 
Born Again or Conceived Again?

The Meaning of Gennao in John 3

Copyright 2020

Published by Grace Communion Seminary

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## Table of Contents

Preface

You Must Be Born From Above

  * Conception and resurrection

Born Again, by David Hunsberger

  * What does gennao mean?

  * "From above" or "again"?

The Breathtaking Miracle of Being Born from Above, by Bernard W. Schnippert

The Miracle of Rebirth, by Paul Kroll

Born of the Spirit

The context of John 3, by Gene Nouhan

The Meaning of Gennao in Matthew 1:20

Birth and life in the Gospel of John, by Michael Morrison

Word Study Resources

  * Bauer-Arndt-Gingrich-Danker

  * Johannes Louw & Eugene Nida

  * Spiros Zodhiates

  * Liddell-Scott-Jones

  * Theological Dictionary of the New Testament

  * New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology

  * Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament

  * Septuagint concordance

  * New Testament concordance

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# Preface

Herbert W. Armstrong, founder of the Worldwide Church of God, taught that the Greek word _gennaō_ in John 3:3, 6 referred to conception: "You must be conceived again." After Armstrong died (1986), this teaching was examined, and the church concluded in 1991 that, although the motive behind this teaching had merit, the technical details did not, and the meaning of the word is, as almost all translations agree, is "born."

In some ways, the doctrinal change was inconsequential: it made no difference in the way we lived, and it did not directly affect any of our other teachings. It was a change in terminology, not in our understanding of the Christian life. The doctrinal change was important sociologically, though: it was a recognition that Armstrong's teachings were not perfect, and all of his unconventional teachings would need to be examined. This eventually led to a thorough transformation in the church, as documented in Joseph Tkach's book _Transformed by Truth: The Worldwide Church of God Rejects the Teachings of Founder Herbert W. Armstrong and Embraces Historic Christianity_ (Multnomah, 1997). The book is available at <https://archive.gci.org/books/transformed/>

This is no longer a live controversy among members of the denomination, now named Grace Communion International. We have not attempted to update the research or the way in which the matter was explained. This e-book is offered as an archive of the relevant articles we published in the early 1990s. The original articles may be seen at https://web.archive.org/web/20070808044606/http://www.wcg.org/lit/gospel/born/default.htm

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#  You Must Be Born From Above

The conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3 is the climax of a rejection that was announced in the first chapter. "He came to his own and his own received him not" (verse 11). Luke tells us that Jesus' contemporaries "hated him" (Luke 19:14), but as representatives of the realm of darkness, the Jews were not able to quench his light (John 1:5). John the Baptist witnessed that Jesus was the Son of God (John 1:15-34), and Jesus' identity was evident in his miracles (as in turning water to wine, John 2). Some Jewish rulers and teachers (3:10) _knew_ that he had divine powers, but they rejected his message. Samaritans, ironically, accepted his teaching (4:39-42).

John's intent in chapter 3 was to highlight the Jewish rejection in terms of a confrontation between two representative individuals (Jesus and Nicodemus). Nicodemus represented Judaism in this account; this is evident from John's description of him as a Pharisee, a teacher, a ruler of the Jews (John 3:1, 10). This is also shown by the plural personal pronouns used by Nicodemus and by Jesus in the claim " _we_ know" (3:2), in which Nicodemus refers to Judaism, and in Jesus' response "I told _you_ [plural] but _ye_..." (3:12). These pronouns present Nicodemus as the embodiment of Judaism, speaking on its behalf.

In addition to the hints mentioned above, John has included another reference to the blindness of the Jews in his mention of _night_ (3:2). Nicodemus' preference for the night echoes the thought that the Jews loved darkness because their deeds were evil (3:19-21). Jesus could have praised Nicodemus for coming to him, but the issue in this account is Judaism, not Nicodemus' personal attitude toward the truth.

Nicodemus approached Jesus with a comment that is often misread. He began with an acknowledgment that Jesus was a man "come from God: for no one can do these miracles that you do, except God be with him" (John 3:2). This admission did not grant that Jesus was the Son of God, but only that he had been commissioned by God, as the prophets of the Old Testament had been. At best, the Jews represented by Nicodemus were prepared to allow a divine mission for Jesus. In John's terms, however, the status of a divinely-commissioned teacher does not capture the truth concerning Jesus.

Nicodemus could see that miracles were being performed, but he was not able to perceive their full importance or purpose. For this reason, Christ pointed out to him that these were only signs, a visible manifestation of a higher power, and could not be experienced through the senses. Sense experience is what John meant by "see" (John 3:3), as can be surmised from expressions like "see life" (3:36) and "taste death" (Mark 9:1). The kingdom of God would be in view only if the missing condition were present, namely an internal change that would bring about an entirely new outlook. The person who undergoes this internal change is so drastically changed that he could be described a new being. Since the new being would see things from a higher perspective — God's — he is described as born from above.

### Meaning of _gennao_ and _tikto_

_Gennao_ derives its meaning from the root _genna_ (birth). It means "to produce through birth." Whether the agent is male or female, the meaning of the verb is the same, "to bring a child into the world." Some passages that illustrate the meaning of this verb are:

Matthew 2:1: "Jesus was born [ _gennao_ ] in Bethlehem."

Matthew 19:12: "...eunuchs, which were so born [ _gennao_ ] from their mother's womb."

Luke 1:13: "Your wife Elizabeth shall bear [ _gennao_ ] you a son."

Greek has other verbs for describing birth specifically as an act of a woman. One of these verbs is _tikto._ This verb cannot be applied literally to a father because he is not bodily equipped for this function, but a figurative application of the verb to a man can be done. In this sense, Onesimus became Paul's son — "who became my son [ _tikto_ ] while I was in chains" (Philemon 10, NIV). Some clear passages in which _tikto_ is used literally (to describe parturition) are:

Matthew 1:21: "She shall bring forth [ _tikto_ ] a son."

Luke 1:57: "Elisabeth's full time came that she should be delivered [ _tikto_ ]."

Hebrews 11:11: "...and was delivered of a child."

In John 3:3, the verb is _gennao_ — which describes coming into the world, not a birth in the sense of parturition.

### Again or from above?

In John 3:3, the verb _gennao_ is accompanied by the adverb _anothen._ Depending on the context, this adverb can mean "again" or "from above." The nearest expression in English is "from the top" ( _ano_ = above, _then_ = from). Christ's tunic was "woven from the top [ _anothen_ ] in one piece" (John 19:23). John uses the expression only in the sense of "from above" (see also John 3:31, 19:11).

When John wants to say "again," he uses other terms. One such term is _palin_ (John 1:35, 4:3, 13, 46, 54, etc.). John 3:3, therefore, should be rendered "born from above," not "born again." Of course, if someone is born from above when he is old, he is also born again. John's meaning is a birth from God, not merely a second birth. Only a birth from God would enable Nicodemus to perceive that the kingdom of God was at work in the miracles that the Jews had witnessed. In fact, John states clearly that those who receive Christ (1:12) are born ( _gennao_ ) "not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but _of_ _God_ " (1:13).

### Born or begotten?

Some translators render _gennao_ in John 3:3 as "born," others as "begotten." The resulting phrase varies: "born again" (KJV), "begotten from above" (New American Bible). The word "begotten" is obsolete in modern English, except in rhetorical expressions (such as "hatred begets murder"). When the Bible says that Abraham begat Isaac (Matthew 1:2), it means that Abraham was the father of Isaac. Instead of "Isaac begat two sons," modern English uses "Isaac had two sons." The difference between "bear" and "beget" in King James English is that the first applies only to parturition while the latter can refer to the father's bringing a son into the world (obviously through his wife's parturition).

A mistake has been made with respect to the two verbs, by associating "beget" with the union of the spermatozoon and the ovum (conception) — but from the standpoint of a father. The verb "beget" does not have such a meaning, and the wide acceptance of the wrong meaning is due to the fact that "beget" is an obsolete verb, thus lending itself more easily to misuse. Compound verbs beginning with the prefix "be" describe personal involvement in the action indicated. Thus "beget," "beseech," "beguile," "behave," "betray," etc. express personal involvement. It is for this reason that the translators of the King James Version chose to say that Abraham begat Isaac.

With reference to John 3, Jesus was explaining to Nicodemus that the Jews experience physical matters (including the visible miracles he had performed) only because they are equipped by their physical birth for that task. Spiritual matters can be experienced only by those who are equipped by a spiritual birth. Therefore, humans need two births, otherwise they are hampered by their limitations and cannot know that it is God who is working miracles. The second birth makes believers into _new_ creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). In this sense, Nicodemus was an _old_ man in both senses of the word — physically and spiritually.

### Born of water and spirit

The sense of John 3:5 is that the regeneration that came about through the acceptance of John's baptism was not enough for the grasp of spiritual things. One had to be born of the Spirit, too, because it is the Spirit that effects the dramatic change (1 Corinthians 6:11). It is a mistake to read John 3:6 as if it were part of rudimentary physics. Christ was not distinguishing the different substances (flesh from wood or metal, for example) but was stressing what he had enunciated already, that Spirit is not limited. Flesh cannot aspire to spiritual truths because God's kingdom functions at a higher level. Whatever is born of flesh is flesh — that is to say, flesh cannot transcend its limitations. On the other hand, that which is born of the Spirit is spirit — that is to say, spirit reaches areas that lie beyond the physical realm.

In the verses that follow, Jesus took the thought one step further. Since the Spirit of God is so important, because the Spirit functions beyond physical humans' grasp, Jesus introduced the analogy of the wind (verses 7-8). One knows the results of the activity of the wind — leaves blown about, trees bending, etc. — but the origin, the cause, the "where from" and the "where to" of the wind are not disclosed in the physical results. Spiritually, lives are changing and miracles are taking place, but the source and destination of what is evidenced are not understood. In the context of this lack of understanding, the Jews of Christ's day were rejecting the kingdom of God, and John constructs the account in a way that incorporates the truths that the Jews had rejected: Jesus was the Son of Man, coming from heaven (3:13), the Son of God (3:17, 18), the Light of the world (3:19).

### Misuse of Christ's words

The conversation in John 3 was initiated by Nicodemus. We have no reason to believe that Jesus ever went to anyone to ask if that person had been born again, as one finds today. The account given by John is often treated as a passport for confronting unbelievers to ask if they have been born again, or to encourage them to do so by accepting Jesus Christ. The purpose of the passage is to register a serious lack in Judaism, in which the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit was not understood and the work of God's kingdom was not perceived.

Copyright 1991

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## Conception and Resurrection

Contexts of Gennao Outside John's Gospel

The verb _gennao_ appears in various contexts in the New Testament. In some places, _gennao_ might at first seem to have a meaning other than what it has in John. Those passages are explained below.

### Conception

Matthew 1:20 says: "that which is conceived [ _gennao_ ] in her is of the Holy Spirit" (KJV unless noted). Here, a translator has the difficult task of deciding whether to give a rendering that reads smoothly in English or one that stays close to the original Greek at the expense of English. If the rendering stays close to the original, it would be, "that which is _begotten_ in her" or "that which is _born_ in her"; but both of these sound odd in English. Older translators tried to convey the _sense._ The Wycliff Bible speaks of that which is born in her, and the Vulgate does this with the expression _natum est_ (is born) in her.

Since the King James Version was meant to be read in churches, it had to reflect good English. The translators gave the _sense_ of the original rather than a word-by-word translation of the terms used. If they had chosen exact parallel terms, they would have had to construct an English sentence that would refer to the result — to that which had been brought about in Mary's womb.

On the other hand, if Matthew had intended to describe conception (the beginning stage) rather than what he describes (the final stage), he would have used the verb _syllambano_ (to conceive). In conclusion, no reference to conception is made in Matthew 1:20, and, despite the problems of translation, the verb _gennao_ is used in the same sense here as it is used in John's Gospel.

### The resurrection

In Acts 13:32-34, Luke wrote: "This day have I begotten [ _gennao_ ] thee." This might suggest a reference to the resurrection. However, this would mean that Jesus Christ became the Son of God at the resurrection — which contradicts numerous passages in the New Testament in which Jesus is called the Son of God even before his resurrection. For example, John the Baptist called him the Son of God (John 1:34). Satan challenged Jesus by saying: "If you are the Son of God..." (Matthew 4:3). Later, the demons recognized him as the Son (Matthew 8:29), and at his crucifixion, the crowds taunted him on the same point (Matthew 27:40). Therefore, Acts 13:33 cannot mean that Jesus became the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead.

The expression "This day have I begotten thee" is a quote from Psalm 2:7. The sonship of Christ was pronounced from heaven during the transfiguration, too, with a quotation from the same psalm (Matthew 17:5), and earlier still, during his baptism (Matthew 3:17), and even before his human birth (John 3:16). In these passages, as well as Hebrews 1:5 and 5:5, the word "today" is simply a part of the Old Testament scripture that carries the all-important element — Christ's sonship. The passage is quoted because it contains the phrase, "You are my Son," not because it says "today." We often quote entire passages even when we need only a part of them.

Since Acts 13:33 and other passages cannot mean that Jesus Christ became God's Son by his resurrection, we need to examine the original context (Psalm 2:7) to see what it meant there.

### "This day" in Psalm 2

The psalm (verse 2) says that kings rise and conspire against the Lord and his _Anointed_ — a reference to Christ. This is a Messianic hymn, which early Christians must have quoted frequently. Verse 6 of the psalm speaks of a decree and of the king's ascension to the throne, and verse 12 adds the result — homage to the king.

2 Samuel 7:12-14 sheds some light on this. There, God makes a covenant with David to establish Solomon's kingdom. He announces that he will be Solomon's Father, and Solomon will be his son. This passage refers to a human king rather than to Christ, as we can see from verse 14, "If he [the king] commits iniquity, I will chasten him." On the day the king ascended to the throne, he was "begotten of God" — a standard formula for enthronements. Further support for this is found in later Jewish literature. One of the Targums says: "Thou art as dear to me as a son to his father, and innocent as though I had this day created thee."

The reason for the king's privileged position was the anointing. The king was God's anointed. On that day he was set apart and accepted by God. The Book of Revelation echoes the same formula in the promise made to the believer who inherits God's kingdom: "I will be his God, and he shall be my son" (21:7; see also 2 Corinthians 6:17-18). In saying that God will be a Father and the believer a son, God is not implying that he is not a Father now, or that believers are not already God's children (Matthew 6:9).

### Son of God — by the resurrection

Romans 1:4 says that Jesus Christ was "declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." The difficulty presented by this passage is not one of translation, text or context — it is one of exegesis. The first step is to analyze the statement itself. An example may help us understand how the language works. If a general maneuvers his armies on the battlefield in such a way as to win the battle and bring his forces home, he may receive a medal. Someone might say that the battle "declared him to be a general with unusual strategic prowess." This statement is not meant to be taken to declare him to be a general. He was a general, even before the historic battle. The statement declares him to be a _brilliant_ general.

The above example can help clarify Paul's statement. The resurrection declared Jesus Christ to be the "Son of God with power" — that is to say, the _powerful_ Son of God. The power is implicit in the exaltation of the Son of God. He was _already_ the Son of God, as can be seen in verse 3: God's Son "was born of the seed of David according to the flesh." In other words, God gave his Son for the sins of the world (John 3:16), and this Son of God came as a physical descendant of David (Romans 1:3). Paul's theology demands careful handling of this refinement. He is saying that Christ's physical descent is not the fullness of the Son of God, but his resurrection from the dead places him in a special relation to us — one marked with power.

### Firstborn from the dead

It is sometimes proposed, based on Colossians 1:18 and Revelation 1:5, that Jesus Christ would not be called the firstborn from the dead unless others would be _born_ in the same way later. In other words, the term "first" suggests that others follow, who will be born in the same way as the first. This interpretation is wrong. There is no term "first" or a term "born" in the text. The term "firstborn" is used, which is a title. The meaning of the title is not order of birth, but privilege.

In Exodus 4:22, Israel is described as God's "firstborn." This title does not assert that Israel was born first or that others would be born later. It is a title of honor, not a reference to birth or birth order. It describes a privileged position over other nations. Christ, as the "firstborn among many brethren" (Romans 8:29) has a special position. He is preeminent, even to the extent of being worshipped by the angels (Hebrews 1:6).

### Those born of God do not sin

"Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for his seed remains in him; and he cannot sin" (1 John 3:9). This refers to practicing sin _as a way of life._ Translators try not to be wordy in their renditions, but some paraphrases are not afraid of expanding the verse to convey the meaning. For example, the Williams translation says: "No one who is born of God _makes a practice of sinning_...and so he _cannot practice sinning,_ because he is born of God." This understanding of the passage is in agreement with John's teaching. He stresses that those who have love are born of God (1 John 4:7), and those who believe in Jesus Christ are born of God (1 John 5:1). Those statements are about a regeneration that takes place on the basis of a change of perspective, a conversion.

A Christian is a new creation as soon as he or she receives the _Spirit_ of God and the _word_ of God (1 Peter 1:23). They are considered "newborn babies," requiring "pure milk of the _word_ " and _spiritual_ growth (1 Peter 2:2), until they come to the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13). The birth from above marks only the beginning of the Christian life. There are important foundations to be laid, spiritual buildings to be constructed, maturity to be achieved, and knowledge to be obtained.

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## Born Again

For 40 some years the Worldwide Church of God taught that being "born again" meant being changed from flesh to spirit at the return of Christ. However, in 1991 the church announced that the term "born again" actually applied to the conversion experience, in this life. It is the beginning of the Christian life.

Some members had questions about this doctrinal change. Let us try to put the matter into perspective.

### Not a change of doctrine

Mr. Tkach Sr. wrote that we did not change the doctrine of salvation:

####  Sometimes we find that we need to correct, not what the Church teaches, but the kind of explanation it has given — a matter that does not affect doctrine at all. One such matter is a description we have chosen to give of the believer's conversion and spiritual growth in this life....

#### Let's understand that this clarification in no way affects the essence of our doctrine. Our doctrine can be briefly summarized as follows:

#### 1) In this life, a man with God's Spirit is a new creature.

#### 2) Through the Holy Spirit, the Christian walks in newness of life until Christ's coming and the resurrection from the dead.

#### 3) At the resurrection (Christ's coming), the Christian is changed...and puts on immortality.

#### 4) As immortal...beings, Christians will be like Christ and are to reign with him. ( _The Worldwide News,_ Jan. 28, 1991)

### Reality versus analogy

God is saving us. Herbert Armstrong explained that we _have been_ saved from our sins by Christ's blood; we _are being_ saved from sin by his life in us through the Holy Spirit; and we _shall_ receive the ultimate, final eternal salvation and glorious spiritual bodies when Christ returns.

Upon repentance and faith in Christ, we receive the Holy Spirit to live in us to sanctify and perfect us. We begin new lives, very active lives, of living as Christians. We become lights to the world.

Our basic teaching about what happens has not changed, but the analogy has changed. We used to liken our conversion and receiving of God's Spirit to human conception. The time of our spiritual growth, living as Christians, was likened to the nine-month gestation period, and the birth was equated with our resurrection, our change to immortal life as glorified children of God.

However, we have seen that this analogy is not used in the New Testament, which likens conversion to a new birth. The Christian life of spiritual growth is equated with the growth of a baby to maturity. The resurrection is a not part of this analogy — it is described separately as a change from mortality to immortality.

The analogy is different, but the main teaching about salvation is the same. We continue to stress our need for spiritual growth and maturity after the time of conversion and receipt of the Holy Spirit.

### Historical perspective

In our change we went back to what our church taught decades ago, and what the Church of God (Seventh Day) taught all along. They teach that the Bible uses the term "born again" to mean conversion. Notice these clear statements from their booklet _The New Birth, What Is It? When Is It?_

#### Jesus referred to a new birth in denoting conversion to Christianity. His Word shows that personal _repentance, confession, faith,_ and _water baptism_ prepare the way for the entrance of God's Holy Spirit — marking the actual birth of a new spiritual being. Everyone who has received Christ as Savior and Lord, _has_ been born again. In reality that person _has become a_ new creation (creature) through God.

#### At our conversion our physical bodies remain the same. The conversion is that of the spirit. Our attitude, outlook and discipline are changed.... Those who are born of God become His offspring.... The new birth has no reference to physical change; in fact, the spiritual birth is indiscernible visibly.

This is the doctrine Mr. Armstrong learned and taught in the early part of his Christian experience and in the first part of his ministry. This is shown in article 10 of the _Fundamentals of Belief,_ which was an official statement of The Radio Church of God when it was headquartered in Eugene, Oregon:

We believe that all who truly repent of their sins, in full surrender and willing obedience to God, accepting Jesus Christ as personal Savior in faith believing, are forgiven their sins by an act of divine grace, justified, pardoned from the penalty of past sins, reconciled to God, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit which literally comes and abides within, supplying the divine love which alone can fulfill the law and produce righteousness; and thus are baptized by the Spirit into the body of Christ which is the true church of God. We believe in a true born-again experience, and that only those who have the indwelling presence of, and are being led by the Holy Spirit are Christ's. Bible evidence of being thus baptized by the Spirit is the fruit of the Spirit in one's life.

About 1945, the teaching changed. Being given the Holy Spirit was compared to the union of a sperm and ovum, and the Christian life was pictured by a gestation period. As a fetus grows large enough to be born, Christians grow spiritually, preparing to be "born again" at the resurrection. This is what Mr. Armstrong taught for about 40 years, so most people in the church today are not aware that he originally taught that the new birth was conversion. In 1991, Mr. Tkach announced that the church would teach that conversion is being born anew or born from above. Thus, the church returned to its historic teaching on this subject.

### A matter of terminology, not doctrine

When we made this doctrinal change, our basic beliefs about salvation did not change, but the terminology did. Mr. Armstrong recognized that terminology was the issue: "Many who believe they are ' _born again_ ' on receiving the Holy Spirit are more in error in terminology than in what happens" ( _Just What Do You Mean... Conversion?,_ page 14). He thought of this as a matter of difference in terminology, not doctrine.

### Not adopting someone else's interpretation

Some members wondered if the church simply adopted the teaching about being born again from other denominations. Some preachers say that a person can be spiritually born again simply by claiming to accept Christ. The "acceptance" often turns out to be temporary, made during a moment of emotion. Nevertheless, some teach that once someone has said he or she accepts Christ, almost as if these were magical words, the person is saved, and heaven is guaranteed no matter what happens later. This is an extreme version of the teaching popularly called "once saved, always saved." We, of course, do not teach that.

When Jesus said that person must be born again, he was not talking about a temporary, emotional claim to believe in Christ. We teach that when one is born again, the new Christian is a spiritual babe, needing to grow and mature, led by the Holy Spirit in preparation for immortality. Thus, being born again is only the _beginning_ of the Christian life. Spiritual growth or sanctification takes time.

Is the born-again teaching a "Protestant" doctrine? No. It is taught by many churches, including the Church of God (Seventh Day). The Catholic Church does not stress this teaching, but Catholic commentators recognize that John 3:3 refers to something in this life. The reason this teaching is found in such diverse traditions is that they all get it from the Bible.

Some Protestants also criticize the shallow, ineffective experience that is accepted as a spiritual rebirth by many churches. Notice this from John MacArthur:

####  Listen to the typical gospel presentation nowadays. You'll hear sinners entreated with words like, "accept Jesus Christ as personal Savior"; "ask Jesus into your heart"; "invite Christ into your life"; or "make a decision for Christ." You may be so accustomed to hearing those phrases that it will surprise you to learn none of them is based on biblical terminology. They are the products of a diluted gospel. It is not the gospel according to Jesus.

#### The gospel Jesus proclaimed was a call to discipleship, a call to follow him in submissive obedience, not just a plea to make a decision or pray a prayer. Jesus' message liberated people from the bondage of their sin while it confronted and condemned hypocrisy. It was an offer of eternal life and forgiveness for repentant sinners, but at the same time it was a rebuke to outwardly religious people whose lives were devoid of true righteousness. It put sinners on notice that they must turn from sin and embrace God's righteousness. It was in every sense good news, yet it was anything but easy believism.

#### Our Lord's words about eternal life were invariably accompanied by warnings to those who might be tempted to take salvation lightly. He taught that the cost of following him is high, that the way is narrow and few find it. He said many who call him Lord will be forbidden from entering the kingdom of heaven (cf. Matthew 7:13-23). ( _The Gospel According to Jesus,_ page 1)

It is understandable why Mr. Armstrong and many others were disgusted with the gross misuse of terms like "born again" by people who were not really being converted and who were not committed to following Christ. As John MacArthur points out, he has not been the only one to have such feelings. However, the fact that others misuse a biblical term should not prevent us from using it and showing what it really means.

### John 3

The phrase "born again" is first found in John 3, so let's go there to see what Jesus said. One of the most important rules for understanding the Bible is to read it in context. We need to get the background, the history behind the stories, so we can better understand what was in the minds of those who were involved. In this way we can help the Bible explain itself.

John wrote his Gospel so that we may believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing we may have life in his name (20:30-31). As we look at passages in John, we need to keep his purpose in mind. He has chosen each incident and event because it contributes to his purpose of proving that Jesus is the Messiah and that we have _life_ in his name.

Jesus was God in the flesh (1:1). He is the Maker of all things (1:3). Life is in him, and this life is the light of mankind (1:4). Darkness does not understand or overcome light (1:5). John witnessed that Jesus is the Christ (1:6). The true Light came into the world, but the world did not recognize him (1:9-10). He came to the Jews, but they did not recognize him (1:11). But all who receive him and believe are children of God (1:12). God's true children are not so by heredity, ancestry or human choice, but by being born of God (1:13).

After this, we read of John the Baptist's testimony, the calling of the first disciples and, in chapter 2, the first miracle and the cleansing of the Temple. Now we come to chapter 3. Nicodemus, a teacher of Israel, was a leading Pharisee, a respected and honorable man (3:1). Because of what we read in John 2, we know why the Pharisees would be interested in learning more about Jesus. He was doing some of the signs of the prophesied Messiah. John the Baptist had identified him as the Christ.

Pharisees considered themselves children of God because they were descendants of Abraham. In general, they prided themselves on being righteous. They baptized gentiles and circumcised them to bring them into Judaism, but Jesus said that they only made these proselytes into children of hell (Matthew 23:15). The proselytes were called new children, born again, but the conversions did no good, just like some born-again experiences today. These rebirths were based on human emotion, human reason and human resources; they were not of God.

We must not think that we can be spiritually reborn by our own goodness, our own achievements, efforts or works. Jesus' comment to Nicodemus includes the thought that a real spiritual rebirth is brought about from above by God's Spirit. A real born-again experience is caused by the Holy Spirit of God changing our minds and taking away our hearts of stone and giving us hearts of flesh, to use words from Ezekiel 36.

Coming back to John 3, Nicodemus thought that the Jews were the kingdom of God and that Pharisees were the best children of God. They probably thought that the real Messiah would want to join the Pharisees and they could work together to liberate Judah and set up the prophesied theocracy. When Jesus said that no one could see or perceive the kingdom unless he was born again (3:3), it must have greatly surprised Nicodemus.

