요한복음 1
Korean Living Bible
그리스도는 하나님이심
1 [a]우주가 존재하기 전에 말씀 되시는 그리스도가 계셨다. 그분은 하나님과 함께 계셨으며 바로 그분이 하나님이셨다.
2 그리스도는 맨 처음부터 하나님과 함께 계셨고
3 모든 것은 그분을 통해서 창조되었으며 그분 없이 만들어진 것은 아무것도 없다.
4 그리스도 안에 생명이 있었으니 이 생명은 인류의 빛이었다.
5 이 빛이 어두움 속에서 빛나고 있었으나 어두움이 이 빛을 [b]깨닫지 못하였다.
6 하나님이 보내신 요한이라는 사람이 있었다.
7 그는 이 빛에 대해서 증거하여 사람들이 자기를 통해 믿도록 하기 위해서 왔다.
8 그는 빛이 아니었으며 다만 이 빛에 대하여 증거하러 온 것뿐이었다.
9 세상에 와서 모든 사람을 비추는 참 빛이 있었다.
10 그분이 세상에 계셨고 세상은 그분을 통해서 만들어졌는데도 세상이 그분을 알지 못했으며
11 자기 땅에 오셨으나 자기 백성들까지도 그분을 영접하지 않았다.
12 그러나 그분은 자기를 영접하고 믿는 사람들에게는 하나님의 자녀가 되는 특권을 주셨다.
13 이 사람들이 하나님의 자녀가 된 것은 핏줄이나 육체적 욕망이나 사람의 뜻으로 된 것이 아니라 하나님의 뜻에 의해서 된 것이다.
14 [c]말씀 되시는 그리스도께서 사람이 되어 우리 가운데 사셨다. 우리가 그분의 영광을 보니 하나님 아버지의 외아들의 영광이었고 은혜와 진리가 충만하였다.
세례 요한의 증언
15 요한은 그분에 대하여 이렇게 외치며 증거하였다. “내가 전에 내 뒤에 오시는 분이 나보다 위대한 것은 그분이 나보다 먼저 계셨기 때문이라고 말했는데 그가 바로 이분이시다.”
16 우리는 모두 그분의 넘치는 은혜를 한없이 받았다.
17 율법은 모세를 통해 주신 것이지만 은혜와 진리는 예수 그리스도를 통해 왔다.
18 지금까지 하나님을 본 사람은 없었다. 그러나 아버지의 품안에 계시는 [d]외아들이 그분을 알리셨다.
19 한번은 예루살렘의 유대인들이 요한에게 제사장들과 레위인들을 보내 “당신이 누구요?” 하고 물어 보게 하였다.
20 그래서 요한이 조금도 숨기지 않고 “나는 [e]그리스도가 아니다” 하고 솔직하게 말하자 그들은 다시 물었다.
21 “그러면 당신은 누구요? 엘리야요?” “나는 엘리야가 아니다.” “그럼 [f]우리가 기다리는 예언자요?” “나는 예언자도 아니다.”
22 “그렇다면 당신은 누구란 말이오? 우리를 보낸 사람들에게 대답할 수 있게 해 주시오. 당신은 자신을 어떻게 생각하시오?”
23 “나는 예언자 이사야가 말한 것처럼 [g]‘주의 길을 곧게 하라’ 고 광야에서 외치는 자의 소리이다.”
24 그때 바리새파 사람들이 보낸 자들이
25 요한에게 “당신이 그리스도도 아니고 엘리야도, 예언자도 아니라면 어째서 [h]세례를 주시오?” 하고 물었다.
26 그래서 요한은 그들에게 “나는 너희에게 물로 세례를 주지만 너희 가운데는 너희가 알지 못하는 분이 서 계신다.
27 그분은 내 뒤에 오시는 분이시다. 나는 그분의 신발끈을 풀어 드릴 자격도 없다” 하고 대답하였다.
28 이것은 요한이 세례를 주던 요단강 건너편 베다니에서 일어난 일이다.
29 이튿날 요한은 예수님이 자기에게 나아오시는 것을 보고 이렇게 말하였다. “보라! 세상 죄를 짊어지신 하나님의 어린 양이시다!
30 내가 전에 ‘내 뒤에 오시는 분이 계시는데 그분이 나보다 위대한 것은 나보다 먼저 계셨기 때문이다’ 라고 말한 분이 바로 이분이시다.
