What Does 1 John 5:11 Mean in the King James?
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The life of the ages is already given, and its source is the Son, not a reward deferred to the future.
THE MEANING
God has given this life to us, and it is present in the Son. The verse describes life as a gift already received, rooted in him now.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
This undoes the belief that life of the ages is only a future possession: the verse says God has already given it.
THE ROOT
αἰώνιον
aiōnion
GROWS FROM
αἰών
aiōn
Age, or an order of time.
English “eternal” can make the phrase sound only like endless duration. The Greek word carries the sense of life belonging to the age or ages, and this verse says that life is already given.
ALSO GROWS
age: An age or span of time.
αἰών
It shows the time sense carried within “eternal.”
aiōnios: Belonging to an age; age-long.
αἰώνιος
This is the word used for the life God gives here.
ζωή
zōē
GROWS FROM
ζάω
zaō
To live.
The Greek word points to living, not merely continued existence. The verse presents this life as something given and located in the Son, a reality received now.
ALSO GROWS
living: Alive; living.
ζῶν
It echoes life as an active state, not merely a future duration.
make alive: To make alive or give life.
ζωοποιέω
This related form makes explicit the life-giving movement implicit in the gift.
ἔδωκεν
edōken
GROWS FROM
δίδωμι (didōmi; δο-/δω-)
To give.
“given” in this verse is edōken. The verb names an act of giving: the life in view is received from God. Its placement beside “in his Son” ties the gift to a living source rather than to the reader’s achievement.
ALSO GROWS
share: To give a share or impart.
μεταδίδωμι
It shows giving as something passed on to another.
paradidōmi: To hand over or deliver.
παραδίδωμι
It uses the same giving verb in a compound, making visible the root’s movement from one to another.
THE PATTERN
Life of the ages is given as a present reality and found in the Son.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.THE THREAD
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.John 17:3 uses the same Greek words for “life” and “eternal,” joining ζωή (zōē, life) with αἰώνιος (aiōnios, of the age). It opens the phrase further by describing this life through knowing God and Jesus, rather than duration alone.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us