Limitless Word
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:14 · Berean Standard Bible · underlined terms are tappable
Parallel translations
  • WEB The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.
  • KJV And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
  • ESV And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
  • NKJV And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
  • NASB And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
  • NLT So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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 eternal Word "became flesh and lived among us" — God did not stay distant but took on humanity in Jesus, full of grace and truth.

Overview

The verb behind "lived among us" evokes the tabernacle — God "pitched his tent" with us. The glory once veiled in the wilderness tent is now seen in a human face. "Grace and truth" deliberately recalls the covenant character of God revealed to Moses (Exod 34:6).

Cross-references & the web

Theme

Cross-references · 40

  • 1 Jn 4:9This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.
  • 1 Tim 3:16By common confession, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was proclaimed among the nations, was believed in throughout the world, was taken up in glory.
  • Gal 4:4But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
  • John 1:1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
  • Isa 40:5And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
  • Heb 1:3The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
  • 1 Jn 1:1–2That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our own eyes, which we have gazed upon and touched with our own hands—this is the Word of life.
  • Phil 2:6–8Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
  • John 6:51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
  • Col 1:19For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him,
  • 1 Cor 15:47The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven.
  • Rom 8:3For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh,
  • Isa 7:14Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call Him Immanuel.
  • Ps 2:7I will proclaim the decree spoken to Me by the LORD: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.
  • 1 Jn 4:14And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.
  • Col 2:9For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.
  • 1 Jn 4:2–3By this you will know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,
  • 2 Jn 1:7For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.
  • Isa 53:2He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
  • John 1:16–18From His fullness we have all received grace upon grace.
  • 1 Tim 1:14–16And the grace of our Lord overflowed to me, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
  • John 3:16For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
  • Luke 1:31–35Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.
  • Rev 21:3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God.
  • Heb 5:5So also Christ did not take upon Himself the glory of becoming a high priest, but He was called by the One who said to Him: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.”
  • John 14:6Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
  • John 2:11Jesus performed this, the first of His signs, at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
  • John 11:40Jesus replied, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
  • Heb 1:5For to which of the angels did God ever say: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father”? Or again: “I will be His Father, and He will be My Son”?
  • 1 Pet 2:4–7As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight,
  • Heb 10:5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You prepared for Me.
  • John 3:18Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
  • John 14:9Jesus replied, “Philip, I have been with you all this time, and still you do not know Me? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
  • John 12:40–41“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so that they cannot see with their eyes, and understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them.”
  • Heb 2:14–17Now since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity, so that by His death He might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil,
  • Luke 9:32Meanwhile Peter and his companions were overcome by sleep, but when they awoke, they saw Jesus’ glory and the two men standing with Him.
  • Isa 60:1–2Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.
  • Matt 17:1–5After six days Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
  • Luke 2:11Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!
  • Rom 9:5Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them proceeds the human descent of Christ, who is God over all, forever worthy of praise! Amen.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Pastoral

  • CommentaryCommentary on John 1Matthew Henry · Free

    Henry on the prologue — rich on the Word and the incarnation.

Seminary

  • ★ Start hereCommentaryThe Gospel According to John (Pillar NT Commentary)D. A. Carson · ~720 pp · Paid · reformed

    The go-to mid-level exegetical commentary on John — rigorous and readable.

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on John 1:14YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.

How John 1:14 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.