### "Born again" means conversion

How do we know that the term "born again" means conversion, not the change that occurs at the resurrection? The context helps us understand. The apostle John tells us that believers, even in this age, have eternal life (John 6:54). All who believe are already children of God (1 John 3:1-2) — "children born not of natural descent...but born of God" (John 1:13).

Early Jewish rabbis spoke of proselytes — gentiles converting to Judaism — as being "reborn." _Encyclopedia Judaica_ states, "A proselyte terminates all former family ties upon conversion and 'is considered a newly born child'" (volume 13, page 1184, article "Proselytes").

The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible states:

#### The Jewish direction for developing theologically such an illustration as Jesus provided is evident in the somewhat similar rabbinic comparison of the new proselyte with a newborn child.... "I make you a new creature, like a woman who is pregnant and gives birth" (Rabbi Judah bar Simon). (volume 4, page 27, article "Regeneration")

Further discussion of these concepts is found under the subject "Baptism" in _Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible_ and in chapter 6 of _The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah,_ by Alfred Edersheim. A summary of these points is also given in the _Theological Dictionary of the New Testament,_ 1985 one-volume edition, pages 114-115, under the heading " _gennao._ "

New birth, as a figure of speech, is known to refer to proselyte conversion. It was understood to mean conversion of the mind and heart, beginning a new spiritual life with a new way of thinking, leaving one's old ways and ideas completely behind.

But there is _no_ evidence that it could refer to resurrection. Indeed, if Nicodemus thought that "born again" might refer to a resurrection, he could have responded, "Yes, I know that everyone who is resurrected can see the kingdom, because it will come in its fullness at the resurrection. Is that the focus of your teaching?"

No, Nicodemus did not understand the new birth to be a resurrection. He probably thought it applied only to gentile converts to Judaism. But Nicodemus was a Jew, already one of God's covenant children, and more than that, he was one of Israel's teachers. Why would he need to be born again? Did he need to start all over? The thought was so radical that it didn't make sense to him. "Nicodemus employs a typical opening for debate by taking the most literal meaning possible" (Pheme Perkins, _New Jerome Bible Commentary,_ page 955). Nicodemus was saying, in effect, "You can't mean this literally, so what _do_ you mean?"

"There are several misunderstandings involved in Nicodemus' reaction to Jesus' words. These misunderstandings — a frequent device in the Johannine discourse — lead Jesus to explain more fully" (Raymond E. Brown, _The Gospel According to John,_ Anchor Bible volume 29, page 138).

When Jesus said Nicodemus could not see or enter the kingdom unless he was born again, he referred to conversion, not to the future coming of the kingdom in its fullness to rule on earth.

Nicodemus, a leader of the Pharisees, had come to Jesus and acknowledged that Jesus was a teacher, a miracle-worker whom God was with. It was a significant moment. Jesus did not just give a general truth about the distant future. Rather, Jesus used this opportunity to give Nicodemus a substantial summary of his teaching: Everyone needs a new spiritual start. He was talking about this life, not the next.

Nicodemus should have remembered that no one can understand or see or hear unless the Lord enables them (Deuteronomy 29:4). Only God can open a person's heart and mind to understand spiritual truths (Matthew 13:13-17; Luke 8:10).

John contrasts light with darkness — Jesus the true light had come, and the darkness, the unconverted world, did not perceive him. We who are converted are rescued from darkness — we can now see — and we are transferred into — we have entered — the kingdom of God's beloved Son (Colossians 1:13).

### How can an adult be born?

Jews didn't think they had to be reborn, but Jesus told Nicodemus that they were no better than others who needed regeneration. Nicodemus responded by talking about a literal birth, but this does not mean that he really thought Jesus was talking about literal birth. No one can _prove_ exactly what Nicodemus meant, but here is a sensible explanation:

####  Nicodemus's reply has often been misunderstood: "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?" (v. 4). Nicodemus was not speaking in literal terms. We must give him credit for a little common sense. Surely he was not so feeble-minded as to think Jesus was really talking about re-entering the womb and literally being born again. A teacher himself, Nicodemus understood the rabbinical method of teaching spiritual truth in symbols, and he was merely picking up Jesus' symbolism. He was really saying, "I _can't_ start all over. It's too late. I've gone too far in my religious system to start all over. There's no hope for me if I must begin from the beginning."

#### Jesus was demanding that Nicodemus forsake everything he stood for, and Nicodemus knew it. Far from offering this man an easy conversion, Christ challenged him with the most difficult demand he could make. Nicodemus would gladly have given money, fasted, or performed any ritual Jesus could have prescribed. But, to call him to spiritual rebirth was asking him to acknowledge his own spiritual insufficiency and turn away from everything he was committed to. ( _The Gospel According to Jesus,_ pages 39-40)

Jesus did not come to put a new patch on an old garment or new wine in old bottles (Matthew 9:16-17). He did not come to add a new wrinkle to Judaism — he brought Christianity, based on faith and Spirit rather than human works.

Jesus told Nicodemus that his religion of human works and human wisdom was not acceptable to God, nor was his reliance on descent from Abraham. Nicodemus was surprised and puzzled. Jesus is saying that only those who believe in the Son of God can be God's children and participate in his kingdom. Nicodemus, the respected teacher, would have to start all over just like everyone else.

Only faith in Christ will save a person. Only those who believe will be given power to be God's children. Ancestry and fastidious works mean nothing, because salvation is not earned by works or status — it is a gift God gives to those who believe in Christ.

Don't misunderstand. Good works are better than evil works! But prideful reliance on human works to earn favor with God is unacceptable and a self-delusion. God accepts only real repentance and confession of sin and willingness to let Christ live in us to do God's works.

### Born of water and Spirit

Verse 5 — Nicodemus should have known from Ezekiel 36:25-27 that when the Messiah brings the kingdom, even Jews will have to repent, be washed in the waters of renewal and receive a new heart by God's Holy Spirit. This is what Jesus means when he says one must be born by water and the Spirit.

We used to take verse 6 out of context and interpret it literally. There is a certain satisfaction in saying "the Bible means what it says." But an honest review of John will show that much of it should not be interpreted literally. For example, John 1:5 does not refer to a mere light going on in a dark room! In John 2:19 we do not take Jesus as referring to the literal temple. In John 6:53 we do not think Jesus referred to eating his literal flesh.

When we understand that Jesus was talking figuratively, we see that being born of flesh or Spirit is not speaking of the physical birth process, but of spiritual regeneration and orientation. Those born of the flesh are carnally minded. Those born of the Spirit (1 John 3:9) are spiritually minded and are able to believe in Christ and become children of God.

When Jesus said that "Flesh gives birth to flesh," he wasn't stating the obvious. He was speaking spiritually, about the heart and mind. Those born naturally have the natural heart and mind. Only those (re)born spiritually have spiritual hearts and minds. Jesus refers to what he has just stated, that one must be "born of water and the Spirit." Compare this with Titus 3:5, which speaks of the same thing: "He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit."

When Jesus told Nicodemus that all who are born of the flesh are flesh, he meant that they are carnally minded and unconverted, controlled by the sinful nature. Clearly one could not, as Nicodemus had thought, be a child of the kingdom merely by physical birth and descent from Abraham. Natural birth brings only the carnal mind, the mind that cannot please God nor see the kingdom. Paul tells us in Romans 8:9-10 that the converted person is "not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ [be] in you, the body [is] dead because of sin; but the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness" (King James Version).

This is what Jesus meant when he told Nicodemus that "Spirit gives birth to spirit" (John 3:6). Jesus was speaking of conversion, the water of regeneration and receiving of the Holy Spirit. The context shows that Jesus was not speaking of the composition of the body (physical versus spiritual essence), but of the orientation of the mind. The heart is either fleshly or spiritual depending on whether one has been converted. To see the kingdom of God, one must be born again — have his fleshly mind converted into a spiritual mind.

In Romans 6, Paul described this as the death of the old self and the beginning of a new life in Christ. The old has died; the new person now lives. This is a new birth. At the resurrection we do not have yet another birth, but a dramatic change from mortality to immortality. One could, of course, draw an analogy of the resurrection as a birth into a new kind of existence, but we should not confuse that new analogy with the analogy in John 3. The new birth Jesus spoke of and that Paul describes and that Peter writes about is our spiritual renewal, by water and the Spirit, into the new life in Christ now. We are already new creations in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). This is why conversion is called the "new birth."

### "Like the wind"

Verse 8 has sometimes been used to claim that those born of God are invisible. If this meant that those born again were invisible, it would prove that the new birth did not happen in this age. But Jesus was speaking in metaphors — not literally and physically.

When Jesus said that those born of God are like the wind, he meant that just as you cannot see the wind or know it is there, except by what it does — rustling the leaves, raising the dust, etc. — you cannot see any outward difference in those who are born again. But you can tell who is born of God by what he or she does, by the fruit produced in the Christian life. Just as the invisible power of the wind accomplishes things that can be seen, the invisible power of the Holy Spirit working in converted Christians accomplishes works and produces fruits that can be seen.

### Salvation by faith

Verse 9 — How can salvation come by faith? Jesus uses the example of the bronze serpent. The people were delivered from death by looking at it (Numbers 21:8-9).

#### That bronze snake on a pole was the means God used to give new (physical) life to the children of Israel if they were bitten in the plague of snakes [Numbers 21:8-9].... By God's provision, new life was graciously granted. Why then should it be thought so strange that by the gracious provision of this same God there should be new spiritual life, indeed, "eternal life" (v. 15)?

####  Nicodemus was being challenged to turn to Jesus for new birth in much the same way as the ancient Israelites were commanded to turn to the bronze snake for new life.... Here then is the frankest answer to Nicodemus' question, "How can this happen?" (v. 9). The kingdom of God is seen or entered, new birth is experienced, and eternal life begins, through the saving cross-work of Christ, received by faith. (D.A. Carson, _The Gospel According to John,_ pages 201-202).

Jesus' authority is from God (3:11-13). He will be lifted up on the cross to save all peoples (3:14). Everyone, not just Jews, who believe will have eternal life (3:15). God doesn't love only the Jews — he loves all people (3:16). The children of God will be evident by their deeds, which reflect the working of the Holy Spirit, not human works. Believers come into the light and acknowledge Christ so it may be seen that what is being done in their lives is being done by God (3:19-21). Their works are a _result_ of salvation, not done in an attempt to _earn_ it.

We were correct in teaching that salvation is not complete until we are glorified children of God. We will be saved on the day Christ comes, and God will then give us spiritual bodies.

We used to describe the Christian life as a spiritual gestation period, with the convert growing spiritually in the womb of the "mother" church and coming to birth when the spiritual body is given. But the Bible generally uses the analogy of a child growing to maturity, rather than of a fetus.

As long as you know what is actually happening and the reality of our transformation and perfection done by God's Spirit, the terminology isn't crucial. The Bible calls conversion a new birth, and we are now using that terminology. It is not wrong to use the analogy of a fetus if that helps you see the reality. The reality is more important than what we call it, but we prefer to use biblical terminology.

### Jesus the firstborn

Several have asked about Colossians 1:18, where Jesus is called the "firstborn from the dead." In Romans 8:29, he is called the "firstborn among many brethren." "Firstborn" is from the Greek word _prototokos,_ and, when used of Jesus, it is a _title_ rather than indicating when he was "born" in the sense of _gennao._

Jesus held the title "firstborn" from eternity. In Colossians 1:15, he is called the "firstborn over all creation" by virtue of having created all things under the Father's direction. The title "firstborn" signifies Christ in his relationship to the Father — he was before creation and produced all creation. This title indicates the preeminence of Christ in relationship to the church. He also is the first to rise permanently from the grave, but this is not related to _gennao._ It was a resurrection, not a birth. Jesus Christ is firstborn in many capacities.

"Firstborn" is used as a title in Exodus 4:22, where Israel is called God's firstborn. This does not assert that Israel was the first nation or that others would be born later; the Jews did not understand it in that way. Rather, "firstborn" signifies a special relationship with God. We see the same in Psalm 89:20-27 — David will be God's firstborn, higher than other kings of earth. He was not the first king God appointed to be over Israel, nor was he his father's first child. He was the first in his royal line, but this prophecy in Psalm 89 had nothing to do with _birth._

The title "firstborn" often goes to the oldest male child, but not always (Genesis 48:14-19). In reference to Christ, it is a title of preeminence and privilege over creation and the church.

The church has a special position and relationship with God. In Hebrews 12:23 we are called "the church of the _firstborn,_ " and this word is plural, indicating that we are all reckoned as firstborn, as inheritors. Again, this is used as a title of honor and preeminence.

### The resurrection

Some feel that 1 Corinthians 15 indicates a new birth at the resurrection. The Bible describes the resurrection as a spiritual body given to us as we are raised from the dead (or changed if still alive). A newborn baby, however, has essentially the same body as it had before its birth. This is another way in which resurrection is not analogous to birth.

We have sometimes thought that Romans 1:4 indicated that resurrection is a birth. Christ was "declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead." But this does not say that Jesus became the Son of God by the resurrection. Jesus was declared to be the Son of God before his crucifixion — he did not become the Son of God by his resurrection. Rather, the resurrection declared him to be not just the Son, but the Son _with power._

### The pregnancy analogy

The analogy of a gestation period to show a process of growth and then a new birth is a useful one in some ways. It may help some people picture the fact that the spiritual-maturity process takes place over a period of time. However, this is not the analogy used in John 3.

The biblical analogy is that a person is born again upon receiving the Holy Spirit. Rather than representing a gestation period, this life corresponds to the growth and learning process of a baby who has been born and grows and develops to a mature human over the course of life.

This is a better analogy. After all, a fetus does not have to make any decisions, is not aware of trials, is completely nurtured by the mother. A fetus is not responsible for itself. And, most important, a fetus does not have contact with its father for most of its preparation for birth. In contrast, Jesus taught Christians to talk with the Father and to discuss their needs with him. A child already born can do this, but an unborn fetus cannot.

Any analogy will break down when extended too far, but the fetus analogy breaks down faster than the baby analogy does; the baby analogy is more useful. A baby can talk with its father and receive help to meet difficulties. A baby has to make decisions, albeit simple ones at first. There can be no fruit of the Spirit borne without choice, and in this life God commands us to bear fruit. We have always said that. The analogy of a newborn baby growing to maturity better illustrates what we teach about spiritual growth.

In Christian life, trials present themselves, and it is through wrestling with these difficulties and overcoming them by using God's Word and Spirit that one matures in God's mind and character. One of our old booklets, _Just What Do You Mean...Conversion?,_ when describing Christian life, found the baby analogy more useful than the fetus analogy: "But, suppose, like an 8- or 10-month-old baby trying to learn to walk, as he 'walks' this new way, he stumbles, 'falls down,' as it were, and sins. Is he then condemned — lost — no longer a Christian?" (page 14).

If we have been called by God and have let him lead us to repentance and have received his Holy Spirit, we are already children of God. We have been given a new start, a new birth; we have been born again. And we must continue growing from infancy toward maturity so we may be changed from mortal to immortal when Christ comes.

"As many as received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in his name: who were born [past tense], not of blood [not reckoned children of the kingdom by genealogy, as Jews thought], nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man [no one can come except the Father draw him], but of God" (John 1:12-13).

### Conclusion

We are new creations in Christ, children of God, empowered to live by faith and do the work of God. This is the historic doctrine of the Church of God and the teaching of the Bible. The Bible says Christians are born again, and so we are using the terminology the Bible uses. We all need to ask God to help us understand the doctrine in our hearts, not merely use the correct words!

I come back to the fundamental point. It is the reality of Christ living in us and saving us that is the truth. Whatever one wishes to call this reality is not as important as whether Christ lives in us. Christ in us is our hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).

David Hunsberger

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## What Does _Gennao_ Mean?

The Greek word translated "born" in John 3:3, 5 is _gennao._ Mr. Armstrong quoted a good definition in _Just What Do You Mean...Born Again?:_

####  Thayer: _gennao_ — "1. properly: of men begetting children. Matt. 1:1-16; Acts 7:8, 29; foll. by _ek_ with gen. of the mother, Matt. 1:3, 5, 6; more rarely of women giving birth to children. Lk. 1:13, 57; 23:29; Jn. 16:21, etc. 2. a. univ. to engender, cause to arise, excite.... d. peculiarly in the Gosp. and 1st Ep. of John, of God conferring upon men the nature and disposition of His sons, imparting to them spiritual life i.e. by His own holy power, prompting and persuading souls to put faith in Christ and live a new life consecrated to Himself."...

####  George Ricker Berry: "gennao: to beget, give birth to, produce, effect; pass., to be begotten, born (often in John of spiritual renewal)." (That is, receiving or having received the Holy Spirit, being begotten).

#### One man, a native Greek from Cyprus, in a private communication, states it this way: "the verb _gennao_ denotes the production through birth." And further..."denotes a production through a process that always includes a birth." He put major emphasis on _birth,_ rather than begetting or conception — but when asked if it does not include an impregnation by male sperm, and conception, as well as gestation period, he agreed that it does.

Mr. Armstrong was not satisfied with the definition "production through birth" and the emphasis on birth because that would weaken his pregnancy analogy, so he asked if the production included the impregnation, and the answer was that it did, by implication, because there can be no birth without an impregnation! While a pregnancy is obviously implied whenever there is a birth, _gennao_ really refers to the birth, not the conception or the pregnancy. Notice that the most important part of the definition is that the "process always includes a birth." _Gennao_ refers to birth, to one person becoming a parent of another.

Further discussion of this point may be found in other articles.

_Gennao_ is used nearly 100 times in the New Testament, most often in reference to the birth of a baby. Jesus was born ( _gennao_ ) in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1). He was not conceived there. Some eunuchs were so born ( _gennao_ ) from their mother's wombs (Matthew 19:12). This clearly refers to birth, not conception.

Scriptures use _gennao_ in contrast with conception in Romans 9:10-11. Here we find it stated that when Rebecca had conceived ( _echo koite,_ "to have a lying on the marriage bed") and before the children were born ( _gennao_ ), God had chosen Isaac. In this verse, _gennao_ is shown to be distinct from conception.

We are not merely "conceived" children of God, waiting to be born. "Beloved, now we are children of God" (1 John 3:2). Hebrews 5:12-14 speaks of spiritually immature Christians as "babes" in need of spiritual milk. Unborn babies do not drink milk or eat solid food; the biblical analogy is clearly that of a born child, not a fetus.

1 Peter 2:2 has a similar analogy; the word "newborn" comes from _artigennetos,_ an adjective form of _gennao._ A related word, _anagennao,_ is used in 1 Peter 1:3. "He has given us [already] new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

James 1:18 uses a different word to express the same analogy: _apokueo,_ which comes from _apo_ (which means "from") and _kueo_ (which means "to be swollen" or "to be pregnant"). _Apokueo_ means to get something from a pregnancy. The meaning is to give birth, to bring forth. James 1:18 says that God "chose to give us birth through the word of truth." Through the gospel, God has given us a second birth, a spiritual birth.

Jesus, John, Peter and James are all using the same analogy: that Christians are born again, with a new start in life, with a family-like relationship with God, in which we call God the affectionate term Abba. It is clear from the Scriptures that _gennao_ does not refer to conception, but to birth. Here are some verses where it clearly means the birth of a baby: Matt. 2:1, 4; Luke 1:57; John 16:21; Rom. 9:11; Heb. 11:23.

Scripture describes Christians as already-born babies and children (1 Cor. 3:1-2; Heb. 5:12-14). Shortly after Peter tells us that we have been born again (1 Pet. 1:23), he tells us to desire milk as eagerly as a newborn baby does (1 Pet. 2:2). When Jesus speaks of being born again in John 3, he refers to birth, not the beginning of a pregnancy.

### Those born of God cannot sin

The natural question in reading 1 John 3:9 is how anyone can live without committing sin. Since we know this is not possible, we may be tempted to say that this refers to glorified children of God who can no longer sin after they are made immortal. This is the way we once interpreted this verse, although we recognized many years ago that the real meaning is clarified by a correct translation.

Our old explanation contradicts the context. John's reason for writing this chapter is to explain how people can tell who is a child of God and who is a child of the devil. If he were talking about the time after the resurrection, he would just say, "The children of God are the ones who shine like stars!" There would be no need then for instruction about how to tell God's children from the devil's!

John begins this chapter with the statement that we are now children of God, awaiting the day when we become like Christ (1 John 3:1-2). All who have this hope (of the resurrection) purify themselves, just as Jesus is pure (verse 3). Sin is lawlessness (verse 4). But Jesus came to take away our sins, and in him there is no sin (verse 5).

If we are in Christ, we have God's forgiveness, and God does not impute sin to us (Romans 4:7-8). There is now no condemnation to us if we are in Christ (Romans 8:1). We repent whenever we sin, and we are forgiven and cleansed (1 John 1:7-10; 2:1-2). Therefore, we have no sin hanging over us.

We do not abide or continually live in sin, for whoever sins (abides or remains in sin) has neither seen nor knows Christ (1 John 3:6). The person who continues to sin (that is, lives a life-style of sin) is of the devil (verse 8). But those who are truly born of God (truly converted, led by the Holy Spirit) do not sin (do not abide in sin). As converted children of God, we _cannot_ abide in sin or make sin our way of life any longer because the Holy Spirit leads in the way of righteousness and faith. Christ in us makes us children of God, sinless in God's sight (verse 9).

1 John 3 contrasts the children of God with the children of the devil. John is saying that we can tell the children of God from the children of the devil by how they live. God's children seek to please him and live in righteousness, whereas the children of the devil continue to abide in sin. They do not try to please God or live his way. John was referring to people in this life, and he describes Christians as being born of God.

## "From Above" or "Again"?

Some have asked why we sometimes use the phrase "born from above" as well as the more familiar "born again." The Greek words are _gennao anothen_. _Gennao_ means "born." _Anothen_ can mean "again" or "from above," but in the Gospel of John the preferred meaning seems to be "from above." Jesus came "from above" (John 3:31). In John 19:11, Jesus mentions power "from above."

Obviously, if one has first been born with the natural human mind and is later born spiritually, he has been born (figuratively) a second time, or born again. This is the basic meaning of another term that is sometimes used, _regeneration._ It means a new start, a rebirth. It is more informative to say the person has been born _from above_ because this shows the source of the new spiritual insight.

However, we must also recognize that most English translations say "born again" — primarily because that is the meaning implied in the answer of Nicodemus (verse 4). Footnotes may inform readers of the dual meaning of _anothen,_ but the main translations say "born again."

Since most translations use "again," we need to use that terminology, too. Otherwise people might be suspicious that our teaching is marginal theology, based on a questionable translation. Instead, we can use the familiar term "born again," and give it fuller meaning by explaining that spiritual growth must follow the rebirth.

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## The Breathtaking Miracle of Being Born From Above

By Bernard W. Schnippert

"Amazing!" "Exciting!"

"Breathtaking!"

"It's a miracle!"

These exclamations are typical of those made by people who witness the dramatic spectacle of human birth. To see a new life come into existence is a priceless privilege. No wonder human birth evokes such exclamations of joy.

In fact, during our human existence, only one other event can eclipse it. And that event is a second birth—to be born again.

"Born again?" you ask. "How can a person enter his mother's womb a second time and be born?"

This question was raised 2,000 years ago by a religious leader when Jesus Christ spoke to him about the necessity of a second birth (John 3:1-12). That religious leader, Nicodemus, did not understand Christ. Through the centuries, countless others have also misunderstood.

But this subject should not be misunderstood. Anyone who wants the knowledge of God and the blessings of salvation needs to understand the words Christ spoke to Nicodemus.

Misunderstandings about these verses are not confined to those in religious circles. They afflict both the nonreligious and religious communities alike.

Many sincere believers wrongly suppose that to be born again is merely a transitory emotional experience that signals they have been called into a relationship with Christ.

Some nonbelievers—including many who ridicule Christianity – view a Christian's statement that he or she has been born again as religious foolishness or fanaticism. They stereotype such a person as naive and uneducated.

### What the Bible says

All such misunderstandings should be corrected. Happily, a closer examination of the verses in question will reveal their profound meaning.

The place to start is to grasp the purpose of the book in which these verses are found, the Gospel of John. John proclaims his purpose in John 20:31: "these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name" (New King James unless noted).

The purpose of the book, therefore, is to identify Christ as the Messiah, and to reinforce belief in him as the Son of God.

While the purpose is important, the context is of no less value. By summarizing the chapters before and after John 3, we learn the following:

Chapter 1 is a preface, which, among other things, announces that Christ "was God" and was "with God." It describes John the Baptist's testimony that Jesus was the Christ, displays excitement about Jesus among certain of those later made apostles, and proclaims their belief in him.

Chapter 2 describes Christ's first miracle, that of turning water into wine, after which it says, "His disciples believed in Him" (verse 11).

It also describes how Christ drove the money changers from the temple, how he said that the temple of his body would be destroyed and raised up in three days (a proof of his Messiahship) and proclaims that his disciples believed in him because of his miracles.

Chapter 4 details the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, and that "many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him" (verse 39).

Now let's look at the account of Nicodemus meeting Jesus Christ.

John 3:1 introduces Nicodemus, a Pharisee and ruler of the Jews. Nicodemus was a member of the prestigious Sanhedrin, the governing body of the Jewish faith. John is singling out this man, and this story, to show how the Jews as a whole regarded Christ.

Notice _The New International_ _Commentary on the New Testament:_ "The use of the expression [ruler of the Jews] is doubtless intended to convey to us that Nicodemus stands as the representative of the old religion."

Nicodemus, by his use of the expression "we" in verse 2, purports not to speak for himself only, but, as a religious leader, for the people who shared his faith in general.

Notice also that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night. While no doubt literal, it is symbolic as well. Throughout the Bible, darkness is a symbol of spiritual blindness and evil. In John 3:19 Christ proclaims "men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."

Notice that Nicodemus addressed Jesus as a rabbi and said that the Jews knew he, Jesus, was a teacher come from God. This sounds like a compliment. Nicodemus may have intended it that way.

But to Christ the statement was a gross understatement, almost an insult. His statement was like someone meeting the President of the United States and remarking, "I hear that you are on the White House staff!"

Jesus Christ was not merely a teacher come from God or a rabbi. He was God in the flesh, the Messiah, the Lamb of God and Savior who would take away the sins of the whole world. But Nicodemus didn't understand that.

_The New International Commentary on the New Testament_ puts it well: "Nicodemus begins with a courteous, even flattering address.... He hails Jesus as a teacher 'come from God.' We must notice that he sees Jesus as a teacher only, and that he has as yet no perception of the real nature of Him whom he sought out."

Nicodemus, in spite of his religious title, was in spiritual darkness.

Verse 3 contains Jesus' response to Nicodemus' opening remarks: "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

### Why did Jesus respond this way?

Some have been confused as to why on the heels of Nicodemus' greeting Christ would respond with a statement about a new birth.

