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John 1:18 The Only Begotten Son

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by Will Kinney

JOHN 1:18

“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” John 1:18

The Codex Vaticanus has μονογενὴς θεός (only begotten God) here in John 1:18 instead of the usual μονογενὴς υἱός (only begotten Son)

“No man hath seen God at any time; THE ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”

John 1:18 presents us with a classical case of confusion caused by the modern Bible correctors. The phrase in question is “the only begotten Son.” There are two variants here: one with the Greek text and the other with the translation.

The Greek of the Traditional Text reads, “o monogenes huios” (the only begotten Son). The Greek of the Alexandrian Text reads, “o monogenes theos” (the only begotten God). Additionally, the Greek word “monogenes” is no longer looked upon by some as meaning “only begotten” but is now considered better translated as “unique” or “one and only.” However there is much disagreement among today’s “scholars” as to which text to adopt and how to translate it.

Notice the total confusion that exists in the multitude of modern bible versions today.

“The only begotten Son”- King James Bible, Wycliffe 1395, Tyndale 1525, Coverdale 1535, Bishops’ Bible 1568, the Geneva Bible 1599, Daniel Mace New Testament 1729, Wesley’s N.T. 1755, the Revised Version 1881, American Standard Version 1901, Webster’s 1833 translation, Darby 1890, Young’s, Douay 1950, Spanish Reina Valera 1909, 1960, 1995, Italian Diodati 1602, Rivudeta 1927, Luther’s German Bible 1545, German Schlachter 1951, French Martin 1744, Louis Segond 1910, Ostervald 1996, the NKJV 1982, Third Millenium Bible, and KJV 21.

Even the Revised Version 1881 and American Standard Version1901, which introduced thousands of radical changes in the New Testament based on the Alexandrian texts, did not follow Sinaiticus/Vaticanus here but stuck with the Traditional Text. It wasn’t till the NASB appeared on the scene that the false reading of “the only begotten God” was introduced.

“The only begotten God” NASB
“God the only Son” NIV 1973
“God the One and Only” NIV 1984 with a footnote “or only begotten”
“but the one and only Son, who is himself God” TNIV 2001 with footnote “some manuscripts – but the only Son”.

The 1973 and 1977 NIV’s read, “No MAN has ever seen God, but God the only [Son], who is at the Father’s side, has made him known”. The 1978 and 1984 NIV editions now read, “No ONE has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.” Thus, the NIV has been revised and changed ” no man” to “no one”, altered “only” to “One and Only” and omitted [Son]. Then the TNIV further changes “One and Only” to “one and only” and again adds “Son”.

These next three are all related to one another as each is a revision of the last one in line, yet they all three differ from each other. See how consistent modern scholars are.

“the only Son” RSV 1952. The liberal RSV was the first major English version to translate monogenes as “only” rather than the traditional and more accurate “only begotten”, but yet it retained the word Son rather than God.
“God the only Son” NRSV 1989
“the only God” English Standard Version 2001
“the one and only Son” Hebrew Names Version,
“God’s only Son” New English Bible 1970
“the only conceived Son” World English Bible
The Message 2002 – ” No one has ever seen God, not so much as a glimpse. This one-of-a-kind God-Expression, who exists at the very heart of the Father, has made him plain as day.” A “one of a kind God expression”???

Several of these modern version don’t follow any Greek text at all but combine divergent readings from different texts, such as the NIV 1973, TNIV, the NRSV, and the New English Bible.

The King James Bible is the correct reading both as to text and meaning. The Alexandrian texts which read “the only begotten GOD, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” teach that there are TWO GODS and one of them is inferior to the other. Read it any way you wish, but the undeniable fact is you end up with TWO GODS. There is the God whom nobody has seen and then there is the only begotten God who has explained the unseen God. The only other version I know of that reads this way, besides the NASB, is the Jehovah Witness New World Translation, which says: “the only begotten god who is in the bosom position with the Father is the one that has explained him.”

One of the newest in the long line of bible revisions, the English Standard Version, reads: “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” This is totally absurd. It teaches not only that there are two Gods, the one nobody has ever seen, and the one who has made the unseen God known; but one of them is God and the other is the ONLY God.

