John 21:19
New International Version
Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

New Living Translation
Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then Jesus told him, “Follow me.”

English Standard Version
(This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”

Berean Standard Bible
Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”

Berean Literal Bible
Now He said this signifying by what death he will glorify God. And having said this, He says to him, "Follow Me."

King James Bible
This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

New King James Version
This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”

New American Standard Bible
Now He said this, indicating by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had said this, He said to him, “Follow Me!”

NASB 1995
Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!”

NASB 1977
Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!”

Legacy Standard Bible
Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!”

Amplified Bible
Now He said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after saying this, He said to him, “Follow Me [walk the same path of life that I have walked]!”

Christian Standard Bible
He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. After saying this, he told him, “Follow me.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
He said this to signify by what kind of death he would glorify God. After saying this, He told him, “Follow Me!”

American Standard Version
Now this he spake, signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
But he said this to show by what death he was going to glorify God. And after he had said these things, he said to him, “Come after me.”

Contemporary English Version
Jesus said this to tell how Peter would die and bring honor to God. Then he said to Peter, "Follow me!"

Douay-Rheims Bible
And this he said, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had said this, he saith to him: Follow me.

English Revised Version
Now this he spake, signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Jesus said this to show by what kind of death Peter would bring glory to God. After saying this, Jesus told Peter, "Follow me!"

Good News Translation
(In saying this, Jesus was indicating the way in which Peter would die and bring glory to God.) Then Jesus said to him, "Follow me!"

International Standard Version
Now he said this to show by what kind of death he would glorify God. After saying this, Jesus told him, "Keep following me."

Literal Standard Version
and this He said, signifying by what death he will glorify God; and having said this, He says to him, “Follow Me.”

Majority Standard Bible
Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”

New American Bible
He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”

NET Bible
(Now Jesus said this to indicate clearly by what kind of death Peter was going to glorify God.) After he said this, Jesus told Peter, "Follow me."

New Revised Standard Version
(He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”

New Heart English Bible
Now he said this, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. When he had said this, he said to him, "Follow me."

Webster's Bible Translation
This he spoke, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith to him, Follow me.

Weymouth New Testament
This He said to indicate the kind of death by which that disciple would bring glory to God; and after speaking thus He said to him, "Follow me."

World English Bible
Now he said this, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. When he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”

Young's Literal Translation
and this he said, signifying by what death he shall glorify God; and having said this, he saith to him, 'Be following me.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Jesus Reinstates Peter
18Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.” 20Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper to ask, “Lord, who is going to betray You?”…

Cross References
Matthew 8:22
But Jesus told him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

Matthew 16:24
Then Jesus told His disciples, "If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.

John 12:33
He said this to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.

John 18:32
This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to indicate the kind of death He was going to die.

John 21:18
Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go."

John 21:22
Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!"

2 Peter 1:14
because I know that this tent will soon be laid aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.


Treasury of Scripture

This spoke he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he said to him, Follow me.

by.

Philippians 1:20
According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.

1 Peter 4:11-14
If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen…

2 Peter 1:14
Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.

Follow.

John 21:22
Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.

John 12:26
If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

John 13:36,37
Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards…

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Death Disciple Follow Following Glorify Glory Indicate Jesus Kind Manner Peter Pointing Show Signifying Sort Speaking
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Death Disciple Follow Following Glorify Glory Indicate Jesus Kind Manner Peter Pointing Show Signifying Sort Speaking
John 21
1. Jesus appearing again to his disciples is known of them by the great catch of fish.
12. He dines with them;
15. earnestly commands Peter to feed his lambs and sheep;
18. foretells him of his death;
22. rebukes his curiosity.
24. The conclusion.














(19) This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God.--These words are a comment by the writer, and quite in St. John's style. (Comp. John 2:21; John 6:6; John 7:39; John 12:33.)

"By what death," or, more exactly, by what manner of death (comp. John 12:33; John 18:32), indicates generally the martyrdom of Peter as distinct from a natural death, without special reference to the crucifixion. (See Note on last verse.) . . .

