John testified concerning Him. He cried out, saying, “This is He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’”
Parallel translations
- WEB John testified about him. He cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me, for he was before me.’”
- KJV John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.
- NKJV John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ”
- NASB John *testified about Him and called out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who is coming after me has proved to be my superior, because He existed before me.’ ”
- NLT John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’”
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
John the Baptist testified that Jesus, who came after him in time, ranks above him because He existed before him. This affirms Christ's eternal pre-existence.
Overview
John bears public witness that, although Jesus began His ministry after John's and was younger in human years, He 'surpassed' and 'was before' John — pointing to the Word's eternal existence (1:1). The humble forerunner thus exalts the One he announces. This testimony anchors the church's confession of Christ's deity in eyewitness witness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 21
- Matt 3:11I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
- Col 1:17He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
- John 1:29–34The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
- Luke 3:16John answered all of them: “I baptize you with water, but One more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
- John 1:1–2In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
- Matt 3:13–17At that time Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John.
- John 5:33–36You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth.
- John 3:26–36So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about—He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”
- John 1:7–8He came as a witness to testify about the Light, so that through him everyone might believe.
- Mic 5:2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.
- Mark 1:7And he began to proclaim: “After me will come One more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.
- John 17:5And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed.
- John 1:27He is the One who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”
- Rev 1:17–18When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
- Isa 9:6For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
- John 8:58“Truly, truly, I tell you,” Jesus declared, “before Abraham was born, I am!”
- Rev 2:8To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of the First and the Last, who died and returned to life.
- Heb 13:8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
- Phil 2:6–7Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
- Prov 8:22The LORD created me as His first course, before His works of old.
- Rev 1:11saying, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Pastoral
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
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 1:15 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.