John 5 26

John 5:26 kjv

For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;

John 5:26 nkjv

For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,

John 5:26 niv

For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.

John 5:26 esv

For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.

John 5:26 nlt

The Father has life in himself, and he has granted that same life-giving power to his Son.

John 5 verses

John 5 26 Meaning

John 5:26 conveys that just as the Father inherently possesses life within Himself as the self-existent God, so also He has eternally granted the Son to possess this same self-existent, divine life. This demonstrates the intimate unity and shared divine nature between the Father and the Son, emphasizing that the Son, while distinct, is also the source of life, reflecting the Father's power. It highlights the Son's divine essence and His capacity to give life, rooted in a unique and eternal relationship with the Father.

John 5 26 Context

John chapter 5 details Jesus' encounter with a paralytic at the pool of Bethesda, whom He miraculously heals on the Sabbath. This act sparks intense controversy with the Jewish leaders, who accuse Jesus of breaking the Sabbath and, more significantly, of blasphemy by making Himself equal with God (John 5:18). In response, Jesus delivers an extensive discourse affirming His divine relationship with the Father, His authority, and His essential unity with God. He explains that He does nothing independently but only what He sees the Father doing (John 5:19). He claims power over life and death (John 5:21), authority to judge (John 5:22), and that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father (John 5:23). Verse 26, therefore, forms a core statement within this discourse, solidifying His claim to possess divine life-giving power directly from the Father, providing the theological basis for His preceding claims about giving life and exercising judgment. The historical context includes strict adherence to Sabbath laws by the Jewish religious authorities and their deeply ingrained monotheistic belief, making Jesus' claims particularly provocative and revolutionary, challenging their understanding of God's exclusive attributes.

John 5 26 Word analysis

• For (γὰρ, gar): Connects this verse as a foundational explanation or reason for the Son's life-giving and judging authority mentioned previously (John 5:21-25).
• as (καθὼς, kathōs): Introduces a comparison, indicating an exact correspondence or parity between the Father's life-possession and the Son's. It's "just as," implying an essential likeness.
• the Father (ὁ Πατὴρ, ho Patēr): Refers to God, the first person of the Trinity, consistently portrayed in John as the ultimate source and initiator.
• has (ἔχει, echei): "possesses," "holds." Denotes inherent, continuous possession in this context regarding the Father.
• life (ζωὴν, zōēn): Not merely biological existence (βίος, bios), but a deeper, spiritual, eternal, and divine quality of existence—true life in its fullest sense, active and vigorous, flowing from God.
• in Himself (ἐν ἑαυτῷ, en heautō): Crucial phrase. It emphasizes the intrinsic, unoriginated, and self-existent nature of life that God the Father possesses. He is the ultimate, independent source of life.
• so (οὕτως, houtōs): Concludes the comparison begun with "as," emphasizing the equivalence or result.
• He has granted (ἔδωκεν, edōken): This verb is in the aorist tense, indicating a past action but with a continuous or eternally enduring effect. It means "gave," "bestowed," "granted." This is the core distinction from the Father "having" it inherently. The Son receives, but the receiving is an eternal reality within the Godhead, not a temporary endowment or a filling of a prior lack. It highlights the Father as the ultimate fount of divinity from whom the Son's being and prerogatives are eternally derived. It doesn't imply inferiority but expresses distinct personal relations within the Trinity.
• the Son (τῷ Υἱῷ, tō Huiō): Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, who is in full unity and fellowship with the Father.
• also (καὶ, kai): Adds emphasis, "even," "too." It underscores that the Son shares in this specific divine prerogative.
• to have (ἔχειν, echein): An infinitive, expressing the Son's possession of this life.
• life in Himself (ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, zōēn en heautō): Signifies that the Son, by the Father's eternal grant, equally possesses life inherently within His own person, making Him a self-existent source of life, not dependent on any external means.

John 5 26 Bonus section

This verse implicitly addresses early proto-Trinitarian debates by affirming both the unity and distinction of Father and Son. It sets a theological foundation against any notion that Jesus might be merely a highly exalted created being (e.g., Arianism), by explicitly stating He possesses "life in Himself," a quality solely attributable to God. The phrase "life in Himself" implies absolute, independent, unoriginated existence, making the Son equally ultimate and the fountain of life, just as the Father is. The Father is the source without source, and the Son is from that source, eternally having life in Himself. This concept ensures the Son's ability to bestow spiritual life upon believers and empowers His role in resurrection and judgment. The dynamic here is one of co-equality in nature, expressed through an eternal relational flow within the divine essence.

John 5 26 Commentary

John 5:26 presents a profound statement about the Christological and Trinitarian nature of Jesus. It meticulously balances His unity with God and His distinct relationship as the Son. The Father's "having life in Himself" signifies His self-existent, unoriginated, and absolute divine essence. The Son's ability "also to have life in Himself" means He possesses the same divine attribute—self-existent life—but by an eternal grant from the Father. This "granting" (ἔδωκεν) is not a historical event where the Son gained something He once lacked; rather, it describes the eternal, ontological relationship within the Godhead. It speaks to the eternal generation or procession of the Son from the Father, whereby the Father, in His very being, bestows His nature, including life, upon the Son without diminishing Himself. This truth elevates Jesus beyond any created being, affirming His full divinity while preserving the distinct persons of the Trinity. It provides the ground for all His saving and judging activities, reassuring believers that Christ, possessing divine life intrinsically, is fully capable of imparting that life to them.