COME AND SEE

Passage: John 1:35-51

Key verse: 39

NIV

John’s Disciples Follow Jesus(A)

35 The next day John(B) was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”(C)

37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”

They said, “Rabbi”(D) (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).(E) 42 And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called(F) Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[a]).(G)

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip,(H) he said to him, “Follow me.”(I)

44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.(J) 45 Philip found Nathanael(K) and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law,(L) and about whom the prophets also wrote(M)—Jesus of Nazareth,(N) the son of Joseph.”(O)

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?”(P) Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” said Philip.

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite(Q) in whom there is no deceit.”(R)

48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi,(S) you are the Son of God;(T) you are the king of Israel.”(U)

50 Jesus said, “You believe[b] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you,[c] you[d] will see ‘heaven open,(V) and the angels of God ascending and descending(W) on’[e] the Son of Man.”(X)

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Footnotes
  1. John 1:42 Cephas (Aramaic) and Peter (Greek) both mean rock.
  2. John 1:50 Or Do you believe … ?
  3. John 1:51 The Greek is plural.
  4. John 1:51 The Greek is plural.
  5. John 1:51 Gen. 28:12
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, (A)the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, (B)“What are you seeking?” And they said to him, (C)“Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 39 He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.[a] 40 (D)One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus[b] was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found (E)the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of (F)John. You shall be called (G)Cephas” (which means (H)Peter[c]).

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

43 (I)The next day Jesus decided (J)to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now (K)Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found (L)Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom (M)Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus (N)of Nazareth, (O)the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, (P)“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, (Q)an Israelite indeed, (R)in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to him, “How (S)do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, (T)“Rabbi, (U)you are the Son of God! You are the (V)King of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” 51 And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you,[d] you will see (W)heaven opened, and (X)the angels of God ascending and descending on (Y)the Son of Man.”

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Footnotes
  1. John 1:39 That is, about 4 p.m.
  2. John 1:40 Greek him
  3. John 1:42 Cephas and Peter are from the word for rock in Aramaic and Greek, respectively
  4. John 1:51 The Greek for you is plural; twice in this verse
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

John pointed his disciples towards Jesus, who he called the Lamb of God. Among the first to follow Jesus were the disciples Andrew and his brother Peter, as well as Philip and his friend Nathaniel. They were curious about Jesus, and Jesus welcomed them to come and get to know him. Part of what made them follow Jesus was because it seemed as if he really knew them and loved them.

In the same way, our relationship with Jesus starts with wanting to know him better and realizing he really knows and cares about us. The Word became flesh and initiated a relationship with humanity in such a beautiful way. When we get to know Jesus, we realize not only that he is our Lord and King, but he also wants to be our friend and guide us through our darkest paths of life with tenderness and grace.

Following Jesus is a journey where we can expect to see greater and greater things. Jesus invites us to his Kingdom, one that is new and wonderful. It changes our lives and the world around us.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for welcoming me into a relationship with you and to see your kingdom come on this earth through the way and life you lived.

One Word: Come and see