Nicodemus Interviews Jesus

Nicodemus Interviews Jesus, John 3:1-21

John 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; 2 this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these [a]signs that You do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born [b]again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

4 Nicodemus *said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born [c]again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

9 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. 12 If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. 14 As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 15 so that whoever [d]believes will in Him have eternal life.

16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His [e]only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the [f]only begotten Son of God. 19 This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”

Footnotes
a. John 3:2 Or attesting miracles
b. John 3:3 Or from above
c. John 3:7 Or from above
d. John 3:15 Or believes in Him will have eternal life
e. John 3:16 Or unique, only one of His kind
f. John 3:18 Or unique, only one of His kind

Commentary
To get into this study, let’s first start with the setting. Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, and there must be a reason this is specifically mentioned. First, the nighttime setting gave Nicodemus a chance to have Jesus’ undivided attention, since there were no other crowds around. Also, based on other passages throughout the New Testament, I would say it was unpopular among the religious elite to show regard for Jesus, and Nicodemus didn’t want to be spotted. The phrase “we know” seems to imply Nicodemus was a member of a group of religious leaders who were convinced Jesus was sent from God, and the other members of the group may also have encouraged him to maintain anonymity for their sake.

Several times throughout this passage, Jesus replies to Nicodemus in a way that doesn’t seem to directly address Nicodemus’ question or statement. This first occurs in verse 3. The original word for “again” in verse 3 can also connote “from above”, so this passage could be translated, “unless a person is born from above he cannot see the kingdom of God” (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1302). Jesus elaborates on the concept of new life by saying man must be “born of water and of the Spirit. There are three interpretations as to the meaning of water: it refers to the washing of the water of God’s Word (1 Pet 1:23); it refers to baptism; or it refers to physical birth. The latter of the three seems to be the most logical,” especially given that Jesus goes on to explain that flesh produces flesh, while the Spirit produces the spiritual (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1302). The reason Jesus jumps into this concept, rather than acknowledging Nicodemus’ statement (that Jesus must have been sent from God), is not entirely clear. It could be ancient literary style that skips over actions or dialogue that aren’t relevant to the author’s objective, or it could be a cultural play on words that doesn’t translate well. Or that Jesus had such urgency to convey His principle message during His brief audience with Nicodemus that He just dove right in. It was, after all, a very important message for Nicodemus to hear. As a Pharisee, Nicodemus would have believed his salvation came from being a physical descendant of Abraham (The Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Vol 4 pg. 435). Jesus needed to explain to him that his physical genealogy was irrelevant to his salvation.

As Jesus continues to teach Nicodemus, He reminds him that the people following Jesus are sharing with others about things they have personally seen or experienced in the flesh. Religious leaders find themselves disbelieving this hard evidence, so Jesus poses a rhetorical question about how the leaders think they will come to understand and believe heavenly spiritual matters if they can’t bring themselves to acknowledge earthly spiritual occurrences. As Christ is the only link between the two (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1302), He performs earthly proofs in order to create an unimpeachable witness to the heavenly truths about which He teaches.

Jesus’ next reference, to the serpent in Numbers 21, has some interesting layers of meaning. Original sin caused the punishment of both man and serpents, specifically, and part of the curse is that they will have an ongoing struggle with one another throughout history. Then in Moses’ day, God gave the Israelites a chance to preserve themselves from the physical death of the serpent’s bite. Later, when Jesus came to Earth, God gave man a chance to preserve himself from inevitable spiritual death due to the serpent’s original deceit. Read the passage from Numbers in the scripture reference section below, and consider the parallels. “God commanded Moses to make a brass serpent, so that when the sick looked to that serpent, they would be healed. The Son of Man must be lifted up (on the cross) so that man bitten by the serpent of sin might have life eternal” (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1302). This is just another of the thousand ways the Bible points to Jesus and credits His ministry and legitimacy.

Jesus elaborates on this point in the most widely memorized verse in the Bible, John 3:16. People often follow by memorizing verse 17, but we almost always forget verse 16 begins with the conjunction “for”, which grammatically ties both 16 and 17 to the idea first stated in verses 14 and 15 (that the Son of Man must be lifted up, like the brass serpent, to save). Followed by verses 18 and 19, Jesus’ point to Nicodemus is that he needs to reevaluate his Jewish belief that the Messiah would come to condemn the Gentiles (Amos 5:18-20). Rather, Jesus came to save and redeem anyone in the entire world who chooses to believe in Him, and condemnation is reserved only for those who do not believe (Nelson KJV Bible Commentary pg. 1302). This passage is meant to reset deeply held beliefs, redrawing the lines of salvation, not between descendants of Abraham and Gentiles, Haves and Have-Nots, or pious and sinners, but between believers and rejecters. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.”

