1 The one who expresses [MET] ◄God’s character/what God is like► has always existed ◄from the beginning [MTY] of everything/before everything began►. He has always existed with God, and he has God’s nature. 2 He always existed with God before he began [MTY] to create anything. 3 He is the one by whom God caused everything to exist. He is the one who created absolutely everything [LIT]. 4 He is the one who caused everything to live. He, who caused us people to live, revealed to us the truth about God as a light [MET] reveals what is in the darkness. 5 People do not want him to reveal that what they do is evil [MET], just like darkness is evil. But just like darkness cannot put out light [MET], evil people have never prevented the one who was like a light from revealing God’s truth (OR, evil people have never understood the one who was like a light.)

6 A man whose name was John was sent by God {God sent a man whose name was John}. 7 He came to tell people about the one who was like [MET] a light. He came to show that everything that the one who was like a light [MET] said was true, in order that he could enable all people to believe in the one who was like a light. 8 John himself was not the one who was like a light [MET]. Instead, he came to tell others about that one who was like a light. 9  While John was doing that, the one who was truly like a light was about to show himself to the world. He was the one who enables all people to know about God, as a light [MET] enables people to know what is in the darkness.

10 Although the one who was like a light was here on the earth, and although he was the one whom God caused to create everything, most people [MTY, HYP] did not realize who he was. (OR, although he was the one whom God caused to create everything, most people did not accept him.) 11 Although he came to the land that belonged to him because he created it, most of his own people, the Jews, rejected him (OR, did not accept him). 12 But those of us who welcomed him, God authorized that we would have a relationship with him [MET] like children have a relationship with their father. We were people who believed that what he said about himself [MTY] was true. 13 We became like God’s children, not because our ancestors belonged to God, or because of someone’s sexual desires, nor because some man desired to have children like himself. Instead, we were caused by God {God caused us} to become like his children.

14 The one who expresses [MET] ◄God’s character/what God is like► became a human being, and he lived among us for a while. As a result, we saw how wonderful he is. He came from God his father, and there was no other person as wonderful as he. He was wonderful because he always acted ◄kindly toward us/in ways we did not deserve►, and he always spoke truthfully to us about God.

15  One day when John was telling people about him, he saw Jesus. Then he shouted to them, “I told you previously that someone will come later who is more important than I am, since he existed long before me. This is the man I was talking about!” 16 We have all benefited very much from what he has done. Again and again, he has acted in kind way toward us in ways we did not deserve. 17 Moses proclaimed God’s laws to our ancestors. But what Jesus Christ did for us was much better. He acted in kindness toward us in ways we did not deserve and told us the truth about God. 18 No one has ever seen God. But God’s only Son, Jesus, who has always had a very close relationship with God, has told us about God.

19 The Jewish leaders [SYN] in Jerusalem city sent some Jewish priests and ◄Levites/men who worked in the temple► to where John was, to ask him some questions. They said to him, “What do you claim about yourself?” 20 So John told them the truth, and he told them clearly [DOU]. He said, “I am not ◄the Messiah/God’s chosen king►!” 21 Then they asked him, “Then what do you say about yourself? Are you the prophet Elijah that was prophesied to return {◄someone/another prophet► prophesied would return} before the Messiah?” He replied, “No, I am not.” Then they asked him, “Are you the prophet like Moses that ◄we are waiting for/God promised to send►?” He replied, “No.” 22 So they asked him, “Then who do you claim to be? Tell us so that we can go back and report to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 John replied, “I am the one the prophet Isaiah said would proclaim this new message loudly to the people who would pass by in this desolate area: ‘Prepare yourselves to receive the Lord when he comes [MET], just like people prepare a road for an important official.