31 나도 이분을 몰랐으나 이분을 이스라엘 백성에게 알리려고 내가 와서 물로 세례를 준다.”
32 그러고서 요한은 이렇게 증거하였다. “나는 성령님이 하늘에서 비둘기처럼 내려와 이분 위에 머무시는 것을 보았다.
33 나도 전에는 이분을 몰랐다. 그러나 물로 세례를 주라고 나를 보내신 분이 나에게 ‘성령이 내려와서 어떤 사람 위에 머무는 것을 보거든 그가 곧 성령으로 세례를 주실 분인 줄 알아라’ 하고 일러 주셨다.
34 그래서 내가 그것을 보고 이분이 하나님의 아들이라고 증거하는 것이다.”
제자들을 선택하심
35 이튿날 요한이 그의 두 제자와 함께 서 있다가
36 예수님이 지나가시는 것을 보고 “보라! 하나님의 어린 양이시다!” 하였다.
37 요한의 말을 듣고 두 제자가 예수님을 따라갔다.
38 예수님이 돌아서서 그들이 따라오는 것을 보시고 “무엇을 원하느냐?” 하고 물으시자 그들이 “[i]선생님, 어디에 머물고 계십니까?” 하고 되물었다.
39 그때 예수님은 “[j]따라오너라. 그러면 알게 될 것이다” 하고 대답하셨다. 그래서 그들은 가서 예수님이 계시는 곳을 보고 그 날 예수님과 함께 머물러 있었는데 때는 오후 [k]4시쯤이었다.
40 요한의 말을 듣고 예수님을 따라간 두 사람 중의 하나는 시몬 베드로의 동생 안드레였다.
41 그는 먼저 자기 형 시몬을 찾아가 “형, 우리가 [l]메시아 (번역하면 그리스도) 를 만났어!” 하고 말한 후에
42 그를 데리고 예수님께 갔다. 예수님은 시몬을 보시고 “너는 요한의 아들 시몬이다. 그러나 앞으로는 ‘게바’ (번역하면 베드로) 라고 부르겠다” 하고 말씀하셨다.
43 이튿날 예수님은 갈릴리로 가시려다가 빌립을 보시고 “나를 따라오너라” 하고 말씀하셨다.
44 빌립은 안드레와 베드로와 같은 동네인 벳새다 사람이었다.
45 빌립이 나다나엘을 찾아가서 “모세의 율법책과 예언자들의 예언서에 기록된 분을 우리가 만났는데 그분은 나사렛 사람 요셉의 아들인 예수님이셨어” 하고 말하자
46 나다나엘이 빌립에게 “나사렛에서 무슨 훌륭한 인물이 나올 수 있겠느냐?” 하였다. 그래서 빌립은 “와서 보아라” 하고 대답하였다.
47 예수님은 나다나엘이 자기에게 오는 것을 보시고 “이 사람이야말로 간사한 것이 없는 진짜 이스라엘 사람이다” 하고 말씀하셨다.
48 나다나엘이 “어떻게 저를 아십니까?” 하고 묻자 “빌립이 너를 부르기 전에 네가 무화과나무 아래에 있는 것을 내가 보았다” 하고 예수님이 대답하셨다.
49 그때 나다나엘이 “선생님은 정말 하나님의 아들이시며 이스라엘의 왕이십니다” 하고 선언하였다.
50 그래서 예수님은 “내가 너를 무화과나무 아래서 보았다고 말한 것 때문에 네가 믿느냐? 너는 이보다 더 큰 일도 볼 것이다” 하시고
51 덧붙여서 이렇게 말씀하셨다. “내가 너희에게 분명히 말하지만 하늘이 열리고 하나님의 천사들이 [m]내 위에 오르락내리락하는 것을 너희가 볼 것이다.”
John 1
The Voice
This Gospel begins not with Jesus’ birth or John’s baptism but with a deliberate echo of the creation story in Genesis. It takes us back before time began to the moment when God interrupts the silence and speaks the cosmos into existence. Only John’s Gospel names Jesus as the Logos and declares that He existed long before time was measured. This Greek word carries a variety of meanings, all relating to the act of speaking. It could be translated “word,” a thought that comes to expression, message, declaration, reason, or the content of preaching; most are found in various translations. It is clear that John means that logos is declared to all creation.
