He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Parallel translations
- WEB He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned.
- BSB Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
- NKJV He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
- NASB The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned.
- NLT Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned.
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
Those who believe and are baptized will be saved; those who refuse to believe will be condemned. Salvation hinges on faith in Christ.
Overview
The verse joins faith with baptism as the believer's response to the gospel, while making clear that the decisive ground of condemnation is unbelief, not lack of baptism. Salvation comes through trusting the crucified and risen Lord. The contrast presses the urgency of receiving the message the church is sent to preach.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 36
- John 11:25–26Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
- 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.
- Rom 10:9–14That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
- John 3:18–19He 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 3:15–16That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
- Acts 2:38Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
- 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 8:24I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
- John 12:46–48I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
- 1 Jn 5:10–13He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.
- John 6:29Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.
- John 3:5Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
- Acts 10:43To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
- John 7:37–38In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
- John 20:31But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.
- Acts 16:30–32And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
- Rev 20:15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
- 1 Pet 3:21The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:
- John 6:35And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
- Mark 1:15And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
- Acts 22:16And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
- 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.
- Acts 2:41Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
- John 1:12–13But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
- 1 Pet 1:21Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
- Matt 28:19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
- Luke 8:12Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
- Heb 10:38–39Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
- Rev 21:8But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
- Acts 13:39And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
- Acts 8:36–39And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
- Rom 4:24But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;
- 2 Th 2:12That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
- 2 Th 1:8In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
- Acts 13:46Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.
- Rom 3:6God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 16:16 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
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