John 3

¹Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus , a ruler of the Jews .

²This man came to Jesus by night and said to him , Rabbi , we know that you are a teacher come from God , for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him .

³Jesus answered him , Truly , truly , I say to you , unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God .

⁴Nicodemus said to him , How can a man be born when he is old ? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born ?

⁵Jesus answered , Truly , truly , I say to you , unless one is born of water and the Spirit , he cannot enter the kingdom of God .

⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh , and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit .

⁷Do not marvel that I said to you , You must be born again .

⁸The wind blows where it wishes , and you hear its sound , but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes . So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit .

⁹Nicodemus said to him , How can these things be ?

¹⁰Jesus answered him , Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things ?

¹¹Truly , truly , I say to you , we speak of what we know , and bear witness to what we have seen , but you do not receive our testimony .

¹²If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe , how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?

¹³No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven , the Son of Man .

¹⁴And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness , so must the Son of Man be lifted up ,

¹⁵that whoever believes in him may have eternal life .

¹⁶For God so loved the world , that he gave his only Son , that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life .

¹⁷For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world , but in order that the world might be saved through him .

¹⁸Whoever believes in him is not condemned , but whoever does not believe is condemned already , because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God .

¹⁹And this is the judgment : the light has come into the world , and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil .

²⁰For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light , lest his works should be exposed .

²¹But whoever does what is true comes to the light , so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God .

²²After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside , and he remained there with them and was baptizing .

²³John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim , because water was plentiful there , and people were coming and being baptized

²⁴( for John had not yet been put in prison ).

²⁵Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification .

²⁶And they came to John and said to him , Rabbi , he who was with you across the Jordan , to whom you bore witness — look , he is baptizing , and all are going to him .

²⁷John answered , A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven .

²⁸You yourselves bear me witness , that I said , I am not the Christ , but I have been sent before him .

²⁹The one who has the bride is the bridegroom . The friend of the bridegroom , who stands and hears him , rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice . Therefore this joy of mine is now complete .

³⁰He must increase , but I must decrease .

³¹He who comes from above is above all . He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all .

³²He bears witness to what he has seen and heard , yet no one receives his testimony .

³³Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true .

³⁴For he whom God has sent utters the words of God , for he gives the Spirit without measure .

³⁵The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand .

³⁶Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life ; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life , but the wrath of God remains on him .