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The Vine and the Branches

15 “I am the true Vine. My Father is the One Who cares for the Vine. He takes away any branch in Me that does not give fruit. Any branch that gives fruit, He cuts it back so it will give more fruit. You are made clean by the words I have spoken to you. Get your life from Me and I will live in you. No branch can give fruit by itself. It has to get life from the vine. You are able to give fruit only when you have life from Me. I am the Vine and you are the branches. Get your life from Me. Then I will live in you and you will give much fruit. You can do nothing without Me.

“If anyone does not get his life from Me, he is cut off like a branch and dries up. Such branches are gathered and thrown into the fire and they are burned. If you get your life from Me and My Words live in you, ask whatever you want. It will be done for you.

“When you give much fruit, My Father is honored. This shows you are My followers. I have loved you just as My Father has loved Me. Stay in My love. 10 If you obey My teaching, you will live in My love. In this way, I have obeyed My Father’s teaching and live in His love. 11 I have told you these things so My joy may be in you and your joy may be full.

The Christian with Other Christians

12 “This is what I tell you to do: Love each other just as I have loved you. 13 No one can have greater love than to give his life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do what I tell you. 15 I do not call you servants that I own anymore. A servant does not know what his owner is doing. I call you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from My Father. 16 You have not chosen Me, I have chosen you. I have set you apart for the work of bringing in fruit. Your fruit should last. And whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give it to you.

The Christian and the World

17 “This is what I tell you to do: Love each other. 18 If the world hates you, you know it hated Me before it hated you. 19 If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. You do not belong to the world. I have chosen you out of the world and the world hates you. 20 Remember I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his owner.’ If they made it very hard for Me, they will make it very hard for you also. If they obeyed My teachings, they will obey your teachings also. 21 They will do all these things to you because you belong to Me. They do not know My Father Who sent Me.

22 “I have come and have spoken to them so they are guilty of sin. But now they have no reason to give for keeping their sin any longer. 23 Whoever hates Me, hates My Father also. 24 I have done things among them which no one else has done so they are guilty of sin. But now they have seen these things and have hated Me and My Father. 25 This happened as their Law said it would happen, ‘They hated Me without a reason.’

26 “The Helper (Holy Spirit) will tell about Me when He comes. I will send Him to you from the Father. He is the Spirit of Truth and comes from the Father. 27 You will also tell of Me because you have been with Me from the beginning.

The Vine and the Branches

15 “I am(A) the true vine,(B) and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit,(C) while every branch that does bear fruit(D) he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.(E) Remain in me, as I also remain in you.(F) No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit;(G) apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.(H) If you remain in me(I) and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.(J) This is to my Father’s glory,(K) that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.(L)

“As the Father has loved me,(M) so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands,(N) you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.(O) 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.(P) 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.(Q) 14 You are my friends(R) if you do what I command.(S) 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.(T) 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you(U) so that you might go and bear fruit(V)—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.(W) 17 This is my command: Love each other.(X)

The World Hates the Disciples

18 “If the world hates you,(Y) keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you(Z) out of the world. That is why the world hates you.(AA) 20 Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’[b](AB) If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.(AC) If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21 They will treat you this way because of my name,(AD) for they do not know the one who sent me.(AE) 22 If I had not come and spoken to them,(AF) they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.(AG) 23 Whoever hates me hates my Father as well. 24 If I had not done among them the works no one else did,(AH) they would not be guilty of sin.(AI) As it is, they have seen, and yet they have hated both me and my Father. 25 But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law:(AJ) ‘They hated me without reason.’[c](AK)

The Work of the Holy Spirit

26 “When the Advocate(AL) comes, whom I will send to you from the Father(AM)—the Spirit of truth(AN) who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me.(AO) 27 And you also must testify,(AP) for you have been with me from the beginning.(AQ)

Footnotes

  1. John 15:2 The Greek for he prunes also means he cleans.
  2. John 15:20 John 13:16
  3. John 15:25 Psalms 35:19; 69:4

Abiding in the Vine

15 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the gardener. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He trims so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I will abide in you. The branch cannot itself produce fruit, unless it abides on the vine. Likewise, you cannot produce fruit unless you abide in Me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for apart from Me, you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away like a branch and is dried up. Such branches are picked up and thrown into the fire and burned.

“If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you. In this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be My disciples.”

“Just as the Father has loved Me, I also have loved you. Abide in My love! 10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. 11 These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and your joy may be full.

12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another just as I have loved you. [a] 13 No one has greater love than this: that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do what I command you.

15 “I am no longer calling you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing. Now I have called you friends, because everything I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.

16 “You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I selected you so that you would go and produce fruit, and your fruit would remain. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in My name.

17 “These things I command you, so that you may love one another.”

The World Hates God’s Own

18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own. But you are not of the world, since I have chosen you out of the world; therefore the world hates you.

20 “Remember the word I spoke to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’[b] If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you also. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

21 “But all these things they will do to you for the sake of My name, because they do not know the One who sent Me. 22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin.

23 “He who hates Me also hates My Father. 24 If I had not done works among them that no one else did, they would have no sin. But now they have seen and have hated both Me and My Father. 25 So is fulfilled the word written in their Scripture,[c] ‘They hated Me for no reason.’[d]

26 “When the Helper comes—whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—He will testify about Me. 27 And you also testify, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”

Footnotes

  1. John 15:13 cf. Lev. 19:18.
  2. John 15:20 Jn. 13:16.
  3. John 15:25 Lit. Torah or the Law; cf. Lk. 24:44-45.
  4. John 15:25 cf. Ps. 35:19; 69:5(4); (Heb. sinat chinam).