Jesus Christ is by nature very God of very God. John 1 says “the Word was God”. Notice it does not say the Word was THE God. God is triune yet one. If it had said “the Word was THE God” it would be a theological error. All that God is in the three Persons is not limited to the Word, but the Word (Jesus Christ) is by very nature God.

What the ESV teaches is a confusion of the nature of the Trinity. Jesus Christ is not “THE ONLY GOD” who makes known the God no one has seen. Jesus Christ is God by nature, but He is not the Father nor the Holy Ghost.

We now have two more late$t and greate$t ver$ion$ coming on the scene. The ISV or International Standard Version and the Holman Christian Standard Bible.

The ISV reads: ” No one has ever seen God. The UNIQUE God, (Other mss. read Son) who is close to the Father’s side, has revealed him.” Again, we have two Gods. One nobody has ever seen and then the “unique” God! Does this mean the God no one has seen is just an ordinary, run-of-the- mill, garden variety god, while the other one is totally unique?

But wait, the newest of them all is the 2003 Holman Christian Standard Bible, and it says: “No one has ever seen God. The only Son– the One who is at the Father’s side– He has revealed Him.” Hey, this one went back to the reading of “Son” instead of “God”. What gives here? Well, it’s the fickle, shifting sands of modern scholarship.

Those versions that teach that Jesus Christ is the “only Son” or “the one and only Son” are also incorrect in that angels are also called sons of God and so are Adam and all of God’s other children. In either case, the corrupt and confusing readings found in many modern bible versions diminish the glory of the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity is turned on its head.

The Nicene Creed (344 AD) states:

“We believe in one God the Father Almighty, . . . And in His Only-begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ, who before all ages was begotten from the Father, God from God, Light from Light, by whom all things were made, in heaven and on the earth, visible and invisible . . .” (as cited from Athanasius: De Synodis, II:26).

The Old Latin manuscripts of John 1:18, which translation preceded anything we have in the remaining Greek copies, read: “deum nemo uidit umquam. unigenitus filius. qui est in sinu patris. ipse narrauit.” The word “unigenitus” means, “only begotten, only; of the same parentage.” (Dr. John C. Traupman, Latin Dictionary, 323).

In 202 AD, Irenaeus wrote,

“For ‘no man,’ he says, ‘hath seen God at any time,’ unless ‘the only-begotten Son of God, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared [Him].’ For He, the Son who is in His bosom, declares to all the Father who is invisible.”(Against Heresies, 3:11:6)

In 324 AD, Alexander of Alexandria wrote:

“Moreover, that the Son of God was not produced out of what did not exist, and that there never was a time when He did not exist, is taught expressly by John the Evangelist, who writes this of Him: ‘The only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father.’ The divine teacher, because he intended to show that the Father and the Son are two and inseparable from each other, does in fact specify that He is in the bosom of the Father.” (W.A. Jurgens, The Faith Of The Early Fathers, Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, p. 300)

Ambrose (397 AD) writes,

“For this reason also the evangelist says, ‘No one has at any time seen God, except the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has revealed him.’ ‘The bosom of the Father,’ then, is to be understood in a spiritual sense, as a kind of innermost dwelling of the Father’s love and of His nature, in which the Son always dwells. Even so, the Father’s womb is the spiritual womb of an inner sanctuary, from which the Son has proceeded just as from a generative womb.”(The Patrarches, 11:51).

Finally, Augustine (430 AD) wrote:

“For Himself hath said: No man hath seen God at any time, but the Only-Begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him. Therefore we know the Father by Him, being they to whom He hath declared Him.”(Homilies On The Gospel According To St. John, XLVII:3)

The point is that most of the early Theologians in the Church not only recognized that monogenes means “only begotten,” and defined it as such, but that the popular reading was “only begotten Son.”

“In the unity of the Godhead there be three Persons of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost. The Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; the Son is eternally begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son.” Westminster Confession, Chapter III.

In spite of some Greek lexicons, like Thayer’s, which insist the meaning of monogenes is “unique” or “one of a kind”, there are many others like Kittel’s, Liddel and Scott and Vine’s that tell us the Greek word monogenes emphatically means “only begotten” and not “one and only”. It is significant that Thayer did not believe that Jesus Christ was God.

