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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Yhn C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21
Yhn 3 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34 V35 V36
OET (OET-LV) And no_one has_gone_up into the heaven, except not/lest the one having_come_down out_of the heaven, the son of_ the _Man.
OET (OET-RV) None of you have ever gone up into heaven, but I, humanity’s child, have come down from heaven.
This section tells about how a Pharisee called Nicodemus went to visit Jesus. Jesus told Nicodemus that all people need God to change them. Nicodemus could be sure that Jesus was speaking the truth because Jesus came from God.
Here are some other possible section headings:
Jesus told a Pharisee that he needed to change
Everyone must be born again
All people need God to give them a new birth/life
In this paragraph, in verse 10, Jesus began to talk about his authority. He claimed that he had the right to teach about God because he had come from God. In ancient Greek, quotation marks were not used, so it is not always easy to tell where a quotation ends. Different translations end Jesus’ speech at different points. Here are the possibilities:
Jesus’ own words end at the end of 3:21. (NASB, NRSV, ESV, NIV84, REB, NJB, NLT, NCV)
Jesus’ own words end at the end of 3:15. (RSV, NET, GW, NIV11)
Jesus’ own words end at the end of 3:13. (GNT)
It is not clear where the KJV and CEV end the quotation. It is recommended that you follow most English translations and end Jesus’ speech at the end of verse 21.
No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man: This verse is a reference to Proverbs 30:4a, which reads “Who has ascended to heaven and come down?” The question in Proverbs is asking who has brought wisdom from God to earth. Here Jesus answered this question by saying that he himself had been in heaven and had come down from heaven. In that way he brought the knowledge of heavenly things to earth. See the notes on John 1:18. See also John 1:51, where the angels of God are said to “ascend” and “descend” on the Son of Man.
No one has ascended into heaven
No one has gone up into heaven
Only one has been able to enter heaven,
No one has ascended into heaven: This clause is difficult to understand. It probably indicates that no one (but Jesus) had ever been in heaven and come down to earth. As such he was the only one who could truly tell what he had seen and knew of God. The word ascended means “went up.”
Here are other ways to translate this clause:
no one has ever gone up to heaven (GNT)
no one has ever gone to heaven and returned (NLT)
heaven: The word heaven here refers to the place where God lives.
except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man.
except the Son of Man who came from heaven.
the Son of Man, I who came down from heaven.
except the One…the Son of Man: Jesus was referring to himself.There is a textual issue in this verse. (1) Some Greek manuscripts have just the Son of Man. For example: the Son of Man (NIV) (BSB, NIV, RSV. NRSV, CEV, REB, GNT, NLT, GW, NCV, NJB) (2) Other Greek manuscripts have the Son of Man who is in/from heaven. For example: [even] the Son of man which is in heaven. (KJV) (KJV, REB) You should follow option (1) because it has the best manuscript support. Also, most English translations follow this option. In some languages it may be more natural to use a form like “I” or “me” to make that clear. For example:
I, the Son of Man, am the only one
I who became man/human
me, the Son of Man
the Son of Man: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as the Son of Man is more literally “the Son of the human/person.” Jesus used this title to imply two things:
He was a true human being, and he represented all people
He came from God and had authority from God
Try to use an expression that implies both meanings. Here are some possible translations:
the Human-born
the Man from God/Heaven
the Representative of Mankind
Translators have also used expressions that are more literal. These more literal expressions may be suitable where readers are familiar with a literal expression in another translation.
See how you translated this term in 1:51.
See Son of Man in KBT.
“No one…except” is a double negative with a positive emphasis. It indicates that Jesus, the Son of Man, is the only person to have been in heaven and come down to earth. In some languages it is more natural to translate with a positive statement. For example:
The only one who has ever gone up to heaven is the One who came down from heaven—the Son of Man. (NCV)
Who has gone to heaven? I, the true man from God, am the only one, because I came from heaven.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / 123person
ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς
the_‹one› out_of ¬the heaven ˓having˒_come_down
Jesus is referring to himself in the third person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate this in the first person. Alternate translation: [me, the one who descended from heaven]
Note 2 topic: guidelines-sonofgodprinciples
ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Ἀνθρώπου
the_‹one› the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί οὐδείς ἀναβέβηκεν εἰς τόν οὐρανόν εἰ μή ὁ ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καταβάς ὁ Υἱός τοῦ Ἀνθρώπου)
The title Son of Man is equivalent to “Messiah.” Jesus uses it to claim that role subtly and implicitly. You may want to translate this title directly into your language. On the other hand, if you think it would be helpful to your readers, you could state what it means. See the discussion of this phrase in Part 3 of the General Introduction to the Gospel of John. Alternate translation: [the Messiah]
3:13 There is great distance between this world and heaven (see 1:51; 3:31; 6:38, 42). Jesus bridged that distance, validating his divine status by defeating death and returning to heaven (16:5-11).
OET (OET-LV) And no_one has_gone_up into the heaven, except not/lest the one having_come_down out_of the heaven, the son of_ the _Man.
OET (OET-RV) None of you have ever gone up into heaven, but I, humanity’s child, have come down from heaven.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.