NET Bible Text
3:1 Now a certain man, a Pharisee named Nicodemus, who was a member of the Jewish ruling council, 3:2 came to Jesus at night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs that you do unless God is with him." 3:3 Jesus replied, "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God." 3:4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother's womb and be born a second time, can he?" 3:5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 3:6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 3:7 Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must all be born from above.' 3:8 The wind blows wherever it will, and you hear the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." 3:9 Nicodemus replied, "How can these things be?" 3:10 Jesus answered, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you don't understand these things? 3:11 I tell you the solemn truth, we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony. 3:12 If I have told you people about earthly things and you don't believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 3:13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven - the Son of Man. 3:14 Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 3:15 so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." 3:16 For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 3:17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. 3:18 The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. 3:19 Now this is the basis for judging: that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil. 3:20 For everyone who does evil deeds hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed. 3:21 But the one who practices the truth comes to the light, so that it may be plainly evident that his deeds have been done in God.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
Simple Summary
Nicodemus came to Jesus with respect, but Jesus said that respect and religious status are not enough. A person must be born from above by the Spirit to enter God’s kingdom. Eternal life comes only through faith in the Son of Man who was lifted up.
What This Passage Means
Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a leader in Israel. He came to Jesus at night and spoke as a man impressed by Jesus’ signs. But Jesus did not answer with praise. He gave a solemn truth: unless a person is born from above, he cannot see God’s kingdom.
Nicodemus misunderstood this as a second physical birth. Jesus explained that this new birth is not produced by human flesh. What is born of flesh is flesh. What is born of the Spirit is spirit. To enter God’s kingdom, a person must be born of water and Spirit. Jesus expected Nicodemus, as Israel’s teacher, to know that God had promised cleansing and new life.
Jesus also said that the Spirit’s work is like the wind. People can hear its sound and see its effects, but they do not control it. In the same way, new birth is God’s work, not man’s.
Jesus then turned to his own identity. He came from heaven and speaks what he knows. He said that the Son of Man must be lifted up, just as the bronze serpent was lifted up in the wilderness. Those who believe in him will have eternal life.
The passage ends by showing both salvation and judgment. God loved the world and gave his only Son so that believers would not perish. But those who refuse the Son are already condemned. The light has come, but people love darkness because their deeds are evil. Those who do the truth come to the light, so it can be seen that their deeds are done in God.
Important Truths
- Religious standing, ancestry, and respect for Jesus do not give a person entry into God’s kingdom.
- A person must be born from above. This new birth comes from the Spirit, not from human flesh.
- “Born of water and Spirit” points to God’s cleansing and renewing work.
- The Spirit gives life in a way people cannot control or produce by themselves.
- Jesus speaks with heavenly authority because he came from heaven.
- The Son of Man must be lifted up so that believers may have eternal life.
- God sent his Son to save the world, but only those who believe receive that life.
- Those who reject Jesus are already condemned, and this is tied to loving darkness rather than the light.
Warnings, Promises, or Commands
- Warning: Do not trust religious position, learning, or signs alone. Jesus says a person must be born from above.
- Warning: Do not hide behind darkness. Evil deeds are exposed by the light, and people reject the light because they do not want exposure.
- Promise: Everyone who believes in the Son of Man who was lifted up has eternal life.
- Promise: God gave his only Son because he loved the world and wanted the world to be saved through him.
- Command: Come to the light. Believe in the Son. Receive the new birth that God gives.
- Command: Do not be amazed by the need for new birth. Jesus says this is necessary for everyone.
How This Fits in God's Plan
This passage shows the Son coming from heaven to give the life God promised. It echoes Israel’s Scriptures by pointing to cleansing, Spirit-given renewal, and the lifted-up serpent in the wilderness. In John’s Gospel, Jesus’ lifting up on the cross becomes God’s appointed way for sinners to receive eternal life.
Simple Application
Do not rest in religion, family background, or church knowledge. Ask whether you have been born from above, and believe in Jesus Christ, the lifted-up Son. Come honestly into the light before God instead of hiding sin.