Gen 1:1, 2:4, Psa 33:9, 102:25, 146:6, Jer 10:10-12, Joh 1-3 | ESV | STEP | In the beginning , God created the heavens and the earth .

10 ^hBut the Lord is the true God;
ⁱhe is the living God and the everlasting King.
At his wrath the earth quakes,
and the nations cannot endure his indignation.
11 Thus shall you say to them: ^j“The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth ^kshall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.” ^{▼▼This verse is in Aramaic}

12 ^mIt is he who ⁿmade the earth by his power,
^owho established the world by his wisdom,
and ^pby his understanding stretched out the heavens.

John 1

The Word Became Flesh

1 ^qIn the beginning was ^rthe Word, and ^sthe Word was with God, and ^tthe Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 ^uAll things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 ^vIn him was life, ^{▼▼Or was not any thing made. That which has been made was life in him} and ^xthe life was the light of men. 5 ^yThe light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

6 There was a man ^zsent from God, whose name was ^aaJohn. 7 He came as a ^abwitness, to bear witness about the light, ^acthat all might believe through him. 8 ^adHe was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

9 ^aeThe true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet ^afthe world did not know him. 11 He came to ^aghis own, ^{▼▼Greek to his own things; that is, to his own domain, or to his own people} and ^aihis own people ^{▼▼People is implied in Greek} ^akdid not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, ^alwho believed in his name, ^amhe gave the right ^anto become ^aochildren of God, 13 who ^apwere born, ^aqnot of blood ^arnor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

14 And ^asthe Word ^atbecame flesh and ^audwelt among us, ^avand we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of ^awgrace and ^axtruth. 15 ( ^ayJohn bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ^az‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from ^bahis fullness we have all received, ^bbgrace upon grace. ^{▼▼Or grace in place of grace} 17 For ^bdthe law was given through Moses; ^begrace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 ^bfNo one has ever seen God; ^bgthe only God, ^{▼▼Or the only One, who is God; some manuscripts the only Son} who is at the Father’s side, ^{▼▼Greek in the bosom of the Father} ^bjhe has made him known.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

19 And this is the ^bktestimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ^bl“Who are you?” 20 ^bmHe confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? ^bnAre you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you ^bothe Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am ^bpthe voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight ^{▼▼Or crying out, ‘In the wilderness make straight} the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

24 (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) 25 They asked him, ^br“Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, ^bs“I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even ^bthe who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” 28 These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Behold, the Lamb of God

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, ^buthe Lamb of God, who ^bvtakes away the sin ^bwof the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ^bx‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but ^byfor this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John ^bzbore witness: ^ca“I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and ^cbit remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but ^cche who sent me to baptize ^cdwith water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, ^cethis is he who baptizes ^cfwith the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, ^cgthe Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, ^ch“What are you seeking?” And they said to him, ^ci“Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. ^{▼▼That is, about 4 p.m.} 40 ^ckOne of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus ^{▼▼Greek him} was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found ^cmthe Messiah” (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of ^cnJohn. You shall be called ^coCephas” (which means ^cpPeter ^{▼▼ Cephas and Peter are from the word for rock in Aramaic and Greek, respectively}).

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

43 ^crThe next day Jesus decided ^csto go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now ^ctPhilip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found ^cuNathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom ^cvMoses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus ^cwof Nazareth, ^cxthe son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, ^cy“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, ^czan Israelite indeed, ^dain whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to him, “How ^dbdo you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, ^dc“Rabbi, ^ddyou are the Son of God! You are the ^deKing of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” 51 And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^{▼▼The Greek for you is plural; twice in this verse} you will see ^dgheaven opened, and ^dhthe angels of God ascending and descending on ^dithe Son of Man.”

John 2

The Wedding at Cana

1 On ^djthe third day there was a wedding at ^dkCana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with ^dlhis disciples. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, ^dm“Woman, ^dnwhat does this have to do with me? ^doMy hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Now there were six stone water jars there ^dpfor the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty ^dqgallons. ^{▼▼Greek two or three measures (metrētas); a metrētēs was about 10 gallons or 35 liters} 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. 9 When the master of the feast tasted ^dsthe water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested ^dthis glory. And ^duhis disciples believed in him.

