No one has ever seen GodThis phrase emphasizes the transcendence and invisibility of God. In the Old Testament, God is described as dwelling in unapproachable light (
1 Timothy 6:16) and as a spirit (
John 4:24). Instances where God appears, such as to Moses in
Exodus 33:20-23, are mediated through visions or representations, not direct encounters. This underscores the holiness and otherness of God, who cannot be fully comprehended by human senses.
but the one and only Son
The term "one and only" (Greek: monogenēs) signifies uniqueness and exclusivity. It highlights the special relationship between Jesus and the Father, distinguishing Him from all other beings. This phrase connects toJohn 3:16, where Jesus is described as God's "only begotten Son," emphasizing His unique divine sonship and role in salvation history.
who is Himself God
This affirms the deity of Christ, a central tenet of Christian doctrine. It aligns withJohn 1:1, which states, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." This phrase asserts the full divinity of Jesus, countering early heresies that denied His divine nature. It is foundational for understanding the Trinity, where Jesus is fully God, co-equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
and is at the Father’s side
This phrase indicates the intimate relationship and unity between the Father and the Son. The imagery of being "at the Father’s side" suggests closeness and shared authority. It reflects the cultural context of the ancient Near East, where sitting at the right hand of a ruler signified honor and power. This is echoed inHebrews 1:3, where Jesus is described as sitting at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
has made Him known
Jesus, as the incarnate Word, reveals the Father to humanity. This revelation is not just through His teachings but through His very life and actions. InJohn 14:9, Jesus tells Philip, "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father." This phrase fulfills the prophetic anticipation of a Messiah who would bring knowledge of God to the people, as seen in passages likeIsaiah 9:6 andIsaiah 11:2. Jesus' life, death, and resurrection provide the ultimate revelation of God's character and purpose.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
GodThe eternal, omnipotent, and omniscient Creator of the universe, who is invisible to human eyes.
2.
The One and Only SonRefers to Jesus Christ, who is uniquely begotten of the Father and shares in the divine nature.
3.
The FatherGod the Father, the first person of the Trinity, who is in a close and intimate relationship with the Son.
4.
The IncarnationThe event of God the Son taking on human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ to reveal God to humanity.
Teaching Points
The Unseen GodUnderstand that God, in His essence, is invisible and beyond human comprehension. This calls for reverence and awe in our approach to Him.
The Revelation through ChristJesus, being fully God and fully man, uniquely reveals the nature and character of God. This encourages us to study the life and teachings of Jesus to know God more intimately.
The Intimacy of the Father and the SonThe close relationship between the Father and the Son is a model for our relationship with God. We are invited into this intimacy through faith in Christ.
The Role of the IncarnationThe incarnation is central to understanding how God communicates with humanity. It shows God’s love and desire to be known by us.
Living in Light of RevelationAs Jesus has made God known, we are called to live in a way that reflects His character and truth to the world.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of John 1:18?
2.How does John 1:18 reveal the uniqueness of Jesus in knowing God?
3.What does "No one has ever seen God" imply about God's nature?
4.How does John 1:18 connect with Exodus 33:20 about seeing God?
5.How can we apply the revelation of God through Jesus in daily life?
6.How does Jesus being "at the Father's side" impact our relationship with God?
7.How does John 1:18 affirm the divinity of Jesus?
8.Why does John 1:18 say no one has seen God?
9.How does John 1:18 relate to the concept of the Trinity?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from John 1?
11.Has anyone ever seen God?
12.Jesus says, “No one has seen God” (John 1:18), but Genesis 32:30 says Jacob saw God face to face. Isn’t this a contradiction?
13.What are the main Trinitarian heresies?
14.Has anyone ever witnessed God?What Does John 1:18 Mean
No one has ever seen GodJohn opens with a staggering truth: the Almighty dwells in unapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16). Moses caught only a glimpse of God’s back (Exodus 33:20–23), Isaiah saw His robe fill the temple (Isaiah 6:1), yet none beheld His unveiled essence. This reminds us:
• God’s holiness and glory are so pure that fallen humanity cannot survive direct exposure.
• Every Old Testament encounter—burning bush, cloud, or angel—was a veiled manifestation pointing ahead to something greater.
but the one and only SonThe phrase spotlights Jesus’ uniqueness. He is not one of many; He is “the only begotten” (John 3:16) in the sense of being utterly singular. Where prophets were servants, the Son is heir (Hebrews 1:1–2). His exclusive status means He alone can fully bridge heaven and earth.
who is Himself GodHere the Spirit leaves no room for doubt about Christ’s deity. Other passages echo the claim: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1); “In Him the whole fullness of Deity dwells bodily” (Colossians 2:9). Jesus isn’t a lesser divine figure; He shares the same eternal nature as the Father, making His revelation of God absolutely authoritative.
and is at the Father’s sideLiterally “in the bosom of the Father,” portraying closeness, affection, and perfect fellowship. Before creation, the Son enjoyed glory “with You before the world existed” (John 17:5). From that place of intimate communion, He now communicates the Father’s heart to us. This assures believers that every word and act of Jesus flows directly from the Father’s loving presence.
has made Him knownThe Greek verb behind “made Him known” gives us our word exegesis—drawing out meaning. Jesus is the living exposition of God:
• His teaching articulates the Father’s mind (John 12:49).
