John 14:9 kjv
Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
John 14:9 nkjv
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
John 14:9 niv
Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
John 14:9 esv
Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
John 14:9 nlt
Jesus replied, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don't know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you?
John 14 verses
h2 Meaning
John 14:9 reveals a foundational truth of Christianity: Jesus Christ is the full and perfect revelation of God the Father. When Philip requests to see the Father, Jesus responds that to have seen Him is to have seen the Father, because Jesus embodies and perfectly makes known the invisible God. This indicates an inseparable unity between the Father and the Son, where the Son's life, teachings, and very being display the character, nature, and will of God. It signifies that there is no independent or superior knowledge of God to be gained apart from Jesus Christ.
h2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jn 1:1 | In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. | Jesus is God, existing eternally with the Father. |
| Jn 1:14 | The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory... | God manifest in human form. |
| Jn 1:18 | No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, He has made Him known. | Jesus is the sole revealer of the unseen God. |
| Jn 5:23 | ...that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. | Son shares same honor as the Father. |
| Jn 8:19 | Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also." | Knowing Jesus means knowing the Father. |
| Jn 10:30 | "I and the Father are one." | Declaration of essential unity between Father and Son. |
| Jn 12:45 | And whoever sees Me sees Him who sent Me. | Repetition of the idea: seeing Jesus is seeing God. |
| Jn 17:6 | "I have manifested Your name to the people whom You gave Me out of the world." | Jesus made God's name (character) known. |
| Matt 11:27 | All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. | Exclusive revelation of the Father by the Son. |
| Lk 10:22 | All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son, and he to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. | Echoes Matthew, affirming exclusive revelation. |
| Col 1:15 | He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. | Jesus as the perfect likeness of God. |
| Heb 1:3 | He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature... | Jesus perfectly mirrors God's essence and glory. |
| 2 Cor 4:4 | In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. | Christ as God's image, light to humanity. |
| Isa 40:5 | And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. | Prophecy of God's revelation, fulfilled in Christ. |
| Exo 33:20 | But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live." | Contrast to OT - God was unseen, now revealed in Christ. |
| Jn 6:46 | Not that anyone has seen the Father except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. | Reaffirms only Jesus has truly seen and known the Father. |
| 1 Jn 2:23 | No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. | Connection between confessing Jesus and having God. |
| 1 Jn 5:20 | And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. | Jesus gives understanding to know God; He is God. |
| Jn 16:27 | For the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came from God. | Reciprocity: loving Jesus indicates love for the Father. |
| Eph 2:18 | For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. | Access to God is exclusively through Jesus Christ. |
h2 Context
John 14 begins with Jesus comforting His disciples, assuring them of His departure and subsequent return, and promising the coming of the Holy Spirit. The conversation revolves around themes of the "way" to the Father and knowing God. Thomas interjects by asking about the way, to which Jesus responds with the famous declaration, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (Jn 14:6). Immediately following this, Philip, despite spending significant time with Jesus, asks, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us" (Jn 14:8). This request highlights the disciples' persistent, albeit understandable, struggle to grasp Jesus' divine identity and His profound unity with God the Father. Philip, rooted in a Jewish monotheistic understanding where God was unseen and unapproachable, still looked for a distinct, tangible manifestation of the Father beyond Jesus Himself. Jesus' response in John 14:9 is a gentle but profound rebuke of this misconception, asserting that the Father was precisely in front of Philip, revealed fully in Jesus.
h2 Word analysis
"Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you so long, Philip?'":
- This opening expresses Jesus' surprise and tender concern. The duration "so long" (Greek: tosouton chronon, indicating such a great length of time) underscores the intimacy and extended opportunity Philip had to truly know Jesus. It also subtly highlights Philip's lack of spiritual discernment despite physical proximity to the incarnate Son of God.
- Addressing Philip directly shows the personal nature of the teaching and gentle chiding.
"and yet you have not known Me":
- "Known" (Greek: egnōkas from ginōskō) here means more than just intellectual acquaintance. It implies a deep, personal, experiential understanding and recognition of Jesus' true identity and divine nature, beyond merely acknowledging Him as a teacher or prophet. This profound knowing should have naturally led to understanding His unity with the Father.
"He who has seen Me":
- "Seen" (Greek: heōraken, a perfect tense form of horao) suggests more than a superficial glance. It implies a completed action with lasting results, referring to a perception that has led to genuine understanding, insight, and revelation. It encompasses both physical sight and spiritual apprehension of who Jesus is. It means anyone who has perceived Jesus, has discerned His true essence, and recognized His divine reality.
"has seen the Father":
- This is the central declaration. It proclaims the hypostatic union and the co-equality and unity of essence between the Father and the Son. Jesus is the definitive visible representation of the invisible God. His life, actions, words, and being fully express the Father's character and will. There is no aspect of the Father's character, power, or love that is not perfectly embodied in the Son.
Words-Group Analysis:
- "He who has seen Me has seen the Father": This pivotal phrase clarifies the nature of God's revelation in Christ. It's a statement of ultimate identity and perfect representation. Jesus isn't just a messenger or a representative; He is the living, breathing image of God the Father. It reveals that the Father is not distant or hidden, but fully accessible and visible through His Son. This principle fundamentally shapes Christian theology regarding the Trinity and salvation, emphasizing that knowledge of God comes solely through Christ.
- "how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?": This rhetorical question highlights Philip's spiritual blindness and expresses Jesus' astonishment that after all their time together, the disciples still harbored such a fundamental misunderstanding. It underscores the incredible patience of Jesus in continually seeking to open their eyes to divine truth. It's a gentle challenge, inviting Philip to reconsider and finally grasp the profound truth of Christ's identity.
h2 Commentary
John 14:9 serves as a profound cornerstone of Christian Christology. Jesus' words to Philip assert His perfect unity with the Father, proclaiming that His own person is the complete manifestation of God. This challenges any notion of a hidden or unreachable deity, positing that God has fully and personally revealed Himself in Jesus. Seeing Jesus, in the sense of truly perceiving and understanding His divine nature, is equivalent to seeing the Father, not just a facet or a delegated aspect, but the very essence of God. This also means that every attribute of God—His love, power, wisdom, and justice—is perfectly demonstrated and embodied in Christ. For believers, this verse eliminates the need to search beyond Christ for the knowledge of God. Instead, our pursuit of God becomes a deeper exploration of Christ's character, teachings, and redemptive work, understanding that through Him, we truly encounter the Father.
h2 Bonus section
The seemingly simple exchange in John 14:9 has profound implications for understanding the divine economy. It signifies that there is no independent or separate divine being that needs to be "shown" apart from Jesus. The Father's revelation is not found in an ecstatic vision or an abstract theological concept, but in the tangible person of Jesus Christ. This teaching implicitly rebukes contemporary philosophical or mystical quests for divine encounter that bypass the Son, positioning Jesus as the singular lens through which the Father is fully apprehended. It also has immense practical implications: our prayers to the Father go through Christ (Jn 14:13-14), our knowledge of God grows through knowing Christ, and our worship of the Father is inseparable from our worship of the Son. The Father's mission, love, and character are not just represented, but incarnated in Jesus, making Him the ultimate source and object of divine revelation.