John 3:36
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
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This verse concludes the third chapter of John, summing up the testimony about the Son. It draws a clear line between believing on the Son and refusing him.
What Does John 3:36 Mean?
John 3:36 lays out two paths in a single verse: the one who believes on the Son has everlasting life, while the one who refuses the Son does not see life. It is a sober and clarifying summary of all that has come before in this chapter.
Notice the present tense: the believer "hath everlasting life" -- already, here and now, not merely as a future hope. To trust the Son is to possess his life immediately and to keep it. The contrast is stark. The one who "believeth not" -- a word that carries the sense of refusing or disobeying -- "shall not see life." To turn away from the Son is to turn away from the only source of true life. The closing phrase, "the wrath of God abideth on him," describes God's settled opposition to all that ruins and destroys; the verb "abideth" means it remains where it already is until that refusal is reversed. The verse does not present these outcomes as arbitrary but as the natural consequence of one's response to the Son. Life is found in him and nowhere else. The way out from under judgment is the same as the way into life: believing on the Son, who freely offers himself to all.
In the Original Language
The Greek "echei" (hath) is present tense, marking life as a present possession. "Apeitheo" (believeth not) means to refuse or disobey, and "menei" (abideth) means to remain or stay in place.
Cross References
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
- John 5:24
“He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”
- 1 John 5:12
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
- John 3:16
Application
Eternal life is offered now to all who trust the Son. Do not put off that trust, for to refuse him is to turn from the only source of true life.