• His compassion displays the Father’s heart (Matthew 9:36).
• His cross reveals the Father’s justice and love in full harmony (Romans 3:25–26; 5:8).
• His resurrection unveils the Father’s power over death (Acts 2:24).
To see Jesus is to see the Father (John 14:9). No further, fuller revelation will surpass Him.
summaryJohn 1:18 proclaims that humanity could never, on its own, gaze upon the invisible God. Yet God Himself solved the problem: the unique, divine Son, forever nestled in the Father’s embrace, stepped into history to disclose exactly who God is. In Christ we encounter God’s holy splendor, steadfast love, and saving purpose—no veil, no distance, no doubt.
(18)
No man hath seen God at any time.--The full knowledge of truth is one with the revelation of God, but no man has ever had this full knowledge. The primary reference is still to Moses (comp.
Exodus 33:20;
Exodus 33:23), but the words hold good of every attempt to bridge from the human stand-point the gulf between man and God. "The world by wisdom knew not God" (
1Corinthians 1:21), and systems which have resulted from attempts of the finite to grasp the Infinite are but as the vision of a dream or the wild fancy of a wandering mind.
The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father.--The oneness of essence and of existence is made prominent by a natural figure, as necessary in Him who is to reveal the nature of God. The "is in" is probably to be explained of the return to, and presence with the Father after the Ascension.
Some of the oldest MSS. and other authorities read here, "Only begotten God, which is in the bosom of the Father." It will be convenient to group together the passages of this Gospel, where there are important various readings in one Note. SeeExcursusB. Some Variations in the Text of St. John's Gospel.
He hath declared him.--"He," emphatically as distinct from all others, this being the chief office of the Word;declared, rather than "hath declared;" "Him" is not found in the original text, which means "He was interpreter," "He was expositor." The word was used technically of the interpretation of sacred rites and laws handed down by tradition. Plato,e.g., uses it of the Delphian Apollo, who is the "national expositor" (Rep. iv. 427). The verse is connected, by a likeness of Greek words too striking to be accidental, with the question of Jesus the son of Sirach asked some three centuries before, "Who hath seen Him that he might tell us?" (Ecclesiasticus 43:31). The answer to every such question, dimly thought or clearly asked, is that no man hath ever so known God as to be His interpreter; that the human conception of God as "terrible" and "great" and "marvellous" (Ecclesiasticus 43:29) is not that of His essential character; that the true conception is that of the loving Father in whose bosom is the only Son, and that this Son is the only true Word uttering to man the will and character and being of God. . . .
Verse 18. -
No one hath ever yet seen God. Many visions, theophanies, appearances, angelic splendours, in the desert, on the mountain, in the temple, by the river of Chebar, had been granted to the prophets of the Lord; but they have all fallen short of the direct intuition of God as God. Abraham, Israel, Moses, Manoah, David, Isaiah, Ezekiel, saw visions, local manifestations, anticipations of the Incarnation; but the apostle here takes the Lord's own word for it (
John 5:37), and he elsewhere repeats it (
1 John 4:12). These were but forerunners of the ultimate manifestation of the Logos. "The Glory of the Lord," "the Angel of the Lord," "the Word of the Lord," were not so revealed to patriarchs that they saw God as God. They saw him in the form of light, or of spiritual agency, or of human ministries; but in the deepest sense we must still wait for the purity of heart which will reveal to our weakened faculties the beatific vision.