In Kittel’s massive work Volume 4 page 741 the writer says: “In John 1:14,18; 3:16,18; 1 John 4:9 monogenes denotes more than the uniqueness or incomparability of Jesus. In all these verses He is expressly called the Son. (notice he does not accept the false reading of ‘God’ in 1:18, and he states this on the previous page). In John monogenes denotes the origin of Jesus as the only begotten.”

Even the modern Greek language dictionary, which has nothing to do with the Bible, says that monogenes means “only begotten”, and not unique. The Greek word for “unique” or “one and only” is a very different and specific word – monodikos – not monogenes.

The translators of the King James Version were not unaware that monogenes can also be translated as “only” for they did so in Luke 7:12; 8:42; and 9:38, all of which refer to an only child and thus they were the only begotten, not an unique child.

Some who criticize the KJB tell us that the word means “unique” and they refer to Hebrews 11:17 where we are told: “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son.” They point out that Isaac was not the only son of Abraham at the time, but that Ishmael had already been born of Abraham’s union with Hagar. However a look at the text itself in Genesis 22:2,12 and 16 shows that God referred to Isaac as “thine ONLY son Isaac”. Ishmael is not even taken into consideration by God since he was not the promised seed with whom God made the covenant of grace. As far as God was concerned, there was only one “only begotten son” of Abraham, and he is the spiritual type of the only begotten Son of God who became the lamb that was sacrificed for the sins of God’s people.

The King James Bible is correct as always, and the divergent and contradictory readings in most modern versions are wrong.

NICENE CREED 325 A.D. We believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, THE ONLY-BEGOTTEN SON OF GOD, BEGOTTEN OF HIS FATHER BEFORE ALL WORLD, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, BEGOTTEN, NOT MADE, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made;

CHALCEDON CREED 451 A.D. Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, BEGOTTEN OF THE FATHER BEFORE THE AGES.

ATHANASIA CREED 500 A.D. The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone, NOT MADE NOR CREATED BUT BEGOTTEN. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and the Son, not made nor created nor begotten but proceeding. And in this Trinity there is nothing before or after, nothing greater or less, but the whole three Persons are coeternal together and coequal.

The right faith therefore is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man. He is God of the substance of the Father, BEGTOTTEN BEFORE THE WORLDS, and He is man of the substance of His mother born in the world; perfect God, perfect man subsisting of a reasoning soul and human flesh; equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, inferior to the Father as touching His Manhood.

The BELGIC CONFESSION 1561 We believe that Jesus Christ, according to his divine nature, is the only Son of God– ETERNALLY BEGOTTEN, NOT MADE NOR CREATED, for then he would be a creature. He is one in essence with the Father; coeternal; the exact image of the person of the Father.

The 39 ARTICLES OF RELIGION 1571 Article II The Son, which is the Word of the Father, BEGOTTEN FROM EVERLASTING OF THE FATHER, the very and eternal God, and of one substance with the Father.

WESTMINSTER CONFESSION 1646 In the unity of the Godhead there be three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost: the Father is of none, neither begotten, nor proceeding; THE SON IS ETERNALLY BEGOTTEN OF THE FATHER; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding from the Father and the Son.

LONDON BAPTIST CONFESSION 1689 In this divine and infinite Being there are three subsistences, the Father, the Word or Son, and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided: the Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding; THE SON IS ETERNALLY BEGOTTEN OF THE FATHER, the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father and the Son.

For another great article written by Scott Jones dealing with the modern mistranslation of monogenes, please go to this site.

http://www.lamblion.net/Articles/ScottJones/monogenes.htm

And for Scott’s article showing the assault on the Only Begotten Son of God in John 1:18 please go to this site.

http://www.lamblion.net/Articles/ScottJones/begotten_son.htm

Here is a very well done article on John 1:18 and the heretical reading of the NASB, NIV versions done by a man who is not even a KJB onlyist. Tim Warner has written an excellent refutation of the NASB, NIV reading. See it here: http://studytoanswer.net/bibleversions/john1n18.html

Excellent long article on John 1:18 by Jesse Boyd here http://www.biblebelieversbaptist.org/monogenes.htm

And here is another scholarly article by Michael Marlowe showing how the Greek word monogenes means “only begotten” and not “unique”.http://www.bible-researcher.com/only-begotten.html 1

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“Fervent in Spirit” [podcast]

“Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;” Romans 12:11

Concerning being “fervent in spirit,” one commentator notes that this means to:

“Maintain zeal to the boiling point.” Dake

“Fervent” – A primary verb; to be hot (boil, of liquids; or glow, of solids), that is, (figuratively) be fervid (earnest): – be fervent.

