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John 3:14

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,”

John 3:14 · direct translation from the Greek
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With the Greek beneath

14

Explicit type · Numbers 21:8-9

Go to Numbers 21:8-9

Jesus compares his being lifted up with the bronze serpent that Moses set on a pole; in Numbers 21:8-9 whoever looked at it lived.

The biblical author himself makes the connection, in these words:

καθὼς Μωϋσῆς ὕψωσεν τὸν ὄφιν ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ οὕτως ὑψωθῆναι δεῖ τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου “as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up” (John 3:14)

  • ΜωϋσῆςMōysēsG3475מֹשֶׁהmosheH4872“Moses”
  • ὄφινophinG3789נְחַשׁnejashH5175“serpent”

John 3:14, word by word

MosesΜωϋσῆςMōysēs

Moses

Moses, who led Israel out of Egypt and received God's law.

Where else “Mōysēs” appears
lifted upὕψωσενhypsōsen

lift up

To raise something high, as on the cross.

Where else “hypsōsen” appears
the serpentὄφινophin

snake

Snake, serpent.

Where else “ophin” appears
the wildernessἐρήμῳerēmōi

wilderness

Land without people or crops.

Where else “erēmōi” appears
the Sonυἱὸνhuion

Son

Jesus, the Son of God.

Where else “huion” appears
of Manἀνθρώπουanthrōpou

Son of Man

"The Son of Man": what Jesus calls himself.

Where else “anthrōpou” appears
mustδεῖdei

must

Something that has to be done.

Where else “dei” appears

Translation note

It recalls Numbers 21:8-9. “Lifted up” also points to the cross (12:32-33).

The context

13And no one has gone up into heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the Son of Man.

14 · This verse (above)

15so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

Read all of John 3

To study John 3 in a group

  1. 1. What it says

    What does Jesus answer Nicodemus when he visits at night and says God is with him? (vv. 1-8)

  2. 2. What it means

    Verse 16 says God loved the world and gave his Son. What does the text say God wants for the world? (vv. 16-17)

  3. 3. How I live it

    Jesus speaks of those who come to the light and those who prefer darkness (vv. 19-21). What helps you live with more clarity and truth?

How to use it