It should come as no surprise that the topic would be the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God would be the most important subject to the religious leader, Nicodemus, on the one hand, and to the Messiah of the kingdom on the other.

But why would Jesus address the kingdom by saying that Nicodemus could not see it without being born again? Jesus was saying that Nicodemus' spiritual vision, understanding and experience were not enough to comprehend or experience the kingdom (or even to know its king, Jesus Christ) without Nicodemus undergoing a dramatic spiritual change. The term Jesus gave to identify this change was to be born again.

We should recognize that John is using figurative language. A figure of speech is an expression in which the words are used with other than a literal meaning.

For example, when Christ says Nicodemus cannot see the kingdom of God without being born again, he is using the word _see_ to mean "experience."

In English the word _see_ is often used figuratively. For example, upon hearing an explanation about some matter, a person will likely respond, "I see." The person is not making a literal statement about sight, but is saying that he understands.

Likewise, in verse 3, when Jesus speaks of seeing the kingdom of God, he means coming to experience it.

_The New International Commentary on the New Testament_ makes this point: "In verse 3 Jesus has spoken of 'seeing' the kingdom of God, whereas [later in verse 5] He speaks of 'entering' it. There is probably no great difference of meaning."

Christ meant that Nicodemus could not experience, comprehend or understand the kingdom without being born again.

The phrase "born again" in these verses, like the word _see,_ is also a figure of speech. We know this because the literal sense of the words _born again_ does not make sense in this context.

The concept of conversion as a rebirth was common, and any Jewish religious leader would have understood.

According to _The Life and_ _Times of Jesus the Messiah, by_ Alfred Edersheim: "It is, indeed, true that a Gentile on becoming a proselyte—though not, as has been suggested, an ordinary penitent—was likened to a child just born.... The expression, therefore, was not only common, but, so to speak, fluid."

The Talmud says, "A man who became a proselyte is like a child newly born."

According to Jamieson, Fausset and Brown: "The Jews were accustomed to say of a heathen proselyte, on his public admission into the Jewish faith by baptism, that he was a new-born child. But our Lord here extends the necessity of the new birth to Jew and Gentile alike—to every one."

According to Adam Clarke's commentary, "[The Jews] held that the Gentile who became a proselyte was like a child new born."

The Jews used this expression religiously, not of themselves, but of gentile converts who underwent Jewish baptism rites to become a proselyte into the Jewish faith.

Nicodemus understood this.

### Again or from above?

Actually, the expression translated "born again" is probably better translated "born from above." If we look at other places where John uses the Greek word for "again" or "from above," we see that "from above" is what he meant, and it is the translation choice used in some Bible versions.

### Born or begotten?

Also, we must address the Greek word _gennao,_ here translated "born." _Gennao_ can be translated either "born or "begotten," but through a series of misunderstandings we in the Worldwide Church of God came to believe that the expression "born again" could refer to the resurrection.

We confused begettal with conception, then, based on this mistake, we saw in certain verses an analogy between baptism and conception on the one hand, and the resurrection and birth on the other.

_Gennao_ means either "born" or "begotten," depending on whether the mother's or father's role is being spoken of. The proper English usage of born and begotten refer to the same event—one's birth.

When speaking from the point of view of the mother, we say "born" (as in "he was born of a talented mother"). When speaking from the point of view of the father, the correct usage is to say "begotten" (as in "he was begotten of a talented father"). Both born and begotten thus refer to the same event. Neither means conception.

It is often difficult for native English speakers to admit that they have been speaking English incorrectly. So if a person has incorrectly used the word _begotten_ to mean "conceive," it can be hard to admit one's error. However, dictionaries still list the proper usage, and besides that, the usage in question is not our usage today, but the meaning of the Greek at the time of writing, and the meaning of the English at the time of translation.

### Nicodemus is puzzled

In verse 4 Nicodemus appears confused and asks how a person can be born again when old, how could the person enter a second time into a mother's womb and be born?

Nicodemus appears to misunderstand Christ's figurative comments, and instead takes them literally and is puzzled.

Why would Nicodemus misunderstand Jesus' statements? The verses don't directly answer, but it is likely that Nicodemus chooses to misunderstand because he doesn't like or want to believe their obvious meaning.

Notice _The New International_ _Commentary on the New Testament:_ "It seems so obvious that the words are not meant to be taken literally that we must ask why Nicodemus adopted this curious interpretation.

"Perhaps it is a case of hurt dignity. There are references of proselytes who entered the Jewish religion as being like children new born. Nicodemus may have felt that the term appropriate to the Gentile as he entered the ranks of the chosen people was the last word that should be applied to one who was not only a Jew, but a Pharisee, and a member of the Sanhedrin. So, not liking the way the conversation is going, he chooses to misunderstand. It is perhaps more likely that he is wistful than obtuse."

Put yourself in Nicodemus' shoes. He had just slighted Jesus by saying that he, Nicodemus, great religious leader in the community, thought Christ to be only a teacher from God.

In response, Jesus tells Nicodemus that he has no spiritual grasp of the basic elements of the kingdom of God—about which a religious figure such as he should be an authority—or of its king, whom he just slighted.

Nicodemus is being told that to understand the kingdom he must undergo a spiritual regeneration similar to the regeneration that the "inferior" gentiles had to undergo in order to enter the Jewish faith. Christ was telling Nicodemus that he was as unconverted as an unbelieving gentile.

In reply to Nicodemus' seeming bewilderment, Jesus adds in verse 5 that to be born again (from above) a person must be "born of water and the Spirit."

He is telling Nicodemus that he must be baptized ("born of water") and receive the Holy Spirit ("born of the Spirit") to undergo the regeneration process.

The process of regeneration requires something from Nicodemus (baptism) and something from God (his Spirit). The Spirit of God would have given Nicodemus a spiritual mind, and would have given him spiritual insight into the kingdom and its king, Jesus Christ.

In the next verse Jesus tells Nicodemus that a person who is born of the flesh is flesh and one who is born of the Spirit is spirit. Jesus is still speaking in figurative language. He has not suddenly jumped into literal language and begun a lesson in elementary physics.

Rather, he is showing Nicodemus a truth about human nature and God's nature. He is telling him that from his physical birth he inherited physical qualities and physical limitations that prevented him from seeing the kingdom. But from a spiritual regeneration he would get spiritual qualities that would give him the understanding of the kingdom and its king.

In verse 7 Jesus tells Nicodemus not to marvel when told he must be born from above. Of course Nicodemus would marvel. He would marvel because it seemed bewildering that a supposed religious leader should be told he didn't have a spiritual mind.

In verse 8, Jesus likens the Spirit to wind, which invisibly blows. He is saying that the effects of the wind are visible, but the wind itself is invisible.

In like manner, one who undergoes a spiritual regeneration by God's Spirit will undergo noticeable changes, although the Spirit causing these changes is invisible.

Christ's mention of the invisible wind is especially apt. Remember, Nicodemus relied only on his physical senses for understanding. Jesus is pointing out that the invisible working of the Spirit enables spiritual perceptions—perceptions that cannot be sensed by the flesh, but are nonetheless real.

The apostle Paul makes the same point in 1 Corinthians 2:9. "But as it is written: 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.'" In other words, the human mind, by itself, cannot sense and understand spiritual things.

"But," Paul continues, "But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit." However, Nicodemus did not have a spiritual mind, because he had not yet been born from above.

According to Adam Clarke's commentary: "The wind blows in a variety of directions—we hear its sound, perceive its operation in the motion of the trees, etc., and feel it on ourselves—but we cannot discern the air itself, we only know that it exists by the effects which it produces: so is every one who is born of the Spirit: the effects are as discernible and as sensible as those of the wind; but itself we cannot see."

The next verse in Jesus' encounter with Nicodemus contains a great irony. In response to Jesus' explanations up to this point, Nicodemus is puzzled and asks quizzingly, "How can these things be?" (John 3:9).

Nicodemus is confused. But this is precisely Christ's point. He is telling Nicodemus spiritual truths. Nicodemus unintentionally—but perfectly—confirmed that Jesus' analysis of him is correct, and that he had indeed not undergone the spiritual regeneration of which the Savior spoke and could not understand spiritual things.

Jesus brings home this irony in verse 10 when he says, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?" The fact that Nicodemus was a religious teacher should have meant that he had an understanding mind. But, as Christ said, he did not have such a mind because he had not undergone the spiritual change we call conversion.

In verses 11 and 12 Christ says that we humans know of and speak about things we have seen and sensed with the physical senses.

Acknowledging that humans generally understand physical things, Jesus said he tried to speak with Nicodemus in physical terms he should understand, but that Nicodemus still didn't understand. Therefore, what good would it do to speak about heavenly things to Nicodemus? He would surely not understand such things.

In verse 13 Christ shows that no one except he could explain heavenly things to Nicodemus, because only he—Christ—had been to heaven and seen these things.

Of course, by declaring that he had been in heaven, Jesus was again declaring himself to be the Christ, the Messiah. He was far more than a teacher come from God, as Nicodemus had alleged.

Verses 14 to 21 are further proclamations of Jesus that he is the Messiah and will die to take away the sins of the world.

Further insight into John 3 may be gained by reading the verbal exchange between Christ and the apostles in Matthew 16:13-17.

Here Jesus asks, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"

The disciples give various answers. "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

But when Jesus asked the disciples who they thought he was, Peter responded, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

To this remark Jesus declared, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."

This is the same point Jesus made to Nicodemus (albeit with an opposite result): to understand who Christ is requires spiritual insight granted by God through the Holy Spirit. The apostles had been given this insight; Nicodemus (in John 3) had not.

### Summary

Before closing our discussion, let's compare the meaning of being born again with popular views of this expression.

First, to be born again (from above) means to be converted. It is not, as some assume, a transitory, emotional experience by which God changes a person.

Much good can come from examining a series of verses in Scripture, as we have done in this article. However, we can find ourselves so focused on the meaning of the words that we overlook their spiritual impact.

A person who comes to God through Christ must be born from above—must undergo a conversion process and be spiritually regenerated. That process begins with God's calling, and involves repentance and the receipt of God's renewing Spirit.

With receipt of God's Spirit, a person becomes a new person. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

How wonderful that God has established a process where every person may make a new start in life. How exciting that God will regenerate each sinful person into a new creation with a spiritual mind capable of understanding spiritual things and coming into the presence of the living God himself.

Those who have known the superlative experience of being spiritually born from above echo in perfect harmony the exclamations of those who have seen the spectacle of physical human birth.

"Amazing." "Exciting." "Breathtaking," they are likely to exclaim. "It's a miracle!"

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## The Resurrection?

Some say that when Jesus said "born again," he was referring to the resurrection. But if he meant resurrection, why not simply say resurrection? It may be helpful to consider for a moment why these verses do not refer to the resurrection. Here are six reasons:

  * The context, when properly understood, supports "born again" (from above) being conversion, and does not in any way support the resurrection.

  * A discussion about the resurrection would not logically follow Nicodemus' opening remarks about Christ. Why would Jesus suddenly launch into commenting on the resurrection?

  * Nicodemus was a Pharisee and already believed in the resurrection (Acts 23:8). Although he may not have understood the concept of a resurrection perfectly, he certainly would not have been as shocked and dismayed to learn more about the resurrection as he appears to have been in these verses.

  * To interpret "born again" as the resurrection would run counter to the commonly understood meaning of that concept in first-century Judaism. Why would Christ use that concept for something totally different from its known and accepted meaning?

  * For that matter, if a resurrection was meant, why not simply say resurrection? Why use a figure of speech at all? Christ used a figure of speech to convey the difficult and new concept of conversion. The resurrection was neither difficult nor new, and thus not in need of an illustrating figure of speech.

  * To interpret "born again" as the resurrection requires one to force unnatural meanings on subsequent verses, including Christ's discussions about flesh, wind and heavenly things.

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  *

## The Miracle of Rebirth

By Paul Kroll

We were born to be reborn. You and I are meant to experience the greatest life change of all—a spiritual one. God has designed us so we can share or participate in his divine nature.

The New Testament speaks of this nature as being a divine solvent, with the power to dissolve the grimy layer of human sinfulness. And we all need to be spiritually washed because sin has besmirched every human being.

We're all like old paintings covered with centuries of dirt. Like the master's painting dulled by layers of dirty film, the residue of sin has marred the original intent of the Sovereign and Supreme Artist.

### work of art restored

The analogy of a grime-infested painting should help us better understand why we need to be spiritually cleaned and reborn.

One celebrated case of damaged art involved Michelangelo's painted scenes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome's Vatican Palace.

Michelangelo (1475-1564) began painting the Sistine Chapel at age 33 in 1508. In just over four years, he painted the almost 6,000 square feet of the ceiling with dozens of biblical compositions.

Among the scenes are events from the book of Genesis. One well-known scene is Michelangelo's anthropomorphic depiction of God—his arm, hand and finger reaching out to the first man. Adam.

Over the centuries, the Sistine Chapel ceiling fresco (called _fresco_ because the artist painted on fresh plaster)—became damaged and covered with grime. In time, Michelangelo's fresco would have been destroyed.

To prevent this from happening, the Vatican commissioned experts to clean and restore the fresco. Most of the restoration of the paintings was completed in the 1980s.

Time had taken its toll on the master's artistic creations. Centuries of dust and sooty grease from burning candles had marred the painting. Water from the Sistine Chapel's leaky roof and other moisture also caused damage, badly staining the original works.

Ironically, perhaps the worst problem was caused by valiant attempts over the centuries to preserve the paintings! Varnishes composed of animal glues had been applied to the fresco to brighten its ever-darkening surface.

The temporary cure was worse than the disease. As the various layers of varnish deteriorated, they turned the painting on the ceiling ever more murky. The glues also tended to shrink and crinkle. In places, the glue fell away, pulling pieces of paint away as well.

The experts restoring the paintings worked extremely carefully. They applied the gentlest cleaning solvents to the fresco in gel form. When the gel was gingerly removed by sponge, the grimy scum came with it.

A technological miracle occurred. The dull and darkened fresco sprang to life. Michelangelo's figures were renewed. Now they radiated sparkling brilliance and life. Compared with its previous darkened state, the cleaned fresco appeared to be a new creation.

Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel fresco receives new life as it emerges from centuries of grime.

### God's masterpiece

The restoration of Michelangelo's fresco is an apt metaphor for God spiritually cleaning his human creation of sin.

God, the master artist, created us to be his treasured work of art. Humanity was created in God's image, and was meant to receive the Holy Spirit.

Tragically, the dirt of our own sin has marred God's creation. Adam and Eve sinned and received the spirit of the world.

We, too, have been spiritually defaced and defiled by the stain of sin. And why? Because all humans are sinful and have lived contrary to the will of God.

But God can renew us spiritually, and the life of Jesus Christ can be reflected by the light that shines out from us for all to see. The question is, are we willing to fulfill God's purpose for us?

Most people are not. They still live darkened lives, covered and besmirched by the ugly stain of sin.

The apostle Paul described this world's spiritually darkened condition in his letter to the Ephesian Christians. He said of their past lives: "You were dead in your transgressions and sins... when you followed the ways of this world" (Ephesians 2:1-2).

We, too, allowed this polluting power to mar our nature. Thus, we have become blackened spiritually as Michelangelo's fresco was veiled with soot and defaced.

That is why the most desperate thing we need is to have God's nature dwelling in us. It is a cleansing agent that can lift off the scum of sin and make us spiritually bright and new.

### Images of renewal

The New Testament explains how we can be spiritually remade. It uses several powerful analogies to express this miracle. As Michelangelo's fresco needed the grime to be cleaned away, we need to be washed spiritually. The Holy Spirit is a cleaning agent. It scrubs away the staining and tarnishing effects of our sinful nature.

In the words of Paul, speaking to Christians across the centuries: "You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11). This cleansing is a saving act and is called by Paul "the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5).

This removal, cleansing and cutting out of sin is also described by the metaphor of _circumcision._ Christians have their hearts circumcised. We could say that God mercifully saves us by surgically removing the cancer of sin.

This severing of sin—the spiritual circumcision—is a metaphor for the forgiveness of our personal sins. It was made possible by Jesus through his death as a perfect sacrifice for sin. Paul wrote: "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins" (Colossians 2:13).

The New Testament uses the symbol of the cross to describe our sinful nature being neutralized. made ineffective and inert as our self is put to death. Paul wrote, "Our old self was crucified with him [Christ] so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin" (Romans 6:6).

If we are in Christ, the sin in the self (hence, the _sinful_ self) is crucified or dies. Of course, the spirit of the world still attempts to cover our minds with the dirty garments of sin.

But the Holy Spirit protects us and enables us to repel the attractiveness of sin. We are freed from sin's domination by Christ, who through the work of the Holy Spirit fills us with God's nature.

The apostle Paul explains this act of God by the metaphor of a _burial._ In turn, the burial leads to a symbolic _resurrection,_ which stands for the sinful "old person" now reborn as a "new person." Our new life is possible through Christ, who provides us with his continuing forgiveness and lifegiving power.

The New Testament likens the death of our old self, and our restoration and symbolic resurrection to a new life, to a new birth. We are reborn spiritually at the moment of our conversion. We are reborn, made alive and renewed by and through the Holy Spirit.

Peter told Christians, "He [God] has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Peter 1:3). Note that the phrase "'has given" is past tense. This tells us we are changed at the beginning of our Christian lives.

Upon conversion, we have God dwelling _in_ us. Because of this, we have been re-created.

We now have Jesus _and_ the Holy Spirit _and_ the Father dwelling in us (John 14:15-23). When we are converted or born again—spiritually renewed—God comes to live in us!

When the Father works in us, or the Son does or the Holy Spirit does, it is God working in us. God is inspiring, sanctifying, changing us. And we receive this empowerment through conversion and rebirth.

### How Christians grow

Of course, newly born Christians are still, in the words of Peter, "like newborn babies." They must "crave pure spiritual milk" to give them nourishment to mature spiritually (1 Peter 2:2).

Peter explains that born-again Christians will continue to grow in understanding through time, becoming more mature spiritually. They will "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18).

Peter is not saying greater technical knowledge of the Bible will make us better Christians. He is telling us that we need to acquire a greater spiritual awareness of what it means to be a disciple of Christ. "Knowledge" in the biblical sense includes the application of knowing to doing. It involves learning and _personally applying_ that which makes us more Christlike.

While Christians grow spiritually, it is not in the sense of human "character development." Neither is Christian growth the result of receiving more and more of the Holy Spirit the longer we live in Christ.

We do grow, though, through the work of the Holy Spirit already in us. By grace, the character of God is imparted to us.

We are sanctified in two ways. First, we are sanctified or set apart when we receive the Holy Spirit.

This aspect of sanctification happens all at once and is made possible by the atoning work of Christ for sin. However, we are also progressively sanctified as Christ dwells within us, equipping us for the worship and service of God.

But we already have the nature or "character" of God upon conversion as Jesus Christ lives within us. We receive the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit when we repent and place our faith in Jesus Christ.

As our Christian lives progress, change takes place. We learn to better submit to the enlightening and encouraging power of the Spirit we already have.

### God in us

Christ lives in us fully through the Spirit if we are reborn spiritually.

Think what this means. Humans can be transformed by the act of Christ living his life by the Spirit in them. God shares his divine nature with humans. That means a person who is a Christian has been made into something entirely new.

"If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation," Paul explained. "The old has gone, the new has come!"

Christians reborn of the Spirit take on a new image within—that of God our creator. Their life is to exhibit this new internal spiritual reality. That is why Paul could tell Christians: "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2).

We should not, however, think that this means Christians do not sin. Yes, we are suddenly changed or transformed, in the sense that we have been reborn by receiving the Holy Spirit. However, there is still something of the "old man" or "old woman" about us.

Christians still stumble and sin. But they don't habitually practice sin. They must continue to be forgiven and purified by Christ. Thus, spiritual renewal is a continuing process throughout the Christian life.

### Life of the Christian

We become more Christlike as we live according to God's will. We, like Paul, must be willing to die daily to sin and yield to God's will in repentance.

As we do, God continues to wash away our sins in the sacrificial blood of Christ. We are made spiritually white in the bloody garment of Christ, representing his sacrifice for sin. God's grace allows us to live in spiritual holiness. When we do, Christ's life is reflected by the light that shines out from us.

A technological miracle transformed and restored Michelangelo's tarnished. and marred paintings. But God performs a much more astonishing spiritual miracle with us. He does more than repair our damaged spiritual state. God makes of us a new creation.

### Adam sinned, Christ forgave

The Bible introduces Adam as the first created human. The New Testament shows we have the same life as Adam did, in the sense that we are earthly, mortal or physical as he was (1 Corinthians 15:45-49).

Yet, Genesis says Adam and Eve were created in the image of God. Being created in the image of God helps Christians understand the salvation they have through Jesus Christ. Originally created in God's image, Adam and Eve sinned and became sinful.

The first created humans fell for sin, and a spiritually damaged world was the result. Sin has defiled and besmirched us all. But the good news is that we can be forgiven and made new.

God redeems us from the penalty of sin—death—through the saving work of God in the flesh, Jesus Christ. The death of Jesus reconciles us to God by wiping out the effect of human sin, which separated the Creator from his creation.

As our High Priest, Jesus Christ sanctifies us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Jesus' sacrifice for sin eliminates the barrier of sin that originally broke the relationship between humanity and God.

More than this, Christ's work through the Holy Spirit makes us one with God, saving us in the process. Paul wrote, 'If, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!" (Romans 5:10).

The apostle Paul contrasts the consequences of Adam's sin and Christ's forgiveness. In the beginning, Adam and Eve allowed sin to be introduced. They fell for sin's false promises. Thus, sin and its consequences invaded the world and captured it.

Paul explains that judgment followed the sin of Adam. The world was led into sin, and all humans sin, dying in the process of time. Not that others died for Adam's sin or that he genetically transmitted sin to his offspring. (Of course, the physi _cal consequences_ of sin do affect future generations.)

As the first person, Adam was responsible for the beginning of an environment in which sin was allowed to flourish. Adam's sin became the basis and springboard for future human action.

In the same way, by a single act, Jesus' sinless life and willing death for the sins of humanity made it possible for all to be spiritually reconciled and reunited with God.

"If, by the trespass of the one man [Adam], death reigned through that one man," wrote Paul, "how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ" (verse 17).

God reconciles sinful humanity to himself through Christ. And more than this. As we are empowered by Christ through the Holy Spirit, we are spiritually born again—from above—as God's children.

Jesus, when referring to the future resurrection of the just, said that God "is not the God of the dead, but of the living" (Mark 12:27). However, the people he referred to were not alive, but dead. Yet, because God has power to bring about his purpose—to resurrect the dead—Jesus Christ said they were as good as alive.

As the children of God, we look forward to the resurrection to life at Christ's return. We are also made alive now, and live in Christ. The apostle Paul encourages us, "Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:11).

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## Born of the Spirit

In John 3:6, Jesus said, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (NKJ). Some people assume here that Jesus is talking about the present and future body. We have a fleshly body now, and after Christ returns, we will have a spiritual body. Though that is true, it is not what Jesus was referring to in this verse. He was not speaking of the composition of the body, but of the orientation of the mind — whether we are led by the Spirit or by the flesh.

### Jewish understanding of rebirth

Let's start with some perspective. Nicodemus was a teacher of the Jews, a representative of Judaism. The Jews thought that they, as God's people, would be the kingdom of God on earth. They looked for a Messiah who would deliver them from oppressors and exalt them as the preeminent nation of the earth. They believed they entered the kingdom simply by being descended from Abraham.

When gentiles converted to Judaism, they were baptized and circumcised. We learn from later writings that the Jews referred to this as a rebirth. The gentile convert became reborn, and that is how he entered the kingdom of God. Whether a person was part of God's people was to the Jews based on the flesh — either physical descent from Abraham or physical circumcision and adoption of Judaism.

Jesus came to his own people, but they did not receive him (John 1:11-13). This verse helps set the stage for John 3. Nicodemus, a representative of Judaism, recognized that Jesus was a teacher from God, but he did not yet accept Jesus' teaching.

### Judaism contrasted with true worship

Jesus contrasted true Christianity with Judaism in several ways. Some people thought Jesus was merely modifying Judaism. But Jesus said you cannot sew a patch of new cloth on an old garment. You cannot put new wine into an old wineskin, because that would destroy both old and new.

Jesus used parables to show he was not merely reforming or adding to Judaism. He did not come to patch up the old. He said that the kingdom of God would be taken from the Jews and given to people who bore fruits — a nation of converted, Spirit-filled people.

Jesus told Nicodemus that fleshly descent does not enable anyone to see the kingdom of God. A fleshly circumcision could not enable anyone to understand spiritual things. Only spiritual regeneration — a birth from above, from God — could enable a person to see the kingdom of God. Only those who are born from above will receive the kingdom of God because only they can bear spiritual fruit.

### Contrast of Spirit and flesh in Paul's epistles

Paul sheds more light on what Jesus meant when he contrasts the flesh with the Spirit. Paul uses these terms to indicate who is carnally minded and who is spiritually minded. In Romans 7, Paul discusses the battle between the spiritual mind and the lingering carnal mind. When we were in the flesh, sin, which we practiced as a way of life, brought us death (verse 5). Notice that phrase, "when we were in the flesh." Does Paul mean that we have changed our fleshly bodies for spiritual? Not at all. He uses the term, as Jesus did, to discuss the spiritual orientation of the mind.

Verse 24 — "Who will deliver me from this body of death?" In verse 25 and Romans 8:1, the answer is given. Jesus Christ delivers us! There is no condemnation for anyone who walks not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. In verses 4-5, he again contrasts walking after the flesh (minding the things of the flesh) and walking according to the Spirit (minding the things of the Spirit). You can tell whether you are after the flesh or Spirit by the things you have your mind on and the things you do. Verse 9 — We are not of the flesh if the Spirit of God is in us and leading us; we are of the Spirit. A person who is in the flesh is one who is carnally minded; one who is in the Spirit is one who is converted and spiritually minded. Paul is describing spiritual orientation, not body composition. Elsewhere, Paul said that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature, a new creation.

We see another analogy in Galatians 4:29. Ishmael, born after the flesh, is contrasted with Isaac, born after the Spirit. Different prepositions are used in these verses, but they clearly show flesh and Spirit being used not in a literal sense about composition of the body, but in a spiritual sense. That is the way Jesus used Spirit in John 3:6.

### John 3:6

Let's go back to Nicodemus. He understood that gentiles had to be reborn (that is, baptized and circumcised) to be part of the people of God. He believed the Jews were already children of God and that gentiles could become children of the kingdom only by physical rites. It was all a matter of fleshly lineage or adoption rituals.

Jesus was not talking about the composition of the body. Rather, he was saying that entrance into the kingdom of God is not by fleshly birth or rituals, but by a spiritual change — conversion of our minds — a spiritual birth from above. God loves the whole world, all humanity, all peoples, not just the Jews. Jesus was showing Nicodemus that it was by the Spirit, not the flesh, that one is reckoned as a child of God, a child of the kingdom.