As I work through the study of the gospel, I often find myself picturing the way this all sounds to a non-believer, or how Jesus must have sounded to people when He emerged from anonymity to declare that people needed to believe in Him. I think about how many crazy people have convinced others to put their faith in them in recent years, and how all the rest of us are baffled that their followers could have been so duped. So what’s the difference between Jesus and false messiahs? A few things come to mind. Firstly, Jesus did not ask people to physically harm themselves, or coerce women into becoming His wives to bear His children, and none of His other teaching resulted in a personal earthly advantage to Him. Even fame, which some may consider a reward or advantage, resulted, in Jesus’ case, in increasing threats to His life until His eventual execution in the most inhumane manner. Also, those who demonstrated interest in following Him risked the same persecution, which is why Nicodemus met with Him in the night and, even after being convinced, only hesitantly defends Jesus later in the gospel accounts. There is a lot of other evidence to support Jesus’ legitimacy, but, as it pertains to this study, I’ll leave it at that for now.

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2019/06/20/johns-last-testimony/

Scripture References
For those of you who use the scripture reference section, you might notice it got a LOT longer this time. That is not only due to the fact that this particular passage has a lot of cross references, but also that I started using a different resource to copy and paste them. Rather than manually copying down all the cross references from my New American Standard Bible, I decided to copy and paste all the references from the verses on biblehub.com, which has many, many more scriptures listed than my Bible does. Since there are so many more, I sub-divided the list with headings for each verse, so you could see which verses cross-reference which concepts. I omitted any cross-reference verses which fall within the same passage we are studying.

Verse 1

John 7:50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier, and who himself was one of them, asked,

John 19:39 Nicodemus, who had previously come to Jesus at night, also brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.

Luke 23:13 Then Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people,

John 7:26 Yet here He is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying anything to Him. Have the rulers truly recognized that this is the Christ?

John 7:48 “Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in Him?

Verse 2

1 Kings 17:24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is truth.”

Jeremiah 38:16 But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah secretly, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you or hand you over to these men who are seeking your life.”

Matthew 23:7 the greetings in the marketplaces, and the title of ‘Rabbi’ by which they are addressed.

Matthew 23:8 But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers.

John 2:11 Jesus performed this, the first of His signs, at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

John 3:26 So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about–He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”

John 4:31 Meanwhile, the disciples urged Him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

John 6:2 A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He had performed on the sick.

John 9:33 If this man were not from God, He could do no such thing.”

John 10:38 But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.”

John 14:10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words I say to you, I do not speak on My own. Instead, it is the Father dwelling in Me, performing His works.

Acts 2:22 Men of Israel, listen to this message: Jesus of Nazareth was a man certified by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know.

Acts 10:38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him.

Verse 3

Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 21:31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Mark 9:47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,

Mark 10:14 But When Jesus saw this, He was indignant and told them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them! For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!
James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.

1 Peter 1:23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.

1 John 3:9 Anyone born of God refuses to practice sin, because God’s seed abides in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.

1 John 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves the one born of Him.

1 John 5:4 because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.

Verse 5

Ezekiel 36:25 I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.

Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Matthew 19:24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 21:31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.

Mark 9:47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,

Mark 10:14 But When Jesus saw this, He was indignant and told them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not hinder them! For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

John 1:13 children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.

1 Corinthians 15:50 Now I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

Ephesians 5:26 to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,

Titus 3:5 He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

Verse 6

John 1:13 children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.

Romans 7:18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh; for I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.

1 Corinthians 15:50 Now I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable

Verse 8

Psalm 135:7 He causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth. He sends lightning with the rain and brings the wind from His storehouses.

Ecclesiastes 1:6 Blowing southward, then turning northward, round and round the wind swirls, ever returning on its course.

Ecclesiastes 11:5 As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the bones are formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

Ezekiel 37:9 Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and tell it that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, so that they may live!'”

Verse 10

Luke 2:46 Finally, after three days they found Him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

Luke 5:17 One day Jesus was teaching, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. People had come from Jerusalem and from every village of Galilee and Judea, and the power of the Lord was present for Him to heal the sick.

Acts 5:34 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a short time.

Verse 11

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known.

John 3:32 He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony.

John 7:16 “My teaching is not My own,” Jesus replied. “It comes from Him who sent Me.

John 8:26 “I have much to say about you and much to judge. But the One who sent Me is truthful, and what I have heard from Him, I tell the world.”

John 8:28 So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own, but speak exactly what the Father has taught Me.

John 12:49 I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it.

John 14:24 Whoever does not love Me does not keep My words. The word that you hear is not My own, but it is from the Father who sent Me.

