A Study of John's Gospel

John 1:3-5: The Light Shines in the Darkness and is Not Overcome

A study of John 1:3-5

"All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."

‭‭John‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬-‭5‬ ‭

Definitions of the original language in the context of this passage:

-All Things: "pas", "πᾶς"; adjective - in an absolute sense, all things that exist, all created things.

-Were Made: "ginomai", "γίνομαι"; verb - to become, i. e. to come into existence, begin to be, receive being.

-Life: "zōē", "ζωή"; feminine noun - of the absolute fullness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God, and through him both to the hypostatic λόγος (logos) and to Christ in whom the λόγος (logos) put on human nature: in him life was (comprehended), and the life (transfused from the Logos into created natures) was the light (i. e. the intelligence) of men (because the life of men is self-conscious, and thus a fountain of intelligence springs up).

-Light: "phōs", "φῶς"; neuter noun - φῶς is used to denote truth and its knowledge, together with the spiritual purity congruous with it, i.e. became the source of human wisdom (John 1:4); especially the saving truth embodied in Christ and by his love and effort imparted to mankind (John 1:5)

-Darkness: "skotia", "σκοτία"; feminine noun - metaphorically, used of ignorance of divine things, and its associated wickedness, and the resultant misery.

-Overcome (Comprehend): "katalambanō", "καταλαμβάνω"; verb - to make one's own, to take into oneself, appropriate.

Observation/Summary(short explanation of what the passage says in your own words):

Following verses 1-2 where John told us of this "Word" who was with and always has been God from eternity past and the beginning of creation, we now read all things were made through Him. To make it abundantly clear "all" things were made through Him, John also says, "and without Him was not anything made that was made." In addition to creating all matter, life was also in Him, and this life is the light of men. This light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Implication (what does this mean to us):

This "Word" or "Logos" in the original Greek John speaks of is Jesus Christ. The reason he opens by calling Him the "Word" is because he is speaking to a concept both Jewish rabbis and Greek philosophers had discussed for a long time. The Jews referred to God as "The Word of God," and Greek philosophers referred to the force or being that created the universe as "The Word" or "Logos". By use of the word "Logos" it would have been clear to John's contemporaries that he was writing of the originator of all creation which both the Jews and the Greco-Romans had spent centuries discussing the nature and identity of. As we read further in this gospel it will become abundantly clear John is writing to say that Jesus Christ is the "Logos" or "Word" of whom they have sought knowledge of for so long.

In verse 3 of John 1, John tells us the Word, who is Jesus, made or created everything that exists, and without Him nothing that has been brought into existence could have been brought into existence. In saying this John is proclaiming Jesus to be an uncreated being who has no beginning. He is linking Jesus to passages like Genesis 1:1 where we read God created the heavens and the earth. Also he is drawing the mind of his Jewish and God-fearing Greek hearers to passages such as Psalm 33:6 which says, "By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their hosts." These Old Testament passages say God created all things, and now John is saying Jesus Christ created all things. He does this to inform us that Jesus Christ, God the Son, is one with God the Father. He has existed from before the beginning, and He created and sustains all things that are in existence.