It is not by circumcision of the flesh, but by believing in Christ that one gains everlasting life. As Paul shows, especially in Galatians, fleshly circumcision is of no spiritual value.

Notice John 1:12-13, "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name: who were born [past tense], not of blood [not by genealogy], nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man [not by becoming a proselyte], but of God." They were — past tense — born of God.

If we have been called by God and have willingly let him lead us to repentance and have received his Holy Spirit, we are already children of God. We have been, figuratively speaking, born from above. We are new creatures, spiritual babes. And now we must grow to maturity and be changed from mortal to immortal when Christ returns.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

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## The Context of John 3:1-12

by Gene Nouhan

If we want to understand a difficult Bible passage, we must know its context. Context gives a passage the setting from which its meaning can emerge. But establishing the context, to some people, means reading a few verses before and after the passage in question, and nothing more.

While the immediate context may give the reader some insight, many of the more difficult passages of Scripture require an awareness of the greater context from which they were written. John 3:1-12 is best understood in its greater context, that of the entire book of John.

### John's purposes

In John 20:31 we read, "These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." This is John's specific purpose statement, so to speak. It has three parts: 1) to show that Jesus is the Messiah, 2) that he is the Son of God and 3) that he gives eternal life to believers (see also John 11:25-27). John accomplishes his three-part purpose by demonstrating that Christ, his works and even his words are of divine origin.

John opens his book with a stunning prologue, which reveals Christ's preexistence as the divine Word and that he became flesh and lived for a while among humans. The first point John makes is that Jesus was more than a great rabbi or teacher — he was God in the flesh. This theme is woven throughout his Gospel. Jesus' divine origin gives him the authority to grant eternal life to his followers (8:12; 17:2).

Of Jesus' works John says, "if every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written." That may not be an overstatement. Thousands of books have already been written about Christ, and many thousands more could be written, and still not exhaust the complexities of the Son of God! Even so, Jesus' miraculous works, as recorded, are sufficient to show that he is able to give eternal life (3:14-15; 11:23-25, 43-44).

Even Jesus' words are extraordinary. After considerable confusion and a "falling out" because of his words, Jesus said, "The words I have spoken to you are spirit, and they are life" (6:63b). When Jesus asked the Twelve if they would desert him as the other disciples did, Peter said, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (6:66-68). Christ's words show how eternal life comes.

In the book of John, for various reasons, everybody misunderstands Jesus' words except those who truly believe; and even they are slow to grasp his meaning. There's not enough space in this article to examine all these instances, but this is another theme for John.

### The context of John 3

The conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus was representative of the church and the synagogue, or Christianity and Judaism. Nicodemus, a ruler of the Pharisees, represents Judaism, and Christ represents his church.

The way John tells the story, Nicodemus approaches Jesus without stating his purpose for coming. The sense one might get is that John's purposes are more important than Nicodemus's. As the conversation unfolds, Nicodemus is quickly forgotten. Jesus moves the conversation from singular to plural pronouns, "we speak" and "you" (plural in the Greek), etc.

Nicodemus came by night. "John may have meant simply that Nicodemus visited Jesus by night for reasons of secrecy (compare 19:38).... It is more probable that he intended to indicate the darkness out of which Nicodemus came into the presence of the true Light."

Why is this important? Because an awareness of the context helps the real meaning of the text come to life. Our task is not to arrive at a meaning that suits our purposes, but to learn what John meant by the words and events he recorded. We cannot know what he meant unless we understand his purposes and the context of his writing.

When Nicodemus said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher come from God," he said " _we_ know." Nicodemus brought with him the views of others. He was representing the Pharisees, who were willing to acknowledge Jesus to a certain point and grant him some recognition. But John makes it plain in his "specific purpose statement" that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God, and all people (including Pharisees) must believe this if they want to receive eternal life (John 11:25-27; 20:31; 1 John 4:15).

Nicodemus's opening statement indicates he was not prepared to hear the words of Jesus that followed. While Nicodemus was possibly considering some kind of compromise, merger or peaceful coexistence with Jesus and his disciples, Jesus was about to tell him that his whole religion was ineffectual for entry into the kingdom of God and that it was about to be superseded.

### Unless you are born again

The well-known words of Christ, "unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God," were misunderstood by Nicodemus. But in what way did Nicodemus misunderstand? He surely could not have taken Christ's words literally.

Nicodemus was not a simpleton. As a respected teacher in Israel, he would have been well acquainted with the use of analogy in teaching and illustrating. Parables, for example, are lessons set in analogies. It is well documented that the Pharisees used parables, analogies and allegories extensively.

It is also documented that the Pharisees were acquainted with the idea of rebirth. There are several allusions to rebirth and being a _child_ of God in the Apocrypha or Deuterocanoncial books, written in the intertestamental period. Also, the Babylonian Talmud says, "A proselyte just converted is like a child just born" ( _Yebamoth_ 22a). Jesus said the Pharisees searched land and sea to make a proselyte, and, instead of making him a _child_ of Abraham, they made a _child_ of hell (Matthew 23:15).

The rabbis even debated whether a newly converted gentile might be permitted to marry a close relative, such as a sister or mother, because he was now a completely new person and all his previous connections were broken. Clearly, the Pharisees were acquainted with the idea of rebirth, but they had some mistaken notions about it; namely, they believed it was the gentiles who needed it, not they.

So why did Nicodemus say, "How can a man be born when he is old? Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" Part of the answer lies in Nicodemus's Pharisaic view of rebirth and part of the answer lies in understanding the original Greek word translated "again." First, let's take a closer look at Nicodemus's concept of rebirth.

In first-century Judaism, being a natural-born Israelite was thought to be almost a guarantee of salvation (see Matthew 3:9 and John 8:33-34). An Israelite didn't need to be converted to the nation of Israel — he was already born that way and would have been circumcised the eighth day. To the Pharisees, the nation of Israel was the kingdom of God, and the Messiah was to come and establish Israel's dominance over the gentile nations.

Nicodemus was already a natural-born Israelite and a "good" one. Why should he have to be converted (born again) into the nation of Israel? To the best of his knowledge (which must have been extensive), he had done everything right according to his religion. And that was the problem — his religion. For Jesus meant what Paul was to say later: "A man is not a Jew who is only one outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit" (Romans 2:28-29).

Had Jesus said, "gentiles must be born again," Nicodemus would have understood him. But when Jesus said that even a devout Jew needed rebirth, Nicodemus was understandably troubled because it amounted to telling him, in his old age, that the religion he had been practicing all his life was not effective for eternal life (see John 5:39-40).

In Nicodemus's mind, the Pharisees were the best of God's children. But Jesus meant that not even they were God's children in the way they needed to be in order to receive eternal life. This went against everything Nicodemus knew and taught. An old and highly respected rabbi would find that hard to believe. It meant that Nicodemus had been wrong and he would have to start his religious or spiritual life all over again. His questions were no doubt rhetorical, probably a "gut reaction" that underscored his difficulty with and his disbelief in Jesus' statement (see 3:12).

Since Jesus was using symbolic language to convey his teaching, Nicodemus obliged him and used symbolic language right back. Although his questions could be interpreted literally, he meant them symbolically. To put it another way, Jesus' words must have made as much sense to Nicodemus as if he actually said "You must reenter your mother's womb." So Nicodemus illustrated, with his questions, that he thought Jesus was applying spiritual rebirth to the wrong person. _It wasn't the idea of rebirth per se,_ but the universal way Jesus applied it that caused Nicodemus to react the way he did.

### Again vs. from above

The Greek word for "again" in John 3:3 is _anothen._ It has a double meaning — either "again" or "from above," depending on the context. John uses this word five times; and he uses it consistently to mean "from above" or, in one case, "from the top."

Jesus meant we are to be born from above (born of God, who is above); although to be born of God does amount to a second birth. The rebirth is a spiritual one — not a reenactment of physical birth. To be reborn in the biblical sense means to undergo a total change of one's character, which is made possible by the Holy Spirit. That Spirit comes from above. Nicodemus ignored the "from above" aspect of Jesus' wording, which contributed to his misunderstanding (not his understanding, as some would have it) of Christ's words.

Some say that Nicodemus's questions were proof that he correctly understood that Christ was speaking literally. This is an impossible interpretation because, for Christ to be taken correctly or literally based on Nicodemus's reaction, we would have to conclude that Jesus did mean for Nicodemus to actually reenter his mother's womb. That, of course, is absurd. Nicodemus's misunderstanding was based on his narrow view of rebirth and how it was accomplished.

### Of water and spirit

In John 3:5 the expression "born of water and Spirit" has been interpreted to mean born physical and born a spirit being (at the resurrection) respectively. That does not do justice to the context. Jesus is explaining where Nicodemus went wrong — he had overlooked the "from above" aspect or the spiritual component of rebirth. Jesus is continuing the conversation, explaining to Nicodemus where he's mistaken.

The expression "born of water and spirit" is not referring to two different births, one physical birth and one spiritual. He is talking about one birth from above, which demands that a person (Jew or not) cleans or buries his past completely before receiving the Holy Spirit. The cleansing of water and subsequent giving of the Holy Spirit was prophesied in Ezekiel 36:25-27.

Water baptism is the symbol that one has buried the "old person" (including his religion) and now lives a new life in a new community. That's why Luke says, when John the Baptist went about the countryside, the Pharisees refused to be baptized by him (Luke 7:29-30). To submit to the rite would have been an acknowledgment that their Jewish birth was insufficient; it "was a humiliation they could not suffer."

While John's baptism symbolized cleansing and burial, it was also insufficient because it did not include the giving of the Holy Spirit and new life (Acts 19:1-7). In John 1:33 the Baptist said that he baptized with water, but Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Water refers to the outward show of baptism, and the Spirit refers to the inward change effected by the Holy Spirit. "It was the addition of the 'Spirit' which transformed John's baptism into Christian baptism."

Jesus was describing the new birth in terms of a new kind of baptism that included both water and Spirit. It's not enough to be baptized with water (John's baptism) anymore than it was enough to be circumcised of the flesh. One also must be baptized with the Spirit (a Christian baptism) to enter the kingdom of God.

The problem with the Pharisees was, in order to receive the Holy Spirit and thereby eternal life, they would have to do something they were generally unwilling to do — come to Jesus Christ the Son of God to receive it (John 5:40).

### Is that which is born of the Spirit a spirit being?

The expressions, "that which is born of the flesh is flesh," and "that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (New King James Version) have been interpreted to mean "born human" and "born a spirit being," respectively. But this is not the intended meaning. The context shows that the three expressions, "born from above," "born of water and spirit" and "born of the Spirit is spirit," are parallel statements.

The antithesis of John 3:6 is not in the _bodily_ composition of those who are born, but in the inner nature. One has a special relationship with God and the other one doesn't. Notice Galatians 4:29, where the phrase "according to the Spirit" is used symbolically. Paul speaks of Ishmael, who was "born according to the flesh," and of Isaac, who was " _born according to the Spirit_ " (NKJV). Yet both of these men were human beings, made of flesh. These expressions show the different spiritual relationships the two men had with God. Isaac was converted and Ishmael wasn't.

To be "in the flesh" or "in the Spirit" depends on one's spiritual condition, not on one's bodily make-up. Romans 8:9 says, "You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you." In other words, if the Spirit of God dwells in you, you are "of" or "born of" the Spirit.

John 6:63b parallels John 3:6 in an interesting way. Jesus said, "the words that I have spoken are spirit." Here is something else that "is Spirit" — Jesus' words. He did not mean that the words he spoke were spirit beings! Nor did he mean the words were of a nature other than that of the human languages of his day. Jesus meant that the words he spoke were to be understood spiritually.

John 3:6 is to be understood in the same way: that which is born of the flesh (gentile or not) is physical or carnal, and that which is born of the Spirit is spiritual. It is certainly possible to be spiritual without being composed of spirit, even as it is possible to speak human language with spiritual meaning. Notice what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:13-16 (emphasis mine):

#### This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. _The spiritual man_ makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment. For "Who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" _But we have the mind of Christ._

Nicodemus fits well into Paul's thoughts in that he was a natural man and his religion was still on a physical plane, so he could not "accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they were foolishness [like reentering his mother's womb] to him." His idea of rebirth, put simply, was converting a physical gentile into a physical Israelite. To Jesus it meant converting a natural man (gentile or not) into a spiritual man.

If "that which is born of the Spirit" refers to the resurrection, several of John's statements are puzzling, to say the least:

#### To those who believed [past tense] in his name, he gave the right to become the children of God — children born [past tense] not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. (John 1:12-13)

#### If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been [past tense] born of him. (1 John 2:29)

#### This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not [present tense] do what is right is not a child of God; neither is anyone who does not love his brother. (1 John 3:10)

#### Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been [past tense] born of God and knows God. (1 John 4:7)

####  Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is [present tense] born of God. (1 John 5:1)

The many references to rebirth — born of God — in Johannine literature clearly speak of it in present or past tense, connecting it with Christians who believe in Christ and do what he says. Therefore, the context of John 3 makes it unthinkable that John would present these terms inconsistently or in opposition to Christ's usage. From this and the above references we conclude "that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" means that whoever is born again by the Spirit is spiritual — it refers to the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit.

### Wind and Spirit

Now what about John 3:8, which says, "The wind blows where it pleases. You hear the sound of it, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." Does this say Christians are born of the Spirit at the resurrection? No, it does not. The context is not future but present tense — So it _is_ with everyone born of the Spirit. The center focus of this conversation is a comparison between Judaism and the effectual working of Christianity for eternal life, which comes through the Holy Spirit. Jesus continues to make his point that entrance into the kingdom does not depend on physical attributes or pedigree, but on spiritual ones.

John 3:8 contains another Greek word with multiple meanings. In this case the word is _pneuma._ It's like the Hebrew word _ruach,_ which means wind, spirit or breath. In John's Gospel, _pneuma_ is used with all three meanings. Here Jesus is saying that the Spirit, like the wind, is beyond the five senses, and it breathes into man the breath of new life. Its workings are invisible and therefore mysterious to us. The words " _So it is_ " refer to the mysterious or invisible nature of the Spirit's activity, not bodily make-up.

The time had come when the children of God were to worship him in spirit and in truth and not in mountains like the Samaritans on Gerizim or in a temple at Jerusalem (see 4:20-24). The center of Christian worship is in Christ or in spirit, which is not found in any geographic location. Spirit, like the wind, comes and goes where it wills, and its workings are beyond human control and comprehension. "It breathes into the world from another place."

A Jewish argument might contend that, because the new birth is not visible (like the physical accoutrements of Israelite worship) it is therefore ineffectual or a figment of the imagination. But that argument is no more valid than it would be if used of the wind. "In each case, judgment is to be based on the effects produced."

New believers rarely experience anything externally dramatic when they receive the Holy Spirit and are baptized — lightning bolts do not come down from heaven nor does a halo appear above their heads. The receiving of the Holy Spirit is not something they can _physically_ detect. The proof of conversion will manifest itself down the road as one looks back on the experience with faith and spiritual growth. In John 3:8, it is not a spirit being that is described, nor is it describing the Holy Spirit — what is being described is the nature of the Holy Spirit's _activity_ in the life of a Christian.

### Conclusion

Nicodemus was incredulous and overwhelmed. His ideas of worship, conversion, circumcision, the kingdom of God, the Messiah, the Holy Spirit — the very foundations of his religion — were in question. He faced the disturbing prospect of having to start all over again in his old age. Yet his training should have better prepared him for meeting the Messiah (3:9-10). The prophets had written about the giving of the Holy Spirit and the work of Christ. Since Nicodemus would not believe Jesus to this point, there was no need to proceed any further (3:12).

The main point in John 3:1-12 is to show that Judaism, which Nicodemus represented, was insufficient. Judaism could not, as it was, enter the kingdom of God. Judaism stands on the outside, and a radical change comparable to birth is necessary if it or any individual is to enter the kingdom.

The Pharisees thought their pedigree was sufficient. The point behind the term "born from above" or "born again" is that no one's pedigree is sufficient. A change of one's whole _inner_ nature must take place before a new creature is born. Circumcision of the heart is needed if one is to be part of the community of _spiritual_ Israel and a true child of Abraham (see John 8:39-44 and Galatians 3:7). This is made possible only by a living faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Galatians 6:15-16 (NKJV, emphasis mine) sums it up well:

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision or uncircumcision avails anything, but a _new creation._ And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon the _Israel of God._

John 3:1-12 teaches us that, while some Bible passages can be taken at face value, some are best understood in both their immediate and greater context. The authors of the various books of the Bible had a plan, with purposes in mind that were inspired by the Holy Spirit. When we trample on those purposes or ignore them, we do so to our own detriment. The good news is, when we rightly handle the Scriptures and respect them for the way they were written, the truth of God becomes abundantly clear, and so does our relationship with him.

### Endnotes

1 There are secondary themes and tensions that John uses to accomplish his purposes. For example, he contrasts light with darkness, eternal life with temporal life, heavenly things with earthly things, flesh with spirit, truth with falsehood, belief with unbelief, John the Baptist with Christ, and Judaism with Christianity. These themes shed light on the words of Jesus that John was inspired to select for the purposes of his book.

2 See John 1:1; 5:23; 9:35-38; 10:30-36; 14:9; 20:28.

3 Many commentators have noted that John records an unusual number of misunderstandings between Jesus and his listeners. John had a reason for selecting so many of these occasions — probably to illustrate the superiority of Christ over others. These misunderstandings are almost all centered around people taking Christ's words on some physical plane, when he meant them spiritually. Here is a list of misunderstandings: 2:19-21; 3:4, 9; 4:10-11; 6:52; 7:33-35; 7:41-47; 8:21-22; 8:56-57; 11:11-13; 13:33-38; 14:4-11; 16:17-18; 21:22-23.

4 The name Nicodemus appears often in Rabbinic literature. Jesus calls this one "Israel's teacher," or literally, "the teacher" of Israel (3:10). He must have been highly respected and an able representative of the Pharisees.

5 At the time of John's writing (mid 90s A.D.) the clash between church and synagogue was intense. John's readers would have been interested in knowing more about the work of Jesus and his followers and the Jewish response to them (see John 3:11; 7:13; 7:47; 9:22-23, 33-34; 12:42-43; 18:19; 19:38; 20:19).

6 In verse 11 Jesus says, "I tell you [plural] the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify of what we have seen, but still _you people_ do not accept _our_ testimony." The conversation appears to end in verse 21, but no reference is made to Nicodemus after verse 11. All this confirms that, in addition to the initial incident, a greater conversation is going on here — one between church and synagogue or Christianity and Judaism.

7 C.K. Barrett, _The Gospel According to John_ (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1978), pages 204-205. As stated above, light and darkness are themes in John, and he uses day and night to depict them (see 9:4-5; 11:9-10; 13:30). If John meant "secretly," he most likely would have used "secretly," as he did in 19:38. The point here is not that Nicodemus (and by extension the Pharisees) was groping in _total_ darkness. What light he did have, compared to the rest of the world, could be seen only as darkness when compared to Jesus Christ, the Light of the world.

8 For a discussion of the present and future aspects of the kingdom of God, see "Present and Future Aspects of the Kingdom of God." John 3:3 does not say, when a man is born again he is, at the same time, resurrected into the kingdom of God. It means, if one wants to be in the kingdom, one must first be born again — converted. Jesus made similar statements in the Synoptic Gospels. For example, Matthew 18:3 says, "Unless you change [be converted] and _become like little children,_ you will never enter the kingdom of God." Luke 18:15 says "infants" or "babies." An infant or a baby is a newborn child. It is easy to see that the expressions, "be converted," "become like little children" and be "born again" are synonymous.

9 "Concepts of new birth and new life are not original in or unique to early Christianity. Already in postexilic Judaism there are references to being or becoming God's children (Wisd. of Sol. 2:13, 16, 18; Sir. 4:10; 23:1, 4).... Images of new birth also appear outside of Judaism" (B.R. Gaventa, _From Darkness to Light: Aspects of Conversion in the New Testament_ (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), page 130). See also R.E. Brown, _The Gospel According to John I-XII_ (New York: Doubleday, 1966), page 139.

10 No such ruling was made, of course, but the fact that they engaged in such a discussion, if only on a theoretical basis, underscores their familiarity with the idea. Some commentators have suggested the incestuous man in 1 Corinthians 5:1 may have been practicing what the rabbis only discussed in theory. While this is interesting, it is theory. For a survey of various first-century views on rebirth, see F. Buchsel and K.H. Rengstorf, _Theological Dictionary of the New Testament_ (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964), volume 1, pages 665-677.

11 John Lightfoot, _A Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica_ (Oxford University Press), 1859, volume 3, pages 264-265. Lightfoot says that Jesus' words teach "it is not enough for [people] to be children of Abraham to give them any title to or interest in the Messiah. They must further be born from above; they must claim [the kingdom] by a heavenly, not an earthly birth."

12 Nicodemus's questions show that he understood rebirth to be something he could experience in this life. He did not say, "How can a man be born after he is dead?" but rather, "How can a man be born _when he is old?_ "

13 In addition to 3:3; 3:7, see 3:31; 19:11; 19:23. In John 3:31, Jesus says he came from above ( _anothen_ ). This is an instance where _anothen_ clearly means "from above," and it is unlikely that John would use the word with a different meaning in 3:3, which is in such close proximity. As Christ came from above, so his followers are born from above. If Jesus meant only "again," John would have used the Greek word _palin_ (again), as he does 47 times elsewhere in his Gospel! John's consistent use of _anothen_ and _palin_ and his regular portrayal of Christ's words being _mis_ understood indicate that John intended _anothen_ to mean "from above," while Nicodemus took Christ to mean the more rabbinic "born a second time."

14 Recently, some have denied the need to examine the original Greek because the conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus probably took place in Aramaic, and therefore, they say, the Greek wording of John is unreliable. This argument tries to remove the debate from the real issues: What does the _Bible_ say? And what does the Bible mean? If we can't trust the original language of the Scriptures, then the entire discussion is irrelevant.

15 There is no mention of a future resurrection or glorification here. The phenomena Jesus describes are seen as occurring among Christ and his followers, not among Nicodemus and the Pharisees. Jesus said in verse 11, "we speak of what we know, and we testify to what _we have seen,_ but _still_ you people do not except our testimony."

16 D.A. Carson, _Exegetical Fallacies_ (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1984), page 42. Carson, quoting L.L. Belleville, says the phrase "of water and spirit" refers to one birth: "The fact that both nouns are governed by one preposition favors this view." The original Greek does not say "of water and of spirit," but simply "of water and spirit."

17 W. Robertson Nicoll, editor, _The Expositor's Greek Testament_ (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans), volume 1, page 713.

18 Barrett, page 209. John often clarifies the work of the Baptist in relation to Christ's work. There must have been people in John's day who refused to make the change from the Baptist's community to the Christian community (see 3:25 and Acts 19:1-7). John shows that the Baptist was not the light but that he testified to the Light and that he must decrease while Jesus must increase (John 1:8; 3:28; 3:30). John 3:5 is a veiled reference, indicating that John's baptism would be transformed by Christ's baptism. It is no coincidence that immediately after the encounter with Nicodemus, John compares the work of the Baptist with Christ (3:22-36).

19 "Believing in" or "coming" to Jesus was not a superficial expression of acceptance (see John 3:20-21; 5:44; Hebrews 11:6). It meant a complete change of heart and mind to serve and obey Christ. John 3:36 says, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God's wrath" (New Revised Standard). Here, belief is equated with obedience.

22 Carson, page 42.

22 Paul also draws a comparison between Judaism and Christianity in Galatians 4:21-31. Ishmael had persecuted or mocked Isaac (Genesis 21:8-11). Paul uses Ishmael to represent the Jews of his day who were persecuting the church and Isaac to represent the church itself (see especially Galatians 4:24-25, 28-29). Like Ishmael, Nicodemus was born only according to the flesh and like Isaac, Christians are born according to the Spirit.

22 Jesus said the hour would come when he would no longer speak to them in figurative language, but would speak plainly to them (John 16:25). Those who insist on a literal interpretation have failed to see that the words of Jesus that John recorded were spirit and they were life. See note 3.

23 For more on the meaning of _gennaō,_ see the accompanying article, discussing Matthew 1:20.

24 Titus 3:5b says, "He saved us by the washing of _rebirth_ and renewal by the Holy Spirit, [which] he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior."

25 According to Barrett, there are 22 passages in John that contain words with double or ambiguous meaning. Unfortunately, the double meanings are lost in translation.

26 John 20:22 says Jesus _breathed_ on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." With this unusual gesture, Jesus was illustrating that new life (rebirth) comes by receiving the Holy Spirit (compare Genesis 2:7). "Just as at creation God brought man into being by breathing into [him] the breath of life so is this new gift of [spiritual] life communicated through the divine Spirit or breath" (R.E. Brown, _New Testament Essays_ (New York: Doubleday, 1968), page 127).

27 W.D. Davies, _The Gospel and the Land_ (Berkeley: University of California, 1974), page 302. When the church was born in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came down out of heaven (from above) upon the disciples. They heard the sound of it, for it was as the sound of a rushing mighty wind. Its effects were indeed mysterious, since many people still are confused as to what exactly happened that day.

28 Francis C. Nicol, _Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary_ (Washington: Review and Herald, 1956), volume 5, page 928. Those who are born of the Spirit are not _of_ this age but of the age to come (or kingdom of God). Though they live in the world, they are not of it; they do not confine their activities to the physical realm.

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## The Meaning of _Gennao_ in Matthew 1:20

Matthew 1:20 reads, "But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost" (King James Version). Of the 96 times the Greek word _gennaō_ appears in the New Testament, this is the only place where it has been rendered "conceived." That should tell us something. "Conceived" is not the intended meaning of the original Greek.

According to _A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament_ by Bauer, Arndt and Gingrich, _gennaō_ means "to beget — literally to become the father of" as in Matthew 1:2-16 and Acts 7:8, 29. For a woman, to "bear" would be the rendering, though _gennaō_ is used of a woman less frequently. _Gennaō_ could also be use figuratively as of anything "brought forth," "produced," "generated" or "caused" (see 2 Timothy 2:23).

As the above definition states, _gennaō_ can figuratively refer to something that is "brought forth," "produced," "caused" or "generated." In English, we might use "beget" figuratively by saying, "hatred begets violence." By that, we do not mean hatred literally gives birth to violence, but that hatred produces or causes it. Notice 2 Timothy 2:23, where Paul says, "stupid arguments...produce ( _gennaō_ ) quarrels." In this instance, stupid arguments "produce" or "cause" or "beget" something — quarrels. Matthew 1:20 uses _gennaō_ in a similar way.

Remember, Joseph was about to put away his wife for fornication, but he received a dream to assure him that the cause ( _gennaō_ in its figurative sense) of the pregnancy was not another man, but the Holy Spirit. _Gennaō_ is the verb used by Matthew to indicate the cause of the pregnancy, not the pregnancy itself. In other words, "that which is in her [the conception] was begotten [produced] of the Holy Spirit" (Young's Literal Translation).

