Of all of the in-your-face biblical “told-you-so’s” - John 3:16 takes the cake as the most “duh” verses that Christians quote to convert people to their view of God.

What more could be said about the verse that is the pillar of Fundamentalist, Evangelical, Mainstream Christian, Catholic, Mormon, Jehova’s Witness and David Koresh ”proof”?    [1] Here’s the verse in the “Authorized” (King James) version thanks to [2] biblegateway.com.

Some questions should be asked - so I did.

“God so loved the world”.

God - who does this mean? God the Father, God the Son or God the Holy Spirit?  Did Jesus the Son so love the world that he gave himself?  Or did God the Father so love the world that he gave himself?  Does the Holy Spirit give the Son or God or himself?

So - Does this adverb measure his love, “it’s soooooooooo big”, or is it a statement of “so…..” therefore, given that, because of….?

Loved - Is this past tense ?  Does he still love?…to the same degree?  Was it the condition of the world at the time that he loved, or does he continue to love the condition of the world today?  If so, why not say Loves instead of Loved?

World - Is this geographic and geologic, nature? Or to people?  Perhaps the universe?

… that He gave His only begotten son…

Gave - What does this mean?  Gave only to those with open hands - ready to receive, or did he give to everyone? 

Only begotten son - Ummm.. refer to the question about God.  Does this mean Mary’s only son? If he’s “begotten” how is he eternal?

…that whosoever believeth in him…

Whosoever - Again is this limited only to a few?  Can people choose to be a whosoever?

Believeth - Even the devil believes - surely there is some qualification of belief?

In Him- Some versions say “On Him“.  In what he says, what he did, that he existed? Jesus, God and the Holy Spirit, or just Jesus? On the foundation of Him?

…should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Perish - Die? Go to hell? Die for a while?  Experience the wrath of God? Whosover shall not perish, or everybody?

Everlasting Life - Live forever? Go to heaven? Live again? Be resurrected? Live until the second coming? Some versions say “age-enduring” or “of the ages” does that mean until the end of time? Then what?

Ok.  Surely there are answers to these questions.  But they are not easily uncovered.  Which version should we use to answer these questions?  Obviously the inspired words were written in Greek.  But who can interpret ancient Greek?  We’re now left with a challenge to our faith.  This challenge reduces us to “version wars” which detracts from our ability to dig deeper. 

Technology today has opened a plethora of study tools that open the Greek to the common student of scripture.  A [3] Greek text with sublinear renderings of this verse is helpful and available from [4] scripture4all.org and other sources. 

The answers are in the Greek text, not in man-made translations. 

My next post will open up the Greek text for word-by-word rendering and deeper revelation of this most promise-filled truth from the scripture.

Stay tuned.