John 3:6 kjv
That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
John 3:6 nkjv
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
John 3:6 niv
Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.
John 3:6 esv
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
John 3:6 nlt
Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.
John 3 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Eze 36:26-27 | I will give you a new heart... and a new spirit I will put within you. | Divine origin of a new spirit/heart. |
| Jer 31:33 | I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their heart. | God's work of transformation on the inward man. |
| John 1:12-13 | but to all who did receive him... born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh... but of God. | Believers born of God, not natural means. |
| John 6:63 | It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. | Spirit gives life; flesh is insufficient. |
| Rom 7:18 | For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. | Flesh (human nature) is inherently flawed. |
| Rom 8:4 | that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. | Contrast of walking by flesh vs. Spirit. |
| Rom 8:5-6 | For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. | Minds set on flesh lead to death, Spirit to life. |
| Rom 8:7-8 | For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God... Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. | Fleshly mind is hostile to God and cannot please Him. |
| 1 Cor 2:14 | The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God... for they are spiritually discerned. | Unregenerate person cannot understand spiritual truths. |
| 2 Cor 3:6 | who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. | Spirit gives life, unlike external law. |
| 2 Cor 5:17 | Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. | Result of spiritual birth: a new creation. |
| Gal 5:16-17 | But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit... | Warfare between flesh and Spirit. |
| Gal 5:19-21 | Now the works of the flesh are evident... | Examples of corrupt acts from the flesh. |
| Gal 5:22-23 | But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace... | Evidence of life by the Spirit. |
| Gal 6:8 | For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. | Reaping according to flesh vs. Spirit. |
| Eph 2:1-3 | And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked... carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath. | Natural human state is spiritual death and under wrath. |
| Eph 4:22-24 | to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God. | Renewal of mind and putting on new self, linked to regeneration. |
| Col 2:11 | In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ. | Spiritual circumcision of the flesh. |
| Tit 3:5 | he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. | Salvation by Holy Spirit's regeneration and renewal. |
| 1 Pet 1:3 | According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope. | God's act of spiritual birth to new hope. |
| 1 Pet 1:23 | born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God. | Emphasizes imperishable, divine source of new birth. |
| Heb 9:14 | how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. | The Spirit purifies from the "dead works" of the flesh. |
John 3 verses
John 3 6 Meaning
John 3:6 teaches that spiritual life and nature originate solely from the Holy Spirit, just as physical life and nature originate from human parents. It contrasts the inherent nature derived from physical birth, which remains "flesh" (corruptible, fallen human nature, inadequate for God's kingdom), with the new, spiritual nature that must be imparted by divine regeneration. This verse emphasizes the absolute necessity of being "born of the Spirit" for anyone to enter or even perceive the Kingdom of God.
John 3 6 Context
John 3:6 is part of Jesus' nocturnal discourse with Nicodemus, a prominent Pharisee and ruler of the Jews. Nicodemus approaches Jesus with an acknowledgment of His divine signs, suggesting a theological curiosity but limited understanding. Jesus immediately introduces the concept of being "born again" (John 3:3) or "born from above" (ἀνωθεν). Nicodemus misinterprets this physically, asking how a grown man can re-enter his mother's womb. Jesus then clarifies in John 3:5 the necessity of being "born of water and the Spirit." Verse 6 further elaborates on this distinction, emphasizing the differing natures derived from fleshly birth versus spiritual birth, directly addressing Nicodemus's literal thinking and revealing the spiritual dimension of true life in God's kingdom. The discussion underlines that human efforts or natural lineage are insufficient for spiritual salvation and that a radical, divine transformation is indispensable.
John 3 6 Word analysis
- That which is born: (Greek: τὸ γεγεννημένον, to gegennēmenon). The use of the perfect passive participle emphasizes a completed action and a resultant state. It speaks of something that has been born or has come into being. This implies a definitive source and a new nature that results from that source.
- of the flesh: (Greek: ἐκ τῆς σαρκός, ek tēs sarkos).
- ἐκ (ek): "from," "out of." Indicates the origin or source.
- σαρκός (sarkos): Genitive form of σάρξ (sarx), often translated as "flesh." In Pauline and Johannine theology, sarx frequently refers to the corrupt, fallen human nature apart from divine grace; human weakness and sinfulness; or humanity in its mortal, earthly, unregenerate state. It is not inherently evil, but incapable of pleasing God.