12 After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and ^dvhis brothers ^{▼▼Or brothers and sisters. The plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) refers to siblings in a family. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, adelphoi may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters} and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

13 ^dxThe Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus ^dywent up to Jerusalem. 14 ^dzIn the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. 15 And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. 16 And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make ^eamy Father’s house a house of trade.” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, ^eb“Zeal for your house will consume me.”

18 So the Jews said to him, ^ec“What sign do you show us for doing these things?” 19 Jesus answered them, ^ed“Destroy this temple, and in three days ^eeI will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, ^{▼▼Or This temple was built forty-six years ago} and will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he was speaking about ^egthe temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, ^ehhis disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed ^eithe Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

Jesus Knows What Is in Man

23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name ^ejwhen they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus ^ekon his part did not entrust himself to them, because ^elhe knew all people 25 and needed no one to bear witness about man, for ^emhe himself knew what was in man.

John 3

You Must Be Born Again

1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named ^enNicodemus, ^eoa ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus ^{▼▼Greek him} ^eqby night and said to him, ^er“Rabbi, ^eswe know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do ^etunless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is ^euborn ^evagain ^{▼▼Or from above; the Greek is purposely ambiguous and can mean both again and from above; also verse 7} he cannot ^exsee the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born ^eyof water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 ^ezThat which is born of the flesh is ^faflesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ^{▼▼The same Greek word means both wind and spirit} 7 ^fcDo not marvel that I said to you, ‘You ^{▼▼The Greek for you is plural here} must be born ^feagain.’ 8 ^ffThe wind ^{▼▼The same Greek word means both wind and spirit} blows ^fhwhere it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

9 Nicodemus said to him, ^fi“How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel ^fjand yet you do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, ^fkwe speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but ^flyou ^{▼▼The Greek for you is plural here; also four times in verse 12} do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 ^fnNo one has ^foascended into heaven except ^fphe who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. ^{▼▼Some manuscripts add who is in heaven} 14 And ^fras Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man ^fsbe lifted up, 15 that whoever believes ^ftin him ^fumay have eternal life. ^{▼▼Some interpreters hold that the quotation ends at verse 15}

For God So Loved the World

16 “For ^fwGod so loved ^fxthe world, ^{▼▼Or For this is how God loved the world} ^fzthat he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not ^gaperish but have eternal life. 17 For ^gbGod did not send his Son into the world ^gcto condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 ^gdWhoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not ^gebelieved in the name of the only Son of God. 19 ^gfAnd this is the judgment: ^ggthe light has come into the world, and ^ghpeople loved the darkness rather than the light because ^githeir works were evil. 20 ^gjFor everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, ^gklest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever ^gldoes what is true ^gmcomes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

John the Baptist Exalts Christ

22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and ^gnwas baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized 24 (for ^goJohn had not yet been put in prison).

25 Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over ^gppurification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, ^gq“Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, ^grto whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and ^gsall are going to him.” 27 John answered, ^gt“A person cannot receive even one thing ^guunless it is given him ^gvfrom heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ^gw‘I am not the Christ, but ^gxI have been sent before him.’ 29 ^gyThe one who has the bride is the bridegroom. ^gzThe friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, ^harejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 ^hbHe must increase, but I must decrease.” ^{▼▼Some interpreters hold that the quotation continues through verse 36}

31 ^hdHe who comes from above ^heis above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and ^hfspeaks in an earthly way. ^hgHe who comes from heaven ^hhis above all. 32 ^hiHe bears witness to what he has seen and heard, ^hjyet no one receives his testimony. 33 Whoever receives his testimony ^hksets his seal to this, ^hlthat God is true. 34 For he whom ^hmGod has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit ^hnwithout measure. 35 ^hoThe Father loves the Son and ^hphas given all things into his hand. 36 ^hqWhoever believes in the Son has eternal life; ^hrwhoever does not obey the Son shall not ^hssee life, but the wrath of God remains on him.