And many followed him. “John didn’t perform miraculous signs,” they remarked to one another, “but everything he said about this man has come true.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Many came to him. They said, “John indeed did no sign, but everything that John said about this man is true.”
- KJV And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true.
- BSB Many came to Him and said, “Although John never performed a sign, everything he said about this man was true.”
- NKJV Then many came to Him and said, “John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true.”
- NASB Many came to Him and were saying, “While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this Man was true.”
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
Many come to Jesus, observing that John did no sign but everything he said about Jesus was true. John's testimony is vindicated.
Overview
The crowds recognize that John, though he worked no miracles, spoke truly in pointing to Christ. This honors the Baptist's faithful witness and shows its lasting fruit. It also underscores that Jesus is the one to whom all true testimony leads.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- John 1:33–34I didn’t recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize in water, he said to me, ‘On whomever you will see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’
- John 1:29–30The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
- Luke 7:26–30But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet.
- Luke 12:1Meanwhile, when a multitude of many thousands had gathered together, so much so that they trampled on each other, he began to tell his disciples first of all, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
- Matt 14:2and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptizer. He is risen from the dead. That is why these powers work in him.”
- Mark 1:37and they found him, and told him, “Everyone is looking for you.”
- John 1:27He is the one who comes after me, who is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I’m not worthy to loosen.”
- Luke 5:1Now while the multitude pressed on him and heard the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.
- Matt 4:23–25Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.
- John 3:26–36They came to John, and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, the same baptizes, and everyone is coming to him.”
- Matt 3:11–12I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.
- John 2:11This beginning of his signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
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 10:41 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.