Verse 19. - This he said, adds the evangelist, signifying by what manner of death, not necessarily crucifixion (Godet), but that violent and martyr-death to which the prince of the apostles was called. How many anticipations, partial beginnings, of the final scene must Peter have passed through before, in utter human helplessness, but in Divine, supernatural strength, he stretched out his hands, allowed another to gird him, prepare him for the day's work, and carry him whither all his nature would shrink to go! There is no other hint whatever of literal crucifixion than this phrase of "stretching out the hand," which is nowhere else applied to the peculiar method in which the crucified ones suffered. Doubtless the transposition of the two phrases must not be pressed too much, since the stretching of the arms might possibly bear the literal interpretation of the action which was forced upon the victim, and the subsequent "girding" refer to the subligaculum, by which he was fastened to the instrument of torture; while the "being carried whither he would not" might, though by some forcing of the phrase, be supposed, though enigmatically and obscurely, to refer to the uplifting of the cross with its living burden. The phrase, "signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God," is peculiarly Johannine (John 12:33; John 18:32). This sublime term for the suffering of the great saints, taken from the light which the Lord's agony had cast upon holy death, became a permanent Christian idea (Suicer, 'Thes.,' 1:949). When John wrote, the fact of Peter's death must have been well known throughout the Church. There is every probability that he had long since been crucified, and the solemnity of the utterance was augmented and pointed by the well-known manner of the death of the illustrious apostle. This was, however, by no means the only meaning that naturally flows out of the warning; nor is Peter's experience the only illustration that it bears. And when he had spoken this, Jesus saith to him, Follow me. There may have been a primary interpretation derived from Christ's removal to a distance from the rest of the disciples, and the intention of conferring upon Peter there and then, special and further instructions. But from the context, in which the contrasts of life, character, and service are conspicuous, it would seem impossible (Meyer) so to restrict the meaning, as Tholuck and others do. The command is the concentration into one burning utterance of all that is meant by Christian life - that coming into relation with the living Lord, that imitation of his principle of action, which, as St. Paul in Philippians it. has shown, was capable of imitation in the narrower and smaller circle of our human experience. If it be rational for the Lord to have said, "Be ye perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect," and for Paul to have pressed upon his converts, "Be ye followers of God, as dear children;" "Be ye followers of me, as I am of Christ," - then the Lord gathered all the rules of conduct which were involved in his previous discourses into one word, when he laid upon the man who should be a fisher of souls, a feeder of lambs, a shepherd of sheep, a feeder of the little sheep of the flock, the comprehensive duty, "Follow me." Those interpretations which make the words mean "Follow me as universal bishop and pastor," as that of Chrysostom does, are incompatible with the narrative; or if we suppose them to signify, "Follow me into the invisible world," or "Imitate me in my martyrdom," this would be unpractical, and by no means in obvious harmony with the kind of injunctions just given. We give the passage from James Innes' translation of Aug., 'Tr.,' 123:4, which Westcott justly implies is beyond translation: "Such was the end reached by that denier and lover; elated by his presumption, prostrated by his denial, cleansed by his weeping, approved by his confession, crowned by his suffering, - this was the end he reached: to die with a perfected love for the Name of him with whom, by a perverted forwardness, he had promised to die. He would do, when strengthened by Christ's resurrection, what in his weaknesss he had promised prematurely. The needful order was that Christ should first die for Peter's salvation, and then that Peter should die for the preaching of Christ." Our Lord, when appealed to with reference to John, does not merely repeat the injunction, "Follow me," but forces upon Peter the original summons. This undoubtedly gives a solemnity and specialty to the work of Peter, to which the subsequent career of John was not an exact parallel. It cannot be said that our Lord in any sense forbids John to follow him, but says that, though John may abide, may rest, may meditate, may see visions and dream dreams, until he the Lord should come, that would in no respect alter the direct advice given to Peter. On referring to the earliest scene described in this Gospel between Jesus and his disciples, we find that "Follow me" was addressed to Philip, Moreover, Andrew and John were, on their first introduction to Jesus as "the Lamb of God," already (ἀκολουθοῦντας) "following him," and they were even then asking for power or permission to "abide" (μένειν) with him. But Peter was not then told to "follow him," but was simply invested with the great name of Cephas (John 1:42). These details are obviously supplemented by those before us. The entire phraseology is borrowed from the earlier narrative. The true solution of the problem of the paragraph is that John had followed the Master from the first, and clung to him (ἔμεινε), abode with him, from those early days till the moment at which these memorable words were uttered. In the journeys to Jerusalem, at the interview with Nicodemus, in Samaria, at the pool of Bethesda, in the hall of the high priest, and in Pilate's Praetorium, at the upper chamber, and in the garden, to the cross, and to the grave of Joseph, the beloved disciple had "followed" his Master. Peter's devotion was intense and at times passionate, but it was marked with a striking disposition, from first to last, to lead as well as "follow," to advise as well as to be guided, to stretch forth his hands, and to gird himself for his own enterprises. But with all his extraordinary peculiarities, he had never really broken the bond or relinquished his faith; and now the Lord in one word corrects every one of his failings anew, and institutes him into his sublime mission by the call, "Follow me." But even yet, Peter's extraordinary characteristic, to guide rather than to follow, leads him once more to lake the initiative. For whatever gesture it was that our Lord made, which induced Peter to think of immediate action, we cannot say; but it would seem that, even before he began to follow, he gave another intensely vivid characterization of himself.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
[Jesus] said
εἶπεν (eipen)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

this
τοῦτο (touto)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

to indicate
σημαίνων (sēmainōn)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 4591: To signify, indicate, give a sign, make known. From sema; to indicate.

[the kind of] death
θανάτῳ (thanatō)
Noun - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2288: Death, physical or spiritual. From thnesko; death.

by which
ποίῳ (poiō)
Interrogative / Indefinite Pronoun - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 4169: Of what sort. From the base of pou and hoios; individualizing interrogative what sort of, or which one.

[Peter] would glorify
δοξάσει (doxasei)
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1392: To glorify, honor, bestow glory on. From doxa; to render glorious.

God.
Θεόν (Theon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

And [after]
Καὶ (Kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

He had said
εἰπὼν (eipōn)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

this,
τοῦτο (touto)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

He told
λέγει (legei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.

him,
αὐτῷ (autō)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

“Follow
Ἀκολούθει (Akolouthei)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 190: To accompany, attend, follow. Properly, to be in the same way with, i.e. To accompany.

Me.”
μοι (moi)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 1st Person Singular
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.


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