- is flesh: (Greek: σάρξ ἐστιν, sarx estin). The verb "is" (estin) states a declarative fact. What originates from sarx (human nature/source) is by its very essence sarx (a fleshly, human, unspiritual nature). This nature is fundamentally limited and inadequate for God's spiritual kingdom.
- and that which is born: (Greek: καὶ τὸ γεγεννημένον, kai to gegennēmenon). Repetition of the perfect participle, reinforcing the same concept of originating from a specific source, but now introducing the contrasting source.
- of the Spirit: (Greek: ἐκ τοῦ Πνεύματος, ek tou Pneumatos).
- ἐκ (ek): Again, "from," "out of," indicating the divine origin.
- Πνεύματος (Pneumatos): Genitive form of Πνεῦμα (Pneuma). Here, referring specifically to the Holy Spirit, the divine agent of regeneration. When referring to the divine being (the Holy Spirit), Pneuma is often capitalized, implying its divine personhood.
- is spirit: (Greek: πνεῦμά ἐστιν, pneuma estin). The verb "is" (estin) again states a declarative fact. What originates from the Holy Spirit (Pneuma) is by its very essence spirit (pneuma), signifying a new, spiritual nature; a regenerated human spirit attuned to God. Note the deliberate contrast between the lowercase "spirit" here (the created spiritual nature within man, remade by God) and the capitalized "Spirit" (the divine source, the Holy Spirit).
Word Groups Analysis:
- "That which is born of the flesh is flesh": This phrase establishes the principle of inherited nature. Whatever proceeds from a physical human parent (flesh) possesses only that same physical and inherently fallen "flesh" nature. This "flesh" is inherently incapable of producing or comprehending spiritual realities (Rom 8:7-8). It signifies the limitation and insufficiency of humanity in its unredeemed state for God's purposes.
- "and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit": This contrasts sharply by asserting the necessity of a divine origin for true spiritual life. Just as natural life begets its own kind, spiritual life must be begotten by the Holy Spirit. This new "spirit" refers to the regenerated human nature, made alive and capable of relating to God. This emphasizes that genuine transformation and entry into God's kingdom are entirely God's work, not an improvement of the old "flesh."
John 3 6 Bonus section
- The term "born" (γεννάω, gennaō) can also mean "beget." Jesus uses it to emphasize that the source (flesh or Spirit) begets a nature congruent with itself. This stresses the fundamental difference between origins.
- The transition from John 3:5 ("born of water and the Spirit") to John 3:6 suggests a direct elaboration on the two natures produced by two types of "birth." While "water" may refer to physical birth, cleansing, or the Word, verse 6 definitively distinguishes between fleshly and spiritual sources and their products.
- This verse counters any Jewish notion that natural descent from Abraham automatically conferred a saving relationship with God. Jesus makes it clear that even the most righteous and knowledgeable (like Nicodemus) must undergo a divine transformation.
- The truth of this verse points to human spiritual helplessness apart from divine grace. It establishes the theological bedrock for the doctrines of total depravity and sovereign regeneration.
John 3 6 Commentary
John 3:6 encapsulates a foundational truth regarding the nature of salvation: the absolute dependence on God's Holy Spirit for spiritual regeneration. Jesus teaches Nicodemus that there are two distinct origins of existence, yielding two distinct kinds of being. Natural birth, "of the flesh," produces a human being with the characteristics and limitations of "flesh"—meaning the fallen, mortal, and unregenerate human nature, incapable of pleasing or perceiving God's kingdom on its own terms. No amount of religious effort, knowledge, or physical lineage (like being a descendant of Abraham) can change this inherent nature.
In sharp contrast, the second clause asserts that "that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." This highlights that a radical transformation, a divine act of new birth, is essential. The Holy Spirit is the active agent in this regeneration, imparting a new spiritual nature, often called the "new heart" or "new spirit" in the Old Testament prophets. This new "spirit" in man enables him to discern, understand, and enter the spiritual reality of God's kingdom. It is not an improvement of the old self but a complete, qualitatively different creation, making one spiritually alive and capable of fellowship with God. This verse therefore underscores the exclusivity of divine agency in spiritual birth and the total inability of human nature, apart from this intervention, to bridge the gap to God.