Fenton's translation says the conception was " _produced_ by the Holy Spirit." Rotherham's translation says, "the _source_ of the pregnancy being the Holy Spirit." William's translation renders the passage, "for it is through the influence of the Holy Spirit that she has become an expectant mother." You could substitute the word "produced" with "caused," "generated," "brought forth" or "begotten" and the meaning would still be the same. _Gennaō_ refers here to the action of the Holy Spirit in _producing_ or _causing_ the conception. _Gennaō_ does not mean "conception" in this verse any more than it means "quarrels" in 2 Timothy 2:23.

Contrary to what some have thought, Strong's dictionary does not say _gennaō_ means conceived. Strong says the word _gennaō_ means "to procreate (properly of the father, but by extension the mother); fig. to regenerate." That's where the definition ends. Strong goes on to cite the various ways the King James translators render _gennaō._ But _a rendering is not a definition._ Strong merely indicates the fact that the King James translators rendered _gennaō_ in various ways. He lists "conceived" as a rendering only because of Matthew 1:20. Renderings are an attempt by translators to interpret one language into another, and this is as much an art as it is a science.

The goal of translators is not always perfect accuracy. Perfect accuracy is impossible when two languages are incompatible at certain points of meaning. At times, translators will even sacrifice a little accuracy for a clearer reading of the text. That is the approach most translations take on Matthew 1:20. It just reads better to say, "That which is in her was conceived" than it does to say "produced" or "begotten."

In the preface to his lexicon, Strong wrote: "The additions of the renderings in the common translation [KJV] will greatly contribute to fixing and... _correcting their occasionally wrong translations._ " Strong intended his readers to match the definitions he gave with the various renderings so they could spot the occasional mistranslations. Instead, some have used the mistranslations to "correct" the definition! This carelessness has caused no end of confusion.

Gene Nouhan

1 Marginal references in many editions of the King James Version say the Greek word for conceived means "begotten." English dictionaries tell us that "beget" means to procreate, to sire, to bring a child into the world or become the father of. It is not used of a woman. It takes two to have (or get) a child, and the English word describing the man's contribution to the birth of his child is "beget." So while women give birth to children, men beget them.

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## Birth and Life in John

The apostle John consistently emphasizes spiritual blessings experienced in this age. Jesus came to give us life (6:33, 63; 10:10; 14:19; 20:31). We have been given "the light of life" (8:12). By "life," John means real life, spiritual life, eternal life. Jesus came to bring eternal life.

John stresses that all who believe in Jesus already have eternal life (3:36; 4:36; 5:24-25; 6:47, 51, 54; 10:28; 12:25; 17:2-3). Metaphors are used to describe this: We will never hunger or thirst (4:10; 6:35; 7:37-38). Although John acknowledges that believers will die and be resurrected at the last day (6:40, 54; 11:24-25), he also says that believers will not die (3:16; 6:50; 8:52; 10:28; 11:26).

Perhaps we wouldn't describe salvation in such terms, but John does. To understand his books better, we need to be aware of how boldly he views Christian life. We are already children of God (1:12-13; 11:52), sons of light (12:36); we belong in God's family forever (8:35). We have many other spiritual blessings (1:16), including joy (17:13) and unity (17:23).

The epistle of 1 John continues these emphases of John. We have complete joy and love (1:4, 4:12, 17). Believers have eternal life (2:17; 5:11-13), and this life is in Jesus Christ (3:24; 4:9, 13; 5:11-12, 20). We are children of God now (3:1-2; 5:19), for we have been "born of God" (3:9; 5:1).

### Mature children of God

Considering John's emphasis on the present realization of spiritual life and blessings, it is inconsistent that he would picture Christian life as embryonic. When he said that we have been begotten/born of God, he did not picture conception or the status of a fetus. Even a newborn child seems too immature for John's portrayal of Christians' superabundance of spiritual life.

When John says that we have been born of God, his thought seems to be that we are descendants of God — mature descendants, enjoying tremendous divine blessings.

In his Gospel, John tells us that Jesus Christ gave us "the right to become children of God" (John 1:12). He does not picture us as fetuses or infants, but as adult children possessing eternal life even in our mortal bodies. We are already experiencing our "right."

And John tells us that we, as children of God, have been born of God (1:13). Here again, he is picturing us as mature descendants, exercising our rights, not fetuses in a womb. We have been born of God and are now his children, sons of light, having eternal life. This is the consistent message of 1 John 3:9; 5:1 and John 1:12-13. We should expect John 3 to be consistent with this.

### Implications for John 3

John 1:12-13 is part of John's prologue, giving a brief overview of Christ's prehistory and purpose. It forms part of the background information we should bring with us when we read John 3. Readers would know that Christians have been born of God. So readers would not be surprised to learn that non-Christians must be born of God, born anew, born of the Spirit of God. New life, which is what Christians have, begins with a new birth.

Those who are born of God (which, according to 1:13, includes Christians today) are able to see the kingdom of God. This fits right in with John's thought: It is only right that the children of God, who have eternal life, would be able to see the kingdom of God even in this age. It all fits in with John's emphasis on present experience of spiritual realities.

John uses gennao in 1:12-13 to indicate Christians today; it would be inconsistent to use the same word in 3:3 to indicate a time only after the resurrection.

Nor would John use **one** occurrence of gennao in 3:5 to mean both "to produce conception" (with water, referring to baptism) **and** "to produce a birth" (with Spirit, referring to resurrection). The evidence here, too, is that John is using the word gennao ("to produce") consistently to mean "born." To enter the kingdom, we must be born of water and Spirit — be baptized and receive the Holy Spirit — be born anew.

Of course, John does not mean "born" literally, as happens with physical beings — that is true no matter what stage of Christian life we are discussing. There are no literal sperm and egg, no parturition from a literal womb. It is a figurative use of gennao, and we can rightly explore some similar figurative meanings, such as, No one can see the kingdom unless he has been descended from above, unless he becomes a child of God, unless he has been produced or created again. The theological term regeneration is appropriate; so is Paul's term "new creation."

Just as we have always taught, Christianity requires a new start, a new basis of life, a new goal, a new way of life and a new life — eternal life — which is the reason Christ came.

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##  Bauer-Arndt-Gingrich-Danker

A highly respected Greek-English lexicon is _A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature._ The subtitles tells us that it is a translation and adaptation of the fourth revised and augmented edition of Walter Bauer's _Griechisch-Deutsches Wōrterbuch zu den Schriften des Neuen Testaments und der übrigen urchristlichen Literatur,_ by William F. Arndt and F. Wilbur Gingrich. The second edition has been revised and augmented by F. Wilbur Gingrich and Frederick W. Danker based on Bauer's fifth edition, which was published in 1958. The English translation/adaptation was published in 1979 by University of Chicago Press. The 900-page book is sometimes abbreviated BAGD, an acronym of its authors and revisers.

Here's what it says about _gennaō:_

" _gennáō_ _,_ future _gennēsō;_ first aorist _egennēsa;_ perfect _gegennēka,_ passive _gegennēmai;_ first aorist passive _egennēthēn_ ([known to occur in] Pindar, Herodotus; plus inscriptions, papyri, Septuagint, Enoch; Epistle of Aristeas 208; Philo, Josephus, Testaments of the 12 Patriarchs). — Cf. A. Rahlfs, _Genesis_ [pages] 26, 39.1

" **1.** _beget_ 2 — **a.** literally _become the father of_ ([used] often [in] LXX [the Septuagint], from Genesis 4:18 on) [this is the meaning in] Matthew 1:2ff (see Diodorus of Sicily [ _Library of History,_ book] 4, [chapter] 67, [section] 2 – 68, 6, the genealogy of the Aeolians: 67, 4 _Arnē...egennēsen Aiolon kai Boiōton_ [Arnê...gave birth to Aeolus and Boeotus (translations are from the Loeb Classical Library edition)]; 67, 7 _Hippalkimos egennēse Pēneleōn_ [Hippalcimus begat Peneleos]; 68, 1 _Salmōneus...egennēse thygatera...Tyrō_ [Salmoneus...begat by her a daughter...Tyro]; 68, 3 _Poseidōn egennēse Pelian kai Nēlea_ [Poseidon begat Pelias and Neleus]; 68, 6 _Nēleus paidas egennēse dōdeka_ [Neleus begat twelve sons]. Interchanged with _egennēse_ [third person singular aorist of _gennaō_ ] are _eteknōse, ēn huios, paides egenonto,_ [was born, was a son, children came] etc. The continuity is not as rigid or monotonous as in Matthew. But in Diodorus Siculus 4, 69, 1-3 _egennēse_ is repeated six times in a short space, and 4, 75, 4f we have _egennēse_ four times with the names of fathers and sons);

"[The meaning 'become the father of' is also found in] Acts 7:8, 29; [it is used with] _ek_ with genitive of the mother (Euripides fragment 479; Diodorus Siculus 4, 2, 1; 4, 62, 1; Palaephatus 44; PLond [a list of papyri in London's British Museum] 1730, 10 _hoi ex autēs gennēthentes huioi_ [the sons born from her]; Tobit 1:9; 2 Esdras [Ezra] 10:44; Josephus, _Antiquities of the Jews_ 12, 189) Matthew 1:3, 5f.

"Passive _be begotten — ek tēs paidiskēs kata sarka_ with the slave-woman, according to the flesh Galatians 4:23. _Ho kata sarka gennētheis_ he that was begotten in natural fashion (opposite _ho kata pneuma_ [he according to spirit]) v. 29. _to en autē gennēthen ek pneumatos estin_ that which is conceived in her is of the Spirit Matthew 1:20 ( _to gennēthen_ of that which is yet unborn: Diodorus Siculus 17, 77, 3). Here [Mt 1:20] the male principle is introduced by _ek_ (Lucian, _Dialogue of the Gods_ 20 [Judgment of the Goddesses], 14 _ek kyknou gegennēmenēn_ [having been begotten of a swan]; Phlegon: 257 fragment 36, 2, 4 Jac [a book of fragments edited by F. Jacoby]; Pseudo Callisthenes 1, 30, 3 _ex Ammōnos egennēthē;_ Testament of Simeon 2:2) as John 1:13 ( _egenēth._ Papyrus Bodmer 14-15 and others); [and John] 3:6.

"[The male introduced] with _apo_ (Enoch 15, 8 _hoi gigantes hoi gennēthentes apo tōn pneumatōn kai sarkos_ [the giants born from the spirits and the flesh]) _aph henos egennēthēsan_ they were begotten by one man Hebrews 11:12 variant reading (for _egenēthēsan_ ).

" _Ek porneias ouk egennēthēmen_ [we were not born/conceived of fornication] John 8:41. _En hamartiais su egennēthes holos_ you were altogether conceived in sin [John] 9:34. — Luke 1:35 (where meaning 2 is also possible (as in _to gennōmenon_ Philo, _On Planting_ 15). Cf. A. Fridrichsen, _Symbolae Osloensis_ [volume] 6, [19]28, [pages] 33-6; Helge Almqvist, _Plutarch und das Neue Testament_ [19]46, [page] 60f).

" **b.** figuratively of the influence exerted by one person on another (Philo _On the Embassy to Gaius_ 58 _mallon auton tōn goneōn gegennēka_ [I am his begetter more than his parents]) of a teacher on pupils _en Christō Iēsou dia tou euangeliou hymas egennēsa_ I became your father as Christians through the gospel 1 Corinthians 4:15; Philemon 10 (compare H. Lietzmann and J. Weiss on 1 Corinthians 4:15; A. Dieterich, _Eine Mithrasliturgie_ [19]03, 146ff). —

"Passive _ek (tou) theou gennasthai_ [to be born of God] John 1:13; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18. Also _anōthen gennēthē_ John 3:3. _Pas ho agapōn ton gennēsanta agapa ton gegennēmenon ex autou_ everyone who loves the father (=God) loves the child (=Christ or one's Christian brother) 1 John 5:1 (on _gennasthai ek theou_ [to be born of God] see _Handbuch zum NT_ on John 3:3 and 1 John 3:9 and the sources and literature listed there; see also on _palingenesia_ ). On _gennasthai ex hydatos kai pneumatos_ [to be born of water and spirit] John 3:5 compare IQS [The Qumran Manual of Discipline] 4, 20-22 and see Y. Yadin, _Journal of Biblical Literature_ [volume] 74, [19]55, [pages] 40-43. Compare _sēmeron gegennēka se_ [today I have begotten you] (Psalm 2:7) 1 Clement 36:4; Gospel of the Ebionites 3; Acts 13:33 (held by some to have been the original reading [of] Luke 3:22; see H. Usener, _D. Weihnachtsfest_ 2 [19]11, [page] 38ff); Hebrews 1:5; 5:5.

" **2.** of women: _bear_ (Aeschylus, _Suppliant Maidens_ 48; Xenophon, _Constitution of the Lacedaemonians_ 1, 3; Lucian, _On Sacrifices_ 6; Plutarch, _Moralia,_ Education of Children, 3c; Pseudo Callisthenes 1, 9, 2 _ek theou gennēsasa paida_ = a woman who has borne a child to a god; BGU [a list of Greek documents in the Berlin Museum] 132 II, 5; Judges 11:1 [as found in the version of the LXX in the] Vaticanus codex; Isaiah 66:9; 4 Maccabees 10:2) Luke 1:13, 57; 23:29; (with _tiktein_ ) John 16:21. _Eis douleian gennōsa_ who bears children for slavery Galatians 4:24.

"Passive _be born_ — _prin hēmas gennēthēnai_ before we were born 1 Clement 38:3. _Eis ton kosmon_ come into the world John 16:21; Matthew 2:1, 4; 19:12; 26:24 (=1 Clement 46:8); Mark 14:21 (compare Enoch 38, 2); Luke 1:35 ([meaning] 1a is also a possibility; a variant adds _ek sou,_ which can be rendered 'that which is born of you' and 'that which is begotten with you'; _ek Marias egennēthē_ [begotten of/in Mary] Third Corinthians 3:5); John 3:4; 9:2, 19-20, 32; Ignatius to the Ephesians 18:2; Ignatius to the Trallians 11:2; _alēthōs g._ be truly born (in opposition to Docetism) 9:1.

" _Gegennēmena_ (variant _gegenēmena_ ) _eis alōsin_ [having been born for capture] 2 Peter 2:12. _Eis touto_ for this purpose John 18:37. _Dialektos en hē egennēthēmen_ the language in which we were born, that is, which we have spoken from infancy Acts 2:8. _Egō de kai gegennēmai_ but I was (actually) born a Roman citizen [Acts] 22:28.

" **3.** figuratively _bring forth, produce, cause_ (classical; Polybius 1, 67, 2 _stasis egennato;_ Philo, _On Joseph_ 254; Josephus, _Antiquities_ 6, 144) 2 Timothy 2:23. — _G. karpon_ produce fruit Ignatius to the Trallians 11:1. J.H. Moulton and G. Milligan. C.D. Buck 280."

### Summary of BAGD

BAGD contains a great deal of information. What have we learned from this article? _Gennaō_ has three basic meanings:

**1a. to beget, become the father of.** New Testament examples listed in this category: Matthew 1:2-16; Acts 7:8, 29; the mother is mentioned in Matthew 1:3, 5-6. In a passive sense, **be begotten,** Galatians 4:23, 29; Matthew 1:20. In Matthew 1:20; John 1:13; 3:6, the male parent is mentioned by using the preposition _ek;_ the preposition _apo_ is used for that purpose in a variant of Hebrews 11:12. Other uses of _gennaō_ with the meaning of "begotten" include John 8:41; 9:34 and possibly Luke 1:35.

**1b. to beget figuratively by influence.** 1 Corinthians 4:15; Philemon 10. In a passive sense, **to be influenced.** John 1:13; 3:3; 3:5; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18; Acts 13:33; Hebrews 1:5; 5:5.

**2. (of women) to bear.** Luke 1:13, 57; 23:29; John 16:21; Galatians 4:24. Passively, **to be born.** John 16:21; Matthew 2:1, 4; 19:12; 26:24; Mark 14:21; John 3:4; 9:2, 19-20, 32; 2 Peter 2:12; John 18:37; Acts 2:8; 22:28; perhaps Luke 1:35.

**3. figuratively, to bring forth, produce, cause.** 2 Timothy 2:23.

Of particular interest is the way _gennaō_ is used in John 3:3 and 1 John. BAGD includes these in meaning 1b — a figurative sense, as a matter of influence, like a teacher influences his students. BAGD does not elaborate on this meaning.

Another verse of interest is Matthew 1:20, in which _gennaō_ is used literally (according to BAGD) to mean beget, before birth, and the "male principle" would be the Holy Spirit. The first-century B.C. writer Diodorus also uses _gennaō_ for a child before birth. John 8:41; 9:34 may also be references to the beginning of a pregnancy.

1 BAGD does not transliterate, and often does not translate nonbiblical quotes. I have transliterated, and given an English translation from the Loeb Classical Library, if available. BAGD also abbreviates _many_ words; I have spelled them out if I could decipher them.

2 The meaning of the English word "beget" is also important for us to clarify. _Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary_ says: " **1.** to procreate as the father: sire **2.** to produce as an effect or outgrowth: cause." Procreate means "to beget or bring forth (offspring)." These definitions do not include conception, nor do they exclude it.

_Webster's Third International Dictionary_ (unabridged edition, 1971) says: " **1** obsolete: to acquire especially through effort **2a:** to procreate as the father.... **b:** to give birth to.... **3** obsolete: to make (a woman) pregnant **4** to produce usually as an effect or as a natural outgrowth."

The definition includes conception, but that meaning is considered obsolete. We might expect the King James Version to use a meaning now obsolete, but we would not expect modern lexicons to do so. We would not want to use an obsolete meaning in literature we publish today.

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## Louw-Nida

_Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains_ is unlike other dictionaries. Johannes P. Louw and Eugene A. Nida have categorized Greek words into various semantic domains — categories of meaning. This arrangement, designed to help translators, is useful because it groups synonyms together. The definitions given are more descriptive that most lexicons give, but less evidence is cited in support. United Bible Societies published the two volumes (1217 pages) in 1988.

We'll start in volume 2, in the index. On page 50 we find _gennaō_ (Louw-Nida does not transliterate), and we learn that it has four major entries: beget, give birth, be born of, cause to happen. A fifth entry is given for the combination _gennaō anōthen,_ be born again.

First: Beget, domain 23 — physiological processes and states. Subdomain C — birth, procreation. Entry number 58, volume 1, page 257: " **23.58** _gennaō_ _:_ the male role in causing the conception and birth of a child — 'to be the father of, to procreate, to beget.' _Abraam egennēsen ton Isaak_ 'Abraham was the father of Isaac' Matthew 1.2."

Next listing for _gennaō,_ same subdomain, page 256: " **23.52** _tiktō; gennaō; teknogoneō; teknogonia, as_ _fem._ [the last word is a feminine noun with the genitive case ending in _-as;_ the previous three are verbs; all can be used with the following meaning]: to give birth to a child — 'to bear, to give birth.' "

Third, domain 13 — be, become, exist, happen. Subdomain C — change of state. Volume 1, page 155: " **13.56** _gennaō_ _:_ (a figurative extension of meaning of _gennaō_ 'to give birth,' 23.52) to cause to experience a radical change, with the implication of involvement of the total personality — 'to cause to be born, to be born of.' _ean mē tis gennēthē ex hydatos kai pneumatos_ 'unless someone is born of water and the Spirit' John 3.5. The phrase _gennēthē ex hydatos_ has been interpreted by some as a literal reference to physical birth.... Others, however, interpret this phrase as referring to baptism by water. In a parallel fashion, the expression _genēthē ex...pneumatos_ would refer to baptism by the Spirit or rebirth made possible by the Spirit."

Subdomain D — happen, page 163: " **13.129** _gennaō:_ to cause to happen, with the implication of the result of existing circumstances — 'to cause, to produce, to give rise to.' _eidōs hoti gennōsin machas_ 'knowing that they give rise to quarrels' or '...produce quarreling' 2 Timothy 2.23."

Last, domain 41 — behavior and related states. Subdomain E — change behavior. Volume 1, pages 510-511: " **41.53** _gennaō anōthen_ (an idiom, literally 'to be born again'); _palingenesia, as_ _fem._ : to experience a complete change in one's way of life to what it should be, with the implication of return to a former state or relation — 'to be born again, to experience new birth, rebirth.' _gennaō anōthen: ean mē tis gennēthē anōthen_ 'unless a person is born again' John 3.3. It is also possible to understand _anōthen_ in John 3.3 as meaning 'from above' or 'from God'...a literary parallel to the phrase _ek theou egennēthēsan_ in John 1.13. In John 3.3, however, Nicodemus understood _anōthen_ as meaning 'again' [or at least his question uses it in this meaning]...and _gennaō_ as 'physical birth.'

" _palingenesia: dia loutrou palingenesias kai anakainōseōs_ 'new birth and new life by washing' Titus 3.5. [A note for translators follows:] The metaphor of 'new birth' is so important in the New Testament that it should be retained if at all possible. In some languages 'new birth' can be expressed as 'to cause to be born all over again' or 'to have a new life as though one were born a second time.' "

### Summary of Louw-Nida

Louw-Nida explicitly includes the concept of "conception" in the literal meaning of _gennaō,_ but does not prove the point with evidence. John 3:5 is classified as a figurative use of the word, in the general category of radical behavioral change (corresponding to BAGD's category of "influence"). John 3:3 is similarly described as a complete change in way of life.

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## Zodhiates

_The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament,_ compiled and edited by Spiros Zodhiates, may be a good choice for those who cannot read Greek. All words are transliterated; all entries are coded to Strong's numbering system. The 1505-page book was published in 1992 by AMG and World Bible Publishers.

Here's the entry on page 364:

" **1080.** _gennáō;_ contracted _gennō,_ 3 future _gennēsō,_ from _genos_ (1085), generation, kind, offspring. To beget as spoken of men; to bear as spoken of women; passive, to be begotten or be born.

"( **I** ) In the active sense:

"( **A** ) Spoken of men, to beget (Matthew 1:2-16; Acts 7:8, 29; Septuagint: Genesis 5:3ff.). Metaphorically, to generate, to occasion, e.g., strifes (2 Timothy 2:23).

"( **B** ) Spoken in the Jewish manner of the relation between a teacher and his disciples, to beget in a spiritual sense, to be the spiritual father of someone, that is, the instrument of his conversion to a new spiritual life (1 Corinthians 4:15; Philemon 1:10).

"( **C** ) Spoken of God begetting in a spiritual sense which consists in regenerating, sanctifying, quickening anew, and ennobling the powers of the natural man by imparting to him a new life and a new spirit in Christ (1 John 5:1). Hence, Christians are said to be born of God and to be the sons of God (Romans 8:14; Galatians 3:26; 4:6). Spoken of the relationship between God and the Messiah, called His Son. The designation of this relationship by words with a temporal notion has troubled theologians, who have proferred various explanations. Origen understood this as referring to the Son's relationship within the Trinity and was the first to propose the concept of eternal generation. The Son is said to be eternally begotten by the Father. Others have viewed the language more figuratively and connected it with Christ's role as Messiah. Upon Christ's exaltation to the Father's right hand, God is said to have appointed, declared or officially installed Christ as a king (Acts 13:33; Romans 1:4; Hebrews 1:5; 5:5; Septuagint: Psalm 2:6-8 [cf. _huios_ {5207}, son]).

"( **D** ) Spoken of women, to bear, bring forth (Luke 1:13, 57; 23:29; John 16:21; figuratively Galatians 4:24; Septuagint: Genesis 46:15; Exodus 6:20; Ezra 10:44).

"( **II** ) In the passive sense _gennaomai,_ contracted _gennōmai._

"( **A** ) To be begotten (Matthew 1:20, 'that which is conceived in her' or begotten, i.e., in her womb, the fetus; Hebrews 11:12).

"( **B** ) To be born as used generally (Matthew 2:1, 4; 19:12; 26:24; Mark 14:21; John 3:4, blind; 9:2, 19, 20, 32; 16:21, 'into the world'; Acts 7:20; 22:28, I have been born a Roman; Romans 9:11; Hebrews 11:23; Galatians 4:23, 29, 'after the flesh,' in the course of nature). With _eis_ (1510), unto, denoting finality, destination (John 18:37; 2 Peter 2:12). In Matthew 1:16, 'of whom (feminine gender)' meaning of the mother. See Luke 1:35. In John 3:6, with _ek_ (1537), 'out of the flesh' (a.t.), indicating the source. See also John 8:41. With _en_ (1722), in, and the dative of place (Acts 22:3). With the dative of state or condition (John 9:34, in the state of sinfulness or sins). In Acts 2:8, 'wherein we were born,' meaning the dialect, the native tongue. Metaphorically, _ek_ (1537), out of God or of the Spirit, only in the writings of John, meaning to be born of God or of the Spirit, in a spiritual sense, to have received from God a new spiritual life. See also John 1:13; 3:5, 6, 8; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18, and to be 'born again' or from above which is equivalent to be born of God (John 3:3, 7); also _anōthen_ (509), from above.

" **Derivatives:** _anagennaō_ (313), to give new birth; _gennēma_ (1081), offspring; _gennēsis_ (1083), birth; _gennētos_ (1084), born.

" **Synonyms:** _apokueō_ (616), to give birth to, bring forth. Used in a spiritual sense: _tiktō_ (5088), to bring forth, give birth to a child, also used metaphorically in regard to sin in James 1:15."

### Summary of Zodhiates

Zodhiates gives a short essay about how _gennaō_ is used in its various meanings. He gives a little history and theology by noting that Origen and others discussed in what way Christ, who existed eternally, could be said to have been begotten or born. He notes that other theologians think the word _gennaō_ is used figuratively in such cases. He does not argue for either view, but he does bring the historical controversy to our attention. In meaning IIB, he also gives us a few theological conclusions that he does not have space to explain.

Matthew 1:20 is presented as a literal use, meaning conceived: the fetus that is conceived in her. John 3:3-8 is included as a metaphorical sense, meaning new spiritual life.

3 Greek-English lexicons usually list verbs by the first person singular present active indicative form (e.g., "I am doing"). The first person singular present active indicative of this word, as it would be used in written Greek, is _gennō,_ with the _a_ and _ō_ contracted into an _ō._ Lexicons list the noncontracted form so readers will know how the verb is conjugated into other forms.

