John 1:12

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
But	δὲ de	G1161	but · conjunction
as	ὅσοι hosoi	G3745	as (much · correlative pronoun — nominative plural masculine
received	ἔλαβον elabon	G2983	while G138 (αἱρέομαι) is more violent · verb — second aorist active indicative, 3rd person plural
him	αὐτόν, auton	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — accusative singular masculine
them	αὐτοῖς autois	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative plural masculine
he	ἔδωκεν edōken	G1325	to give (used in a very wide application · verb — aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular
power	ἐξουσίαν exousian	G1849	privilege · noun — accusative singular feminine
become	γενέσθαι, genesthai	G1096	to cause to be ("gen"-erate) · verb — second aorist middle deponent infinitive
sons	τέκνα tekna	G5043	a child (as produced) · noun — accusative plural neuter
God	θεοῦ theou	G2316	figuratively · noun — genitive singular masculine, a title
them	τοῖς tois	G3588	the (sometimes to be supplied · article — dative plural masculine
believe	πιστεύουσιν pisteuousin	G4100	to have faith (in · verb — present active participle, dative plural masculine
on	εἰς eis	G1519	to or into (indicating the point reached or entered) · preposition
his	αὐτοῦ, autou	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — genitive singular masculine
name	ὄνομα onoma	G3686	a "name" (literally or figuratively) (authority · noun — accusative singular neuter

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Galatians 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not,…
2 Corinthians 6:17-18 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
Galatians 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the o…
Matthew 10:40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
1 John 5:12-13 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 1:6-14

The evangelist designs to bring in John Baptist bearing an honourable testimony to Jesus Christ, Now in these verses, before he does this, I. He gives us some account of the witness he is about to produce. His name was John, which signifies gracious; his conversation was austere, but he was not the less gracious. Now, 1. We are here told concerning him, in general, that he was a man sent of God. The evangelist had said concerning Jesus Christ that he was with God and that he was God; but here concerning John that he was a man, a mere man. God is pleased to speak to us by men like ourselves. John was a great man, but he was a man, a son of man; he was sent from God, he was God's messenger, so…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 1:12

But as many--individuals, of the "disobedient and gainsaying people." gave he power--The word signifies both authority and ability, and both are certainly meant here. to become--Mark these words: Jesus is the Son of God; He is never said to have become such. the sons--or more simply, "sons of God," in name and in nature. believe on his name--a phrase never used in Scripture of any mere creature, to express the credit given to human testimony, even of prophets or apostles, inasmuch it carries with it the idea of trust proper only towards GOD. In this sense of supreme faith, as due to Him who "gives those that believe in Himself power to become sons of God," it is manifestly used here.

Adam Clarke on John 1:12

Gave he power - Εξουσιαν, Privilege, honor, dignity, or right. He who is made a child of God enjoys the greatest privilege which the Divine Being can confer on this side eternity. Those who accept Jesus Christ, as he is offered to them in the Gospel, have, through his blood, a right to this sonship; for by that sacrifice this blessing was purchased; and the fullest promises of God confirm it to all who believe. And those who are engrafted in the heavenly family have the highest honor and dignity to which it is possible for a human soul to arrive. What an astonishing thought is this! The sinner, who was an heir to all God's curses, has, through the sacrifice of Jesus, a claim on the mercy of…

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The Church Fathers

The saints must be honored as friends of Christ and children and heirs of God.… "Therefore they are no longer servants, but children: and if children, heirs also, heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ."
— John Damascene, ORTHODOX FAITH 4.15

When the soul has been clothed with the Son of God, it becomes worthy of the final and perfect stage and is baptized in the name of the Father himself of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to the testimony of John, gave the power to be made the sons of God.
— Basil of Caesarea, CONCERNING BAPTISM 1.2

When any person … is … considered to be among the children of God, such an achievement must not be considered to have been accomplished by their ability alone. This ability they have received through the grace of God, because they did not possess it in a nature that had become corrupted and depraved.
— Augustine of Hippo, ON NATURE AND GRACE 64.77

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Covenant — A contract or agreement between two parties. In the Old Testament the Hebrew word berith is always thus translated. Berith is derived from a root which means “to cut,” and hence a covenant is a…
Father — A name applied (1) to any ancestor (Deut. 1:11; 1 Kings 15:11; Matt. 3:9; 23:30, etc.); and (2) as a title of respect to a chief, ruler, or elder, etc. (Judg. 17:10; 18:19; 1 Sam. 10:12; 2 Kings…
John, Gospel of — The genuineness of this Gospel, i.e., the fact that the apostle John was its author, is beyond all reasonable doubt. In recent times, from about 1820, many attempts have been made to impugn its…
Regeneration — Only found in Matt. 19:28 and Titus 3:5. This word literally means a “new birth.” The Greek word so rendered (palingenesia) is used by classical writers with reference to the changes produced by the…
Son of God — The plural, “sons of God,” is used (Gen. 6:2, 4) to denote the pious descendants of Seth. In Job 1:6; 38:7 this name is applied to the angels. Hosea uses the phrase (1:10) to designate the gracious…
Word, The — (Gr. Logos), one of the titles of our Lord, found only in the writings of John (John 1:1-14; 1 John 1:1; Rev. 19:13). As such, Christ is the revealer of God. His office is to make God known. “No man…
Adoption · SPIRITUAL — SPIRITUAL
Faith · Through it is: Adoption — Through it is: Adoption
Jesus, The Christ · . — .
New Birth, The · Connected with adoption — Connected with adoption
Titles And Names Of Saints · Sons of God — Sons of God

John 1:12

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 1:6-14

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 1:12

Adam Clarke on John 1:12

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John 1:12

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 1:6-14

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 1:12

Adam Clarke on John 1:12

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Gill on John 1:12

John Calvin on John 1:6-13

Tyndale Open Study Notes on John 1:12