John 1:2
New International Version
He was with God in the beginning.

New Living Translation
He existed in the beginning with God.

English Standard Version
He was in the beginning with God.

Berean Standard Bible
He was with God in the beginning.

Berean Literal Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

King James Bible
The same was in the beginning with God.

New King James Version
He was in the beginning with God.

New American Standard Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

NASB 1995
He was in the beginning with God.

NASB 1977
He was in the beginning with God.

Legacy Standard Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

Amplified Bible
He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God.

Christian Standard Bible
He was with God in the beginning.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
He was with God in the beginning.

American Standard Version
The same was in the beginning with God.

Contemporary English Version
From the very beginning the Word was with God.

English Revised Version
The same was in the beginning with God.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
He was already with God in the beginning.

Good News Translation
From the very beginning the Word was with God.

International Standard Version
He existed in the beginning with God.

Majority Standard Bible
He was with God in the beginning.

NET Bible
The Word was with God in the beginning.

New Heart English Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

Webster's Bible Translation
The same was in the beginning with God.

Weymouth New Testament
He was in the beginning with God.

World English Bible
The same was in the beginning with God.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
this One was in the beginning with God;

Berean Literal Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

Young's Literal Translation
this one was in the beginning with God;

Smith's Literal Translation
This was in the beginning with God.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
The same was in the beginning with God.

Catholic Public Domain Version
He was with God in the beginning.

New American Bible
He was in the beginning with God.

New Revised Standard Version
He was in the beginning with God.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
The same was in the beginning with God.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
This One himself was at the origin with God.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
He was in the beginning with God.

Godbey New Testament
The same was in the beginning with God.

Haweis New Testament
He was in the beginning with God.

Mace New Testament
the same was in the beginning with God.

Weymouth New Testament
He was in the beginning with God.

Worrell New Testament
The same was in the beginning with God.

Worsley New Testament
The same was in the beginning with God.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Beginning
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made.…

Cross References
John 1:1-3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. / He was with God in the beginning. / Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made.

Colossians 1:16-17
For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him. / He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

Hebrews 1:2-3
But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe. / The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

Genesis 1:1-3
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. / Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. / And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.

Proverbs 8:22-30
The LORD created me as His first course, before His works of old. / From everlasting I was established, from the beginning, before the earth began. / When there were no watery depths, I was brought forth, when no springs were overflowing with water. ...

1 Corinthians 8:6
yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we exist.

Ephesians 3:9
and to illuminate for everyone the stewardship of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.

Revelation 3:14
To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Originator of God’s creation.

Psalm 33:6
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and all the stars by the breath of His mouth.

Hebrews 11:3
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

1 John 1:1-2
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our own eyes, which we have gazed upon and touched with our own hands—this is the Word of life. / And this is the life that was revealed; we have seen it and testified to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us.

Philippians 2:6-7
Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, / but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.

Isaiah 44:24
Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer who formed you from the womb: “I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who by Myself spread out the earth,

Micah 5:2
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.

John 17:5
And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed.


Treasury of Scripture

The same was in the beginning with God.

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John 1
1. The divinity, humanity, office, and incarnation of Jesus Christ.
15. The testimony of John.
39. The calling of Simon and Andrew, Philip and Nathanael














He
The pronoun "He" refers to the "Word" mentioned in John 1:1, which is understood to be Jesus Christ. In the original Greek, the term is "οὗτος" (houtos), emphasizing the identity and personhood of Christ. This highlights the personal nature of the Word, affirming that Jesus is not an abstract concept but a living being with a distinct identity. In the context of the Gospel of John, this sets the stage for understanding Jesus as both fully divine and fully human, a cornerstone of Christian theology.

was
The verb "was" is translated from the Greek "ἦν" (ēn), which is the imperfect tense of "to be." This tense indicates continuous action in the past, suggesting the eternal existence of the Word. It implies that Jesus did not come into being at a point in time but has always existed. This aligns with the Christian doctrine of the pre-existence of Christ, affirming His divine nature and eternal presence with God.

with God
The phrase "with God" is translated from the Greek "πρὸς τὸν Θεόν" (pros ton Theon). The preposition "πρὸς" (pros) suggests a close, intimate relationship, indicating not just proximity but a face-to-face relationship. This underscores the unity and fellowship between Jesus and God the Father, emphasizing the distinct persons within the Godhead while maintaining their oneness. This relational aspect is foundational to understanding the Trinity, where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit exist in perfect communion.

in the beginning
The phrase "in the beginning" is "ἐν ἀρχῇ" (en archē) in Greek, echoing the opening words of Genesis 1:1. This deliberate parallel draws a connection between the creation account and the role of Christ in creation. It signifies that Jesus was present at the very start of all things, participating in the creation of the universe. This affirms His sovereignty and authority over all creation, reinforcing the belief that all things were made through Him and for Him, as further elaborated in Colossians 1:16-17. This eternal perspective invites believers to trust in Christ's unchanging nature and His ultimate plan for creation.

(2) The same was.--This is a summary in one clause of the three assertions made in the first verse.

The same, that is, the Word who was God, existed before any act of creation, and in that existence was a person distinct from God. Yet it is more than a re-statement. We have arrived at the thought that the Word was one in nature with God. From this higher point of view, the steps below us are more clearly seen. The Word was God; the eternal pre-existence and personality are included in the thought.

Verse 2. - The same Logos whom the writer has just affirmed to have been God himself, was, though it might seem at first reading to be incompatible with the first or third clause of the first verse, nevertheless in the beginning with God - "in the beginning," and therefore, as we have seen, eternally in relation with God. The previous statements are thus stringently enforced, and, notwithstanding their tendency to diverge, are once more bound into a new, unified, and emphatic utterance. Thus the αὐτός of the following sentences is charged with the sublime fulness of meaning which is involved in the three utterances of ver. 1. The first clause

(1) declared that the Logos preceded the origination of all things, was the eternal ground of the world; the second

(2) asserted his unique personality, so that he stands over against the eternal God, in mutual communion with the Absolute and Eternal One; the third clause

(3) maintains further that the Logos was not a second God, nor merely Divine (Θεῖος) or God-like, nor is he described as proceeding out of or from God (ἐκ Θεοῦ or ἀπὸ Θεοῦ), nor is he to be called ὁ Θεός, "the God absolute," as opposed to all his manifestations; but the Logos is said to be Θεός, i.e. "God" - God in his nature and being. This second verse reasserts the eternal relation of such a personality "with God," and prepares the way for the statements of the following verses. The unity of the Logos and Theos might easily be supposed to reduce the distinction between them to subjective relations. The second verse emphasizes the objective validity of the relation.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
He
Οὗτος (Houtos)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

was
ἦν (ēn)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

with
πρὸς (pros)
Preposition
Strong's 4314: To, towards, with. A strengthened form of pro; a preposition of direction; forward to, i.e. Toward.

God
Θεόν (Theon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

[the] beginning.
ἀρχῇ (archē)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 746: From archomai; a commencement, or chief.


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John 1:1
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