John 8:18 I am one that bear witness of myself,

Spoken to
challengers

Jesus tells people that he is the light of the world. His opponents say his testimony is untrue because cannot testify about himself.

KJV

John 8:18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.

NIV

John 8:18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.

LISTENERS HEARD

I myself am the one giving evidence about myself, and he is giving evidence about me, the sending me Father.

LOST IN TRANSLATION

In John 8:16, Jesus said is not alone, because the Father is somehow with him. In the previous verse Jesus points to Judean law regarding the truth requiring two witnesses, here, he satisfies that law. He identifies himself as "the one testifying about me." Then he identifies his second witness with a similar phrase, "he testifies about me," changing the participle to an active verb.  Jesus then describes that witness as "the one sending me Father," using another participle, the same phrase in John 8:16. This again establishes the idea that he is not speaking on his own, but representing his Father. The question now becomes, where is that witness?

MY TAKE

The Father can send you and still be with you.

# KJV TRANSLATION ISSUES
8
  • MW -- Missing Word  -- The pronoun repeats the information in the verb so it should be repeated in English like "I myself."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "one" is not the common word usually translated as "one."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "that" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "bear witness" is not an active verb but a participle, "testifying."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "of" is not the common word form usually translated as "of."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "that" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "sent" is not an active verb but a participle, "sending."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "of" is not the common word form usually translated as "of."
# NIV TRANSLATION ISSUES
12
  • MW -- Missing Word  -- The pronoun repeats the information in the verb so it should be repeated in English like "I myself."
  • CW - Confusing Word -- The "one" is not the common word usually translated as "one."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "testifies" is not an active verb but a participle, "testifying."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "for" should be something more like "about."
  • MW - Missing Word -- The word "about" is not shown in the English translation.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "my" is not possessive but the object of a pronoun, "me."
  • WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "other" should be something more like "and."
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "witness" is not a noun but the active verb, "testifies."
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "is" doesn't exist in the source.
  • IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
  • WF - Wrong Form -  The "sent" is not an active verb but a participle, "sending."
EACH WORD of KJV

I -- The pronoun "I" is used here. Since, as the subject of the sentence, it is part of the verb, its explicit use accentuates who is speaking "I." Saying "I myself" captures this feeling in English.

missing "myself" -- (MW)  The subjective pronoun repeats the information in the verb so it should be repeated in English like "I myself."

am -- The verb "am" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to."

one -- (CW) The word translated as "one" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.  This is not the common word for the number "one."

that -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

bear witness -- (WF) "Bear witness" is the Greek verb that means "to give testimony" and "to bear witness." It has the sense of being true testimony. It is the verb form of the Greek word for "testimony" and "proof."   The form of the word is not an active verb but a participle.

of -- (CW) The Greek word translated as "of" means "around" when referring to a place, but in referring to a subject, it means "about," "concerning," "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Jesus usually uses it. It is not the common "of."

myself, -- The Greek reflexive pronoun is translated as "myself."

and -- The Greek word translated as "and" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

the   -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more. 

Father -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

that -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "that" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

sent -- (WF) "Sent" is from a Greek verb that means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort." This is the second most common word Jesus uses that is translated as "send out," but this one doesn't have the prefix that has the sense of "out."  The form of the word is not an active verb but a participle.

me -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition.

beareth witness -- "Bear witness" is the Greek verb that means "to give testimony" and "to bear witness." It has the sense of being true testimony. It is the verb form of the Greek word for "testimony" and "proof."

of -- (CW) The Greek word translated as "of" means "around" when referring to a place, but in referring to a subject, it means "about," "concerning," "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Jesus usually uses it. It is not the common "of."

me. -- "Me" is the regular first-person adjective in Greek as the object of a preposition.

