a real Israelite, not a false bone in his body.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v47" data-usfm="JHN.1.47"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v48" data-usfm="JHN.1.48"><span class="label">48</span><span class="content">Nathanael said, &#8220;Where did you get that idea? You don&#8217;t know me.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v48" data-usfm="JHN.1.48"><span class="content">Jesus answered, &#8220;One day, long before Philip called you here, I saw you under the fig tree.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v48" data-usfm="JHN.1.48"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v49" data-usfm="JHN.1.49"><span class="label">49</span><span class="content">Nathanael exclaimed, &#8220;Rabbi! You are the Son of God, the King of Israel!&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v49" data-usfm="JHN.1.49"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v50 v51" data-usfm="JHN.1.50+JHN.1.51"><span class="label">50-51</span><span class="content">Jesus said, &#8220;You&#8217;ve become a believer simply because I say I saw you one day sitting under the fig tree? You haven&#8217;t seen anything yet! Before this is over you&#8217;re going to see heaven open and God&#8217;s angels descending to the Son of Man and ascending again.&#8221;</span></span></div>
        </div>
    </div>
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The Word was first,
the Word present to God,
God present to the Word.
The Word was God,
in readiness for God from day one.

Everything was created through him;
nothing—not one thing!—
came into being without him.
What came into existence was Life,
and the Life was Light to live by.
The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness;
the darkness couldn’t put it out.

There once was a man, his name John, sent by God to point out the way to the Life-Light. He came to show everyone where to look, who to believe in. John was not himself the Light; he was there to show the way to the Light.

The Life-Light was the real thing:
Every person entering Life
he brings into Light.
He was in the world,
the world was there through him,
and yet the world didn’t even notice.
He came to his own people,
but they didn’t want him.
But whoever did want him,
who believed he was who he claimed
and would do what he said,
He made to be their true selves,
their child-of-God selves.
These are the God-begotten,
not blood-begotten,
not flesh-begotten,
not sex-begotten.

The Word became flesh and blood,
and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
the one-of-a-kind glory,
like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish.

John pointed him out and called, “This is the One! The One I told you was coming after me but in fact was ahead of me. He has always been ahead of me, has always had the first word.”

We all live off his generous abundance,
gift after gift after gift.
We got the basics from Moses,
and then this exuberant giving and receiving,
This endless knowing and understanding—
all this came through Jesus, the Messiah.
No one has ever seen God,
not so much as a glimpse.
This one-of-a-kind God-Expression,
who exists at the very heart of the Father,
has made him plain as day.

When Jews from Jerusalem sent a group of priests and officials to ask John who he was, he was completely honest. He didn’t evade the question. He told the plain truth: “I am not the Messiah.”
They pressed him, “Who, then? Elijah?”
“I am not.”
“The Prophet?”
“No.”
Exasperated, they said, “Who, then? We need an answer for those who sent us. Tell us something—anything!—about yourself.”
“I’m thunder in the desert: ‘Make the road straight for God!’ I’m doing what the prophet Isaiah preached.”
Those sent to question him were from the Pharisee party. Now they had a question of their own: “If you’re neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet, why do you baptize?”
John answered, “I only baptize using water. A person you don’t recognize has taken his stand in your midst. He comes after me, but he is not in second place to me. I’m not even worthy to hold his coat for him.”
These conversations took place in Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing at the time.

The very next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and yelled out, “Here he is, God’s Passover Lamb! He forgives the sins of the world! This is the man I’ve been talking about, ‘the One who comes after me but is really ahead of me.’ I knew nothing about who he was—only this: that my task has been to get Israel ready to recognize him as the God-Revealer. That is why I came here baptizing with water, giving you a good bath and scrubbing sins from your life so you can get a fresh start with God.”
John clinched his witness with this: “I watched the Spirit, like a dove flying down out of the sky, making himself at home in him. I repeat, I know nothing about him except this: The One who authorized me to baptize with water told me, ‘The One on whom you see the Spirit come down and stay, this One will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ That’s exactly what I saw happen, and I’m telling you, there’s no question about it: This is the Son of God.”

The next day John was back at his post with two disciples, who were watching. He looked up, saw Jesus walking nearby, and said, “Here he is, God’s Passover Lamb.”
The two disciples heard him and went after Jesus. Jesus looked over his shoulder and said to them, “What are you after?”
They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
He replied, “Come along and see for yourself.”
They came, saw where he was living, and ended up staying with him for the day. It was late afternoon when this happened.
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard John’s witness and followed Jesus. The first thing he did after finding where Jesus lived was find his own brother, Simon, telling him, “We’ve found the Messiah” (that is, “Christ”). He immediately led him to Jesus.
Jesus took one look up and said, “You’re John’s son, Simon? From now on your name is Cephas” (or Peter, which means “Rock”).
The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. When he got there, he ran across Philip and said, “Come, follow me.” (Philip’s hometown was Bethsaida, the same as Andrew and Peter.)
Philip went and found Nathanael and told him, “We’ve found the One Moses wrote of in the Law, the One preached by the prophets. It’s Jesus, Joseph’s son, the one from Nazareth!” Nathanael said, “Nazareth? You’ve got to be kidding.”
But Philip said, “Come, see for yourself.”
When Jesus saw him coming he said, “There’s a real Israelite, not a false bone in his body.”
Nathanael said, “Where did you get that idea? You don’t know me.”
Jesus answered, “One day, long before Philip called you here, I saw you under the fig tree.”
Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi! You are the Son of God, the King of Israel!”
Jesus said, “You’ve become a believer simply because I say I saw you one day sitting under the fig tree? You haven’t seen anything yet! Before this is over you’re going to see heaven open and God’s angels descending to the Son of Man and ascending again.”

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