요한복음 3
Korean Living Bible
한밤의 방문객
3 바리새파 사람 중에 니고데모라는 사람이 있었다. 그는 유대인의 [a]의회 의원이었다.
2 그가 어느 날 밤, 예수님께 와서 “선생님, 우리는 당신을 하나님께서 보내신 분이라고 알고 있습니다. 하나님이 함께하시지 않으면 선생님이 베푸시는 기적을 아무도 행할 수 없습니다” 하고 말하였다.
3 그래서 예수님은 니고데모에게 “내가 분명히 너에게 말하지만 누구든지 [b]다시 나지 않으면 하나님의 나라를 볼 수 없다” 하고 대답하셨다.
4 니고데모가 예수님께 “사람이 늙으면 어떻게 다시 날 수 있겠습니까? 어머니 뱃속에 들어갔다가 다시 태어난다는 말씀입니까?” 하고 묻자
5 예수님은 이렇게 대답하셨다. “내가 분명히 말해 두지만 누구든지 물과 성령으로 다시 나지 않으면 하나님의 나라에 들어갈 수가 없다.
6 육체에서 난 것은 육체이고 성령으로 난 것은 영이다.
7 너는 다시 나야 한다는 내 말을 이상히 여기지 말아라.
8 바람은 불고 싶은 대로 분다. 너는 그 소리를 들어도 어디서 불어와서 어디로 가는지 모른다. 성령으로 난 사람도 다 이와 같다.”
9 그때 니고데모가 “어떻게 이런 일이 있을 수 있겠습니까?” 하고 물었다.
10 그래서 예수님이 그에게 대답하셨다. “너는 이스라엘의 선생이면서 이런 것도 모르느냐?
11 내가 사실대로 말하지만 우리가 아는 것을 말하고 본 것을 증거해도 너희는 우리 증거를 받아들이지 않는다.
12 내가 세상 일을 말해도 너희가 믿지 않는데 하늘의 일을 말한다면 어떻게 믿겠느냐?
13 하늘에서 내려온 [c]나 외에는 아무도 하늘에 올라간 사람이 없다.
14 모세가 광야에서 뱀을 쳐든 것같이 나도 높이 들려야 한다.
15 이것은 나를 믿는 사람마다 영원한 생명을 얻도록 하기 위해서이다.
16 “하나님이 세상을 무척 사랑하셔서 하나밖에 없는 외아들마저 보내 주셨으니 누구든지 그를 믿기만 하면 멸망하지 않고 영원한 생명을 얻는다.
17 하나님은 세상을 심판하시려고 아들을 보내신 것이 아니라 그를 통해서 세상을 구원하시려고 보내셨다.
18 그를 믿는 사람은 [d]심판을 받지 않지만 믿지 않는 사람은 하나님의 외아들의 이름을 믿지 않기 때문에 이미 심판을 받은 것이다.
19 심판의 근거는 빛이 세상에 왔으나 사람들이 자기들의 행위가 악하므로 빛보다 어두움을 더 사랑한 바로 그것이다.
20 악을 행하는 사람은 누구나 자기 행위가 드러날까 봐 빛을 미워하며 빛으로 나아오지 않는다.
21 그러나 진리대로 사는 사람은 자기가 하나님의 뜻을 따라 살고 있다는 것을 나타내기 위해서 빛으로 나아온다.”
세례 요한과 예수님
22 그 후에 예수님은 제자들과 함께 유대 지방으로 가셔서 얼마 동안 거기에 머물러 계시면서 [e]세례를 주셨다.
23 요한도 물이 많은 살렘 부근의 애논에서 세례를 주자 사람들이 그에게 와서 세례를 받았다.
24 이 때는 요한이 아직 감옥에 갇히기 전이었다.
25 그런데 요한의 제자들과 어떤 유대인 사이에 정결 의식에 대한 말다툼이 벌어졌다.
26 그래서 요한의 제자들이 요한에게 찾아가 “선생님, 선생님과 함께 요단강 저편에 있던 분, 곧 선생님이 말씀하시던 그분이 세례를 주므로 사람들이 모두 그분에게 몰려가고 있습니다” 하고 말하자
27 요한이 이렇게 대답하였다. “[f]하나님이 주시지 않으면 사람은 아무것도 받을 수 없다.
28 나는 그리스도가 아니라 그분 앞에 보내심을 받은 사람이라고 하지 않았느냐? 너희는 그것을 직접 들은 증인이다.
29 신부를 맞이하는 것은 신랑이지만 신랑의 친구가 곁에 섰다가 그의 음성을 듣고 크게 기뻐한다. 마찬가지로 나에게도 이런 기쁨이 넘치고 있다.
30 그분은 점점 번영해야 하고 나는 점점 쇠퇴해야 한다.
31 “위에서 오시는 분은 그 무엇보다도 높은 분이시다. 땅에서 나는 사람은 땅에 속하여 세상 일을 말하지만 하늘에서 오시는 분은 그 무엇보다도 높은 분이시다.
32 그분이 보고 들은 것을 증거하여도 그분의 증거를 받아들이는 사람이 없다.
33 그분의 증거를 받아들인 사람은 하나님이 참되신 분이라는 것을 [g]인정하였다.
34 하나님이 보내신 분은 하나님의 말씀을 하신다. 이것은 하나님이 그분에게 성령을 한없이 주시기 때문이다.
35 아버지께서는 아들을 사랑하셔서 모든 것을 그분의 손에 맡기셨다.