The only begotten Son - or, (God
only begotten) -
who is in (or,
on)
the bosom of the Father, he interpreted (him); became the satisfying Exposition, the Declarer, drawing forth from the depths of God all that it is possible that we shall see, know, or realize. This lofty assertion is augmented by the sublime intensification of the earlier phrase, "with God (
πρὸς τὸν Θεόν)," by (
εἰς τὸνκόλπον), "in or on the bosom of the Father;"
i.e. in most intimate and loving fellowship with the Father as the only begotten. The relations of fatherhood and sonship within the substance of the Godhead give new life, warmth, realization, to the vaster, colder, more metaphysical, metaphenomenal relations of
Θεός and
Λογός (cf. here
Proverbs 8:30). Bengel here says, "In lumbis esse dicuntur qui nascentur homines, in sinu sunt qui nati sunt. In sinu Patris erat Filius, quia nunquam non-natus." In view of the contention of Meyer that the language here refers to no age long, eternal indwelling of the Logos with, or of the Son (God only begotten) on the bosom of, the Father, but to the exaltation of the Christ after his ascension, we can only refer to the present tense (
ὁ ω}ν), which from the standpoint of the prologue does not transfer itself to the historical standpoint of the writer at the end of the first century. Lange thinks that the whole of this wonderful utterance is attributed by the evangelist to the Baptist; but the standing of the Baptist, lofty as it is in John's Gospel, after the Baptist came into brief fellowship with the One who was before him, certainly falls short of this insight into his eternal Being. John the beloved disciple could thus speak of the revelation and interpretation of God which was made in the life, words, and death of the Only Begotten, from whose fulness he had received "grace for grace;" but in this verse he is speaking of the timeless condition, the eternal fellowship, of the Only Begotten with the Father, as justifying the fulness of the revelation made in his incarnation. The prologue forms a key to the entire Gospel. It may have been written after the record of the central principles involved in the life work of Jesus had been completed. Every statement in it may be seen to be derived from the recorded words or acts of the Lord, the revelation of the Father in time, the unveiling of the eternal heart of him who made all things, and by one competent to speak of both eternities. The writer of the prologue speaks of himself as one of a group or society who had had ocular evidence of the perfection and glory of the manifestation. This fellowship of men had found themselves children of God, and in the possession of a life, a light, and a hope which were derived entirely from
Jesus Christ, who is undoubtedly in a unique sense declared (though not formally defined) to be "the Word made flesh." In the subsequent narrative we find a graduated series of instructions on the powers of Christ and the opposition of the world to his self-manifestation. Thus (ch. 1.) the testimony of the Baptist (made after his contact with Christ) to the Person and work of the Lord attributes to him, on prophetic authority, most stupendous functions - those of baptizing with the Holy Spirit, and taking away the sin of the world. He does himself reveal the way to the Father. He is hailed as the "Christ," the "King of Israel," and as the link between heaven and earth, between the invisible and visible, the Divine and the human (
John 1:51). In ch. 2, with all its other suggestiveness, Christ displays his creative power, and (cf. ch. 6.) his relation to the world of things, as well as his organic relation to the old covenant. In ch. 2 his "body" is the "temple" of God, where his Father dwelt, thus justifying the
ἐσκήνωσεν of ver. 14. The pre-existence of Christ as a self-conscious personality in the very substance of Deity is asserted by himself in
John 6:62;
John 8:58;
John 17:5, 24. The fact that he is the Source of all
life (
John 1:3), is involved in the teaching of the Gospel from end to end. Eternal life is ministered through him, to believers (
John 3:16, etc., John 3:36). He claims to have life in himself (
John 5:26). He is the "Bread of life" for starving humanity (
John 6:35, 48). The words that he speaks are spirit and
life (
John 6:63). In
John 8:12 the
φῶς τῆς ζωῆς links the idea of life and light as they are shown to cohere in the prologue. In
John 14:6 he declares himself to be "the Truth and the Life," thus sustaining the great generalization. By raising Lazarus he is portrayed as the Restorer of forfeited life, as well as the original Giver of life to men (
John 11:25). The ninth chapter records the symbolic event by which he proved himself to be the Sun of the spiritual universe, "the Light of the world" (cf.
John 1:4 with John 8:12; cf.
John 12:36, 46). The whole history of the conflict with the people whom he came to save, with "his own," with the world power, and the death doom, is the material which is generalized in the solemn statements of
John 1:5-10. The prologue says nothing in express words of Christ's supernatural conception, of his death, or of his resurrection and eternal glory; yet these objective facts are woven through, and involved in, the entire context, for the incarnation of the Eternal Word is the historic basis of the apostle's experience of such a life as that which he proceeds to sketch. The absolute antagonism of the darkness to the light, and the rejection of the light and life by the world, never had such exposition as that which the repudiation and crucifixion of the Son of God gave to them; while the eternal nature of the central life and being of him who, when incarnate, was thus resisted by unbelief renders the resurrection and ultimate and eternal glory a necessity of thought even to these who have not yet seen, but yet have believed.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
No oneοὐδεὶς(oudeis)Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3762:No one, none, nothing.has ever seenἑώρακεν(heōraken)Verb - Perfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 3708:Properly, to stare at, i.e. to discern clearly; by extension, to attend to; by Hebraism, to experience; passively, to appear.God,Θεὸν(Theon)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316:A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.[but the] one and only Son,μονογενὴς(monogenēs)Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3439:Only, only-begotten; unique. From monos and ginomai; only-born, i.e. Sole.[ who is Himself ] GodΘεὸς(Theos)Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316:A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.[and]ὁ(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.isὢν(ōn)Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 1510:I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.atεἰς(eis)Preposition
Strong's 1519:A primary preposition; to or into, of place, time, or purpose; also in adverbial phrases.theτὸν(ton)Article - Accusative 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.Father’sΠατρὸς(Patros)Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3962:Father, (Heavenly) Father, ancestor, elder, senior. Apparently a primary word; a 'father'.side,κόλπον(kolpon)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2859:Apparently a primary word; the bosom; by analogy, a bay.has made [Him] known.ἐξηγήσατο(exēgēsato)Verb - Aorist Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1834:To lead, show the way; met: I unfold, narrate, declare. From ek and hegeomai; to consider out, i.e. Rehearse, unfold.
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NT Gospels: John 1:18 No one has seen God at any (Jhn Jo Jn) 