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##  Liddell-Scott-Jones

The next lexical resource we will look at is _A Greek-English Lexicon,_ compiled by Henry George Liddell and Robert Scott, revised and augmented by Henry Stuart Jones in 1925. LSJ is a lexicon of _classical_ Greek, so it must be used cautiously. Languages change through the centuries, so a Greek word might be used much differently in classical works than it is in the Bible, just as a word may be used in Old English with meanings unlike today's. LSJ may be useful for words that are only rarely used in the Bible or literature that is contemporary to it. This does not include _gennaō,_ but to be complete we will quote LSJ's entry on _gennaō._

LSJ is more difficult to use than BAGD, since it uses even more cryptic abbreviations and doesn't translate or transliterate any of its Greek. The entry we need is on page 344, in a paragraph that begins _génn-ē._ Various forms starting with _genn-_ are listed; about halfway through a column-long paragraph we come to the ending we are interested in:

" _-áō,_ fut. Med. _gennēsomai_ in pass. sense, D.S.19.2 (but _-ēthēsomai_ Id.4.9): ( _genna_ ): — causal of _gignomai_ (cf. _geinomai_ ), mostly of the father, beget, _ho gennēsas patēr_ S. _El._ 1412; _hoi genēsantes se_ your parents, X. _Mem._ 2.I.27; _to gennōmenon ek tinos_ Hdt.I.108, etc.; _hothen gegennamenoi_ sprung, Pi. _P._ 5.74; of the mother, bring forth, bear, A. _Supp._ 48, Arist. _GA_ 716a22, X. _Lac._ I.3, etc.: — Med., produce from oneself, create, Pl. _Ti._ 34b, _Mx._ 238a. 2. produce, grow, get, _kan sōma gennēsē mega_ S. _Aj._ 1077. 3. metaph., engender, produce, _lēthē tōn idiōn kakōn thrasytēta genna_ Democr.196; _pantoian aretēn_ Pl. _Smp._ 209e; _dianoēmata te kai doxas_ Id. _R._ 496a, etc.; _gennōsi ton ouranon_ [ _hoi philosophoi_ ] call it into existence, Arist. _Cael._ 283b31; _ho ex asōmatou gennōn logos_ ib.305a16, cf. Plot.6.6.9; of numbers, produce a total, Ph.1.347."

We could look up the abbreviations of the classical works cited, and for most of them we could go to the Loeb series for a more complete Greek text and translation, but this would probably not be a good use of our time. For our purposes, we can ignore the Greek words and citations to see LSJ's information about classical meanings of _gennaō:_

1. Mostly of the father, _beget_ (in some contexts it may be translated _parents_ or _sprung_ ). Of the mother, _bring forth, bear_ (in middle voice, _produce from oneself, create_ ).

2. _Produce, grow, get._

3. In a metaphorical use, it can mean _engender_ or _produce_ or _call into existence._

I do not know why LSJ did not combine numbers 2 and 3, but the meanings given here are much the same as we see in biblical lexicons. There is nothing here that encourages us to dig deeper into classical meanings of _gennaō._

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## Kittel, _TDNT_

In 1933, Gerhard Kittel began a massive multi-volume encyclopedia of word studies called _Theologisches Wōrterbuch zum Neuen Testament. TWNT_ soon became an authoritative standard, and the English translation was done by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. The first volume of _Theological Dictionary of the New Testament_ was published by Eerdmans in 1964. The German set was completed in 1973; the English set in 1974.

_TDNT_ does not transliterate Greek and Hebrew, and often does not translate it, so I have done both. I have also taken the liberty of deleting the footnotes, most of which are references to German works (all of them were written before 1933, when this word study was published). Part A of this article is by Friedrich Büchsel, part B by Karl Heinrich Rengstorf and the remainder by Büchsel. The six-page article begins on page 665:

gennaō

"Like _tiktō,_ this term is used of the 'begetting' of the father and the 'bearing' of the mother, not only in Greek generally, but also in the LXX and NT. Figuratively it is used of producing without birth, as at 2 Tm. 2:23 and also Josephus: _gennatai en autē phoinix ho kallistos_ [in this city are grown the finest palm-trees] ( _Antiquities,_ 9, 7, cf. _Wars,_ 4, 469); in the religious sense of the old covenant (Gal. 4:24), of Paul in the self-protestations at 1 Cor. 4:15; Phlm. 10.

" _gennan_ [active voice] with God as subject, Prv. 8:25; Ps. 2:7 (quoted in Lk. 3:22 (western reading); Ac. 13:33; Hb. 1:5; 5:5). _gennasthai_ (passive) in Jn. 1:13; 3:3, 5, 6, 8; 1 Jn. 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18.

### A. "Begetting" as an Image of the Relationship of Master and Disciple

"The use of the terms father and son with reference to the master and disciple may be seen already in 2 Kings 2:12. At the time of Jesus it was customary for the rabbi to call his pupil and the ordinary member of the community 'my son,' cf. the style of address used by Jesus and Mt. 23:8-10. There was here no thought of begetting, as shown by the application to favoured members of the community. It was simply designed to emphasise the superiority and warmth of the 'father' on the one side and the reverence of the 'son' on the other. The more significant the achievement of the master and his relation to the disciple, the more he is compared to a father. bSan. [Babylonian Talmud, tractate _Sanhedrin_ ], 19b: 'When a man teaches the son of another the Torah, the Scripture treats him as if he had begotten him'; cf. also bSan., 99b. Paul goes further than this when he not only calls himself father but speaks of his _gennan_ [i.e., his begetting in an active sense] (cf. Gal. 4:19). This is usually derived from the Mysteries. But the mode of expression does not really imply more than that of the Rabbis. Again, though the mystagogue [leader] is called the father of the initiates, the word _gennan_ is not actually used. Moreover, Paul begets through the Gospel (1 C. 4:15), through public preaching, not through a mystery. Furthermore, he begets whole communities and not just individual believers. In 1 C. 4:15 and Phlm. 10 we simply have a rhetorical development of the usual Jewish expression. It is wholly in line with the emotional strength, forcefulness and metaphorical power of the language of Paul. Perhaps some of his contemporaries used similar phrases.

### B. The Idea of New Birth by Conversion to the True Religion in Later Judaism

"The idea of 'new birth' or 'becoming new' by conversion to Judaism is common in the Rabbis. Instead of giving several examples, we shall prove the point by adducing two which are particularly clear. In Midrash on Song of Solomon 1 on 1:3 we read: 'When someone brings a creature (i.e., a man) under the wing of the Shekinah (i.e., wins him to Judaism according to Midrash on Song of Solomon 1 on 1:1), then it is counted to him (i.e., by God) as though he had created and fashioned and formed him.' Similarly, we read in the Babylonian Talmud, _Yebamoth,_ 22a etc.: 'A proselyte just converted is like a child just born.' The two statements give us a glimpse into the world of thought from which they sprang and which was given its linguistic stamp by expressions connected with generation.

"The first statement compares the one who wins a non-Jew to Judaism directly with God. This is shown by the expressions used to extol his work. They are the words used in the OT to describe God as the Creator _ex nihilo_ ( _bârâ'_ [created], Gn. 1:1, 27), as the One who gives man his form ( _yâtsar_ [formed], Gn. 2:7; Ps. 139:16) and as the One who holds His creative hand over him from his mother's womb (cf. _râqam_ [woven], Ps. 139:15). The winning of a proselyte is an achievement of unsurpassable greatness, since it can be compared with the creative work of God. Yet this is not the essential point in the present context. More important is the fact that the Jew who wins another to his faith satisfies in an ideal manner the command to be fruitful and multiply, which, according to the Rabbinic understanding, is laid on all male Jews as a supreme command. It should not be forgotten, of course, that the whole idea remains in the realm of comparison. This fact prevents us from finding in the statement, for which there are many parallels, echoes of the terminology of the Mysteries. In it we find ourselves within the sphere of rational considerations. This is not altered in the very least by the final saying with its reference to the creation of life in the narrowest sense, i.e., in the embryo.

"The totally unmystical character is fully seen, however, only in the concluding observation that the proselyte does not become a true man until his conversion to Judaism. Previously he has been a mere creature. This is the point at which the second sentence links up with and augments the first. The proselyte is reckoned a child because he has only just entered into the presuppositions of true humanity. These are found in Judaism alone because here alone, through the Law, is there the possibility of doing the will of God and thus leading a life commensurate with the being of man as God's image. This is the link between the two statements. This is what links them to all similar statements. This is what brings them into the great nexus of statements which separate the Jewish people from second-class nations on the ground of the presence and use of the Law. The whole circle of thought illustrated here thus stands in close connection with the central concern of Judaism in sanctification. In fact the conversion to Judaism which is here compared with becoming new or becoming a genuine man is characterised in another connection as the entry into a state of holiness, or more accurately of being sanctified. We may thus say that 'new' and 'holy' are related to the extent that 'new' marks off the new state of the proselyte as compared with his previous profane life and 'holy' marks him off from his previous hopeless religious situation. 'Holy' is thus the religious and moral counterpart of the more forensic 'new.' At any rate, the two terms are not schematically disparate, as might appear from what has been said. Only in the closest relationship do they describe the situation of the proselyte as it appears in the light of the Law, which is now the predominant factor in his life.

"The forensic and rational character of the regeneration of the proselyte is revealed by the implications of his conversion to Judaism. These may be briefly summarised in the statement that the past has now ceased to exist for him. This is true of his previous relations. Since Judaism denies the existence of a solid sexual morality outside the sphere of the Law, it recognises no degree of relationship prior to the coming of the Law. The proselyte is literally a new born child in his new environment. He has no previous father, mother or brethren. It is literally true of him that the old has passed away and all things are made new, as Paul says in a rather different sense in 2 C. 5:17.

"This is the point of transition to the corresponding terms and thought forms of the NT. To be sure, the Rabbinic material adduced does not exclude the possibility of some Hellenistic influence as well, especially on Paul. Yet this material has also to be taken into account in relation to Paul's statements concerning the _gennethēnai_ [being begotten in a passive sense] of Christians. This is suggested by the existence of an unmistakeable line of development from the Rabbinic _qâdôwsh_ [saint] to the NT _hagios_ [saint]; the two complexes of thought are obviously inseparable. We thus do well to take into serious account the later Jewish ideas attested in our attempt to understand Gl. 4:19; 1 C. 4:15; Phlm. 10 and in the last resort even 1 Th. 2:11. At any rate, these are a safeguard against too strong an emphasis on the influence of the Mysteries. We are the less exposed to this danger the more we see how strongly in Paul the forensic element, which controls the thinking of the Rabbis, yields before the purely religious claiming of man by God, which is at once posited for Paul by the fact that in his thinking Christ takes the place or the Law, so that all human strivings and achievements are surpassed and set aside by Christ's sanctification of His people. This is the real reason why existence 'through the Gospel' (1 C. 4:15) is for the NT a new being which is not a burdensome duty but a grateful response to the divine action in Jesus.

### C. Generation by the Deity.

1. Generation from God in the OT and Judaism.

" _gennan_ is used very rarely of God in the OT, but it occurs in significant passages. Thus the king addressed in Ps. 2 is begotten of God, as also the king in Ps. 109: _ek gastros pro eōsphorou exegennēsa se_ [I have begotten thee from the womb before the morning; Brenton's LXX translation]. Finally, wisdom is begotten of God in Prv. 8:25. In Ps. 2:7 the generation is no more than institution to the position of son and heir; 'I have begotten thee' is probably no more than a stereotyped formula. To be sure, Psalms of Solomon 17:23 ff. takes it rather differently, but it does not infer the begetting of the Messiah by God. The Targum paraphrases: 'Thou art as dear to me as a son to his father, and innocent as though I had this day created thee.' In the Midrash on Ps. 2 § 9 (14b) Rabbi Huna elucidates the thought of generation by that of a new creation out of previous troubles. In Ps. 109:3 the _exegennēsa se_ was probably in the original, but owing to corruption of the Hebrew text, not perhaps unintentional, these words had no influence in Judaism. Prv. 8:22 is clearly adopted and expounded in Sirach 24. It is noteworthy that the _genna me_ [he begets me] of Prv. 8:25 is translated _ektisen me_ [he created me] in Sirach 24:6 (10) [9]. But the thought of the generation of wisdom from God did not disappear in Judaism. What Prv. 8:22 says of wisdom is referred to the Law in Sirach 24:23. Josephus _Antiquities,_ 4, 319 also says of the Law: _nomoi hous autos gennēsas hēmin edōke_ [laws which He, the begetter of them, gave you himself], though it is to be noted that Josephus does not use _gennan_ elsewhere of God. Thus, even though the Jews do not say that any man is begotten of God, the thought of a generation from God has not completely perished.

"Philo makes extensive and varied use of _gennan_ in relation to God. He can call all God's creating ( _poiein_ [to do, to make]) a 'begetting' ( _gennan_ ) in _Allegories of the Law_ III, 219. Everything is begotten of God, the _logos_ [word] ( _On the Confusion of Languages,_ 63), but also animals and plants ( _On the Change of Names,_ 63). The divine sonship of the Israelites, however, does not rest on a _gennan_ [begettal] of God. In the allegorising of Philo the idea of a marriage of God with wisdom or knowledge plays an important role. He also speaks of a _speirein_ [scattering seed] of God in man in _On the Migration of Abraham,_ 35 etc. Behind all this stands the wisdom of the Mysteries. But for him the righteous are not _gennēthentes_ [begotten ones] of God.

2. Generation or Adoption in the Mysteries.

"In the Mysteries ideas and processes from sex life play an important part, e.g., the _hieros gamos_ [holy marriage], phallic celebrations etc. A _renasci_ [Latin for reborn], _anagennasthai, metagennasthai_ [Greek for begotten again, born again] mediating a relationship to deities, constitutes the true meaning of the rites. On the other hand, there seems to be no reference to the birth of the initiate through a goddess or to his begetting by a god. In pre-Christian times, at least, the real thought is that of adoption. Now it may be that in the rites the distinction between adoption and birth through a goddess was dimmed. But in the B.C. period there is certainly no reference in the Mysteries to a _gennētheis ek tou theou_ [being begotten or born from the god].

"A. Korte has claimed that in the Eleusinian Mysteries the initiate became a physical child of the earth mother. But he has not proved this from the sources. It may be granted that the _pudendum_ which was contained in the _kistē_ [chest], and with which the initiate undertook a mysterious action (Clement of Alexandria, _Exhortation to the Greeks,_ II, 21 [18], 2: _synthēma Eleusiniōn mystēriōn: enēsteusa, epion ton kukeōna, elabon ek kistēs, ergasamenos epethemēn eis kalathon kai ek kalathou eis kistēn_ [The formula of the Eleusinian mysteries is as follows: 'I fasted; I drank the draught; I took from the chest; having done my task, I placed from the basket into the chest']), did not represent a phallos but the womb of the goddess. But this does not mean that birth rather than adoption is the meaning of the rite. For the Greeks had a form of adoption which imitated birth, yet was not designed to mediate physical sonship, but only the corresponding legal position, cf. Diodorus of Sicily, IV, 39: Hera adopted Heracles ( _huiopoiēsasthai_ [to make a son]) by getting on a bed, taking Heracles to her body and letting him down to the earth through her garments _mimoumenēn tēn alēthinēn genesin._ Thus, although Heracles seems to proceed from her body, he is the adopted, not the physical, son of Hera. In the same way the touching of the womb of the earth mother need not signify more than adoption in the Eleusinian Mysteries. Adoption is by a process which imitates birth. The well-known _despoinas hypo kolpon edyn chthonias basileias_ [go under the bosom of the chthonic queen] of the Orphic tablets proves that adoption was practised in the Mysteries in the way attested by Diodorus. E. Rohde came near to the correct reading. But instead he substituted a feeble modernisation ('I seek protection in her motherly bosom [or lap]'). He overlooked the fact that in Diodorus Heracles was adopted by the divine mother after his death in order to be assured of her favour; he also failed to note that adoption can be the goal of the initiate in the hereafter even though he does not possess it in virtue of the rite. The _hypo kolpon edyn_ [I go down under the bosom] can only be a mysterious formulation in the first person of that which Diodorus recounts as Hera's action in respect of Heracles. That a formula like _hypo tou kolpou exēlthon_ [I went out from the bosom] is not chosen seems to make it quite evident to me that the thought was that of adoption and not of physical birth. The Eleusinian rite is analogous. Kōrte seems to have been extremely rash in his exposition of _hieron eteke potnia kouron Brimō Brimon._ Even if the _kouros_ were the initiate, this would not prevent the action from being adoption, since this was an imitation of birth and had an equivalent result. The passages adduced by O. Kern add nothing of material significance. [Quoted from _Archiv für Religionswissenschaft_ 19 (1916-19) 433-435.]

3. Ps. 2:7 in the NT.

"Ps. 2:7 is much used in the NT. At Ac. 13:33 the 'to-day' of the generation of the Son of God is the resurrection. At Lk. 3:22 (western reading) it is the baptism as an impartation of the Spirit. At Hb. 1:5; 5:5 it may be doubted whether any specific point of time is in view. If we think of His coming into the world (cf. 1:6: _palin eisagagē_ [again, he brings in]), or of the beginning of His high-priesthood in the days of His flesh, it is again doubtful whether the reference is to His birth or to His baptism. The birth stories in Mt. and Lk. do not quote Ps. 2:7. There is only a distant contact between this verse and Lk. 1:35: _to gennōmenon hagion klēthēsetai huios theou_ [the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God]. In any case, however, we can see from Ac. 13:33 that quite early, and independently of the idea of the Virgin Birth, Ps. 2:7 was used in interpretation of the divine sonship of Jesus. Jesus is accepted as the Begotten of God because the Word of God speaks thus of Him. This begetting is more than adoption. For the resurrection, in which it was consummated, is the beginning of a new and pneumatic, i.e., divine, mode of being; the impartation of the Spirit is the earnest of the gifts of this mode of being. On the basis of the resurrection and the endowment of the Spirit, Jesus was for the community much more than a mere man in whom the religious life of humanity reached a new level, He was the man in whom the new _aiōn_ [age] began. Generation from God in a very real sense was here perceived by the community. The idea that this generation must be thought of either in the sense of adoption or in that of the Virgin Birth rests on a misconception of the early Christian belief in Christ and understanding of Scripture, and especially of the basic significance of the resurrection of Jesus and the resultant beginning of the new _aiōn,_ in short, of the eschatological impulse in early Christian thinking. Only where this element is correctly evaluated can we correctly understand the divine sonship and generation of Jesus and therefore the significance of Ps. 2:7 in the NT. But then we can also understand how believers who were sure of the resurrection, and had the pledge of it in themselves in the Spirit, could also believe themselves to be begotten of God.

**4.** _gennēthēnai_ **in John.**

"In John _gennēthēnai_ [to be begotten or born] is always used with a reference to the point of origin, mostly _ek tou theou_ [of God] or _ex autou_ [of him] (1 Jn. 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18; Jn. 1:13; _ek pneumatos_ [of Spirit] (Jn 3:5, 6, 8): _ex hydatos_ [of water] (3:5), _ek tēs sarkos_ [of the flesh] (3:6); _ek thelēmatos_ [of the will] (1:13); _anōthen_ [from above] (3:3, 7). The seed mentioned in 1 Jn. 3:9 is the Spirit of Jn. 3:5 rather than the Word of 1 Jn. 2:14. This birth is thus everything which it is in virtue of its origin. As a birth from God, it is a reality but also a mystery (3:8). Even as a birth of water and the Spirit it is a mystery, because these are what they are through God. For John the authenticity of his statements concerning birth from God cannot rest on experiences and the like, for what he says about birth from God contradicts all experience (1 Jn. 3:9; cf. 1 Jn. 1:8-10). His statements are statements of faith. They are true in virtue of the fellowship with God enjoyed by the believer (1 Jn. 1:3, 6 ff.). John emphasises particularly the ethical or religious and ethical consequences of the birth. These emerge in the doing of righteousness (1 Jn. 2:29), in not sinning (3:7 ff.), in love (4:7), in the overcoming of the world (5:4), in faith in Jesus as the Christ (5:1). They cannot be understood as investiture with a power or position appropriated by man. Divine sonship is all that it is as the fellowship with God which depends on the will of God. There is a parallel in the devilish sonship of the Jews referred to in Jn. 8:38-47. This, too, is essentially ethical; it finds expression in lying and murder. It, too, is a personal relationship of fellowship or dependence.

"We can only guess at the origin of the Johannine view. John attributes this divine generation both to Jesus (1 Jn. 5:18; Jn. 1:13) and to believers. The former is obviously primary. The description of Jesus as _gennētheis ek tou theou_ [one begotten or born of God] corresponds to belief in His divine sonship on the one side and to Messianic prophecy, which always includes Ps. 2:7, on the other. It is not difficult to transfer the thought from Jesus to believers. For believers are members of the _aiōn mellōn_ [future age] in which the promises of Scripture are fulfilled. They participate in the divine Spirit. They share in the eternal divine life. They have passed from death to life (1 Jn. 3:14; Jn. 5:24). Through the Spirit they are in some sense essentially united to Jesus. That the _gennan_ [the begetting], applied to God's relationship to Jesus and believers, has originally an eschatological sense may be seen in John only to the degree that the kingdom of God, the seeing of which depends on the birth (3:3; cf. 3:5), is an eschatological magnitude. The terms _anastasis_ [resurrection] and _zōē aiōnios_ [eternal life], which John uses in the present tense, have also an original eschatological meaning.

"It is unlikely that the idea of the divine _gennan_ in John derives from the Mysteries. There can be no doubt that the application of the idea to Jesus in Ac. 13:33 is completely independent of the Mysteries. And the Johannine _gennēthēnai ek tou theou_ [being born of God] has little in common with what is called _anagennēthēnai, renasci, metagennēthēnai_ [being born again], in the Mysteries. There is a completely different view of both the attitude and possession of piety. Even the link with baptism in Jn. 3:5-8 is no argument on the Mysteries."

### Summary of _TDNT_

Much of the discussion here involves tangents that do not affect us, since we did not claim that the NT use of _gennaō_ had anything to do with pagan mystery religions. But somebody in the history-of-religions school of the 19th century once had that idea, and this article had to deal with it. The discussion of Psalm 2:7 dealt with the begettal of Jesus Christ, which was important in a historical controversy.

The Jewish background is much more relevant, since it includes the concept of proselytes becoming reborn and disciples being considered as figuratively begotten by their teachers. Those thoughts are similar, and possibly meaningful to John 3. It was interesting that all the Johannine uses of _gennaō_ specify a source. This further reinforces the conclusion that _anōthen_ is a source, "from above," not a sequence, merely "again."

Since this is a theological dictionary, the discussion focused on theological implications and therefore on passages in which _gennaō_ is used in a figurative way. It didn't clearly address the question of whether conception is ever included in the literal meaning of the word.

The one-volume abridgment of _TDNT,_ sometimes called the "little Kittel," is easier to read. Everything is transliterated, redundant phrases are removed, and the lengthy comments on the mystery religions are gone. The article about _gennaō_ is only 1.2 pages long, and it still doesn't address the particular question we have.

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## New International  
Dictionary of New Testament Theology

Even before _TDNT_ had been completed, some scholars were critical of its excessive length, age and some lexical errors. In 1967-71, a new three-volume set was published: _Theologisches Begriffslexikon zum Neuen Testament,_ edited by Lothar Coenen, Erich Beyreuther and Hans Bietenhard. This work was translated, edited and revised by Colin Brown as _New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology,_ published by Zondervan in 1975-78, 1986.

_NIDNTT_ transliterates Greek and Hebrew. I have deleted cross-references to other articles in this set. Here's the entry on _gennaō,_ by Karl Heinrich Ringwald, which begins by discussing several words of related meaning:

Birth, Beget, Bear, Become, Miscarriage, Regeneration, Well-born

"These words all have to do with birth, both literally and metaphorically. _tiktō_ means to bring forth or bear. The more frequently used _gennaō_ means both to bear and to beget. It is used of the birth of Jesus and, with the prefix _ana-_ in John, of the renewal of man in rebirth by the Holy Spirit. _palingenesia_ means regeneration both of an individual and of the world order. _ginomai_ originally meant to be born, but in the New Testament this meaning has faded and the verb is used with the general meaning of become, take place, be. The nouns _genea_ (race, generation) and _genesis_ (birth, origin, genealogy) are derived from it. _ektrōma_ means miscarriage." Then the article discusses _gennaō:_

" _gennaō,_ beget, become the father of, bear; _anagennaō,_ cause to be born again, bear again.

### Classical

" _gennaō_ is a causal form of _ginomai_ (Liddell-Scott, [page] 344). Cf. the back-formation _genna,_ origin, race, birth. It belongs to the same root _gen-_ which appears in various Latin words like _genus_ (race), Old High German _Kind_ (child) and various derivatives via Lat. such as pregnant, malignant (cf. Lat. ( _g_ ) _nascor,_ to be born; _natus,_ born, birth; _natura,_ birth, nature; _naevus,_ birth mark, mole).

"Like _tiktō_ and _teknoō, gennaō_ is used of begetting by the father and bearing by the mother as in the Hebrew equivalents, the LXX and the NT. This is certainly the case in later Greek literature (Apollodorus, Lucian, Plutarch). In the secular world of NT times _gennaō_ has the meaning of _come into being_ as well as _produce_ in a metaphorical or vague general sense (cf. 2 Tim. 2:23 of quarrels, Gal. 4:24 of the covenants).

"The compound _anagennaō_ has the meaning of cause to be born again. The frequently assumed derivation of the expression from the mystery religions is improbable, for the verb has so far only been traced to a single late passage in which Sallustius (4th cent. a.d.) speaks of initiates as _hōsper anagennōmenōn_ (as born again, _Concerning the Gods and the Universe,_ 4; cf. G. Wagner, _Pauline Baptism and the Pagan Mysteries,_ 1967, 235). In the Hellenistic period the idea of the _renatus_ (Lat. one born again) occurs in the cults of Mithras and Isis (cf. F. Büchsel, _TDNT_ I 673, cf. Apuleius, _Metamorphoses,_ II, 21). G. Wagner observes: 'The assertion that Paul is dependent on the mystery religions because he shares the idea of rebirth with them is misleading, not only because this idea is not at all frequent in the mystery religions and never occurs in the first century a.d., but also because Paul never uses the term' (op. cit., 270).

### Old Testament

"In the LXX OT _gennaō_ is used chiefly for Heb. _yala_ _d_ (bear, bring forth mostly in hiphil). Occasionally it translates _harâh_ (conceive, become pregnant). In addition to the literal usages, there is the figurative in Job 38:28: 'Has the rain a father, or who has begotten (Heb. _hôlî_ _d_ _;_ Gk. _ho tetokōs_ ) the drops of dew?'1

"1. The words father and son are sometimes used in an address as a sign of trust or affection (1 Sam. 3:16; 24:12; 2 Ki. 2:12). Unlike the NT (see below, NT, 2), _gennaō_ is never used in such contexts. Neither is it used in those passages which speak of Israel as God's firstborn (Exod. 4:22, 23:4), or God as the father and the Israelites as his sons. The absence of this verb in this connection indicates a marked contrast between Israel and the surrounding culture. The OT sharply dissociates itself from the procreation myths. Israel is Yahweh's people not by natural procreation but by election.