John’s use of logos is unique and has often been rendered as “Word.” While this is a useful translation, even a casual understanding demonstrates that “Word” reflects only part of its meaning. Most readers will interpret “word” as a unit of language—a combination of sounds generally spoken but also written—that carries meaning. To understand what John means, readers need something more than their cultural understanding of “word”; they need a new way of thinking about it. This is why we have chosen to offer another rendering, an interpretive, poetic translation, of what may be one of the most theologically loaded words in Scripture. Since logos essentially refers to the act of speaking or bringing thoughts to expression, we have decided to use the word “voice” to capture that reality. John declares that truth has culminated in the person of Jesus. No single word captures the complete meaning of logos, but “voice” has a number of advantages.
First, “voice” manifests the act of speaking. Voice is that which is spoken and that which is heard; it comes on both sides of any communication event, bridging the gap between sender and receiver. John intends that in Jesus God is speaking and revealing Himself to the world.
Second, a voice is distinct and personal. We can distinguish people from one another simply by their voices. In John 10 Jesus describes the fact that the sheep hear the voice of the shepherd when he calls and they follow, but they refuse to follow a stranger because they do not know his voice (John 10:1-5). John desires that we know Jesus as the Son of God and believe in Him personally as the Good Shepherd.
Third, “voice” is dynamic in that it reflects the robust and powerful activity of a living God. It is historical in that any act of speaking comes to expression and takes place in the real world as a “voice” calling, demanding a response. It challenges any notion that the Christian faith can be reduced to rules, propositions, or doctrines that can be merely believed or dismissed and not lived out in our lives. Since in Jesus God is speaking and revealing Himself to the world, and since in Jesus we hear the Voice of God, then this new reality changes everything so we, too, must change.
In the beginning
1 Before time itself was measured, the Voice was speaking.
The Voice was and is God.
2 This celestial Word remained ever present with the Creator;
3 His speech shaped the entire cosmos.
Immersed in the practice of creating,
all things that exist were birthed in Him.
4 His breath filled all things
with a living, breathing light—
5 A light that thrives in the depths of darkness,
blazes through murky bottoms.
It cannot and will not be quenched.
6 A man named John, who was sent by God, was the first to clearly articulate the source of this Light. 7 This baptizer put in plain words the elusive mystery of the Divine Light so all might believe through him. Some wondered whether he might be the Light, 8 but John was not the Light. He merely pointed to the Light. 9 The true Light, who shines upon the heart of everyone, was coming into the cosmos.
Jesus as the Light does not call out from a distant place but draws near by coming into the world.
10 He entered our world, a world He made; yet the world did not recognize Him. 11 Even though He came to His own people, they refused to listen and receive Him. 12 But for all who did receive and trust in Him, He gave them the right to be reborn as children of God; 13 He bestowed this birthright not by human power or initiative but by God’s will.
14 The Voice took on flesh and became human and chose to live alongside us. We have seen Him, enveloped in undeniable splendor—the one true Son of the Father—evidenced in the perfect balance of grace and truth. 15 John the Baptist testified about Him and shouted, “This is the one I’ve been telling you is coming. He is much greater than I am because He existed long before me.” 16 Through this man we all receive gifts of grace beyond our imagination. 17 You see, Moses gave us rules to live by, but Jesus the Anointed offered us gifts of grace and truth. 18 God, unseen until now, is revealed in the Voice, God’s only Son, straight from the Father’s heart.
Before Jesus comes along, many wonder whether John the Baptist might be the Anointed One sent by God. But when Jesus appears in the wilderness, John points others to Him. John knows his place in God’s redemptive plan: he speaks God’s message, but Jesus is the Word of God. John rejects any messianic claim outright. Jesus, though, accepts it with a smile, but only from a few devoted followers—at least at first. Of course John is crucial to the unfolding drama, but he isn’t the long awaited One sent to free His people. He preaches repentance and tells everybody to get ready for One greater to come along. The One who comes will cleanse humanity in fire and power, he says. John even urges some of his followers to leave him and go follow Jesus.
19 The reputation of John was growing; and many had questions, including Jewish religious leaders from Jerusalem. 28 So some priests and Levites approached John in Bethany just beyond the Jordan River while he was baptizing and bombarded him with questions:[a]
Religious Leaders: Who are you?
John the Baptist: 20 I’m not the Anointed One, if that is what you are asking.
