| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. | 1Now a certain man, a Pharisee named Nicodemus, who was a member of the Jewish ruling council, |
| 2After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.” | 2came to Jesus at night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs that you do unless God is with him." |
| 3Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” | 3Jesus replied, "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God." |
| 4“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” | 4Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother's womb and be born a second time, can he?" |
| 5Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. | 5Jesus answered, "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. |
| 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. | 6What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. |
| 7 So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ | 7Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must all be born from above.' |
| 8 The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” | 8The wind blows wherever it will, and you hear the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." |
| 9“How are these things possible?” Nicodemus asked. | 9Nicodemus replied, "How can these things be?" |
| 10Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? | 10Jesus answered, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you don't understand these things? |
| 11 I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony. | 11I tell you the solemn truth, we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony. |
| 12 But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? | 12If I have told you people about earthly things and you don't believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? |
| 13 No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven. | 13No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven--the Son of Man. |
| 14 And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, | 14Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, |
| 15 so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. | 15so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." |
| 16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. | 16For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. |
| 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. | 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. |
| 18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. | 18The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. |
| 19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. | 19Now this is the basis for judging: that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil. |
| 20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. | 20For everyone who does evil deeds hates the light and does not come to the light, so that their deeds will not be exposed. |
| 21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. ” John the Baptist Exalts Jesus | 21But the one who practices the truth comes to the light, so that it may be plainly evident that his deeds have been done in God. |
| 22Then Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went into the Judean countryside. Jesus spent some time with them there, baptizing people. | 22After this, Jesus and his disciples came into Judean territory, and there he spent time with them and was baptizing. |
| 23At this time John the Baptist was baptizing at Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there; and people kept coming to him for baptism. | 23John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming to him and being baptized. |
| 24(This was before John was thrown into prison.) | 24(For John had not yet been thrown into prison.) |
| 25A debate broke out between John’s disciples and a certain Jew over ceremonial cleansing. | 25Now a dispute came about between some of John's disciples and a certain Jew concerning ceremonial washing. |
| 26So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going to him instead of coming to us.” | 26So they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, the one who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, about whom you testified--see, he is baptizing, and everyone is flocking to him!" |
| 27John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. | 27John replied, "No one can receive anything unless it has been given to him from heaven. |
| 28You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ | 28You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but rather, 'I have been sent before him.' |
| 29It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. | 29The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens for him, rejoices greatly when he hears the bridegroom's voice. This then is my joy, and it is complete. |
| 30He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less. | 30He must become more important while I become less important." |
| 31“He has come from above and is greater than anyone else. We are of the earth, and we speak of earthly things, but he has come from heaven and is greater than anyone else. | 31The one who comes from above is superior to all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks about earthly things. The one who comes from heaven is superior to all. |
| 32He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them! | 32He testifies about what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. |
| 33Anyone who accepts his testimony can affirm that God is true. | 33The one who has accepted his testimony has confirmed clearly that God is truthful. |
| 34For he is sent by God. He speaks God’s words, for God gives him the Spirit without limit. | 34For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for he does not give the Spirit sparingly. |
| 35The Father loves his Son and has put everything into his hands. | 35The Father loves the Son and has placed all things under his authority. |
| 36And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment.” | 36The one who believes in the Son has eternal life. The one who rejects the Son will not see life, but God's wrath remains on him. |
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