"2. Two passages in the Psalms speak of the begetting of the king-messiah by God (Heb. _yala_ _d_ _,_ Gk. _gennaō_ ). 'I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, "You are my son, today I have begotten you" ' (Ps. 2:7). 'Before [the creation of] the morning star I begat thee' (Ps. 110:3 LXX; but cf. the Heb. MT 'From the womb of the dawn the dew of thy youth comes to thee').

"The idea that the king as the earthly representative of the deity was the 'son of God' was current in the ancient East. Scholars have seen remarkable parallels in Egypt and Mesopotamia which lead them to think that Israel has clearly drawn on them. G. von Rad sees the rite in 2 Sam. 7 and the Psalms as almost copies of the rites of the Egyptian court which had long been conventionalized ( _Old Testament Theology,_ [volume] I, 1962, [page] 40). But Israel had refashioned the idea in the light of its belief in Yahweh. The Egyptians had the mythological idea that Pharaoh was the physical son of the God Amun. The OT idea comes nearer to the Mesopotamian ritual in which the king who has been installed by the gods is a chosen servant (op. cit., 320). But the sonship of the Israelite king rests neither upon physical begetting nor upon the thought that through the act of enthronement the king somehow physically entered the sphere of the divine. M. Noth comments: 'Possibly as a deliberate reaction to this ancient oriental conception, the formula of adoption is used to describe the relationship; the God-King relationship has no foundation in Being and the King is not divine, but he is declared to be a son when he ascends the throne — by a manifestation of the divine will. Probably when the heirs of David acceded to power the formula of adoption was solemnly pronounced (Ps. ii, 7, and perhaps also Ps. cx, 3). This means that the relationship was confirmed, on a historical basis, at each new accession' ( _The History of Israel,_ 1958, 223). The word 'today' (Ps. 2:7) also points to sonship by adoption. (See further A. A. Anderson, _The Book of Psalms,_ I, 1972, 67 ff.; K. A. Kitchen, _Ancient Orient and the Old Testament,_ 1966, 106-11; G. von Rad 'The Royal Ritual in Judah' in _The Problem of the Hexateuch and Other Essays,_ 1966, 225 ff.) The connection of the Psalm passages with the prophecy of Nathan (2 Sam. 7) is extensive. They have their basis in the declaration 'which the prophet Nathan made to David and his dynasty for all time' (H.-J. Kraus, _Die Psalmen,_ 1960, I, 20 f.).

"The line of christological interpretation in the NT starts here (cf. Matt. 22:43 f.; Mk. 12:36 f.; Lk. 20:42 f.; Acts 4:25; 13:33; 1 Cor. 15:25; Heb. 1:5, 13; Rev. 2:27). The absence of physical procreation is shown by the reference to the 'seed of David' (Heb. _zera'_ ) which is used in the singular collectively of David's posterity. The tension between human parentage and the role of God which appears in accounts of Jesus' birth and descent (Matt. 1:16; cf. vv. 1, 6, 20; Lk. 1:33b, 35b; cf. 3:23-38) is already present in the OT view of kingship. The son-passages of Isa. 7 and 9 do not use _gennaō._ Apart from an apocryphal passage (Sirach prologue 28 variant reading), _anagennaō_ does not occur in the LXX.

"3. In Palestinian Judaism the thought of God begetting occurs only in connection with messianic expectation. It is remarkable that in all the voluminous rabbinic literature there is only one reference which applies Ps. 2:7 to the Messiah (Sukkah 52a). This silence is apparently due to the rabbis' opposition to the Christian church which had applied Ps. 2 to Jesus' sonship. However, the Dead Sea Scrolls relate Nathan's prophecy (especially 2 Sam. 7:14a) to the 'seed of David' (4Qflor. [=4Q174, Florilegium, A Midrash on the Last Days] 1:10ff. and perhaps 1QSa. [The Messianic Rule] 2:11). But there is no thought of the Messiah as God's son in a physical sense in the ancient synagogue, nor is there of pre-existence (SB [ _Kommentar zum Neuen Testament aus Talmud und Midrasch,_ by H.L. Strack and P. Billerbeck] IV, 1 452-65). The thought of Ps. 2:7 is taken up in Psalms of Solomon 17:23. But significantly the begetting of the Messiah is not.

"4. In Hellenistic Judaism Philo used _gennaō_ of God in describing his work as creator ( _Allegories of the Law_ 3, 219). The logos, animals and plants are begotten by God ( _On the Confusion of the Languages_ 63; _On the Change of Names_ 63; cf. _On the Migration of Abraham_ 35). But Philo did not apply the idea to the relation of God to the devout. Philo's use of the word contrasts with the Nicene Creed in the 4th century which used _gennaō_ of the Father's begetting the Son but _ktizō_ (create) of the world.

" 'In the Mysteries ideas and processes from sex life play an important part.... On the other hand, there seems to be no reference to the birth of an initiate through a goddess or to his begetting by a god. In pre-Christian times, at least, the real thought is that of adoption' (F. Büchsel, _TDNT_ I 669).

" _anagennaō_ does not occur in Philo. But in Josephus it is quite common and is, e.g., applied to fruit.2 The noun _anagennēsis_ (new birth) is used by Philo to express the Stoic doctrine of world renewal after the universal conflagration ( _ekpyrōsis,_ cf. _On the Eternity of the World_ 8). He usually calls this _palingenesia_ (rebirth, regeneration cf. _On the Eternity of the World_ 9). _anagennēsis_ was not necessarily a Stoic term (F. Büchsel _TDNT_ I 673). _anagennaō_ was a quite common verb in NT times and was not confined to the mystery cults.

### New Testament

" _gennaō_ occurs 97 times in the NT, including 45 times in Matt. and 28 times in the Johannine literature. However, there is no particular emphasis in its use in the NT. Other terms that are used are _tiktō_ (bring forth, bear), _apokyeō_ (give birth, bear, in the NT [used] only figuratively, Jas. 1:15, 18), _ōdinō_ (suffer birth pangs, Gal. 4:19; Rev. 12:2), cf. also _palingenesia,_ regeneration; _anakainōsis,_ renewal. The actual meaning of _gennaō_ must be determined by the context in both its active and passive forms, as it is used both of the father and the mother as in classical Greek (cf. Matt. 1:3, 5 f.; 2:1, 4; 19:12, Lk. 1:13; Jn. 9:34; 16:21, Gal. 4:23). It is, however, used in a figurative or extended sense as follows:

"1. Various passages apply the term to God himself who is said to have begotten someone.

"(a) Ps. 2:7 is quoted by Acts 13:33 and Heb. 1:5; 5:5. Significantly the passages in Heb. relate it to Ps. 110 and 2 Sam. 7:14. Jesus Christ is seen as the true Son and God's King. He has fulfilled what the Israelite kings left unfulfilled. For as the crucified and risen One, he has assumed the office of the Lord's anointed as the truly anointed One. Strikingly, the NT does not apply Ps. 2:7 to the birth narratives of Jesus. Wherever Ps. 2 is quoted in the NT, a physical, sexual begetting is utterly precluded. Acts 13:33 applies the words 'this day have I begotten thee' to the resurrection of Jesus. On the other hand, the variant reading in the Western Text of Lk. 3:22 (Codex Bezae, the Old Latin versions, Justin and Origen) quotes the words of Ps. 2:7 and applies them to Jesus at his baptism. It is not easy to determine the precise significance of 'today' in Heb. 1:5 and 5:5. H. Strathmann thinks that it refers to the baptism of Jesus and that the second half of Ps. 2:7 was quoted in Heb. simply because it formed part of the text (J. Jeremias and H. Strathmann, _Die Briefe an Timotheus und Titus; Der Brief an die Hebräer,_ Das Neue Testament Deutsch 9, 1963, 78 f.). E. Käsemann identifies it with the confirmation of sonship through a heavenly proclamation after the exaltation ( _Das Wandernde Gottesvolk,_ 58 ff.). However the word 'today' may be understood, it is clear that the begetting by God goes beyond the OT understanding of adoption. The passages are concerned with the declaration and proclamation of what the Son already is. Jesus' sonship denotes the mystery of the incarnation of God. Jesus is the last Adam ( _ho eschatos Adam,_ 1 Cor. 15:45). 'The idea that this generation must be thought of either in the sense of adoption or in that of the Virgin Birth rests on a misconception of the early Christian belief in Christ and understanding of Scripture, and especially of the basic significance of the resurrection of Jesus and the resultant beginning of the new _aiōn,_ in short of the eschatological impulse in early Christian thinking' (F. Büchsel, _TDNT_ I 670).

"(b) The Johannine writings use the expression _gennēthēnai ek_ (to be begotten of) to describe the origin of the believer. The phrase may be compared with ( _ex_ ) _erchesthai ek_ (come [forth] from, cf. Jn. 8:42 where Jesus is speaking of himself) and _einai ek_ (be from, cf. Acts 5:39 of events, and 1 Jn. 3:10 of men). The believer knows that his true existence does not belong to this world; his beginning and end are in God through Jesus Christ. In the dialogue with Nicodemus the references to being born ( _gennēthēnai_ ) mean that man must receive a new origin. He must exchange his old nature for a new and be born again (Jn. 3:3, 5, 6, 7, 8; cf. R. Bultmann, _The Gospel of John,_ 1971, ad loc.). The idea of being 'born again' expresses the same essential idea as being born 'of God' ( _ek tou theou_ , 1 Jn. 3:9; cf. 2:29; 4:7) and being born 'from above' ( _anōthen_ , Jn. 3:7; cf. 8:23). John describes this as an act of God: 'But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God' (Jn. 1:12 f.). To the human mind such rebirth is necessarily absurd (Jn. 3:4), for it is beyond man's capacity. But John attributes this to the work of the Spirit (3:5-8). Only the believer who has been born of the Spirit comprehends his origin and is thus able to see the Kingdom of God (3:5; cf. Matt. 19:28).

"A number of scholars are of the opinion that the expression _anōthen gennēthēnai_ (to be born from above) is derived from gnosticism. _anōthen_ (from above) is not only applied to rebirth (Jn. 3:3, 7) but to the power given to Pilate from above (Jn. 19:11). Jesus compared himself who is from above ( _anō_ ) with his adversaries who are from below ( _katō_ ) (Jn. 8:23). But _anōthen_ can also mean 'again.' This birth is also described as being of water ( _ex hydatos_ ) and the Spirit (Jn. 3:5). But in Jn. 1 and 1 Jn. there is no reference to water or baptism. Both Jn. and Paul appear to regard baptism as something secondary and less important (Jn. 4:2; 1 Cor. 1:14-17). The questions have not received sufficient attention whether water in Jn. 3:5 does not refer to creation (Gen. 1:2), and whether washing does not follow birth (as in human birth). It is only with Justin and Irenaeus in the 2nd century that rebirth became a synonym for baptism. ([Ed.] On the question of the possibility of a gnostic background to the NT see E. Yamauchi, _Pre-Christian Gnosticism,_ 1973.)

"2. Paul uses _gennaō_ in 1 Cor. 4:15 and Phlm. 10 of his relationship with his converts. He could even speak of being in labour ( _ōdinō_ ) or suffering birth pangs until Christ is formed in them (Gal. 4:19). The same thoughts lie behind those passages which speak of his 'son' in the faith (1 Cor. 4:17; 1 Tim. 1:2; 2 Tim. 2:1; cf. 1 Pet. 5:13).

"Rabbinic Judaism spoke in a similar way of winning proselytes. The command to be fruitful (Gen. 1:28; 9:7) was sometimes taken to mean that the Israelite had to win others to his faith. The idea of new birth through conversion to Judaism was common among the rabbis (SB III 339 f. on 1 Cor. 4:14 f.). 'When a man teaches the son of another the Torah, the Scriptures treat him as if he had begotten him' (Sanhedrin 19b, cf. 99b). 'A proselyte who has been converted is like a child who has just been born' (Yebamoth 22a). K. H. Rengstorf sees in he rabbinic attitude a sense of standing beside God as a creator _ex nihilo_ ( _TDNT_ I 666). Paul's language in the passages discussed seems to have taken over and adopted Jewish ideas.

"3. The verb _anagennaō_ occurs only in 1 Pet. 1:3 and 23 in the form of a participle where it means 'born anew.' Its meaning is similar to _gennēthēnai_ in Jn. 3:3 f. (see above). 'The NT did not "take over" the concepts of rebirth and begetting from the mystery religions, as the old history of religions school assumed; it developed it out of its own fundamental concerns and under the stimulus of the hellenistic and Jewish world around it. The oldest NT passage (1 Pet. 1:3, 23) stands in close connection with the tradition of the OT and Judaism which saw the holy people of God as strangers (1 Pet. 1:1-2:10)' (L. Goppelt, _Die Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart_ VI 1697). Through the gospel that has been preached, the word of the living God (1:23), believers have been born anew, i.e. they have been called by God into new life. This new life is summed up as _elpis zōsa_ (living hope, 1:3) and _agapē_ (love, 1:22). New birth is not in the NT something that a man can take up and dispose of as he pleases. It is only possible by God's 'great mercy' (1:5) and power (1:5). 'In the resurrection of Jesus God has had mercy on us in an omnipotent, regal and free way, so that he removed once and for all in Jesus Christ the whole reality of death. He has crossed out and overthrown our claim that our life is real life. He has brought another new, abiding and unspotted life so near to our life that we can grasp the new and let go of the old' (H.-J. Iwand, _Predigt-Meditationen,_ 344). The believer possesses his life in hope. On the one hand, his existence stands under the indicative: 'we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead' (1:3). On the other hand, he stands under the imperative: 'set your hope fully upon the grace that is coming to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ' (1:13). He does this as one born anew realizing moment by moment the separation from the old aeon that has been overcome. The decisive factor which makes rebirth possible is God's act in the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

### Summary of _NIDNTT_

In LXX, it is used to translate _harâh,_ which means conceive or become pregnant.

Psalm 2:7, since it was used for Israelite kings upon their coronation, is a figurative use. The kings were adopted sons of God, not literally begotten by him. When Psalm 2:7 is applied to Jesus, but not in the pregnancy/birth narratives, where it might have had a literal meaning. Instead, it is used only figuratively, declaring what Jesus already was.

Another figurative use is in Philo: Animals and plants are begotten by God. Paul used _gennaō_ figuratively of his converts. Jews would have been familiar with a figurative use, and it is not difficult to see how similar meanings may be used in John 3.

John 3:3, we are told, means that "man must receive a new origin." We are reminded of the context of John 1:12, which says that believers "were born...of God. " _Anagennaō_ means "born anew" — a phrase that, to my ears, stresses the new start better than "born again" does.

1 As far as I can tell, _gennaō_ is used only once in the LXX to translate _hârâh_ , which means conceive, become pregnant (1 Chronicles 4:17). So _NIDNTT_ seems in error when it says "occasionally." Also, Job 38:28 does not use _gennaō,_ but _tetokōs._ These two sentences might belong in the section about _tiktō,_ but not here.

2 I could not imagine how fruit could be born again, so I looked up _anagennaō_ in Rengstorf's concordance to Josephus. He uses the word only once — Josephus, discussing the region of Sodom and the Dead Sea, says that ashes are reproduced [ _anagennaō_ ] in fruits that look edible but disintegrate when touched ( _Wars_ 4, 484). So this _NIDNTT_ article, at least in English translation, is wrong both in the frequency of _anagennaō_ in Josephus and in implying that the fruits were reproduced.

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back to table of contents

## Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament

A recent word-study reference is the three-volume _Exegetisches Wōrterbuch zum Neuen Testament,_ edited by Horst Balz and Gerhard Schneider, published in 1978-1981, English translation _Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament,_ published by Eerdmans, 1990-1993.

_All_ NT words, not just those of theological significance, are included. Hebrew is transliterated; Greek is not, but both are used only rarely. Following is the article by Armin Kretzer, translated by James W. Thompson. The article begins with a brief definition, outline of the word study, and relevant literature.

" _gennaō_ beget; give birth, bring forth

"1. Occurrences in the NT — 2. _Gennaō_ in secular Greek and in Judaism — 3. NT uses of _gennaō._

" _Literature:_ BAGD s.v. [ _sub verbo,_ under the word (i.e., _gennaō_ )] — F. Büchsel and K.H. Rengstorf, _TDNT_ I, 665-75. — J. Kühlewein, _Theologisches Handwōrterbuch zum Alten Testament_ I, 732-36. — R. Schnackenburg, _Die Johahannesbriefe_ (Herders theologischen Kommentar zum Neuen Testament [English translation _The Johannine Epistles_ ]) 175-83. — A. Vōgtle, _Messias und Gottessohn. Herkunft und Sinn der mattäischen Geburtsund Kindheitsgeschichte_ (1971). — For further bibliography see _Theologisches Wōrterbuch zum Neuen Testament_ X, 1023.

"1. _Gennaō_ appears 97 times in the NT (Morgenthaler, _Statistik_ 84), of which 40 occurrences are in Matt 1:2-16; 5 additional occurrences are elsewhere in Matthew, 18 in John, 10 in 1 John, 7 in Acts, 4 in Luke, 6 in the authentic Pauline letters, and 4 in Hebrews. Additional occurrences are in Mark 14:21; 2 Tim 2:23; 2 Pet 2:12.

"2. In secular Greek _gennaō_ is used of the father's role in begetting (Sophocles, Euripides) and less frequently is used of the mother's role, in the place of _tiktō_ (Plutarch). Here it has the general meaning of _beget, bring forth_ (Plato, Polybius). In the LXX _gennaō_ is frequently the translation of the Hebrew root _yld,_ 'give birth, beget' and appears rarely for the father-son relationship of Yahweh to his people (Deut 32:18; Isa 1:2; metaphorically in Ezek 16:20; 23:37) and in two important passages for the adoption of the messiah-king by Yahweh in the accession to the throne: Pss 2:7; 109:3. In Prov 8:25 wisdom is mentioned as the firstborn of the creative works of God. In connection with the conversion of a Gentile to Judaism, the rabbis speak of a procreation in the sense of a new being: a convert is like a newborn child (Rengstorf 666f.). According to Philo the entire creative work of God is an act of procreation: He begets the logos, the animals, and the plants; excluded are the children of God. The Qumran community knows (following 2 Sam 7:14) the idea of the begetting of the messiah from the family tree of David (4QFlor 1:10-13; cf. 1QSa 2:11-12).

"3. In connection with the OT and Judaism, one may notice the usage of Ps 2:7 in the NT with messianic meaning. Thus in Acts 13:33 the accented 'today' refers to the immortal life in the resurrection (cf. also Heb 1:5; 5:5, where the time reference remains open). In Luke 1:35, the begetting of the Son of God by the Spirit is, on the basis of this interpretation of Ps 2:7, regarded as the beginning of the new aeon. 'Generation from God in a very real sense was here perceived by the community' (Büchsel 670). Paul may be dependent on rabbinic conceptions when he speaks in 1 Cor 4:15 and Phlm 10 of a 'spiritual begetting' as an expression of his pastoral engagement and the resulting deep connection with the community (or Onesimus). The passages Rom 9:11; Gal 4:23, 24, 29 have no less weight. All of these passages stand in the salvation-theological context of the interplay of the two Testaments.

"The Matthean genealogy expresses the idea of fulfillment (Matt 1:2-16). It is formed according to OT models (cf. Gen 5:3-32; 1 Chr 2:10-22, 36-49) and demonstrates the divinely intended incorporation of Jesus, who was miraculously begetted by the Holy Spirit, into the succession of Abraham and David (Vōgtle). The concept of begetting receives further development and a new depth in the Johannine literature, where the birth originates with God (1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7) and with the Spirit (John 3:5, 6, 8), or 'from above' (3:3, 7). This relationship, which is mysterious and yet determines reality, gives individuals a beginning (baptism) and a goal for their life in a relationship with God, namely, as God's child (1 John 3:1). 'To be a "child of God" is a comprehensive description of the Christian person in the inseparable unity of one's supernatural nature; it is a single expression for the exaltation and ethical perfection that together produce the model of the Christian person' (Schnackenburg 178).

"In summary, _gennaō_ encompasses both a father's begetting and a mother's giving birth. It receives special weight in view of Jesus' becoming a man (Luke), but it also is used of the new creation of mankind through the power of the Spirit of God (John)."

## Septuagint

To see some of the lexical background to _gennaō,_ we can study how it is used in the Septuagint, Philo and Josephus. Concordances exist for all three, but for our purposes the LXX is sufficient. The best concordance is _Concordance to the Septuagint and the Other Greek Versions of the Old Testament (Including the Apocryphal Books)_ by Edwin Hatch and Henry A. Redpath. The two volumes, originally published in 1897, are published by Baker.

Hatch-Redpath first lists the corresponding Hebrew words (without transliteration) and assigns each a number, with an additional letter to distinguish some verbal forms from others. All occurrences of _gennaō_ are listed, and a few words of context (Greek letters only) is given for each. The corresponding Hebrew number, if any, is also given. Textual variants are noted. In some verses of some texts, for example, a form of _tiktō_ is used instead of _gennaō._ I have omitted most of these notes.

Although Hatch-Redpath lists verses in the order they come in the text, I have chosen to group them by the corresponding Hebrew word, starting with the most common. I quote, with minor alterations, a small portion of context from Lancelot C.L. Brenton's translation, _The Septuagint With Apocrypha: Greek and English._ This work, originally published in 1851, is reprinted by Hendrickson.

_Gennaō_ is used about 270 times in the LXX. Of those occurrences, about 230 correspond to the Hebrew word _yâladh,_ which means to become the father of, to give birth, or (passive) to be born. Most of these occurrences are in genealogical lists. To minimize monotony, I've put some lists in separate boxes. I have retained Brenton's spelling of the names even though we know them better by the Hebrew-based spellings.

yâladh

Gen 4:18 to Enoch **was born** Gaidad; and Gaidad **begot** Maleleel; and Maleleel **begot** Mathusala; and Mathusala **begot** Lamech.

Gen 5:3 Adam... **begot** a son after his own form

Gen 5:4 He lived after his **begetting** Seth...and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:6 Seth lived 205 years, and **begot** Enos.

Gen 5:7 Seth lived after his **begetting** Enos and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:9 Enos lived 190 years, and **begot** Cainan.

Gen 5:10 Enos lived after his **begetting** Cainan and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:12 Cainan... **begot** Maleleel.

Gen 5:13 Cainan lived after his **begetting** Maleleel and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:15 Maleleel... **begot** Jared.

Gen 5:16 Maleleel lived after his **begetting** Jared and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:18 Jared lived 162 years, and **begot** Enoch.

Gen 5:19 Jared lived after his **begetting** Enoch and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:21 Enoch... **begot** Mathusala.

Gen 5:22 after his **begetting** Mathusala, 200 years, and he **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:25 Mathusala... **begot** Lamech.

Gen 5:26 he lived after his **begetting** Lamech 802 years, and **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 5:28 Lamech lived 188 years, and **begot** a son.

Gen 5:30 Lamech lived after his **begetting** Noe 565 years, and **begot** sons and daughters.

Gen 6:1 Noe... **begot** three sons.

Gen 6:2 and daughters **were born** to [the men]

Gen 6:5 daughters of men... **bore** children

Gen 6:11 Noe **begot** three sons.

Gen 10:1 sons **were born** to them after the flood.

Gen 10:8 Chus **begot** Nebrod...a giant.

Gen 10:13 Mesrain **begot** the Ludiim...

Gen 10:15 Chanaan **begot** Sidon his first-born.

Gen 10:21 to Sem himself also were children **born.**

Gen 10:24 Arphaxad **begot** Cainan, and Cainan **begot** Sala. [no Hebrew word] And Sala **begot** Heber.

Gen 10:25 To Heber **were born** two sons.

Gen 10:26 Jektan **begot** Elmodad and Saleth.

From Shem to Abram

Gen 11:10 Sem was 100...he **begot** Arphaxad.

Gen 11:11 after Sem **had begotten** Arphaxad,...500 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:12 Arphaxad lived 135 years, and **begot** Cainan. [no corresponding Hebrew word; Cainan is not in the Hebrew text]

Gen 11:13 after Arphaxad **had begotten** Cainan...400 years, and **begot** sons and daughters... Cainan lived 130 years and **begot** Sala; Cainan lived after he **had begotten** Sala, 330 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:14 Sala lived 130 years, and **begot** Heber.

Gen 11:15 Sala lived after he **had begotten** Heber, 330 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:16 Heber lived 134 years, and **begot** Phaleg.

Gen 11:17 after Heber **had begotten** Phaleg,... 270 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:18 Phaleg lived 135 years, and **begot** Ragau.

Gen 11:19 after Phaleg **had begotten** Ragau,...209 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:20 Ragau...132 years, and **begot** Seruch.

Gen 11:21 after Ragau **had begotten** Seruch,...207 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:22 Seruch...130 years, and **begot** Nachor.

Gen 11:23 after Seruch **had begotten** Nachor,...200 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:24 Nachor...179 years, and **begot** Tharrha.

Gen 11:25 after Nachor **had begotten** Tharrha,...125 years, and **begot** sons and daughters

Gen 11:26 Tharrha...70 years, and **begot** Abram

Gen 11:27 Tharrha **begot** Abram and...Arrhan; and Arrhan **begot** Lot.

Gen 17:20 Twelve nations shall [Ismail] **beget**.

Gen 22:23 eight sons Melcha **bore** to Nachor.

Gen 25:3 Jezan **begot** Saba and Dedan.

Gen 25:20 Abraam **begot** Isaac.

Gen 25:26 Isaac was 60 when Rebecca **bore** them.

Gen 46:20 Machir **begot** Galaad.

Gen 46:21 Gera **begot** Arad.

Gen 46:22 sons of Rachel, which she **bore** to Jacob.

Gen 48:6 children which thou **shalt beget** hereafter

Ex 6:20 She **bore** to him both Aaron and Moses

Nm 26:29 Machir **begot** Galaad. [v. 33 in LXX]

Nm 26:58 Caath **begot** Amran.

Dt 4:25 When thou **shalt have begotten** sons, and...sons' sons

Dt 23:8 If sons **be born** to them, in the third generation they

Dt 28:41 Thou **shalt beget** sons and daughters

Dt 32:18 Thou hast forgotten God that **begot** thee

Jud 11:1 a harlot, who **bore** Jephthae to Galaad.

Ruth 4:13 the Lord gave her conception, and she **bore** a son.

Ruth 4:18 Phares **begot** Esrom:

Ruth 4:19 Esrom **begot** Aram; and Aram **begot** Aminadab.

Ruth 4:20 Aminadab **begot** Naasson; and Naasson **begot** Salmon.

Ruth 4:21 Salmon **begot** Booz; and Booz **begot** Obed.

Ruth 4:22 Obed **begot** Jessæ; and Jessæ **begot** David.

Various Nations

1Ch 1:10 Chus **begot** Nebrod...a mighty hunter

1Ch 1:11 Mizraim **begat** the Ludim, and...

1Ch 1:13 Canaan **begat** Zidon his firstborn

1Ch 1:18 Arphaxad **begat** Cainan and Cainan **begat** Salah. and Salah **begat** Eber.

