Paving the Way into the Divine Family in John 1:18

This chapter follows one recently written by Robert Hall, in which he discusses an unusual approach to John 1:18.1 The Greek reads, θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακεν πώποτε μονογενὴς θεὸς ὁ ὢν εἰς τὸν κόλπον τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκεῖνος ἐξηγήσατο. The NRSV translates, “no one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” Hall begins by noting that the verse is “frankly puzzling” and that it supplies no object for the concluding verb ἐξηγέομαι. As just demonstrated, translators often insert “him”—namely the Father—as the one whom “God the only Son” has made known. So far, this is nothing new: scholars are well aware of such difficulties in John 1:18.

© Blake Wassell, 2024