Greetings.
I have been waiting to see if anyone would raise the question concerning
John 3.5 whether Jesus was including himself in his statement. Was Jesus
himself GENNHQH EX hUDATOJ KAI PNEUMATOJ ? As the statement stands,
there is good reason to suppose that Jesus was including himself in it.
After all, He of all people was in the kingdom of God. If Jesus
included himself in those "born of water" , and if, as some b-greekers
are on record as having supposed, hUDATOJ means "semen", it would follow
that, on such a view, Jesus had a human father.
I personally think that GENNHQH EX hUDATOJ KAI PENUMATOJ does not allude
to human procreation, but refers to baptism in water and being empowered
by the Holy Spirit. We know (and I am sure the writer of the Fourth
Gospel also knew) that Jesus was baptized in water and was empowered by
the Holy Spirit. On this interpretation, Jesus includes himself in his
statement in John 3.5 without implying that he had a human father.
Brian E. Wilson
Please visit my home page on
http://www.twonh.demon.co.uk/
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