For the law was given through Moses;The law refers to the Mosaic Law, which includes the Ten Commandments and the extensive legal, moral, and ceremonial codes given to the Israelites. Moses, a central figure in the Old Testament, was chosen by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and to receive the law on Mount Sinai. This law was foundational for the Jewish people, establishing a covenant relationship with God and setting them apart as His chosen nation. The law served as a guide for righteous living and highlighted the need for atonement and sacrifice due to human sinfulness. It also foreshadowed the coming of a greater covenant, as seen in the prophecies of a new covenant in
Jeremiah 31:31-34.
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
In contrast to the law, grace and truth are personified in Jesus Christ. Grace refers to the unmerited favor and love of God, which is fully realized in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This grace offers salvation to all who believe, transcending the limitations of the law. Truth, in this context, signifies the ultimate revelation of God's character and will, embodied in Jesus. While the law was a shadow of things to come, Jesus is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets (Matthew 5:17). His coming marks the inauguration of the new covenant, where believers are justified by faith and not by adherence to the law (Romans 3:21-24). Jesus' ministry exemplified both grace and truth, offering forgiveness and calling for repentance, thus providing a complete revelation of God's redemptive plan.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
MosesA central figure in the Old Testament, Moses is the prophet through whom God gave the Law to the Israelites. He represents the old covenant and the foundation of Jewish religious practice.
2.
Jesus ChristThe central figure of the New Testament, Jesus is the Son of God who embodies grace and truth. His coming marks the fulfillment and surpassing of the Law given through Moses.
3.
The LawRefers to the commandments and regulations given by God to the Israelites through Moses. It served as a guide for righteous living and a means to reveal human sinfulness.
4.
GraceIn the Greek, "charis" refers to the unmerited favor and love of God towards humanity, fully expressed in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
5.
TruthIn the Greek, "aletheia" signifies the ultimate reality and faithfulness of God, revealed in Jesus Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life.
Teaching Points
The Fulfillment of the LawJesus did not abolish the Law but fulfilled it, bringing a new covenant of grace and truth. Believers are called to live in the freedom and righteousness that comes through faith in Christ.
Grace Over LawWhile the Law reveals sin, grace offers redemption. Christians are encouraged to rely on God's grace for salvation and daily living, rather than attempting to earn favor through legalistic adherence.
Truth in ChristJesus embodies the truth of God, providing a reliable foundation for faith and practice. Believers are urged to seek truth in Christ and live according to His teachings.
The Role of the Law TodayThe Law serves as a moral guide and reveals the holiness of God, but it is through grace that believers are empowered to live righteously.
Living in Grace and TruthChristians are called to reflect the grace and truth of Jesus in their interactions with others, demonstrating love, forgiveness, and integrity.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of John 1:17?
2.How does John 1:17 contrast law and grace in our daily lives?
3.What role does Jesus play in revealing "grace and truth" to believers?
4.How can we apply "grace and truth" in our interactions with others?
5.How does John 1:17 connect to the teachings in Romans 6:14?
6.In what ways can we embody "grace and truth" in our community?
7.How does John 1:17 differentiate between law and grace?
8.Why is grace through Jesus emphasized over the law given through Moses?
9.What historical context influenced the message of John 1:17?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from John 1?
11.What does Jesus' coming in grace and truth mean?
12.What does Jesus' coming in grace and truth mean?
13.What defines the Age of Grace?
14.What does God's grace mean in justifying us?What Does John 1:17 Mean
for the Law was given through MosesGod’s gift of the Law at Sinai (Exodus 19:3-6) was a defining moment for Israel:
• It revealed His holy standards—“The Law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good” (Romans 7:12).
• It exposed humanity’s sin—“Through the Law we become conscious of sin” (Romans 3:20).
• It served as a guardian until Christ—“So the Law became our guardian to lead us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24).
Moses, the faithful servant (Hebrews 3:5), delivered what God required, but the Law could only diagnose the problem, not cure it.
grace and truth came through Jesus ChristWhere Moses stood on the mountain receiving commands, Jesus stepped down from heaven bringing what the Law could never supply:
• Grace—unearned favor. “From His fullness we have all received grace upon grace” (John 1:16).
• Truth—the complete, faithful revelation of God. Jesus declares, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
• Both grace and truth are embodied in His person (John 1:14) and poured out at the cross, where “the free gift is not like the trespass” (Romans 5:15-17).
In Christ, God moves from requirement to rescue, from demand to deliverance.
the contrast and harmony between Law and graceWhileJohn 1:17 sets Law over against grace, Scripture shows they work together:
• The Law points to our need; grace meets that need (Romans 5:20-21).
• The Law condemns; grace justifies (Galatians 2:16).
• The Law was written on tablets of stone; grace writes truth on hearts by the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:6).
Yet Jesus does not abolish the Law; He fulfills it (Matthew 5:17), satisfying every righteous demand so that a new covenant can be established (Hebrews 8:6-13).
living in the age of grace and truthBecause grace and truth have come, believers now:
• Stand free from the Law’s penalty—“You are not under law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14).
• Walk by the Spirit, not by rule-keeping (Galatians 5:1, 16).
• Look into “the perfect law that gives freedom” and act on it (James 1:25).
• Fix hope on future grace while living holy lives in the present (1 Peter 1:13-16).
summaryJohn 1:17 contrasts two mighty acts of God. Through Moses came the Law—good, righteous, yet powerless to save. Through Jesus Christ came grace and truth—God’s decisive remedy for sin and His fullest self-revelation. The Law shows why we need a Savior; grace and truth provide Him. Because Christ has fulfilled the Law and opened the floodgates of grace, every believer can live in freedom, anchored in truth, and overflowing with gratitude to the One who gives both.
