Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Parallel translations
- WEB Most certainly, I tell you, he who believes in me has eternal life.
- BSB Truly, truly, I tell you, he who believes has eternal life.
- NKJV Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.
- NASB Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who believes has eternal life.
- NLT “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life.
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
Jesus solemnly declares that whoever believes in Him has eternal life. Faith in Christ brings the present, sure possession of everlasting life.
Overview
With another emphatic 'Most certainly,' Jesus states the gospel in its simplest form: believing yields eternal life now. The present tense 'has' assures believers that this life is already theirs, not merely a future hope. This verse distills the message of John's Gospel into a single promise grounded in faith.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- John 3:36He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
- Col 3:3–4For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
- Rom 5:9–10Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
- John 5:24Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
- John 3:16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
- John 3:18He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
- John 6:40And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.
- John 6:54Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
- John 14:19Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.
- 1 Jn 5:12–13He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
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 6:47 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.