John 3:11
New International Version
Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony.

New Living Translation
I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony.

English Standard Version
Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.

Berean Standard Bible
Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony.

Berean Literal Bible
Truly, truly, I say to you that we speak that which we know, and we bear witness to that which we have seen, and you people do not receive our witness.

King James Bible
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

New King James Version
Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.

New American Standard Bible
Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you people do not accept our testimony.

NASB 1995
“Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony.

NASB 1977
“Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak that which we know, and bear witness of that which we have seen; and you do not receive our witness.

Legacy Standard Bible
Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and bear witness of what we have seen, and you do not accept our witness.

Amplified Bible
I assure you and most solemnly say to you, we speak only of what we [absolutely] know and testify about what we have [actually] seen [as eyewitnesses]; and [still] you [reject our evidence and] do not accept our testimony.

Christian Standard Bible
“Truly I tell you, we speak what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you do not accept our testimony.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
“I assure you: We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not accept Our testimony.

American Standard Version
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and bear witness of that which we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Timeless truth I speak to you: The things that We know We are speaking and the things that We see We are testifying, and Our testimony all of you do not accept.

Contemporary English Version
I tell you for certain we know what we are talking about because we have seen it ourselves. But none of you will accept what we say.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Amen, amen I say to thee, that we speak what we know, and we testify what we have seen, and you receive not our testimony.

English Revised Version
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and bear witness of that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I can guarantee this truth: We know what we're talking about, and we confirm what we've seen. Yet, you don't accept our message.

Good News Translation
I am telling you the truth: we speak of what we know and report what we have seen, yet none of you is willing to accept our message.

International Standard Version
Truly, I tell you emphatically, we know what we're talking about, and we testify about what we've seen. Yet you people do not accept our testimony.

Literal Standard Version
Truly, truly, I say to you, what We have known We speak, and what We have seen We testify, and you do not receive Our testimony;

Majority Standard Bible
Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony.

New American Bible
Amen, amen, I say to you, we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony.

NET Bible
I 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.

New Revised Standard Version
“Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony.

New Heart English Bible
Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak that which we know, and testify of that which we have seen, but you do not accept our testimony.

Webster's Bible Translation
Verily, verily, I say to thee, We speak what we know, and testify what we have seen; and ye receive not our testimony.

Weymouth New Testament
In most solemn truth I tell you that we speak what we know, and give testimony of that of which we were eye-witnesses, and yet you all reject our testimony.

World English Bible
Most certainly I tell you, we speak that which we know and testify of that which we have seen, and you don’t receive our witness.

Young's Literal Translation
'Verily, verily, I say to thee -- What we have known we speak, and what we have seen we testify, and our testimony ye do not receive;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Jesus and Nicodemus
10“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and you do not understand these things? 11Truly, truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, and yet you people do not accept our testimony. 12If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?…

Cross References
John 1:18
No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father's side, has made Him known.

John 3:12
If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?

John 3:32
He testifies to what He has seen and heard, yet no one accepts His testimony.

John 7:16
"My teaching is not My own," Jesus replied. "It comes from Him who sent Me.

John 8:26
"I have much to say about you and much to judge. But the One who sent Me is truthful, and what I have heard from Him, I tell the world."

John 8:28
So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own, but speak exactly what the Father has taught Me.

John 12:49
I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it.


Treasury of Scripture

Truly, truly, I say to you, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you receive not our witness.

verily.

John 3:3,5
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…

We speak.

John 3:13,32-34
And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven…

John 1:18
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

John 7:16
Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.

ye.

John 3:32
And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.

John 1:11
He came unto his own, and his own received him not.

John 5:31-40,43
If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true…

Jump to Previous
Accept Bear Eye-Witnesses Receive Reject Solemn Speak Testify Testimony Truth Verily Witness
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Accept Bear Eye-Witnesses Receive Reject Solemn Speak Testify Testimony Truth Verily Witness
John 3
1. Jesus teaches Nicodemus the necessity of being born again,
14. of faith in his death,
16. the great love of God toward the world,
18. and the condemnation for unbelief.
22. Jesus baptizes in Judea.
23. The baptism, witness, and doctrine of John concerning Jesus.














(11) Once again the "Verily, verily" of deeper truth. "We speak that we do know" is in sharp contrast to their formal teaching of matters external to the truth. The plural is not usual in the language of Christ, and the immediate passage to the singular forbids us to accept the usual grammatical explanation that it is the plural of majesty. He apparently joins others with Himself,--those who have spoken and known and testified, and whose testimony has been rejected by the Jews. We have to think of him whose life-work was to bear witness of the Light (John 1:8), and of the band of disciples who form a little school round their Master, and who in Jerusalem, as in Galilee, testified of Him; and it may even be that in the house and presence of one of that band this conversation took place (comp. John 3:2). They knew the power of the new life, and had been baptised of water and of spirit. In their measure and degree, as He in fulness, they spake what they knew, and testified what they had seen. (Comp. John 15:27.)

And ye receive not our witness--i.e., "ye Jews," the teachers, of whom Nicodemus was one, the representatives of His own who received Him not (John 1:11). This attitude of the mind which refused to accept the evidence of witnesses as to things they had known and seen was of the essence of unbelief, and made further revelation impossible. When the will closed the faculty of faith, it left open no access for fuller spiritual truth.

Verse 11. - Verily, verily, I say to thee, We speak that which we know, and testify that which we have seen. Lucke and Meyer think that our Lord here merely uses the pluralis majestaticus - uses it as St. Paul does, when clearly he was referring to himself alone. It is difficult to believe this in the curious and impressive change of person here adopted, and the return to the first person singular in ver. 12. There was some reason why Jesus, in making this particular saying, uses the plural.

(1) Luthardt says, "Christ and the Baptist."

(2) Luther and Tholuck, "Christ and the whole prophetic company."

(3) Stier, "The Three Persons of the blessed Trinity" (see Chrysostom, etc.). . . .

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
Truly,
ἀμὴν (amēn)
Hebrew Word
Strong's 281: Of Hebrew origin; properly, firm, i.e. trustworthy; adverbially, surely.

truly,
ἀμὴν (amēn)
Hebrew Word
Strong's 281: Of Hebrew origin; properly, firm, i.e. trustworthy; adverbially, surely.

I tell
λέγω (legō)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st 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.

you,
σοι (soi)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

we speak
λαλοῦμεν (laloumen)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 2980: A prolonged form of an otherwise obsolete verb; to talk, i.e. Utter words.

of what
(ho)
Personal / Relative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3739: Who, which, what, that.

we know,
οἴδαμεν (oidamen)
Verb - Perfect Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1492: To know, remember, appreciate.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

we testify
μαρτυροῦμεν (martyroumen)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 3140: To witness, bear witness, give evidence, testify, give a good report. From martus; to be a witness, i.e. Testify.

to what
(ho)
Personal / Relative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3739: Who, which, what, that.

we have seen,
ἑωράκαμεν (heōrakamen)
Verb - Perfect Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 3708: Properly, to stare at, i.e. to discern clearly; by extension, to attend to; by Hebraism, to experience; passively, to appear.

and yet
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

you people do not accept
λαμβάνετε (lambanete)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 2983: (a) I receive, get, (b) I take, lay hold of.

our
ἡμῶν (hēmōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

testimony.
μαρτυρίαν (martyrian)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3141: Witness, evidence, testimony, reputation. From martus; evidence given.


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NT Gospels: John 3:11 Most certainly I tell you we speak (Jhn Jo Jn)
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