36 누구든지 아들을 믿는 사람은 영원한 생명을 소유하게 되지만 아들을 [h]믿지 않고 거절하는 사람은 [i]영원한 생명을 얻지 못하고 오히려 하나님의 형벌을 받게 된다.”
John 3
New King James Version
The New Birth
3 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 (A)This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for (B)no one can do these signs that You do unless (C)God is with him.”
3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, (D)unless one is born [a]again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
4 Nicodemus 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?”
5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, (E)unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is (F)flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 (G)The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
9 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, (H)“How can these things be?”
10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? 11 (I)Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and (J)you do not receive Our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 (K)No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man [b]who is in heaven. 14 (L)And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so (M)must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever (N)believes in Him should [c]not perish but (O)have eternal life. 16 (P)For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten (Q)Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 (R)For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
18 (S)“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, (T)that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For (U)everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been (V)done in God.”
John the Baptist Exalts Christ
22 After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them (W)and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near (X)Salim, because there was much water there. (Y)And they came and were baptized. 24 For (Z)John had not yet been thrown into prison.
25 Then there arose a dispute between some of John’s disciples and the Jews about purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, (AA)to whom you have testified—behold, He is baptizing, and all (AB)are coming to Him!”
27 John answered and said, (AC)“A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, (AD)‘I am not the Christ,’ but, (AE)‘I have been sent before Him.’ 29 (AF)He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but (AG)the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. 30 (AH)He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 (AI)He who comes from above (AJ)is above all; (AK)he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. (AL)He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 And (AM)what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. 33 He who has received His testimony (AN)has certified that God is true. 34 (AO)For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit (AP)by measure. 35 (AQ)The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. 36 (AR)He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the (AS)wrath of God abides on him.”
John 3
International Children’s Bible
Jesus and Nicodemus
3 There was a man named Nicodemus who was one of the Pharisees. He was an important Jewish leader. 2 One night Nicodemus came to Jesus. He said, “Teacher, we know that you are a teacher sent from God. No one can do the miracles you do, unless God is with him.”
3 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Unless you are born again, you cannot be in God’s kingdom.”
4 Nicodemus said, “But if a man is already old, how can he be born again? He cannot enter his mother’s body again. So how can he be born a second time?”
5 But Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. Unless you are born from water and the Spirit, you cannot enter God’s kingdom. 6 A person’s body is born from his human parents. But a person’s spiritual life is born from the Spirit. 7 Don’t be surprised when I tell you, ‘You must all be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wants to go. You hear the wind blow. But you don’t know where the wind comes from or where it is going. It is the same with every person who is born from the Spirit.”
9 Nicodemus asked, “How can all this be possible?”
10 Jesus said, “You are an important teacher in Israel. But you still don’t understand these things? 11 I tell you the truth. We talk about what we know. We tell about what we have seen. But you don’t accept what we tell you. 12 I have told you about things here on earth, but you do not believe me. So surely you will not believe me if I tell you about the things of heaven! 13 The only one who has ever gone up to heaven is the One who came down from heaven—the Son of Man.[a]
14 “Moses lifted up the snake in the desert.[b] It is the same with the Son of Man. The Son of Man must be lifted up too. 15 Then everyone who believes in him can have eternal life.
16 “For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son. God gave his Son so that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but have eternal life. 17 God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him. 18 He who believes in God’s Son is not judged guilty. He who does not believe has already been judged guilty, because he has not believed in God’s only Son. 19 People are judged by this fact: I am the Light from God that has come into the world. But men did not want light. They wanted darkness because they were doing evil things. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light. He will not come to the light because it will show all the evil things he has done. 21 But he who follows the true way comes to the light. Then the light will show that the things he has done were done through God.”
Jesus and John the Baptist
22 After this, Jesus and his followers went into the area of Judea. There Jesus stayed with his followers and baptized people. 23 John was also baptizing in Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were going there to be baptized. 24 (This was before John was put into prison.)
25 Some of John’s followers had an argument with a Jew about religious washing.[c] 26 So they came to John and said, “Teacher, remember the man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you spoke about? He is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
27 John answered, “A man can get only what God gives him. 28 You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Christ. I am only the one God sent to prepare the way for him.’ 29 The bride belongs only to the bridegroom. The friend who helps the bridegroom waits and listens for him. He is glad when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That is the same pleasure I have. And my time of joy is now here. 30 He must become greater. And I must become less important.
The One Who Comes from Heaven
31 “The One who comes from above is greater than all. He who is from the earth belongs to the earth and talks about things on the earth. But the One who comes from heaven is greater than all. 32 He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts what he says. 33 The person who accepts what he says has proven that God is true. 34 God sent him, and he tells the things that God says. God gives him the Spirit fully. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given him power over everything. 36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life. But he who does not obey the Son will never have that life. God’s anger stays with him.”
Footnotes
- 3:13 the Son of Man Some Greek copies continue, “who is in heaven.”
- 3:14 Moses . . . desert. The people of Israel were dying from snake bites. God told Moses to put a bronze snake on a pole. The people who looked at the snake were healed (Numbers 21:4–9).
- 3:25 religious washing The Jews washed themselves in special ways before eating, before worshiping in the Temple, and at other special times.
John 3
King James Version
3 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
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 only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.
22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized.
23 And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized.
24 For John was not yet cast into prison.
25 Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying.
26 And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.
27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.
28 Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him.
29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.
30 He must increase, but I must decrease.
31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.
32 And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.
33 He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true.
34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
Copyright © 1985 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.