1 John 5:6

Memory Verse

This is He who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ; not only by the water, but also by the blood. And the Spirit is the witness, because the Spirit is truth, because there are three who testify, 1 John 5:6.

Water refers to Christ’s priestly service. He was immersed by John the Baptizer into His priestly service, which is according to the order of Melchizedek (John 1:31; 3:13–17; Hebrews 5:6).

The blood relates to His covenant (Luke 22:20; Romans 5:9; Hebrews 10:19; Ephesians 2:13). He did not enter the true heavenly holy of holies through the offering of the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood He entered, obtaining eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12).

There are three who bear witness concerning Jesus. God the Father (John 5:37), the works which the Father gave Him (John 5:36), and the Scriptures testify of Him (John 5:39). Even according to man— although He does not need a man to testify—even John the baptizer bore witness of Him (John 5:32–33).

Verses 7 and 8 were added into our English Bible based upon the Vulgate (Latin Translation)—although not from Jerome’s original Vulgate in the 4th century. These verses are absent from all of the first-century Greek manuscripts. It was a common practice by scribes and theologians who sought to emphasize the doctrine of the Trinity to add marginal glosses or interpretive expansions with the text. These notes were subsequently incorporated into the text during copying.

These verses do not add, nor does their absence take away, anything from the reality of the Trinity. The three persons of the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, are clearly defined in Scripture. (John 10:30; Acts 5:4; Hebrews 1:1-3, 8; Genesis 1:2; 19:24). Therefore, today, the astute Christian will subjugate verses 7 and 8 to their proper position as nothing more than scribal and theological notes.