(17) The word "for" connects this verse by way of explanation with what has gone before. The Old Testament thought of grace and truth has been already present in
John 1:14. The fulness of these divine attributes has been beheld in the glory of the Word. The revelation of them, that is, the removing of the veil which hides the knowable, has been made dependent on the use of the already known. But this is the essence of Christianity as distinct from Judaism; of a spiritual religion developed from within as distinct from a formal religion imposed from without; of a religion of principles, and therefore true for all time and for all men, as distinct from a religion of works, based, indeed, on an eternal truth (the oneness and the righteousness of God) but still specially designed for a chosen people and for a period of preparation. The law was given (from without) by the human agency of Moses. The true grace and truth came into being by means of Jesus Christ. Therefore it is that we receive grace for grace, there being in Him an ever constant fulness of grace, and for the man who uses the grace thus given an ever constant realisation of deeper truth. Note that here, when the divinity and humanity have both been dwelt upon, and in contrast to the historic Moses, the name Jesus Christ first appears. Is there, too, in this union of the human and divine names a reference to the union in Him of the faculty to receive and the truth to fulfil? St. Luke speaks of Him as "increasing in wisdom and stature, and in
favour (grace) with God and man" (
Luke 2:52; see Note there).
Verse 17. - The
χάριν ἀντὶ χάριτος is sustained by calling attention to the contrast between the two methods of Divine communication.
Because the Law was given through Moses; "Law," which in Paul's writings had been even looked at by itself as an "antithesis to grace" (
Romans 4:15;
Romans 6:14;
Romans 7:3;
Romans 10:4;
Galatians 3:10;
Galatians 4:4). The Law principle of approach to God fails through the weakness of the flesh. The will is too far enslaved for it to yield spontaneously to the majesty of the Lawgiver, or to feel the attractions of obedience. The Law condemns, - it is incapable of justifying the ungodly: the Law terrifies, - it never reconciles. The Law even provokes to sin and excites the passions which it punishes. Law was
given through Moses, pointing to the historic fact of the pomp and splendour of its first delivery, associated therefore with the greatest human name in all past history. Law was a "gift," a Divine bestowment of entirely unspeakable value to those who were ignorant of the mind and will of God. Even the ministration of death was glorious. The knowledge of an ideal perfection is a great advance, even though no power should accompany the ideal to draw the soul towards it. To know what is right, even without help to do it, save in the form of sanction, or penalty appealing to the lower nature, is better and nobler than to sin in utter ignorance. The Law was given "
through" the mind, voice, conscience, and will of Moses. And alongside of him may be supposed to be ranged all the mighty sages and legislators of the human race - all who have thus been the mouthpiece of the Divine idea, all who have impressed the "ought" and "ought not," the "shall" and "shall not," upon mankind. Moses is not the
author of the Law, the "giving" of the Law was not
by Moses, but
through his instrumentality.
Grace and truth, however,
came - became, passed into activity in human nature -
through Jesus Christ. For "grace and truth" (see notes, ver. 14), the highest manifestation and self-communication of Divine love and Divine thought, came into human experience through Jesus Christ. A vast and wonderful contrast is here made between all earlier or other dispensations and that of which the apostle proceeds to speak. Divine favour and help, the life of God himself in the soul of man, awakening love in response to the Divine love; and Divine thought so made known as to bring all the higher faculties of man into direct contact with reality, are an enormous advance upon Lawgiving. The appropriate human response to Law is obedience; the appropriate human response to love is of the same nature with itself - nothing less than love; so the only adequate response to Divine truth is faith; to Divine thought may follow human thought. All this forth streaming of grace and truth originated in the person of
Jesus Christ, and became possible through him. This great
Name, this blending of the human and Divine, of saving grace and Messianic dignity, of ancient expectations and recent realization, is only twice more used in the Gospel (
John 17:3 and John 20:31); but it pervades it throughout, and, though not actually said to be equivalent to the
Word made flesh, yet no shadow of doubt is left that this was the apostle's meaning. Here the full significance of the prologue really bursts into view to one who reads it for the first time (cf.
1 John 1:1-3). Difficulty may be felt by some as to the actual Capacity of Jesus Christ to reveal the Divine thought, or
the truth, and so the closing verse of the prologue vindicates the claim of the Saviour of the world to be the truth (cf.
John 14:6).
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
Forὅτι(hoti)Conjunction
Strong's 3754:Neuter of hostis as conjunction; demonstrative, that; causative, because.theὁ(ho)Article - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.Lawνόμος(nomos)Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3551:From a primary nemo; law, genitive case, specially, (including the volume); also of the Gospel), or figuratively.was givenἐδόθη(edothē)Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1325:To offer, give; I put, place. A prolonged form of a primary verb; to give.throughδιὰ(dia)Preposition
Strong's 1223:A primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through.Moses;Μωϋσέως(Mōuseōs)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3475:Or Moses, or Mouses of Hebrew origin; Moseus, Moses, or Mouses, the Hebrew lawgiver.graceχάρις(charis)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 5485:From chairo; graciousness, of manner or act.andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.truthἀλήθεια(alētheia)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 225:From alethes; truth.cameἐγένετο(egeneto)Verb - Aorist Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1096:A prolongation and middle voice form of a primary verb; to cause to be, i.e. to become, used with great latitude.throughδιὰ(dia)Preposition
Strong's 1223:A primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through.JesusἸησοῦ(Iēsou)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424:Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.Christ.Χριστοῦ(Christou)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 5547:Anointed One; the Messiah, the Christ. From chrio; Anointed One, i.e. The Messiah, an epithet of Jesus.
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NT Gospels: John 1:17 For the law was given through Moses (Jhn Jo Jn) 
