What Does John 18:9 Mean in the King James?
That the saying might be fulfilled, which he spake, Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none.
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 ones entrusted to Jesus are protected by being released, even as he remains to face the arrest.
THE MEANING
The verse speaks now of care that holds through danger: the ones entrusted to Jesus are not abandoned when violence closes in. Their preservation takes the concrete form of release, as Jesus tells the armed group to let them go while he is seized.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that being protected means being kept untouched or physically close: here, the companions are released while Jesus is taken.
THE ROOT
ἀπώλεσα
apōlesa
GROWS FROM
ἀπόλλυμι
apollymi
To perish, destroy, or lose.
English “lost” can sound like someone is merely misplaced, but this Greek word can carry the force of perishing or being destroyed. Here, the saying is fulfilled as Jesus secures the companions’ release from the arrest gathering around him.
ALSO GROWS
apōleia: destruction, ruin, loss
ἀπώλεια
This related noun shows the severe edge the verb can carry; “lost none” can mean that none of those entrusted to him perishes.
apolōlos: having perished; lost
ἀπολωλός
The same word family describes someone who is lost or perishing, sharpening the force of Jesus’ declaration that none of his companions is lost.
ἔδωκας
edōkas
GROWS FROM
δίδωμι
didōmi
To give or grant.
“gavest” in this verse is edōkas. The verb names giving; in this sentence, what is given is a group of people placed in Jesus’ care. That care does not clutch them when danger comes: Jesus lets them go free while he stays exposed.
ALSO GROWS
didotai: is given
δίδοται
This form of the same verb keeps the emphasis on receiving what is given, rather than claiming it as one’s own.
dosis: giving; gift
δόσις
This related noun brings out the gift-language behind the verse: those given to Jesus are cared for, not treated as possessions.
THE PATTERN
Care is shown by preserving those entrusted to it when danger comes near.
Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way:And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.THE THREAD
While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.The same Greek verb translated “lost” appears in both verses, and both repeat the language of those given to Jesus. John 17:12 makes the connection explicit: in John 18:9, the companions’ release as Jesus is seized fulfills his words about keeping them.
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