What Does John 1:40 Mean in the King James?
One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.
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
Here, hearing becomes following, and following becomes the first step toward bringing someone else into what you have found.
THE MEANING
A voice reaches you, and what you hear can set you in motion. Andrew is named both by the one he follows and by his bond with Simon; the next verse shows that bond carrying his discovery to someone else.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The verse loosens the idea that hearing is merely taking in words: here, it begins a movement that soon reaches another person.
THE ROOT
ἀκολουθησάντων
akolouthēsantōn
GROWS FROM
ἀκολουθ-
akolouth-
Follow, accompany, go along with.
“followed” in this verse is akolouthēsantōn. The Greek word family names both the act of following and the follower, keeping Andrew’s movement tied to relationship. He is identified not only by what he hears but by whom he goes along with.
ALSO GROWS
akolouthos: follower, attendant, companion
ἀκόλουθος
The follower is one who accompanies another, making Andrew’s response a continuing relation rather than a passing moment.
akolouthia: following, sequence
ἀκολουθία
This branch carries the sense of what comes along after; in the verse, following comes after hearing.
ἀδελφός
adelphos
GROWS FROM
ἀδελφ-
adelph-
Brother or sibling; traditionally linked to δελφύς (delphys, “womb”), suggesting shared origin.
“brother” in this verse is adelphos. The word holds kinship as shared origin, not only a label. That bond becomes active in the next verse, when Andrew goes to Simon with what he has found.
ALSO GROWS
adelphē: sister
ἀδελφή
The feminine sibling form shows the shared family word extending across the siblings.
adelphotēs: brotherhood, sibling bond
ἀδελφότης
This branch names the bond itself, echoing how Andrew is introduced through his connection to Simon.
THE PATTERN
A voice that is received sets a person moving, and that movement carries the encounter onward.
Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.THE THREAD
He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.The same Greek word ἀδελφός (adelphos, “brother”) appears in both verses. The relationship that identifies Andrew here becomes his next action: he finds Simon and shares what he has found.
This reading is from Selah Verse.
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