Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good be from Nazareth?” Philip *said to him, “Come and see.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
- KJV And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.
- BSB “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip.
- NKJV And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
- NLT “Nazareth!” exclaimed Nathanael. “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” “Come and see for yourself,” Philip replied.
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
Nathanael doubts that anything good can come from Nazareth, but Philip simply says, 'Come and see.' Honest questions are best answered by encountering Jesus Himself.
Overview
Nazareth's obscurity prompts Nathanael's skepticism. Rather than arguing, Philip echoes Jesus' own invitation (1:39): 'Come and see.' This gracious response models how to meet doubt — by leading people to firsthand encounter with Christ, who proves Himself far greater than expectations of His humble origins.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- John 7:52They answered him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search, and see that no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.”
- John 7:41–42Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “What, does the Christ come out of Galilee?
- John 4:29“Come, see a man who told me everything that I did. Can this be the Christ?”
- 1 Th 5:21Test all things, and hold firmly that which is good.
- Luke 12:57Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right?
- Luke 4:28–29They were all filled with wrath in the synagogue, as they heard these things.
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 1:46 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.