John 3:9–15:
The Son of the Man Must Be Lifted Up

The Correct Interpretation of John 3:9–15

After declaring that it is necessary to be begotten from Above through the work of the Spirit (John 3:1–8), Jesus continues responding to Nicodemus’ lack of understanding. As “the teacher of Israel”, Nicodemus should have recognized in the Scriptures the promise of cleansing and renewal that God would accomplish in His people. Jesus then shows why He can speak with absolute authority about these things: He is the Son of the Man who came down out of Heaven. Finally, He takes Nicodemus back to Israel’s history and announces that, just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, the Son of the Man must also be lifted up so that everyone who believes into Him should have eternal life.

(v. 9)
«Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?”»

Nicodemus is no longer asking about a second physical birth. He now asks how what Jesus has just described can happen: the begetting produced by the Spirit.

His question allows Jesus to take the conversation further. First He will show that Nicodemus should know the promises of renewal given to Israel, and then He will explain why He possesses the authority to reveal heavenly realities.

(v. 10)
«Jesus answered and said to Him: “You are the teacher of Israel, yet you do not understand these things?»

Jesus points to Nicodemus’ particular responsibility: he is not merely a teacher, but “the teacher of Israel”.

His lack of understanding is therefore especially significant. Jesus has not presented being begotten from Above as a teaching completely disconnected from the Scriptures Nicodemus knew.

God had already promised to cleanse His people, give them a new heart, and put His Spirit within them (Ezekiel 36:25–27). As the teacher of Israel, Nicodemus should have recognized the background of Jesus’ words about being begotten “by water and Spirit”.

Jesus’ question thus confirms that being begotten from Above belongs to the fulfillment of what God had already promised to accomplish.

(v. 11)
«Most assuredly I say to you, we speak what we know and testify to what we have seen, but you (pl) do not receive our testimony.»

Jesus responds with language that intentionally recalls the words with which Nicodemus began the conversation.

Nicodemus had said, “we know” that Jesus had come from God because they had observed His signs. Jesus responds: “we speak what we know and testify to what we have seen”.

There is, however, a fundamental difference. Nicodemus’ knowledge comes from conclusions drawn from the signs; Jesus speaks from direct knowledge of the realities He reveals.

The plural “we speak” and “testify” does not need to be identified with absolute precision here. The emphasis falls on the certainty of the testimony Jesus presents in contrast with the limited “we know” of Nicodemus and those he represents.

But Jesus adds the real problem: “you do not receive our testimony”.

One of the Gospel’s major themes appears again: having information about Jesus is not enough; His testimony must be received.

(v. 12)
«If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I should tell you the heavenly?»

Jesus distinguishes between what He has already explained and an even greater revelation.

The “earthly things” should not be understood merely as the images of water, birth, or wind. Jesus has been speaking about a work of God that takes place in human beings here on earth: the need to be begotten from Above.

If they do not even believe this teaching about God’s work among human beings, how will they believe if Jesus tells them the heavenly things?

The question immediately prepares for the next verse, where Jesus explains why He can speak about those realities: He came down out of Heaven.

(v. 13)
«No one has gone up into Heaven except the One who came down out of Heaven —the Son of the Man, who is in Heaven.»

Jesus explains why His testimony concerning heavenly things possesses incomparable authority.

No human being has gone up into Heaven to obtain that knowledge independently and then bring it back to mankind. Heavenly knowledge comes from Above because the One who reveals it came down out of Heaven.

That One is the Son of the Man.

The statement connects directly with the prologue. The Word was with God, became flesh, and came to live among mankind; now Jesus declares that He is the One who came down out of Heaven.

But Jesus adds something even more extraordinary: “the Son of the Man, who is in Heaven”. While speaking with Nicodemus on earth, He affirms a present relationship with Heaven that transcends the condition of any human teacher.

The Son of the Man is not merely someone who received heavenly information: His origin and His relationship with Heaven are unique, and for that reason He can give true testimony about the realities of God.

(vv. 14–15)
«Also, just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, just so the Son of the Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.»

Jesus now returns to a history that Nicodemus, as the teacher of Israel, should have known well.

In Numbers 21:4–9, Israel had sinned against God and was under judgment. Venomous snakes bit the people, and many died. When the people acknowledged their sin, God instructed Moses to lift up a snake on a pole, and whoever had been bitten could look at it and live.

Jesus establishes a correspondence between that scene and His own mission:

“just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, just so the Son of the Man must be lifted up.”

The words “must be” express necessity: what will happen to the Son of the Man belongs to God’s purpose.

Being “lifted up” will point to His death, although John will give this expression still greater depth as the Gospel progresses: the very act by which men lift Him up to kill Him will also form part of His exaltation and glorification.

The purpose is stated in verse 15: “so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life”.

Just as the condemned Israelites could not heal themselves and received life by responding to the means God had provided, eternal life is now found in relation to the lifted-up Son of the Man.

Implications

• The promises connected with being begotten from Above were rooted in Israel’s Scriptures: Nicodemus should have recognized God’s promise of cleansing and renewal by the Spirit.
• Jesus’ knowledge surpasses human conclusions about Him: Nicodemus says “we know” because of the signs; Jesus testifies to what He knows and has seen.
• Jesus can reveal heavenly realities because He came down out of Heaven: His authority does not arise merely from education or from revelation received as another teacher might receive it.
• The Son of the Man has a unique relationship with Heaven: even while on earth, Jesus speaks of Himself as the One “who is in Heaven.”
• The Son of the Man must be lifted up: His death belongs to God’s purpose and will not be an unexpected accident.
• Eternal life is connected with the lifted-up Son: everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.
• Jesus fulfills the pattern anticipated by the lifted-up snake: God provides the means of life for those under death.

Applications

• Do not rest merely in biblical knowledge: Nicodemus knew the Scriptures, but he needed to understand the One to whom they pointed.
• Receive Jesus’ testimony above your own conclusions about Him: He speaks from a knowledge no human teacher possesses.
• Recognize Jesus as the Son who came down out of Heaven: do not reduce Him to a teacher accompanied by God.
• Look to the lifted-up Son as God’s provision for your condition: life cannot be produced from within yourself.
• Believe into Jesus Christ: Jesus promises eternal life to everyone who believes into Him.
• Read the histories of Israel with attention to how they find their fulfillment in Christ: the lifted-up snake prepares for a far greater reality in the Son of the Man.

Summary

In John 3:9–15, Nicodemus asks how being begotten from Above can happen. Jesus challenges him because, as “the teacher of Israel”, he does not understand what God had already promised concerning the cleansing and renewal of His people. Jesus then contrasts Nicodemus’ limited knowledge with His own testimony: He speaks what He knows and testifies to what He has seen because He is the Son of the Man who came down out of Heaven and who is in Heaven. Finally, He takes Nicodemus to Numbers 21: just as Moses lifted up the snake so that Israelites under judgment could live, the Son of the Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life. In this way, the teaching about being begotten from Above ultimately leads to Jesus Himself, the Son who came from Heaven and will be lifted up to give life.

Prayer

Our Father, we thank You that Your Son came down out of Heaven to make known to us what we could never reach through our own wisdom.

Help us receive His testimony with humility and understand the Scriptures in light of Him.

Thank You that, just as You provided life for Israel in the wilderness, You have provided in Jesus Christ the life we cannot produce for ourselves.

Teach us to look to the lifted-up Son of the Man and trust in Him, knowing that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.

And allow our understanding of Christ to continue growing as we listen to His word.

We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.