Religious Leaders: 21 Your words sound familiar, like a prophet’s. Is that how we should address you? Are you the Prophet Elijah?
John the Baptist: No, I am not Elijah.
Religious Leaders: Are you the Prophet Moses told us would come?
John the Baptist: No.
Religious Leaders: 22 Then tell us who you are and what you are about because everyone is asking us, especially the Pharisees, and we must prepare an answer.
23 John replied with the words of Isaiah the prophet:
John the Baptist: Listen! I am a voice calling out in the wilderness.
Straighten out the road for the Lord. He’s on His way.[b]
24-25 Then some of those sent by the Pharisees questioned him again.
Religious Leaders: How can you travel the countryside baptizing[c] people if you are not the Anointed One or Elijah or the Prophet?
John the Baptist: 26 Baptizing with water is what I do; but the One whom I speak of, whom we all await, is standing among you; and you have no idea who He is. 27 Though He comes after me, I am not even worthy to unlace His sandals.[d]
The mystery of Jesus’ identity occupies His contemporaries and will continue to occupy generations of believers for centuries to come. As the twelve journey with Him, it gradually becomes clearer who this man is, where He comes from, and how His existence will profoundly affect the rest of human history. The question of “Who is this man?” cannot be answered overnight.
29 The morning after this conversation, John sees Jesus coming toward him. In eager astonishment, he shouts out:
John the Baptist: Look! This man is more than He seems! He is the Lamb sent from God, the sacrifice to erase the sins of the world! 30 He is the One I have been saying will come after me, who existed long before me and is much greater than I am. 31 No one recognized Him—myself included. But I came baptizing[e] with water so that He might be revealed to Israel. 32 As I watched, the Spirit came down like a dove from heaven and rested on Him. 33 I didn’t recognize Him at first, but the One who sent me to baptize told me, “The One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit will be the person you see the Spirit come down and rest upon.” 34 I have seen this with my own eyes and can attest that this One is the Son of God!
35-36 The day after, John saw Him again as he was visiting with two of his disciples. As Jesus walked by, he announced again:
John the Baptist: Do you see Him? This man is the Lamb of God, God’s sacrifice to cleanse our sins.
37 At that moment, the two disciples began to follow Jesus, 38-39 who turned back to them, saying:
Jesus: What is it that you want?
Two Disciples: We’d like to know where You are staying. Teacher, may we remain at Your side today?
Jesus: Come and see. Follow Me, and we will camp together.
It was about four o’clock in the afternoon when they met Jesus. They came and saw where He was staying, but they got more than they imagined. They remained with Him the rest of the day and followed Him for the rest of their lives. 40-41 One of these new disciples, Andrew, rushed to find his brother Simon and tell him they had found the One who is promised, God’s Anointed who will heal the world. 42 As Andrew approached with Simon, Jesus looked into him.
Jesus: Your name is Simon, and your father is called John. But from this day forward you will be known as Peter,[f] the rock.
43-44 The next day Jesus set out to go into Galilee; and when He came upon Philip, He invited him to join them.
Jesus: Follow Me.
Philip, like Andrew and Peter, came from a town called Bethsaida; and he decided to make the journey with Him. 45 Philip found Nathanael, a friend, and burst in with excitement:
Philip: We have found the One. Moses wrote about Him in the Law, all the prophets spoke of the day when He would come, and now He is here—His name is Jesus, son of Joseph the carpenter; and He comes from Nazareth.
Nathanael: 46 How can anything good come from a place like Nazareth?
Philip: Come with me, and see for yourself.
47 As Philip and Nathanael approached, Jesus saw Nathanael and spoke to those standing around Him.
Jesus: Look closely, and you will see an Israelite who is a truth-teller.
Nathanael (overhearing Jesus): 48 How would You know this about me? We have never met.
Jesus: I have been watching you before Philip invited you here. Earlier in the day, you were enjoying the shade and fruit of the fig tree. I saw you then.
Nathanael: 49 Teacher, You are the One—God’s own Son and Israel’s King.
Jesus: 50 Nathanael, if all it takes for you to believe is My telling you I saw you under the fig tree, then what you will see later will astound you. 51 I tell you the truth: before our journey is complete, you will see the heavens standing open while heavenly messengers ascend and descend, swirling around the Son of Man.
Footnotes
Copyright © 1985 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.