⁵ Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of ^(A)water and the Spirit he cannot enter into ^(B)the kingdom of God. ^6 (C)That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷ Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born ^[a]again.’ ^8 (D)The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

⁹ Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?” ¹⁰ Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you ^(E)the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? ¹¹ Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(F)we speak of what we know and ^(G)testify of what we have seen, and ^(H)you do not accept our testimony. ¹² If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? ^13 (I)No one has ascended into heaven, but ^(J)He who descended from heaven: ^(K)the Son of Man. ¹⁴ As ^(L)Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must ^(M)the Son of Man ^(N)be lifted up; ¹⁵ so that whoever ^[b]believes will ^(O)in Him have eternal life.

¹⁶ “For God so ^(P)loved the world, that He ^(Q)gave His ^[c](R)only begotten Son, that whoever ^(S)believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God ^(T)did not send the Son into the world ^(U)to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. ^18 (V)He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of ^(W)the ^[d]only begotten Son of God. ¹⁹ This is the judgment, that ^(X)the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for ^(Y)their deeds were evil. ^20 (Z)For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. ²¹ But he who ^(AA)practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

John’s Last Testimony

²² After these things Jesus and His ^(AB)disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He was spending time with them and ^(AC)baptizing. ²³ John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there; and people were coming and were being baptized— ²⁴ for ^(AD)John had not yet been thrown into prison.

²⁵ Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John’s disciples with a Jew about ^(AE)purification. ²⁶ And they came to John and said to him, “^(AF)Rabbi, He who was with you ^(AG)beyond the Jordan, to whom you ^(AH)have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him.” ²⁷ John answered and said, “^(AI)A man can receive nothing unless it ^(AJ)has been given him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves ^[e]are my witnesses that I said, ‘^(AK)I am not the ^[f]Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’ ²⁹ He who has the bride is ^(AL)the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. So this ^(AM)joy of mine has been made full. ³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease.

³¹ “^(AN)He who comes from above is above all, ^(AO)he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. ^(AP)He who comes from heaven is above all. ³² What He has seen and heard, of that He ^(AQ)testifies; and ^(AR)no one receives His testimony. ³³ He who has received His testimony ^(AS)has set his seal to this, that God is true. ³⁴ For He whom God has ^(AT)sent speaks the words of God; ^[g](AU)for He gives the Spirit without measure. ^35 (AV)The Father loves the Son and ^(AW)has given all things into His hand. ³⁶ He who ^(AX)believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who ^(AY)does not ^[h]obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

¹⁸ In the exercise of ^(A)His will He ^(B)brought us forth by ^(C)the word of truth, so that we would be ^[a]a kind of ^(D)first fruits ^[b]among His creatures.

²³ for you have been ^(A)born again ^(B)not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring ^(C)word of God.

²⁹ If you know that ^(A)He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness ^(B)is ^[a]born of Him.

⁹ No one who is ^[a](A)born of God ^(B)practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is ^[b]born of God.