And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.
Parallel translations
- WEB the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and the three agree as one.
- KJV And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
- BSB the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and these three are in agreement.
- NASB the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
- NLT the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Spirit, the water, and the blood all testify and agree as one. Their united witness confirms the truth of who Jesus is.
Overview
John names the three witnesses: the Spirit's inward testimony and the historical realities of Jesus' baptism (or incarnate ministry) and atoning death. Their agreement provides the legally sufficient testimony required by the law of multiple witnesses. The combined evidence assures believers that their faith in the Son of God rests on solid, God-given ground.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 1 Jn 5:6–7This is he who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.
- John 15:26“When the Counselor has come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me.
- 1 Pet 3:21This is a symbol of baptism, which now saves you — not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
- Acts 2:2–4Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
- Rom 8:16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God;
- Matt 26:26–28As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”
- 2 Cor 1:22who also sealed us, and gave us the down payment of the Spirit in our hearts.
- Matt 28:19Go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
- Mark 14:56For many gave false testimony against him, and their testimony didn’t agree with each other.
- Heb 6:4For concerning those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
- Heb 13:12Therefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people through his own blood, suffered outside of the gate.
- Acts 15:15This agrees with the words of the prophets. As it is written,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Jesus is the Word of life made manifest, the propitiation for our sins, the Son in whom is eternal life — 'that you may know that you have eternal life.'
How 1 John 5:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.