EACH WORD of NIV

I -- The pronoun "I" is used here. Since, as the subject of the sentence, it is part of the verb, its explicit use accentuates who is speaking "I." Saying "I myself" captures this feeling in English.

missing "myself" -- (MW)  The subjective pronoun repeats the information in the verb so it should be repeated in English like "I myself."

am -- The verb "am" here is the common form of "to be" in Greek. It means to have a certain characteristic or remain in a certain condition. It also equates terms or assigns characteristics. With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to."

one -- (CW) The word translated as "one" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.  This is not the common word for the number "one."

who -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "who " in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

testifies-- (WF) "Testifies" is the Greek verb that means "to give testimony" and "to bear witness." It has the sense of being true testimony. It is the verb form of the Greek word for "testimony" and "proof."   The form of the word is not an active verb but a participle.

for -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "of" means "around" when referring to a place, but in referring to a subject, it means "about," "concerning," "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Jesus usually uses it. It does not mean "for."

myself, -- The Greek reflexive pronoun is translated as "myself."

missing "about"  -- (MW) The untranslated word  "about" means "around" when referring to a place, but in referring to a subject, it means "about," "concerning," "on account of," and "in regard to." This is the way Jesus usually uses it. It is not the common "of."

my. -- (WF) "My" is the regular first-person adjective in Greek as the object of an untranslated preposition.

other -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "other" is used as the conjunction "and," but it also is used to add emphasis ("also"). In a series, it is can be translated as "not only...but also." After words implying sameness "as."

witness --  (WF) "Witness" is the Greek verb that means "to give testimony" and "to bear witness." It has the sense of being true testimony. It is the verb form of the Greek word for "testimony" and "proof." This is not the noun form but an active verb.

is -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "is" in the Greek source.

the   -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more. 

Father -- "Father" is the Greek noun that means "father" or any male ancestor so "forefathers." It is the word that Christ uses to address his own Father.

who -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "who" in the Greek source. It was added because the next verb was translated as active rather than as a participle.

sent -- (WF) "Sent"is from a Greek verb that means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort." This is the second most common word Jesus uses that is translated as "send out," but this one doesn't have the prefix that has the sense of "out."  The form of the word is not an active verb but a participle.

me -- "Me" is the regular first-person pronoun in Greek as the object of the verb or preposition.

COMPARISON: GREEK to KJV

ἐγὼ [162 verses](pron 1st sg masc nom) "I" is ego, which is the first-person singular pronoun meaning "I." It also means "I at least," "for my part," "indeed," and for myself.

εἰμι .[614 verses](3rd sg pres ind act) "Is" is eimi, which means "to be," "to exist," "to be the case," of circumstance and events "to happen,"  and "is possible." With the genitive object, the sense is "belongs to." It can also mean "must" with a dative.

[821 verses](article sg masc nom)  "One" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the"). 

μαρτυρῶν [16 verses](part sg pres act masc nom) "That bears witness" is martyreo, which means "to bear witness," "to give evidence," "give a good report," "testify to," and "acknowledge the value of." It is the basis for our word "martyr." 

περὶ [73 verses](prep)  "As touching" is peri, which means "round about (Place)," "around," "about," "concerning," "on account of," "in regard to," "before," "above," "beyond," and "all around."

ἐμαυτοῦ [15 verses] (pron sg masc gen)  "Myself" is emautou, which means "of me," and "of myself".

καὶ [1089 verses](conj/adv) "And" is kai, which is the conjunction joining phrases and clauses, "and," or "also." After words implying sameness, "as" (the same opinion as you). Used in series, joins positive with negative "Not only...but also." Also used to give emphasis, "even," "also," and "just."

μαρτυρεῖ [16 verses](verb 3rd sg pres ind act ) "Bears witness" is martyreo, which means "to bear witness," "to give evidence," "give a good report," "testify to," and "acknowledge the value of." It is the basis for our word "martyr."

περὶ [73 verses](prep)  "As touching" is peri, which means "round about (Place)," "around," "about," "concerning," "on account of," "in regard to," "before," "above," "beyond," and "all around."

ἐμοῦ 28 verses](adj sg masc gen) "Me" is emos, which means "mine," "of me," "my," "relating to me," and "against me." The form can also be the object of a preposition, "me."

[821 verses](article sg masc nom)  "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").

πέμψας [39 verses](part sg aor act masc nom) "Sent" is pempo, which means "send," "send forth," "send away," "conduct," and "escort."

με [49 verses](pron 1st sg masc acc) "Me" is eme, which is the objective first-person, objective, singular pronoun that means  "me."

πατὴρ [191 verses](noun sg masc nom) "Father" is pater, which means "father," "grandfather," "author," "parent," and "forefathers."

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