1Ch 1:19 to Eber **have been born** two sons

1Ch 1:20 Joktan **begat** Almodad. [Vv. 11-20 are in some LXX texts, but not in Brenton's. These verses are quoted from _Young's Literal Translation._ Cainan (v. 18) is not in the Hebrew text, but it is in some LXX texts as well as in Luke 3:36.]

1Ch 1:34 Abraam **begot** Isaac.

Descendants of Three Sons of Hezron

1Ch 2:10 Aram **begot** Aminadab, and Aminadab **begot** Naasson

1Ch 2:11 And Naasson **begot** Salmon, and Salmon **begot** Booz.

1Ch 2:12 Booz **begot** Obed and Obed **begot** Jessæ.

1Ch 2:13 Jessæ **begot** his first-born Eliab

1Ch 2:17 Abigaia **bore** Amessab

1Ch 2:18 Chaleb **begot** Gazuba

1Ch 2:20 Or **begot** Uri, and Uri **begot** Beseleel

1Ch 2:22 Seruch **begot** Jair

1Ch 2:36 Ethi **begot** Nathan, and Nathan **begot** Zabed.

1Ch 2:37 Zabed **begot** Aphamel, and Aphamel **begot** Obed.

1Ch 2:38 Obed **begot** Jeu, and Jeu **begot** Azarias

1Ch 2:39 Azarias **begot** Chelles, and Chelles **begot** Eleasa.

1Ch 2:40 Eleasa **begot** Sosomai, and Sosomai **begot** Salum.

1Ch 2:41 Salum **begot** Jechemias and Jechemias **begot** Elisama, and Elisama **begot** Ismael.

1Ch 2:44 Samaa **begot** Raem the father of Jeclan: and Jeclan **begot** Samai.

1Ch 2:46 the concubine of Chaleb **bore** Aram. Aram **begot** Gezue. [some texts omit]

1Ch 2:48 Chaleb's concubine Mocha **bore** Saber.

1Ch 2:49 She **bore** Sagae, father of Madmena.

Jewish Clans

1Ch 4:2 Subal **begot** Jeth; and Jeth **begot** Achimai, and Laad...

1Ch 4:8 Coe **begot** Enob, and Sabatha...

1Ch 4:11 Chaleb... **begot** Machir.

1Ch 4:12 He **begot** Bathraias, and Besseë...

1Ch 4:14 Manathi **begot** Gophora; and Saraia **begot** Jobab.

Genealogy of Priests

1Ch 6:4 Eleazar **begot** Phinees, Phinees **begot** Abisu.

1Ch 6:5 Abisu **begot** Bokki, and Bokki **begot** Ozi;

1Ch 6:6 Ozi **begot** Zaraia, Zaraia **begot** Mariel;

1Ch 6:7 and Mariel **begot** Amaria, and Amaria **begot** Achitob;

1Ch 6:8 and Achitob **begot** Sadoc, and Sadoc **begot** Achimaas;

1Ch 6:9 and Achimaas **begot** Azarias, and Azarias **begot** Joanan;

1Ch 6:10 and Joanan **begot** Azarias.

1Ch 6:11 And Azarias **begot** Amaria, and Amaria **begot** Achitob,

1Ch 6:12 and Achitob **begot** Sadoc, and Sadoc **begot** Salom;

1Ch 6:13 and Salom **begot** Chelcias, and Chelcias **begot** Azarias;

1Ch 6:14 and Azarias **begot** Saraias, and Saraias **begot** Josadac.

Saul and Other Benjaminites

1Ch 8:1 Benjamin **begot** Bale his first-born...

1Ch 8:7 and he **begot** Aza and Jachicho.

1Ch 8:8 Saarin **begot** children in...Moab.

1Ch 8:9 He **begot** of his wife Ada, Jolab and...

1Ch 8:11 Of Osin he **begot** Abitol and Alphaad.

1Ch 8:32 Makeloth **begot** Samaa. = 9:38

1Ch 8:33 Ner **begot** Kis, = 9:39 and Kis **begot** Saul, = 9:39 and Saul **begot** Jonathan... = 9:39

1Ch 8:34 Meribaal **begot** Micha. = 9:40

1Ch 8:36 Achaz **begot** Jada, and = 9:42 Jada **begot** Salæmath... = 9:42 and Zambri **begot** Mæsa; = 9:42

1Ch 8:37 and Mæsa **begot** Baana. = 9:43

4K 20:18 sons...which thou **shalt beget** [4 Kings is what we usually call 2 Kings.]

1Ch 2:3 Three **were born** to him of her

1Ch 3:4 Six **were born** to him in Chebron.

1Ch 7:32 Chaber **begot** Japhlet and Samer...

2Ch 11:21 Roboam... **begot** 28 sons, 60 daughters.

2Ch 13:21 Abia... **begot** 22 sons and 16 daughters.

2Ch 24:3 two wives... **bore** sons and daughters.

Ezr 10:3 put away the wives, and their **offspring*** [*Vaticanus has a different Greek word]

Neh 12:10 Jesus **begot** Joakim, and Joakim **begot** Eliasib, Neh 12:11 Jodæ **begot** Jonathan, and Jonathan **begot** Jadu.

Job 3:3 Let the day perish in which I **was born**

Job 5:7 Man **is born** to labor.

Job 15:7 Art thou the first man that **was born**?

Job 38:21 thou **wert born** at that time

Ps 2:7 today I **have begotten** thee

Ps 86:4 the Ethiopians: these **were born** there.

Pro 17:17 on this account [friends] **are born**.

Pro 23:22 Hearken to thy father which **begot** thee.

Ecc 5:13 He **begets** a son, and there is nothing

Ecc 6:3 If a man **beget** a hundred children

Hos 5:7 strange children **have been born** to them

Hos 9:16 even if they **beget** children, I will kill

Zac 13:3 father & mother who **gave birth** to him

Isa 9:6 A child **is born** to us, a son given

Isa 39:7 children whom thou **shalt beget**

Isa 45:10 say to father, What **wilt thou beget**?

Isa 49:21 Who **has begotten** these for me?

Isa 66:9 I made the **bearing** and barren woman

Jer 2:27 to a stone, Thou **hast begotten** me

Jer 16:3 the fathers that **have begotten** them

Eze 16:20 sons and daughters whom thou **borest**

Eze 18:10 if he **beget** a mischievous son

Eze 18:14 if he **beget** a son

Eze 23:37 children which they **bore** to me

Eze 31:6 the wild beasts of the field **bred**

Eze 47:22 strangers who **have begotten** sons

**Words related to** _yâladh_

_môledheth,_ kindred, relatives

Gen 11:28 died in the land in which he **was born.**

Gen 24:4 go to my country, where I **was born.**

Gen 24:7 out of the land whence I **sprang.**

Lv 18:9 thy sister... **born** at home or abroad

_yaldhûth,_ youth, childhood

Ps 109:3 I **have begotten** thee from the womb

_yillôdh,_ born

2K 5:14 the names of those that **were born** to him in Jerusalem [In the LXX, 2 Kings is what we usually call 2 Samuel.]

Jer 16:3 the daughters **born** in this place

_hayâh,_ **be, become, exist, happen**

Ex 19:16 as the morning **drew nigh*** [*The Vaticanus has a different Greek word]

Nu 4:48 they that were numbered were 8,580.*

Jos 5:7 They were uncircumcised, **having been born** by the way.

4K 23:25 There was no king like him.*

1Ch 7:15 and to Sapphaad **were born** daughters.

Job 12:4 he **has become** a subject for mockery.*

Job 42:13 there **were born** to him seven sons

Ps 44:16 Instead of fathers sons **are born** to thee*

Ecc 3:15 That which has been is now*

Isa 1:9 we would have been made as Sodom*

Jer 16:2 there shall be no son **born** to thee

Eze 22:13 blood that has been shed in thee*

Eze 31:7 his roots were admist much water*

Miscellaneous Hebrew words

_qânâh,_ get, acquire, create

Zec 13:5 a man **brought** me **up** from my youth*

_sîm,_ put, place, appoint, make

Ezr 10:44 They **had begotten** sons of [the wives].

_bârâ',_ create

Eze 21:30 in this place wherein thou **wert born**

_gâdhal,_ grow up, become strong

Isa 1:2 I [God] **have begotten** and reared sons

_hârâh,_ to conceive, be with child, bear

1Ch 4:17 Jether **begot** Maron...

_chûl,_ travail, be pained, dance, tremble, fear

Prov 8:25 before all hills, he **begets** me [wisdom]

No corresponding Hebrew word

1Es 4:15 Women **have borne** the king

Tob 1:9 of Anna I **begat** Tobias.

Tob 10:13 as if they **had begotten** you [not in Brenton's text; my translation]

Jdt 12:20 more in one day than since he **was born**

Job 42:18 [Job] **begot** a son named Ennon

Prov 11:19 A righteous son **is born** for life.

Wis 2:2 We **are born** at all adventure [chance]

Wis 4:6 Children **begotten** of unlawful beds

Wis 5:13 As soon as we **were born** , we began to

Wis 15:8 he which **was made** [was born] of earth

Sir 3:7 his **parents** [the ones who begot him]

Sir 7:28 thou **wast begotten** of [mother & father]

Sir 14:18 one comes to an end, another **is born**.

Sir 22:4 is heaviness to her **father** [begetter]

Sir 23:14 wish that thou had not **been born.**

Sir 41:9 And if ye **be born,** ye **shall be born** to a curse.

Sir 49:15 Nor was a man **born** like unto Joseph

Bar 3:26 There **were** the giants

Eze 36:12 I will **increase** men upon [the land]

1Mac 2:7 why was I **born** to see this

1Mac 2:11 she has become a bondslave*

1Mac 4:35 made his army greater than it was*

2Mac 5:27 Judas with nine others*

4Mac 10:2 their father **begat** me also

4Ma 11:15 **having been born** and reared for this

4Ma 13:19 **engendered** [charm] through the womb

4Ma 14:14 animals have love for their **offspring**

4Ma 15:4 sympathy with those **born** of them

### Analysis of LXX usage

The Hebrew word that is closest in meaning to _gennaō_ is _yâladh._ It is not clear whether that sheds any light on how _gennaō_ is used or what it means. The genealogical lists are particularly uninformative. Such stereotyped uses of a word may be distinctly different from the uses of the word in other contexts. (We will learn more about genealogical lists in our New Testament section.)

In some cases, _gennaō_ refers to a specific, dateable event, as shown in the chronologies of Genesis 5 and 11. Whether that event is conception or birth is not easily demonstrable from these lists. The date of conception is sometimes unknown, but birth date and place is almost always known, so birth lends itself as a better point of reference for such lists. Several verses refer to _gennaō_ 3 at a particular location; these seem to refer to birth and are so translated.

At other times, _gennaō_ is a nonspecific reference to descendants. Ishmael was predicted to beget entire nations (Genesis 17:20; cf. 1 Chronicles 1:11). Grandchildren could also be begotten (Deuteronomy 4:25; 23:8); perhaps these are figurative uses of the word. Particularly noteworthy is the omission of Cainan from the Hebrew geneaologies (Genesis 10:24; 11:12; 1 Chronicles 1:18; cf. Luke 3:36); this suggests that most of the lists are general tables of descent, not biologically precise.

In a clearly figurative use, God is said to have begotten the Israelite nation (Deuteronomy 32:18; Isaiah 1:2). He produced or created it, just as he did wisdom (Proverbs 8:25). God is also said to have begotten "the charm of brotherhood" in all children, even from their mothers' wombs (4 Maccabees 13:18).

In another figurative sense, an idolater claims that a pagan god begat him (Jeremiah 2:27). Abraham even said he was begotten from the land (Genesis 24:7). That seems to be an idiom for his place of birth. Wisdom of Solomon 15:8 refers to someone who was begotten of earth. The thought there is that the man was made of clay.

_Gennaō_ could be used to translate _hayâh,_ "to become." A particular circumstance was begotten — it was produced, it came about. In many of these uses, some versions of the LXX used a different (albeit similar in spelling) word, such as _egeneto,_ to convey the thought of coming about.

God begot the anointed king of Israel (Psalm 2:7). This enthronement psalm has Messianic applications, but it was also applied to the human rulers. God was the real King, but he authorized humans to rule in his stead. The source of the king's authority is pictured by his anointing and expressed metaphorically by adoption into the divine royal family. The human king is fully conscious and usually a mature adult; there is no suggestion here of embryonic sonship.

Psalm 109:3 refers to begettal "from the womb," but this is coupled with "before the morning," which makes the meaning of the whole phrase unclear. Although we know that the Messiah was God's begotten Son even in the womb, it is not clear that this verse is describing that. A figurative meaning may be more appropriate. The Hebrew of this psalm (110 in the Hebrew numeration) does not clarify the LXX meaning.

Some verses could be interpreted to mean conception, but a more natural sense would be birth: A child is born to us, a son is given to us (Isaiah 9:6). Joshua 5:7, referring to uncircumcised babies, seems to refer to birth rather than conception. The Apocryphal books of Judith 12:20, Wisdom of Solomon 5:13 and 1 Maccabees 2:7 also seem to clearly refer to birth.

However, conception seems to be clearly indicated in Wisdom of Solomon 4:6, which refers to children begotten of unlawful beds. Although even today we may refer to an illegitimate _birth,_ the moral law is not broken at birth but near the time of conception.

Despite this specific use, it seems that _gennaō_ in most verses is not precise — it seems to refer to production in general without specific reference to birth, conception, copulation or any of the other sexual details normally included in births. An example that illustrates this is Genesis 4:17: "Cain knew his wife, and having conceived [ _syllabousa_ ] she bore [ _eteke_ ] Enoch." When a distinction between conception and birth is desired, specific Greek words can be used. When general descent is all that is meant, _gennaō_ can be used, as it is in the very next verse (see the short genealogy of verse 18 above).

My analysis of LXX usage has been brief, and I may have overlooked a few things. But I've included all the verses above.

## New Testament

Several concordances of NT Greek words are available. _A Concordance to the Greek Testament,_ edited by W.F. Moulton and A.S. Geden in 1897, revised by H.K. Moulton in 1978, is based on the Greek text of Wescott and Hort. It gives Greek only context for each word. Publisher: T & T Clark.

A concordance of the Nestle-Aland text, the basis of most modern translations, is found in _Computer-Konkordanz zum Novum Testamentum,_ edited by Horst Bachmann and Wolfgang A. Slaby in 1980. The title is in German, but the text is in Greek, based on the Nestle-Aland text. It is published by Walter de Gruyter.

Fortunately, a less expensive concordance of Greek words is also available, and it is in English, and some editions are coded to Strong's numbers. _The New Englishman's Greek Concordance and Lexicon,_ edited by George V. Wigram in 1840, republished both by Baker and by Hendrickson. The text is quoted from the King James Version, and the Greek text used is what the KJV translators used. A new version is available with NIV text.

Since the concordances are based on different Greek texts, they will sometimes differ in which verses are listed. I will combine all three lists, noting the differences, and give context from the NIV — in most cases more context than I allowed in the LXX, and with some comments. I will group them by author: Matthew, Luke, John, then Paul and others.

Matthew

Geneaology of Jesus Christ

Mat 1:2 Abraham was **the father of** Isaac, Isaac **the father of** Jacob, Jacob **the father of** Judah and his brothers,

Matt. 1:3 Judah **the father of** Perez and Zerah...Perez **the father of** Hezron, Hezron **the father of** Ram,

Matt. 1:4 Ram **the father of** Amminadab, Amminadab **the father of** Nahshon, Nahshon **the father of** Salmon,

Matt. 1:5 Salmon **the father of** Boaz... Boaz **the father of** Obed... Obed **the father of** Jesse,

Matt. 1:6 and Jesse **the father of** King David. David was **the father of** Solomon...

Matt. 1:7 Solomon **the father of** Rehoboam, Rehoboam **the father of** Abijah, Abijah **the father of** Asa,

Matt. 1:8 Asa **the father of** Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat **the father of** Jehoram, Jehoram **the father of** Uzziah,

Matt. 1:9 Uzziah **the father of** Jotham, Jotham **the father of** Ahaz, Ahaz **the father of** Hezekiah,

Matt. 1:10 Hezekiah **the father of** Manasseh, Manasseh **the father of** Amon, Amon **the father of** Josiah,

Matt. 1:11 and Josiah **the father of** Jeconiah...

Matt. 1:12 Jeconiah was **the father of** Shealtiel, Shealtiel **the father of** Zerubbabel,

Matt. 1:13 Zerubbabel **the father of** Abiud, Abiud **the father of** Eliakim, Eliakim **the father of** Azor,

Matt. 1:14 Azor **the father of** Zadok, Zadok **the father of** Akim, Akim **the father of** Eliud,

Matt. 1:15 Eliud **the father of** Eleazar, Eleazar **the father of** Matthan, Matthan **the father of** Jacob,

Matt. 1:16 and Jacob **the father of** Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Notable in this list are some omissions: In v.8, we are told that Jehoram begat Uzziah. But from 2 Chronicles 22-24 we learn that the list should be: Jehoram, Ahaziah, Joash, Amaziah, and then Uzziah.

Another omission is in v.11. Josiah was grandfather of Jeconiah; Jehoiakim came between them. Shealtiel (v.12) was the grandfather of Zerubbabel (cf. 1 Chronicles 3:17-18). The list may contain other omissions, too. From such omissions, it is clear that _gennaō_ does not mean "cause conception" in these cases. Nor can it refer directly to birth. It is merely a genealogical term for ancestry.

Matt. 1:20 An angel said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what **is conceived** in her is from the Holy Spirit." [Here _gennaō_ is clearly used to refer to a fetus before birth. But does it refer specifically to conception, or more generally to production?]

Matt. 2:1 After Jesus **was born** in Bethlehem, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem. [Jesus was not conceived in Bethlehem.]

Matt. 2:4 Herod asked them where the Christ **was to be born**.

Matt. 19:12 For some are eunuchs because they **were born** that way. [Most likely a reference to birth]

Matt. 26:24 Woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not **been born**. = Mark 14:21

Luke

Luke 1:13 Your wife Elizabeth **will bear** you a son, and you are to give him the name John.

Luke 1:35 The Holy Spirit will come upon you [Mary].... So the holy one **to be born** will be called the Son of God.

Luke 1:57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she **gave birth** to a son. [Clearly a reference to birth]

Luke 3:22 A voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." [Some Greek texts add, "This day I have begotten you." This would be a figurative use.]

Luke 20:34 Jesus replied, "The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. [One text says, "are begotten and beget."]

Luke 23:29 Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never **bore** and the breasts that never nursed!

Acts 2:8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own **native** language [language in which we were born]? [Here _gennaō_ is an idiom not referring to either conception or birth, since babies are not born speaking.]

Acts 7:8 Abraham became **the father of** Isaac and circumcised him eight days after.

Acts 7:20 Moses **was born**. For three months he was cared for in his father's house. [Clearly birth, not conception]

Acts 7:29 Moses fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and **had** two sons.

Acts 13:33 As it is written in the second Psalm: "You are my Son; today I **have become your Father**." [This is not about Jesus' conception in Mary, so this is a figurative use.]

Acts 22:3 I am a Jew, **born** in Tarsus of Cilicia.

Acts 22:28 "I **was born** a citizen," Paul replied.

John

John 1:13 Children [of God] — [born] not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but **born** of God.

John 3:3 "No one can see the kingdom of God unless he **is born** again."

John 3:4 "How can a man **be born** when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb **to be born**!"

John 3:5-8 Jesus answered, "No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he **is born** of water and the Spirit. Flesh **gives birth** to flesh, but the Spirit **gives birth** to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must **be born** again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone **born** of the Spirit."

John 8:41 "We are not illegitimate **children** [born of fornication]," they protested. [A reference to conception, since that is where the immorality is involved.]

John 9:2 "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was **born** blind?"

John 9:19-20 "Is this the one you say was **born** blind?" "We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was **born** blind. [Birth, not conception]

John 9:32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man **born** blind.

John 9:34 They replied [to the formerly blind mad], "You were steeped in sin **at birth** ; how dare you lecture us!" [The rabbis probably thought that the conception was sinful. The distinction between conception and birth was blurred. BAGD translated "conceived" here.]

John 16:21 A woman giving birth [ _tiktō_ ] to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby **is born** she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child **is born** into the world. [Clearly birth.]

John 18:37 I am a king. For this reason I **was born** , and for this I came into the world.

1 John 2:29 If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right **has been born** of him.

1 John 3:9 No one who **is born** of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he **has been born** of God.

1 John 4:7 Everyone who loves **has been born** of God and knows God.

1 John 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ **is born** of God.

1 John 5:4 Everyone **born** of God overcomes the world.

1 John 5:18 We know that anyone **born** of God does not continue to sin; the one who **was born** of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.

Others

Rom. 9:11 Before the twins **were born** [Rebekah was told that the older would serve the younger (v.12)]. [Although the twins were not yet born, _gennaō_ refers to their birth, not their conception.]

1 Cor. 4:15 In Christ Jesus I **became your father** through the gospel. [Figurative use]

Gal. 4:23 Abraham's son by the slave woman **was born** in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman [was born] as the result of a promise. [Both Ishmael and Isaac were _born_ in a normal way. The miraculous aspect of Isaac's birth was his conception.]

Gal. 4:24 These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and **bears** children who are to be slaves. [Explicitly figurative]

Gal. 4:29 The son **born** in the ordinary way persecuted the son [born] by the Spirit.

2 Tim. 2:23 Foolish arguments **produce** quarrels. [Figurative]

Phm. 1:10 Onesimus **became my son** while I was in chains. [Figurative]

Heb. 1:5 To which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son; today I **have become your Father** "? [Figurative]

Heb. 5:5 God said to him, "You are my Son; today I **have become your Father**." [Figurative]

Heb. 11:12 From this one man [Abraham], and he as good as dead, **came** descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. [Some texts use _egeneto_ instead of _gennaō._ ]

Heb. 11:23 By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he **was born**.

2 Pet. 2:12 These men are like brute beasts, **born** only to be caught and destroyed.

## Grace Communion International

Grace Communion International is a Christian denomination with about 50,000 members, worshiping in about 900 congregations in almost 100 nations and territories. We began in 1934 and our main office is in North Carolina. In the United States, we are members of the National Association of Evangelicals and similar organizations in other nations. We welcome you to visit our website at www.gci.org.

If you want to know more about the good news of Jesus Christ, we offer help. First, we offer weekly worship services in hundreds of congregations worldwide. Perhaps you'd like to visit us. A typical worship service includes songs of praise, a message based on the Bible, and opportunity to meet people who have found Jesus Christ to be the answer to their spiritual quest. We try to be friendly, but without putting you on the spot. We do not expect visitors to give offerings—there's no obligation. You are a guest.

To find a congregation, write to one of our offices, phone us or visit our website. If we do not have a congregation near you, we encourage you to find another Christian church that teaches the gospel of grace.

We also offer spiritual counsel. If you have questions about the Bible, salvation or Christian living, we are happy to talk. If you want to discuss faith, baptism or other matters, a pastor near you can discuss these on the phone or set up an appointment for a longer discussion. We are convinced that Jesus offers what people need most, and we are happy to share the good news of what he has done for all humanity. We like to help people find new life in Christ, and to grow in that life. Come and see why we believe it's the best news there could be!

Our work is funded by members of the church who donate part of their income to support the gospel. Jesus told his disciples to share the good news, and that is what we strive to do in our literature, in our worship services, and in our day-to-day lives.

If this book has helped you and you want to pay some expenses, all donations are gratefully welcomed, and in several nations, are tax-deductible. If you can't afford to give anything, don't worry about it. It is our gift to you. To make a donation online, go to https://www.gci.org/online-giving/.

Thank you for letting us share what we value most — Jesus Christ. The good news is too good to keep it to ourselves.

See our website for hundreds of articles, locations of our churches, addresses in various nations, audio and video messages, and much more.

Grace Communion International  
3129 Whitehall Park Dr.

Charlotte, NC 28273

800-423-4444

www.gci.org

### You're Included...

We talk with leading Trinitarian theologians about the good news that God loves you, wants you, and includes you in Jesus Christ. Most programs are about 28 minutes long. Our guests have included:

Ray Anderson, Fuller Theological Seminary

Douglas A. Campbell, Duke Divinity School

Elmer Colyer, U. of Dubuque Theological Seminary

Gordon Fee, Regent College

Trevor Hart, University of St. Andrews

George Hunsinger, Princeton Theological Seminary

C. Baxter Kruger, Perichoresis

Jeff McSwain, Reality Ministries

Paul Louis Metzger, Multnomah University

Paul Molnar, St. John's University

Cherith Fee Nordling, Northern Baptist Theological Seminary

Andrew Root, Luther Seminary

Alan Torrance, University of St. Andrews

Robert T. Walker, Edinburgh University

N.T. Wright, University of St. Andrews

William P. Young, author of _The Shack_

Programs are available free for viewing and downloading at <https://www.gcs.edu/course/view.php?id=58>.

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Grace Communion Seminary

Ministry based on the life and love of the Father, Son, and Spirit.

Grace Communion Seminary serves the needs of people engaged in Christian service who want to grow deeper in relationship with our Triune God and to be able to more effectively serve in the church.

Why study at Grace Communion Seminary?

 Worship: to love God with all your mind.

 Service: to help others apply truth to life.

 Practical: a balanced range of useful topics for ministry.

 Trinitarian theology: a survey of theology with the merits of a Trinitarian perspective. We begin with the question, "Who is God?" Then, "Who are we in relationship to God?" In this context, "How then do we serve?"

 Part-time study: designed to help people who are already serving in local congregations. There is no need to leave your current ministry. Full-time students are also welcome.

 Flexibility: your choice of master's level continuing education courses or pursuit of a master's degree.

 Affordable, accredited study: Everything can be done online.

For more information, go to www.gcs.edu. Grace Communion Seminary is accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, www.deac.org. The Accrediting Commission is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency.

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## Ambassador College of Christian Ministry

Want to better understand God's Word? Want to know the Triune God more deeply? Want to share more joyously in the life of the Father, Son and Spirit? Want to be better equipped to serve others?

Among the many resources that Grace Communion International offers are the training and learning opportunities provided by ACCM. This quality, well-structured Christian Ministry curriculum has the advantage of being very practical and flexible. Students may study at their own pace, without having to leave home to undertake full-time study.

This denominationally recognized program is available for both credit and audit study. At minimum cost, this online Diploma program will help students gain important insights and training in effective ministry service. Students will also enjoy a rich resource for personal study that will enhance their understanding and relationship with the Triune God.

Diploma of Christian Ministry classes provide an excellent introductory course for new and lay pastors. Dr. Joseph Tkach said, "We believe we have achieved the goal of designing Christian ministry training that is practical, accessible, interesting, and doctrinally and theologically mature and sound. This program provides an ideal foundation for effective Christian ministry."

For more information, go to www.ambascol.org

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