24 Some of those people who were questioning John were ones who had been sent by the Pharisee religious group {whom the Pharisee religious group had sent}. 25 They asked John, “Since you say you are not the Messiah, nor the prophet Elijah, nor the prophet like Moses, what authority do you have? Furthermore, why are you baptizing Jews, treating them as though they were non-Jews who wanted to become Jews?” 26 John replied, “I am just baptizing people with water to prepare them to welcome the Messiah. But right now someone is among you whom you people do not know. 27 He will preach to you after I am gone. He is so important that I am not worthy to serve him as a slave [MET] by untying his sandals.”

28 Those things happened at a place called Bethany, on the east side of the Jordan River, where John was baptizing people.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him. He said to the people, “Look! Here is the man whom God has appointed to be a sacrifice [MET], like the lambs that the people of Israel sacrificed! By sacrificing himself he will make it possible for everyone in the world to be no longer guilty for having sinned. 30 He is the one about whom I said before, ‘Someone will come later who is more important than I am, since he existed long before me.’ 31 I myself did not previously recognize that he was the Messiah. But now I know who he is, and I have baptized people with water to enable you people of Israel to recognize who he is.”

32 John spoke clearly what God had shown him about Jesus. He said, “I saw God’s Spirit as he was descending from heaven in the form of a dove. The Spirit remained on Jesus. 33 I myself did not know previously that he was the Messiah. However, God sent me to baptize people with water, people who said they wanted to turn from their sinful ways. While I was doing that, God told me, ‘The man on whom you will see my Spirit descend and remain is the one who will put the Holy Spirit within you (pl) to truly change your lives.’ 34 I saw the Spirit descend on him, and I tell you that he is ◄the Son of God/the person who is both God and man►.”

35 The next day John was at the same place again ◄with two of us/with two of his disciples►. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look! There is the man God has appointed to be a sacrifice, like the lambs [MET] the people of Israel have sacrificed!” 37 ◄When we/those two disciples► heard John say this, we/they went with Jesus. 38 Jesus turned around and saw us/them coming behind him. So he asked us/them, “What do you want?” We/They replied, “Teacher, tell us where you are staying, because we want to talk with you.” 39 He replied, “Come with me, and you will see where I am staying!” So we/they went with him and saw where he was staying. We/They stayed with him until about 4 o’clock (OR, from about 4 PM until the next day).

40 ◄One of us/One of the two men► who heard what John had said and who went with Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s younger brother. 41  After Andrew left Jesus, the first thing he did was to find his own older brother Simon and say to him, “We have found the Messiah!” 42 Then he took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked intently at him, and then said, “You are Simon. Your father’s name is John. You will be given {I will give you} the name Cephas.” Cephas is an Aramaic name that means ‘solid rock’. It means the same in Greek as the name Peter.

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave the Jordan River valley. He went to Galilee district and (OR, on the way there he) found a man named Philip. Jesus said to him, “Come with me!” 44 Philip and Andrew and Peter were all from Bethsaida town. 45 Then Philip searched for Nathaniel and found him, and said to him, “We have met the Messiah, the one Moses wrote about! The prophets also prophesied that he would come. He is Jesus, from Nazareth town. His father’s name is Joseph.” 46 Nathaniel replied, “Nazareth? ◄Nothing good can come from such an unimportant place!/Can anything good come from such an unimportant place?► [RHQ]” Philip replied, “Come and see!” 47 When Jesus saw Nathaniel approaching, he said about Nathaniel, “Here is an example of a good Israelite! He never deceives anyone!” 48 Nathaniel asked him, “How do you know what I am like?” Jesus replied, “I saw you before Philip called you, when you were by yourself under the fig tree.” 49 Then Nathaniel declared, “Teacher, you must be ◄the Son of God/the person who is both God and man►! You are the King of Israel we have been waiting for!” 50 Jesus replied to him, “You [RHQ] believe those things about me because I told you I saw you when you were under the fig tree. I was able to see you supernaturally even though I was far away from you. But you will see me do things that are more surprising than that!” 51 Then Jesus said to him, “This is the absolute truth: Just like what your ancestor Jacob saw long ago in a vision, some day you (pl) will see heaven opened up, and you will see God’s angels ascending from me and descending on me, the one who came from heaven.”