Verse 13

Deuteronomy 30:12 It is not in heaven, that you would need to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it for us and proclaim it, that we may obey it?”

Proverbs 30:4 Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son–surely you know!

Matthew 8:20 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”

John 3:31 The One who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks as one from the earth. The One who comes from heaven is above all.

John 6:38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.

John 6:42 They were asking, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, ‘I have come down from heaven?'”

John 6:62 Then what will happen if you see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?

Acts 2:34 For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand,

Romans 10:6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down)

Ephesians 4:9 What does “He ascended” mean, except that He also descended to the lower parts of the earth?

Verse 14

Numbers 21:8 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.”

Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze serpent, he would recover.

Isaiah 11:10 On that day the root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples. The nations will seek Him, and His place of rest will be glorious.

Matthew 8:20 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.”

John 6:51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”

John 8:28 So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own, but speak exactly what the Father has taught Me.

John 12:32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”

John 12:34 The crowd replied, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ will remain forever. So how can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?”

John 18:32 This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.

Verse 15

Numbers 21:9 So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze serpent, he would recover.

Isaiah 11:10 On that day the root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples. The nations will seek Him, and His place of rest will be glorious.

Matthew 25:46 And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

John 6:27 Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”

John 20:31 But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.

1 John 2:25 And this is the promise that He Himself made to us: eternal life.

1 John 5:11 And this is that testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

1 John 5:12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Verse 16

Genesis 22:2 “Take your son,” God said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known.

John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”

John 6:40 For it is My Father’s will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies.

Romans 5:8 But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?

Ephesians 2:4 But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

2 Thessalonians 2:16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God our Father, who by grace has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope,

Hebrews 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

1 John 3:1 Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.

1 John 4:9 This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.

1 John 4:10 And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood,

Verse 17

John 3:34 For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.

John 5:36 But I have testimony more substantial than that of John. For the works that the Father has given Me to accomplish–the very works I am doing–testify about Me that the Father has sent Me.

John 5:38 nor does His word abide in you, because you do not believe the One He sent.

John 6:29 Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent.”

John 6:38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me.

John 6:57 Just as the living Father sent Me and I live because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on Me will live because of Me.

John 7:29 but I know Him, because I am from Him and He sent Me.”

John 8:11 “No one, Lord,” she answered. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Now go and sin no more.”

John 8:15 You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.

John 10:36 then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?

John 11:42 I knew that You always hear Me, but I say this for the benefit of the people standing here, so they may believe that You sent Me.”

John 12:47 As for anyone who hears My words and does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I have not come to judge the world, but to save the world.

John 17:3 Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.

John 17:8 For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

John 17:18 As You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world.

John 17:21 that all of them may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

John 17:23 I in them and You in Me–that they may be perfectly united, so that the world may know that You sent Me and have loved them just as You have loved Me.

John 17:25 Righteous Father, although the world has not known You, I know You, and they know that You sent Me.

John 20:21 Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so also I am sending you.”

1 John 4:14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.

Verse 18

Mark 16:16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

John 1:12 But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God–

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known.

John 5:24 Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment. Indeed, he has crossed over from death to life.

Hebrews 3:19 So we see that it was because of their unbelief that they were unable to enter.

1 John 3:23 And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and we should love one another just as He commanded us.

1 John 4:9 This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.

1 John 5:10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has this testimony within him; whoever does not believe God has made Him out to be a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony God has given about His Son.

Verse 19

Proverbs 2:13 from those who leave the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness,

Jeremiah 9:6 You dwell in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to know Me,” declares the LORD.

John 1:4 In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.

John 1:5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me, because I testify that its works are evil.

John 8:12 Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 9:5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

John 9:39 Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”

John 12:31 Now judgment is upon this world; now the prince of this world will be cast out.

John 12:46 I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in Me should remain in darkness.

Verse 20

Job 24:16 In the dark they dig through houses; by day they shut themselves in, never to experience the light.

Proverbs 2:13 from those who leave the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness,

Jeremiah 9:6 You dwell in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to know Me,” declares the LORD.

Ephesians 5:11 Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

Ephesians 5:13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.

Verse 21

John 7:17 If anyone desires to do His will, he will know whether My teaching is from God or whether I speak on My own.

1 John 1:6 If we say we have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.

Commentary

1 Pet 1:23 for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.

Amos 5:18-20 Alas, you who are longing for the day of the Lord, For what purpose will the day of the Lord be to you? It will be darkness and not light; 19 As when a man flees from a lion And a bear meets him, Or goes home, leans his hand against the wall And a snake bites him. 20 Will not the day of the Lord be darkness instead of light, Even gloom with no brightness in it?

Romans 3:23-24 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;