John 5:37
What does John 5:37 mean?
A plain-English look at John 5:37 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What John 5:37 means
“And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me.” Jesus reaches the apex of testimony: the Sender Himself attests to the Sent One. Yet He adds, “Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form,” indicting their spiritual deafness and blindness. Despite their religious status, they lack real acquaintance with God. The Father’s witness comes through Scripture, through the Son’s works, and ultimately in the Son’s person; their failure to receive Jesus proves they have not truly encountered God. This is a sobering assessment: proximity to sacred things without communion with God results in missing His clearest revelation.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form.
KJV
King James Version · 1611And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And the Father himself who sent me has given witness about me. Not one of you has ever given ear to his voice; his form you have not seen.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862`And the Father who sent me Himself hath testified concerning me; ye have neither heard His voice at any time, nor His appearance have ye seen;
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752And the Father himself who hath sent me hath given testimony of me: neither have you heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And the Father who has sent me himself has borne witness concerning me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor have seen his shape,
Context
Having moved from John’s testimony to His works, Jesus now invokes the Father’s own witness. He immediately contrasts this with the leaders’ lack of experiential knowledge of God. This sets up verse 38, where He says God’s word does not abide in them, evidenced by their unbelief in the One sent. The argument will then proceed to the Scriptures (verses 39–47), which they search diligently yet misunderstand because they refuse to come to Jesus. The flow tightens the noose: divine witness has been abundant, but unbelief persists due to a heart estranged from God, not a shortage of revelation.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- 1 John 4:12
No man hath beheld God at any time: if we love one another, God abideth in us, and his love is perfected in us:
- John 8:18
I am he that beareth witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.
- John 15:24
If I had not done among them the works which none other did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.
- John 6:27
Work not for the food which perisheth, but for the food which abideth unto eternal life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him the Father, even God, hath sealed.
- 1 Timothy 1:17
Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
- Matthew 17:5
While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
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