“Do nothing at any time but what is to the glory of God, and do every thing as unto him; and in every thing let your hearts be engaged.” Adam Clarke

“Never let your zeal flag (lag, drop, tank), maintain the spiritual glow, serve the Lord.” Here we are reminded of the words of Jeremiah 48:10: ‘Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully,'” Believer’s Bible Commentary

Apollos was “fervent in the spirit.”

“This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being FERVENT in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.” Acts 18:25

In all things Christ’s saints are to be “fervent in spirit”:

“Not slothful in business; FERVENT in spirit; serving the Lord;” Romans 12:11

Disciples of Jesus are to have a “fervent mind” toward all saints and ministers of His blessed Gospel:

“And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your FERVENT mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.” 2 Corinthians 7:7

“Fervent prayer” is to be offered to God for other of His saints:

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual FERVENT prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James_5:16

Jesus’ people are to have “fervent charity among” ourselves:

“And above all things have FERVENT charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8

“Fervent heat” will soon consume the wicked who refused the salvation that comes from Christ alone:

“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with FERVENT heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” 2 Peter 3:10

“Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with FERVENT heat.” 2 Peter 3:12

On this biblical topic of fervency, of being “fervent in spirit”, one commentary offers the following:

“2 Peter 3:

To be ‘fervent in spirit’ means to have intense, burning passion, zeal, and enthusiasm for spiritual matters, often linked to serving God, rather than being lukewarm or apathetic. It implies being ‘boiled’ with spiritual energy, actively engaged, and diligent in faith, as described in Romans 12:11, (‘not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord’). It’s a passionate, fiery commitment, distinct from fanaticism, involving earnest application and a deep love for God.

Key aspects:

Intensity: A deep, glowing, or boiling heat of emotion and dedication.

Diligence: Not being lazy or half-hearted, but actively applying oneself to spiritual duties.
Spiritual Zeal: A strong desire and excitement for God’s will, the Gospel, and spiritual growth.
Source: Often described as being moved by the Holy Spirit, a fire within.
Biblical Example: Apollos was described as ‘fervent in the spirit’ as he taught diligently about the Lord (Acts 18:25).

How it’s expressed:

Passionate prayer

Diligent study of God’s Word

Active, loving service to others

Bold witnessing for faith

Being ‘on fire’ for God, not lukewarm”

Jesus says that those in His church who are “lukewarm” will be spued or rejected (Revelation 3:15-16). What’s the opposite of being “lukewarm”? – being “fervent in spirit.”

“Amen! Don’t let your fire die as the church in Laodicea did! They were neither cold nor hot. They were lukewarm. Comfortable! Indifferent! Their fire for the Lord had gone out. God’s not looking for people who play it safe but people who burn with fire for Him!!!” Karen Cochran

YOUR PRAYER: LORD, make me Yours. Please keep me close to You, NO MATTER what it takes. Break me dear LORD. Let the holy light of Your presence permeate and shine through my inner man. I am Your temple Jesus. Shine Your light on all darkness. I love You my LORD. In Jesus’ name.

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“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” 2 Timothy 2:3

One of Paul’s resumes of the sufferings he endured as an apostle of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 6:3-10

“3 Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:

4 But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,

5 In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;

6 By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,

7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,

8 By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;

9 As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;

10 As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.”

You are His. Cling to Him. The LORD Jesus is going to bring you through, not matter what you face (Deuteronomy 13:4).

“But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. 2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” Isaiah 43:1-2

“Hated”

“And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” Matthew 10:22

“Ye shall Laugh”

“And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. 22 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake.” Luke 6:20-22

“Through much Tribulation”

“Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.” Acts 14:22

Eternity with Christ, “with Joy”

“For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.” Isaiah 55:12

“To Make them White”

“And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. 33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days. 34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries. 35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.” Daniel 11:32-35

“Made white … the wise shall understand”

“Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but the wise shall understand.” Daniel 12:10

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7 Sayings of Jesus on the Cross [podcast]

What Final Statements Did Jesus Make on the Cross and What Did They Mean?

