Jesus and Nicodemus

3 There was a man named Nicodemus who was a Pharisee and a Jewish leader. ² One night he went to Jesus and said, “Rabbi, we know that God has sent you to teach us. You could not work these miracles, unless God were with you.”

³ Jesus replied, “I tell you for certain that you must be born from above^[a] before you can see God's kingdom!”

⁴ Nicodemus asked, “How can a grown man ever be born a second time?”

⁵ Jesus answered:

I tell you for certain that before you can get into God's kingdom, you must be born not only by water, but by the Spirit. ⁶ Humans give life to their children. Yet only God's Spirit can change you into a child of God. ⁷ Don't be surprised when I say that you must be born from above. ⁸ Only God's Spirit gives new life. The Spirit is like the wind that blows wherever it wants to. You can hear the wind, but you don't know where it comes from or where it is going.

⁹ “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

¹⁰ Jesus replied:

How can you be a teacher of Israel and not know these things? ¹¹ I tell you for certain we know what we are talking about because we have seen it ourselves. But none of you will accept what we say. ^12 (A) If you don't believe when I talk to you about things on earth, how can you possibly believe if I talk to you about things in heaven?

^13 (B) No one has gone up to heaven except the Son of Man, who came down from there. ^14 (C) And the Son of Man must be lifted up, just as the metal snake was lifted up by Moses in the desert.^{[b] 15} Then everyone who has faith in the Son of Man will have eternal life.

Jesus Is Buried

(Matthew 27.57-61; Mark 15.42-47; Luke 23.50-56)

³⁸ Joseph from Arimathea was one of Jesus' disciples. He had kept it secret though, because he was afraid of the Jewish leaders. But now he asked Pilate to let him have Jesus' body. Pilate gave him permission, and Joseph took it down from the cross.

^39 (A) Nicodemus also came with about 30 kilograms of spices made from myrrh and aloes. This was the same Nicodemus who had visited Jesus one night.^{[a] 40} The two men wrapped the body in a linen cloth, together with the spices, which was how the Jewish people buried their dead. ⁴¹ In the place where Jesus had been nailed to a cross, there was a garden with a tomb that had never been used. ⁴² The tomb was nearby, and since it was the time to prepare for the Sabbath, they were in a hurry to put Jesus' body there.

Jesus Appears to His Disciples

(Matthew 28.16-20; Mark 16.14-18; Luke 24.36-49)

¹⁹ The disciples were afraid of the Jewish leaders, and on the evening of that same Sunday they locked themselves in a room. Suddenly, Jesus appeared in the middle of the group. He greeted them ²⁰ and showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they became very happy.

²¹ After Jesus had greeted them again, he said, “I am sending you, just as the Father has sent me.” ²² Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ^23 (A) If you forgive anyone's sins, they will be forgiven. But if you don't forgive their sins, they will not be forgiven.”

Jesus and Thomas

²⁴ Although Thomas the Twin was one of the twelve disciples, he wasn't with the others when Jesus appeared to them. ²⁵ So they told him, “We have seen the Lord!”

But Thomas said, “First, I must see the nail scars in his hands and touch them with my finger. I must put my hand where the spear went into his side. I won't believe unless I do this!”

²⁶ A week later the disciples were together again. This time, Thomas was with them. Jesus came in while the doors were still locked and stood in the middle of the group. He greeted his disciples ²⁷ and said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands! Put your hand into my side. Stop doubting and have faith!”

²⁸ Thomas replied, “You are my Lord and my God!”

²⁹ Jesus said, “Thomas, do you have faith because you have seen me? The people who have faith in me without seeing me are the ones who are really blessed!”

Why John Wrote His Book

³⁰ Jesus worked many other miracles^[a] for his disciples, and not all of them are written in this book.