Our LORD Jesus Christ said 7 things while as He was offering His body and precious, sinless blood to buy us back to God. He was suffering for the sins of mankind and for no sin of His own (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 7:26; 1 Peter 3:18). He was shedding His blood to Re-deem (buy us back) and that’s what Jesus did for “the whole world” when He died on the cross, was buried, and raised again from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; 1 John 2:2). Do you know Him?

1. “My God, My God, Why hast thou forsaken me” (Matt. 27:46; Mk. 15:34; Ps. 22:1).

This concerned those who hung Him on the cross and how He became the sin bearer, the sin sacrifice and how the Father could not look on sin, so temporarily turned His head. Jesus was forsaken so that we might be forgiven (Isaiah 53).

Application to us: Job 19:6-10; Psalms 139:8; 2 Corinthians 12:7-12; Hebrews 13:5-6

2. “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).

He asked the Father to forgive them – a token of what His shed blood would pay for and facilitate – forgiveness of sin for all who come to Him on His terms to be saved. The sacrificial death of the Son of God satisfied the claims of the Father’s justice to justify mankind (Isaiah 53:11).

Application to us: As God forgave us due to Christ’s perfect sacrifice, He mandates, without exception, that we freely forgive all others, from our hearts. Matthew 5:44; 18:21-35; Mark 11:25-26; Ezekiel 36:24-26; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:12-14

3. “Verily, I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise” (Lk. 23:43).

This promise of forgiveness and eternal comfort given to the thief who believed on Christ in his final moments is the same promise for all who come to Him and are saved (John 6:47).

Application to us: Immediate glory, comfort, and bliss with our LORD at the moment of death. Luke 16:19-31; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8; Philippians 1:21-23; 1 Corinthians 2:9; Revelation 21:4; Luke 21:28

4. “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Lk. 23:46).

Jesus closes with the prophetic words of Psalm 31:5, speaking to the Father. We see His complete trust in the Father (John 5:30, etc.). Jesus entered death in the same way He lived each day of His life on earth, offering up His life as the perfect sacrifice and placing Himself into the Father’s hands (Luke 22:42).

Application to us: This is a great prayer! Stephen emulated his Savior when being stoned to death for Christ (Acts 7:51-60). “Commend” means to submit. Personally I find these words, while in prayer, rolling off my lips – submitting afresh, daily, and asking the LORD to take full control.

5. “Woman, behold thy son … Behold thy mother” (Jn. 19:26-27).

Jesus, looking down from the cross, was still filled with the concerns of a son for the earthly needs of his mother. None of his half brothers or sisters were there to care for her, so He gave this task to the apostle John (Mark 6:3). Here we see Christ’s humanity.

Application to us: We must take care of earthly responsibilities according to the counsel of the written Word of our God (Psalms 119; 2 Timothy 3:16-17).

6. “I thirst” (Jn. 19:28)

Jesus refused the initial drink of vinegar, gall, and myrrh offered to alleviate his suffering (Matthew 27:34 and Mark 15:23). But here, several hours later, we see Jesus fulfilling the messianic prophecy found in Psalm 69:21. By saying He was thirsty, Jesus prompted the Roman guards to give Him vinegar, which was customary at a crucifixion, thereby fulfilling the prophecy which showed that everything was happening according to God’s plan.

Application to us: We must endure hardness, bitter sufferings and seasons (Acts 14:22; 2 Timothy 2:3; James 1:2-4, 12, etc.).

7. “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30).

This means “paid in full.” The sin debt for all was fully satisfied in the sacrifice of our LORD Jesus Christ, the ultimate price was paid to satisfy the claims of the Father’s justice to redeem fallen mankind (Isaiah 53:11). He is “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

Application to us: Jesus accomplished our salvation single handedly, satisfying the claims of divine justice to redeem fallen mankind. He died to abolish law-keeping for righteousness and so we must “walk by faith and not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7; Romans 10:4; Colossians 2:14-19; Hebrews, etc.) Read Romans 3-5; Galatians.

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“It is Finished”!

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